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With helmets like this one on the market, there is no reason to not wear one.
My first climbing helmet was an old fashioned Joe Brown one, weighed a tonne and spent most of its life sat in a cupboard at home. This was around the mid 90s and the Ecrin Roc from Petzl was about as hi tech as I can remember back then.
Despite the protestations of my constantly worried mother, I never wore a helmet at all. The first time I thought seriously about it, was when a mate of mine I was belaying, fell off a route at Raven Crag, Langdale in the Lakes. He ripped a cam which then catapulted out with so much force, it whacked me on the head. I was lucky and ended up with a pretty small gash, and a hefty headache!
GEAR MYTHS: THE HELMET QUESTION—WHEN SHOULD YOU WEAR A HELMET AND WHY?
I started wearing a helmet, when I started winter climbing. It just seemed like the sort of thing you don’t do without all the protection you can find! But still I didn’t wear one for rock. And then when I came to the Alps for the first time in 1998 (for alpine rock climbing) I definitely wore one then. It seems strange to me now, and I can’t really fathom what was behind the decision to wear one or not wear one. Probably fashion, trend and what my peers were doing.
Over the years helmet technology has improved dramatically and almost 30 years on, I wear a helmet for most of my climbing and guiding (although I still generally don’t wear one sport climbing, but I should).
The helmet of choice at the moment is Black Diamond’s revised Vapor. I had 2 of the original Vapor helmets (reviewed here).They were so comfortable, light and low profile that I really would forget the thing was on my head. I don’t think they were the strongest helmets on the market, however this was the helmet I would unquestionably wear for all my climbing, as it felt like I wasn’t wearing one.
The new Vapor is a two piece construction, made from a combination of EPP (expanded polypropylene) around the sides and at the back, which allows a sleek profile and excellent venting. The EPP has a soft feel to it, when you push it, it feels like you can almost make a small dint in it, but then it is slightly elastic and pushes back out. This material has excellent shock absorption properties and also feels much more robust and less brittle than the original Vapor (made from EPS foam with a polycarbonate shell). I know a few friends managed to crack when transporting them.
The crown of the new Vapor contains a layer of super-light ALUULA composite material under the polycarbonate crown for added protection and reduced weight. This is a similar configuration to the Petzl Sirocco, however the Vapor is lighter and more low profile, and for my head, has a more secure fit.
Other than the construction, BD have added fully functional headlamp clips with rear elastic. This works well however I do find the rear elastic lacks the necessary tension to be super secure.
The cradle is another place where BD have upgraded the Vapor and saved weight at the same time. They use an ultralight cord fit system instead of a plastic cradle and in the field, adjustments and fit are easy to fine-tune. The buckle is secure. The whole thing fits easily inside the helmet when it’s in your pack.
Sizing wise it seems fairly consistent with the old Vapor. I take an S/M in both. The new S/M weighs 155g and the old version weighed 186g. For comparison, a Petzl Sirocco weighs 160g.
Having used the new Vapor all summer for my personal climbing and my work as an IFMGA Guide, I have to say, I couldn’t be happier with it. It’s comfortable, light, well ventilated and I barely notice I’m wearing it. It’s definitely my go to helmet for all my climbing and after a packed season of abuse, it’s not looking remotely trashed. If you’re still thinking of reasons why you shouldn’t wear a helmet, the new Vapor eliminates them all. Get one!
RRP: £150/€150
Find out more and buy one from the Black Diamond Website.
Kevin Avery is an IFMGA Mountain Guide based near Chamonix France. You can contact him for guiding at truenorthalpine@gmail.com and check his latest adventures on Instagram @truenorthalpine
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