London's latest bike helmet is ultra-strong and chic enough for city cyclists

It turns out the perfect bike helmet does exist... Phoebe Luckhurst trials it
Hard hat: Dashel’s new helmet is hand-moulded in Cornwall and made from ultra-lightweight carbon fibre
Dashel

The cyclist is a magpie — if not by nature than by nurture. For they are over-stimulated by seductively shiny baubles: besides the ultra-light carbon-frame two-wheeler, there are top-spec panniers and leather racing gloves, neat cleats and smart compasses. To succumb to one accessory is to become, inevitably, bewitched by it all.

Save for one crucial piece of kit — the helmet, which has hitherto resisted trends and does not excite anyone. You’ll get one — something black and plastic with some foam inside — but you won’t share a picture of it on Instagram with a cooing caption and a sparkle emoji.

Cue Catherine Bedford’s lightbulb moment. Bedford — a former accessories designer and product developer who has worked with brands including Nike, Sony and fashion titan LVMH — coveted a helmet that would protect the head but also wouldn’t look mismatched when paired with an outfit straight off Net-a-Porter.

“There wasn’t much on the market for urban cyclists,” she explains. “Just something with a big chunky foam liner and plastic on top. It gave me a chunky head! It wasn’t very flattering at all.” She reasoned that you’d pay the money for a nice cut of jeans — why not a bike helmet?

This Eureka moment was in 2012, at which point Bedford began her forensic research. She spoke to neurologists at Imperial College to determine the best shape which, she explains, is “really rounded, something that slides off easily, isn’t going to twist your neck if you fall”. She started developing prototype after prototype, returning regularly to the drawing board to finesse the design. She took advice from other designers and engineers.

Dashel helmet in red
James Bedford

Finally she perfected her Dashel helmet: a carbon-fibre, rounded shell that only weighs 320-390g (depending on whether you’re wearing the small, medium or large) and which is hand-moulded at a factory in Cornwall which has a history of making helmets for the military and marine industries (good helmet credentials). Mouldable inner pads create a bespoke fit for every head and the liner is made from a multi-impact foam which doesn’t break down or flake off over time.

I trialled it on my five-mile route from Camberwell to Kensington and agree it feels simultaneously sturdy and liberatingly lightweight. Bedford observes that it’s important to be able to glance over your shoulder while cycling so the shape and weight of the helmet is calibrated accordingly. It was a marked difference from my hefty black plastic number.

The Dashel comes in a rainbow of colours including orange, grey, red, white, blue and black, and in matt or high shine (though Bedford says serious black is the favourite, followed by blue and grey). Each comes with a dustbag that doubles as a small rucksack.

Further development is in the offing: Bedford is based at cycle company Brompton’s offices in west London three days a week: there are surely few better bases for a cycling start-up. Though for now, she defines her mission thus: “I want people to put on something they don’t hate.”

£185, dashel.cc

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