The Anon Oslo WaveCel Helmet Review
Arguably the most important bit of snowboard kit you’ll invest in, helmets are no longer the ‘fashion faux pas’ they used to be back in the day. And when it comes to protecting your melon, there’s no such thing as ‘too safe’. Significant innovation has been made in the helmet industry in recent years, with great deals of research being made into the correlation between action sports and traumatic brain injuries.
From the outside, the Anon Oslo looks like a standard low-profile helmet, but take a closer look and you’ll see a luminous green framework sitting underneath the removable Polartec fleece lining. Anon has teamed up with WaveCel, a third-party company based in Oregon founded with the express purpose of creating the gold standard in brain protection. After a deep dive study into concussions and their long-term impacts, the team at WaveCel discovered how vulnerable the brain is to rotational forces and embarked on a two-decade-long journey to create a new technology to drastically reduce the risk of lasting damage.
Price: £215
Sizes available: S, M, L, XL + S/M & L/XL in Youth Sizes
WaveCel is a honeycomb-esque 3D matrix that functions as an interconnected shock absorption system designed to distribute impact energy and divert rotational forces by flexing and gliding. Like the crumple zone of a car, WaveCel absorbs the energy of a knock to the head and slows the impact to reduce the change in momentum. Tests have shown that products using WaveCel technology reduce the likelihood of concussion by 48 times and they can absorb up to 73% more rotational acceleration compared to standard EPS foam helmets.
The Anon Oslo’s outer shell is designed with two-piece ABS construction, which protects against obvious injuries like skull fractures and lacerations, but WaveCel is working overtime behind the scenes to safeguard against less obvious, but oftentimes more serious, internal trauma.
To allow your helmet to do its job properly, it’s got to fit correctly. Anon uses an in-shell 360° BOA® to allow you to dial in the perfect fit, and with four sizes to choose from, there’s an Anon Oslo for everyone.
As a rider-driven brand, the bods at Anon know exactly what features snowboarders look for. They’ve used Fidlock straps to allow for easy one-handed operation, even when you’ve got your mitts on. And to avoid sweaty bonces and steamed-up goggles a passive internal venting system draws fresh air in through channels at the front of the helmet. The Anon Oslo is compatible with most goggle brands, both for under and over-the-helmet use, but has a great fit with Anon frames.
It’s up to you whether or not you rock a lid, but with the leaps made concerning both the fashion and function of helmets over the past few years, there’s no reason to sack off wearing one anymore because you don’t want to look like you’re in ski school. For now, Anon has the exclusive rights to use WaveCel technology in winter sport helmets, so in our opinion, this is one of the best helmets on the market in terms of safety, and although it might not come cheap, you can’t put a price on peace of mind.
