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Louis Garneau Vortice Review   Bookmark and Share
images by Nick Salazar   •   Oct 14, 2011   •   hits 22,222

The Garneau Vortice (left), next to the Giro Selector (middle) and the Uvex Aero (right).

 
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The Louis Garneau Vortice is a serious effort to pack in as many features as possible into a single aero helmet. I don't have a wind tunnel to back up the claims, but it's a good-looking helmet, easy to use, and well-ventilated.


The Louis Garneau Vortice is a helmet designed with a lot of features borrowed from other areas of the bike industry - we've seen the dimples on wheels before, we've seen truncated airfoils, and perhaps even the swirl generators on various parts. But they all add up to a unique helmet, both aesthetically and probably aerodynamically.

The frontal profile is a bit more involved than some other helmets - one large vent, the dimples, and the so-called vortex generators sticking out on top.  Garneau says these are all designed with better aerodynamics and superior comfort in mind.

Here are the signature dimples on the Vortice, and the vortex generators sticking out on top.

A closeup of the truncated rear section, which also acts as an exhaust port.

The retention mechanism is a simple ratchet that will be familiar to most cyclists.

Helmet visors are great, providing great visibility while eliminating the need to fuss with sunglasses.  But I wish Garneau included a smoke-color  lens, instead of the clear.

All-told, it's a good looking, full-featured lid.

The Garneau Vortice (left), next to the Giro Selector (middle) and the Uvex Aero (right).

Here's the helmet with my position.

Garneau now makes a semi-mirrored smoke visor that blocks out more sun.





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