MET Parachute MCR MIPS Helmet Review

This is the MET Parachute MCR MIPS helmet MIPs, an enduro helmet with removable chin bar. It comes in three sizes (small, medium, large) in a choice of nine different colours. The one we have here is a Blue Indigo Matt in size medium.

• Brand: MET
• Product: Parachute MCR MIPS Helmet
• From: Raleigh
• Price: £300.00
• Tested: by Hannah

Pros

• Breathable in full face mode
• No rattling clips or fastners
• Light and easy to ignore in full face mode

Cons

• Visor not very adjustable
• Can need mid ride adjustment in open face mode

MCR stands for Magnetic Chinbar Release, which has been designed with magnetised fixings specialist Fidlock. You also get a Fidlock buckle on the chin strap, and a BOA retention dial on the cradle. The visor is flexible to prevent transfer of forces or breakages if you crash, and somewhat adjustable. There are 15 vents in the upper helmet, plus another five in the chin bar to keep you cool.

There is a tutorial on how to attach and detach the chin bar. It makes it look so simple. The reality for me was much more fiddly – I think there’s a definite knack to it. I still don’t quite have it down. I kept finding that the magnets in the under-ear knobs would connect (or reconnect) before I’d got everything lined up (or disconnected). But, it does work, and it’s pleasantly quiet to ride with – there are no rattling and distracting buckles or catches rattling about.

I fitted the 20mm cheek pads, finding the thicker ones too hamster-cheek inducing. As a full face helmet, I then found it instantly comfortable and plenty breathable. I’ve ridden up hills and down them again, sometimes in warmish weather, and not found myself cooking. It stayed in place, gave me a good field of vision, and didn’t have any annoying distractions. Job done.

As a trail helmet I find it a little compromised. I personally prefer my helmet straps to run outside the inner cradle – I just find that fits more comfortably and securely. With the MET Parachute MCR MIPS, the straps run on the inside. Perhaps this is why, or maybe it’s just that there’s not a huge amount of adjustment on the vertical position of the helmet, but I found that as a trail/open face helmet it didn’t sit as snugly as I’d have liked, and I quite often found myself adjusting that rear BOA mid-ride. This seemed to me exacerbated by the relatively high visor position, which catches the wind a bit when you get your speed up. Of course, your head might fit this helmet perfectly – heads are different. And, I think, this MET helmet is different to some of previous years – I once had a road MET helmet which did not fit the shape of my head at all, and while this still isn’t perfect, it’s an awful lot closer to the shape I want in a helmet.

I’d prefer the visor to have a lower position, and a more positive clunk or click into place between adjustment positions. I’d also prefer the BOA/cradle system to come down a little lower at the back then is possible – I did adjust it to the lowest possible setting. But, in full face mode these things don’t seem to matter so much. I’d see this more as a full face helmet with occasional open face duties – handy perhaps on a holiday, or travelling, when you don’t have a lot of options to hand. I wouldn’t however choose to have this as my every day open face helmet with occasional full face potential. It’s OK, but I find annoyances on a helmet soon become really annoying – you want to put it on and forget about it.

Overall

The MET Parachute MCR MIPS is a nice, light, well ventilated full face helmet that you can do some serious pedalling in. For my head, it’s best thought of as a full face with open face just-in-case, rather than an all rounder. If your head says otherwise/fits just so, then go for it. 

Buyers Guide to the Best Mountain Bike Helmets

Review Info

Brand:	MET
Product:	120 Parachute MCR
From:	raleigh.co.uk
Price:	£300
Tested:	by Hannah for

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