Spotted: Canyon working on a radical new helmet design with sponsored riders

Petr Vakoč and Jasper Ockeloen were spotted using an unreleased Canyon helmet with a striking new design during the Santa Vall gravel stage race in Girona last weekend.

Although the shell of the helmet looks fairly ordinary, the straps are anything but, with the ubiquitous ‘Y’-shaped straps replaced with a single strap that sits in front of the rider's ears.

© Petr Vakoc / Instagram

The new strap looks to be rigid and mounts to the outer surface of the helmet

The helmet looks to be a blend between an aero profile helmet and a vented helmet, with a large intake centrally mounted and supported by two further side vents that look to channel air around the rider's head in an attempt to keep them cool. The rear profile of the helmet looks to be in line with current aero trends with a blunt aerodynamic profile to smooth exiting air.

• Read more: What is the right helmet for me: Aero or vented?

From the images we have seen, the straps of the helmet look to use a solid arm where the straps mount to the helmet. This is then joined with a more common fabric strap further down the rider's face and under the chin. The rigid arm is likely in an attempt to aid security without the secondary strap behind the rider's ear.

For those riders concerned about the ‘unwritten rules of cycling’, this helmet might not be for you. With the placement of the rigid section of the strap, the placement of sunglasses has to be under the strap. As the front section of the arm mounts to what looks like the outer surface of the helmet, it leaves a natural channel for riding glasses to fit – which, according to many riders, is the wrong way round to do things.

We reached out to Canyon for more information about this new product, and a spokesperson for the brand said: “I can confirm that this is a Canyon product and that we're working with selected Canyon athletes on innovative developments.

“We rely on studying these real-world testing conditions to ensure these developments make the grade at the highest level so that they may eventually be brought into a consumer landscape. We can't say anything more specific about the technology or its release, but we are excited about the results.”

• Read more: Canyon revamps Pathlite:ON e-bikes with new models aimed at touring and leisure riders

With helmets subject to rigorous testing before being released to the market, it will be interesting to see what the final product will look like.

To keep up to date with this story and the latest cycling tech news make sure to head over to the dedicated tech section of the website.

Canyon

Canyon Bicycles GmbH is a German manufacturer of road bikes, mountain bikes, hybrid bikes, triathlon bikes and e-bikes based in Koblenz, Germany.