MET’s updated Trenta 3K Carbon road helmet is now lighter with more ventilation thanks to an all-new carbon skeleton construction and redesigned internal and external venting that promises both safety and aerodynamic gains.
According to MET, the new helmet yields a 16% increase in airflow, while independent testing shows impact safety has been bolster by a claimed 40%.
“We used the previous Trenta 3K as the baseline and asked, what can we optimise here? That helmet had good ventilation, but now, with the Tube, we could push to the extreme level of making sure the airflow is entering each vent with a free path to the tail. The improvement is due in part to the increase in performance of the outlet. There is a direct relationship between the performance of the outlets, the temperature of the head and athletic performance.,” says MET’s senior engineer Matteo Tenni.
How does the Trenta 3K Carbon compare to MET’s more aero-focused MANTA Helmet?
“The Trenta 3K is only slightly slower than the Manta,” explains Tenni. “At the beginning of March in the Classics, the pro teams will use the Manta. In May, in early summer temperatures at the Giro, where there’s climbing, it’s a tough decision. But in the Tour de France in July at 40 degrees, legs will stay fresher with better ventilation – and the Trenta 3K is the most ventilated road helmet ever.”
What about safety?
“Everybody thinks that mountain biking is the real action sport but it’s road cycling,” explained marketing manager Achille Montanelli. “We sponsor a World Cup downhill team, world-level freeriders… but the kind of crashes that we get from the UAE team are incredible, and also the amount. We have a database of almost 150 helmets crashed in the last five seasons. Crashed with what we can define as high-energy impacts, not just scratches but cracks. We have statistics now.”
“We can compare how the liner is cracking according to the position of the impact and we can understand how it can deform in the most efficient way, how we can control it and use it to develop future helmets. At the same time, pro road teams want to have a very compact product, so sometimes we have to explain again that it’s a safety tool, so you can’t only ask for lightness, ventilation and aero. The studies around concussion, and also from the UCI’s point of view, things have changed completely. The teams are looking at the number of days riders lose from performance due to a concussion more and more. For them, maybe one month out of racing for a concussion means three months out due to the time it takes to get back to the level they can perform at. Riders have a two-year contract… as a rider they are always saying maybe I need to rest more, but they can’t. A broken arm is a broken arm, but something with your head is different, and I think riders and teams are starting to understand that a bit more,” he adds.
The Trenta 3K Carbon sells for $450, which is available in S (52-56cm), M (56-58cm) and L (58-61cm).
Specs:
• Weight M size: 260g • Certifications: CE | US | AS-NZ • 3K Airframe: integrated carbon cage for enhanced performance • Mips AIR: ultralight rotational protection system • Optimized fit: secure and comfortable internal shape • In-mould polycarbonate shell with high-protection EPS liner • Safe-T Orbital system: 360°, vertical and occipital adjustment • Air Lite straps with adjustable divider • 24 ventilation ports with internal air channeling • Sunglasses ports integrated into side vents • Minimal contact with the head for max ventilation • Helmet soft bag included
MET
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