Having a helmet that is comfortable and with proper ventilation is important when you go snowmobiling this winter. Out of all the good choices out there, the Ski-Doo Oxygen Helmet is probably the best.
The Oxygen Snowmobiling helmet by BRP has raised a lot of expectations among hardcore trailers. Why should it not? Especially considering the premium price and features that it promises to offer.
In this article, we shall do our own review of the Ski-Doo Oxygen Helmet, to see what are its amazing features.
My Personal Opinion
In my opinion, the Ski-Doo Oxygen Helmet is one of the best snowmobile helmets available on the market today.
It is made up of a lightweight M-FORGE composite shell that is 20% lighter than other helmets. I think this will give you comfort and prevents head and neck strains while wearing it for a long time.
The retractable and highly adjustable sun visor gives you an undistorted vision when you got hit by a strong ray of sunlight which is ideal for an incredible riding experience. For, me it is an amazing addition as I am a little bit more sensitive to the sun’s rays than the average! So, yeah, I would give the company credit for that.
Even if you are wearing prescribed eyeglasses, you can still wear this snowmobile helmet because of its great design that considered the people that wear eyeglasses. I also wear glasses regularly and I think it is something worth mentioning.
For your additional safety, durable anti-fog and anti-scratch coatings are provided and an optional front LED utility light can be easily installed. And I can definitely vouch for Ski-doo for this attention to detail!
I think this is why this helmet for snowmobiling is a great choice so, check the customer reviews of the Ski-Doo Oxygen Helmet to see what others have to say.
Ski-Doo Oxygen Helmet Review
The BRP Oxygen helmet comes with a lot of features, but for them to be fully utilized, the rider should first be able to understand how it all works.
The external factors should be taken into consideration while adjusting the helmet, like which weather you are trailing in, the temperature outside, and so on. But once you get how it all works, this will truly be a joyride.
Given below are the various features and benefits the Ski-Doo Oxygen helmet offers.
Design
The Oxygen is a sleek and stylish-looking helmet. It is already considered one of the best snowmobile helmets of 2022. This comes with durable anti-fogging and anti-scratch coatings. There is no major brand marking on the helmet, which is preferred by those who wish to stay loyal to their own sleds.
It is highly innovative and comes with advanced developments to keep you comfortable and relaxed at all times. It offers clear and wide vision, keeps you warm, greatly reduces external noise, and offers an unmatched mask-free riding experience.
Its new approaches and concepts work in combination to provide the best trailing experience ever. Even when compared to other helmets, the Oxygen helmet is more advanced tech-wise and stands on top of the list of best snowmobiling helmets today. However, since it comes with a lot of options and combinations, it requires time and attention to fully understand it.
This is a mask-free helmet, which means that it is much more comfortable, breathable, and relaxing. All the components and attachments are also easy to remove and replace and can be equipped according to your own comfort and adjustment. For glasses users, the helmet features a lining on the temples of each side meant to guide the arms of your glasses.
If I have to be honest, I am quite surprised with the efficient design of this thing. Everything seems to be inch-perfect for me and I think it couldn’t be done any better than this. So, thumbs up from me!
Construction and Weight
Heavy helmets can put pressure on the neck and many riders have complained multiple times that they have sore necks due to the heavy helmets they wear. The Oxygen helmet changes all that with its lightweight body and construction. It uses a lightweight M-Forge Composite for the shell that meets all the international safety standards and is up to 20% lighter than carbon fiber.
Combined with the aerodynamic helmet design, the Oxygen makes it very easy to move your head around while reducing the wind drag on the helmet. Thanks to this, and the wide vision it offers, riders almost feel like they are not wearing a helmet at all.
Visor and Visibility
The Oxygen helmet is equipped with a distortion-free injected visor and just like the previous BV2S helmet, offers a 180-degree panoramic and peripheral vision for maximum side-to-side visibility. Additionally, it is 20% taller than the BV2S helmet and around 40% taller than some competitive snowmobiling helmets, allowing deeper top-to-bottom visibility.
All of this combined with enhanced clarity and zero special distortion vision, the Oxygen helmet provides unmatched clarity and visibility, even when riding through difficult trails. With the Oxygen helmet on, snowmobilers can see everything around them faster and easier. You can even glace down at the gauges and take a side view, without actually having to tilt your head.
The helmet design also allows the riders to crack their visors up. The face shield comes with multiple adjustable positions that click into place and stays firmly until moved again. Thanks to this, the riders can comfortably choose the best visor level according to the situation and ride that way as long as needed.
Apart from this, the Oxygen also offers a larger heated area than BV2S and also comes with an integrated sun visor that flips up and down as intended. This sun visor, when not in use, is kept inside a heated compartment, preventing the helmet from fogging up. And if the visor gets fogged up while riding, simply flips it up for two seconds and the fog will be cleared.
Fogging Prevention – Heat, and Ventilation
Internal visor fogging is one of the most common problems faced by snowmobilers. The Oxygen helmet tackles fogging with its perfect combination of a heating system that covers a 16% larger area and a completely adjustable ventilation system. Both of these are designed to work in combination to prevent internal fogging in practically any weather condition.
The best part is that the helmet allows the rider to adjust the heat through variable settings that offer a wide range of heat options to prevent visor fogging. This is also one of the most unique features of the Ski-Doo Oxygen helmet, since the normally available helmets that come with electric visors have simply on and off options, with no real options to adjust the heat.
Moreover, the Oxygen helmet is also very efficient in freezing rain and other harsh snowy weather. Simply turning the heat settings for the face shield to high makes the surface hot enough to prevent any mild to moderate freezing accumulation.
As mentioned earlier, the anti-fogging system in the Oxygen helmet is a two-part combination that includes the ventilation system as well. The helmet comes with integrated vents on either side that allows the rider to control and adjust the airflow from outside. Therefore, to have a completely fog-free vision, it is important to adjust the airflow vents accordingly.
However, remember to take into account the external factors while adjusting the heat and airflow. You might not find the perfect adjustment in a single attempt, but as you keep testing and become more experienced, you will be totally comfortable adjusting the helmet settings right in any given weather condition.
Oxygen’s anti-fogging system is also enhanced with a non-intrusive breath guard that prevents internal fogging due to your own breath. Also, this helmet is friendly toward people with glasses as well. Obviously, your glasses are not connected to any heating features of the helmet, so it’s best recommended that test multiple settings to find the right fit.
I am quite surprised that what the company has achieved to do with this product. For me, it’s an absolute steal of a deal. I am in love with this!
Keeping it Warm
Most modular helmets out there can be cold and uncomfortable because of the cool air that flows in. In some cases, this could even result in frostbite on the exposed skin. However, the Ski-Doo Oxygen helmet does extremely well to keep the cold out, maintaining the inside warm and comfortable.
This comfortable warmth inside is mainly possible due to the proper fit this helmet offers, along with the variable heat settings for the visor and garage, excellent sealing of leaks, and good working insulation.
Moreover, the Oxygen comes with an integrated neck curtain that has a long front piece. This neck curtain can be comfortably tucked into your snowmobile jacket, which helps in preventing the cold air from coming in from the front and undersides of the helmet.
The only drawback that riders should look out for is that the neck curtain tends to get wet due to internal breathing. Therefore, it is best recommended that you find a suitable place to dry it quickly otherwise it may feel a little too damp while wearing the helmet again.
In any case, depending on how cold it is out there, how fit your jacket is, and how high your collar reaches, you may still need to equip yourself with rear neck protection or neck sock to keep yourself completely warm.
Noise Reduction
The Ski-Doo Oxygen helmet is probably the best snowmobiling helmet out there that features noise reduction to its level. Many features that are equipped to tackle cold also work against noise. The helmet is equipped with removable noise-reduction ear pads that keep the external noise to a minimum, making it one of the quietest lids out there.
The noise-reduction ear pads also make it easy to listen to music, take phone calls, or communicate with your friends. In fact, the helmet is designed to be compatible with most communicators and can easily accommodate the installation of earphones and a vocal mic.
On the other hand, those who do not require much noise reduction can simply remove the ear pads completely, and still have a preferably quiet helmet. Removing the earpads also makes it more comfortable for riders with prescription glasses. So if you are in this category, then an Oxygen helmet is just your thing.
However, make sure that your helmet visor sets in place with an audible click. Not properly closing the lid can get unwanted external noise and cool air flowing in. Therefore, make sure to properly click the visor as it makes a huge difference in how the helmet functions.
Helmet Sizing
Any snowmobiling lid should be able to fit snugly, without being too tight or uncomfortable. Therefore, make sure to check the sizing and fit thoroughly before buying the Oxygen helmet.
In case one side of the helmet feels a little too tight, and the next size feels too loose, try tweaking the ear pads as they can be easily made thinner to reduce pressure on your ears.
You can even completely remove the ear pods, if necessary in order to optimize your helmet fit. However, keep in mind that the ear pods also help in keeping the Oxygen helmet in place and also prevent independent helmet shifting due to the excess airflow while riding at a high speed.
For me, the fitting was spot on I would say I have a medium head and there was enough space and headroom for an even bigger head.
Visor Cord
Traditional helmets with electric visors have their plug at the left side of the helmet, making it difficult to connect properly. The Oxygen helmet completely changes the way the visor is powered, by placing the connection socket at the back of the helmet and the end of the eLinQ cable is a magnetic connector and not a plug-in, making it totally effortless to connect the cable.
Thanks to the magnetic plug, the cable snaps in place effortlessly. The magnetic plug is also strong enough to not get yanked off the place while riding. The other end of the Oxygen power cable has a variable heat controller. This controller can be used to remotely adjust the heat settings within and it also displays the current power level.
The Oxygen cable is actually intended to run down your jacket internally. There is a loop at the collar that is used to hang up the cable, and from there, you can simply run it along either side of the jacket, or between your jacket’s outer shell and the removable inner liner, if you are wearing any.
Moreover, the controller easily clips to the external plastic loop on your jacket, safely securing it in its place. Thanks to this arrangement, the controller is easily visible, allowing the riders to monitor the power even while riding. Also, the controller is placed in a very handy position, making it much easier for the riders to adjust the visor temperature.
It’s very important how you place the visor cord while riding. The cable arrangement for the Oxygen helmet keeps the cord well protected inside the jacket and completely out of the way of your riding. However, just make sure to disconnect the eLinQ before removing your helmet or jacket.
Rear Light
Most modular helmets come with a tiny led indicator that indicates power on and off. This tiny light is difficult to see, especially on bright sunny days. Lucky for you, the Oxygen doesn’t feature that kind of light at all. Instead, you get a power indicator with the cable controller itself and a large red rear light that makes the power indication completely obvious.
This rear light is more of an integrated safety feature and is located at the back of the helmet. What’s best is that this light, unlike the BV2S helmet’s replaceable battery lights, is powered by the same source as that of your visor. Thanks to this light, the riders behind you can easily spot you and follow you down the trails comfortably.
The red rear light is obviously flashy at night, but it’s surprisingly bright even during the daytime snow dust. Thanks to this, the Oxygen helmet makes it much easier, fun, and safe to go on trailing with your buddies.
However, the drawback is that it is always on and there is no way to actually switch it off. This means that if you ride 2-up, the person in the back will always have a glaring red light in front, which can be truly annoying. The only way to deal with this is by sticking duct tape over the light, whenever you have a passenger on.
Final Words
I know that the looks are not that interesting with this thing. I think the company mostly focused on the build quality of the product and man they got it right!
I mean, look at this thing, it’s comfortable and if you’re looking for something durable, I think you should go for this.
The Ski-Doo Oxygen helmet is truly packed with features. Its multiple concepts, when used in perfect combination can deliver a lot more than just anti-fogging and noise reduction.
However, it completely depends on how you understand and choose to use it. You will have to spend time testing and mastering the various settings it offers, but the effort is totally worth it.
