Comfort
The Wall Rider offers great comfort in large part to its extremely low weight but also thanks to soft padding in the right spots, the brow and top of the helmet, and thin straps that keep a low profile and contribute to a comfortable fit. The Wall Rider was considered one of the most comfortable helmets tested, whether for hard single pitch sport routes or long days on the cliff where it was worn for several hours at a time.
Ventilation
Sixteen ventilation holes are of good size and are distributed primarily on the sides and rear of the helmet with two of them found in the front, aiding good air flow in the helmet. Testers found the Wall Rider to be well ventilated in a manner similar to the Singing Rock Penta.
Ease of Adjustment
The Wall Rider has two cinching straps in the rear of the helmet that offers adjustment in a design similar to the Petzl Sirocco and Singing Rock Penta. They do a good job of providing for a snug fit and testers found them easy to tighten but they found them harder to loosen and really tricky with gloves on. Additionally, even with bare hands the buckles can be hard to find.
Features
Two sleek and snag free headlamp clips are situated on the front of the helmet, offering a solid hold on the straps of a headlamp. But, testers found them hard to open and difficult to get headlamp straps in and out compared to other helmets tested. On the rear of the helmet is an elastic cord with a small tab that allows users to disconnect the cord from its hook. This rear attachment was very easy to use and popular with testers.
Versatility
The first thing that stands out for most people about the Wall Rider is the exposed foam capped by a plastic shell. Durability concerns for a similar helmet that uses expanded polypropylene, the all foam Petzl Sirocco, are often heard. Mammut addresses this durability concern by capping the foam helmet with a solid piece of plastic, extending to the front of the helmet, where a lot of scraping and roughing up is expected to occur. In our testing you can see a lot of slight scuffs from use but the foam has remained free of blemishes, so perhaps Mammut has done the right thing. This durability combined with the lightweight and good ventilation makes the Wall Rider a good choice for trad and sport climbers while the difficulty in adjusting the helmet may hold back ice climbers. The front of the helmet has a slight visor that sticks out, reminiscent of Mammut’s popular El Cap helmet. The visor never seemed to be enough to block enough sun to be noticeable and seems to be more of a cosmetic addition. The Wall Rider is available in two sizes and two colors, chill and orange.
Weight
At 195 grams (6.8 ounces), the Wall Rider is one of the lightest climbing helmets on the market. It’s nearly identical in weight to the Black Diamond Vapor and is about an ounce heavier than the Petzl Sirocco.
THE VERDICT
The Mammut Wall Rider is a lightweight, comfortable molded foam helmet with good ventilation and increased durability from the partial capping of the helmet with a hard plastic shell. The thin chin straps and comfortable padding make it an attractive option for a wide range of climbers.
