A motorcycle helmet really has three jobs: 1. Protect your head in a crash. 2. Keep road debris off your face. 3. Look cool! And, of course, it has to be comfortable while performing those three jobs. The Shoei X-Eleven motorcycle helmet does all that for me.
When I had an opportunity to ride the Buell XBRR motorcycle at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in California, there was no question which helmet I was going to wear–my X-Eleven. Sitting at the top of Shoei’s premium line, the X-Eleven is an outstanding street helmet, due to its light weight and effective venting, and it’s also a superb track helmet, as its shape helps slice through the wind at speeds in the mid-100s.
All I had to do was close the vents to keep the wind sound down and I was ready to ride like Jake Zemke, Eric Bostrom and Chris Vermuelen (three riders you may have heard of who participated in the design of the helmet).
While I can’t claim that the X-Eleven puts me anywhere near the league of those riders, it does give me confidence that my head is well-protected, and that translates into faster lap times. As someone who is always riding different bikes, the subdued grey/white TC-5 version of the stylish Kagayama graphic goes with any sport bike made.
