Trek Blaze WaveCel Helmet Review

What to wear as an aggressive trail or enduro rider… It can be a question. At times, you roll up to the top of your favorite local downhill jump line or your go-to natural, techy, fast black diamond, and you find some guy in a full-face helmet there. “Is that more appropriate than my little trail lid?”, you wonder. “Am I going to die?” We certainly hope not. Situations like these make people consider the middle ground: the ¾ helmet. Are they much better? I’m still unsure, but they’re an enduro classic, and the Trek Blaze WaveCel Helmet offers a unique take on the form while throwing some notable features into the mix.

Trek Blaze WaveCel Helmet Features:

• 5-star safety rating from Virginia Tech with lighter and cooler WaveCel technology
• Removable 3/4 side coverage and extra deep rear coverage
• Front vents and channel system with 10% larger cells for more airflow and efficient cooling
• Excellent fit and comfort via BOA® fit system, lay-flat camlock strap, and Fidlock strap buckle
• Goggle optimized three-position visor features magnetic breakaway and integrated sunglass storage
• Removable Blendr magnetic mount system easily integrates a GoPro camera or Trek lights
• Crash Replacement Guarantee provides a free replacement in the event of a crash within the first year of ownership
• Weight: 500g (as stated with earpieces)
• MSRP: $250

The Enduro Lid Ready for Trail

We could sit here all day making fun of the looks of ¾ helmets, but frankly, I don’t see the point. We’re already a group of people who unironically saunter around wearing Pit Vipers and walk into local breweries with a big mud stripe running up our backs. ¾ helmets do look a little silly, a little Princess Leia, maybe, but it’s far from the most egregious aesthetic misstep in our sport. In my personal opinion, the Trek Blaze WaveCel is not too bad on the eyes. If you’re reading this, it seems likely that you’re not bothered by its 3/4edness either.

Why even get a ¾ helmet though? Fair question to ask. It’s right in front of us all: the answer is more coverage. At first glance, the ear region may seem like an unimportant addition to an already protected head. I think it’s rather valuable though. The addition of the ear coverage reduces the likelihood of damage to the side of the face in a crash, and covers the temporomandibular joint, a weak spot in the jaw. As a person with a temporomandibular joint which regularly dislocates, I really don’t want to find out what blunt force impact would do… so I won’t. The blaze has me covered when I’m riding gnarlier, faster lines.

Many days though, I’m not ripping down the hard stuff. Some days are just fun flow with some light tech thrown in for good measure. Days like that don’t really call for a ¾ helmet, but the Trek Blaze still fits the bill because the ear pads are removable. When you take them off, you’re left with a helmet strikingly similar to the Trek Rally WaveCel, but there are some little differences. Namely the ventilation pattern and the magnetic break-off visor (a neat feature of the Blaze).

There are no shortages of great features on the Blaze, and they all perform their jobs well. We’ve already touched on the removable ear pieces and noted the magnetic visor, but the BOA fit dial, Blendr camera/light mount, and Fidlock buckle all deserve their moment in the limelight. The BOA dial is easy to use and effective. I would expect nothing less. The Blendr mount has great action to it, and sits securely up top, but is poised to break free smoothly in the event of a crash.

My favorite feature of all three though, is the Fidlock buckle. It is a genuine improvement on the standard buckle. It’s easy to use, even when you’re tired or jittery from a harrowing descent. With one hand, I can get the buckle undone and be free. To add to all that, it has never once pinched my neck. Thanks, Fidlock!

One feature I wasn’t too keen on was the visor-integrated glasses storage. For whatever reason, it was always difficult to negotiate with, grabbing the arms of my sunglasses regardless of their orientation. The same challenges presented themselves when it came time to remove my glasses from the integrated storage. I wasn’t able to perform either small-scale wrestling match while riding. It’s not a deal breaker for me, but worth noting as a point of friction.

When it comes down to it, I care more about safety than any other aspect of a MTB helmet. Thankfully, that’s the Blaze’s domain. Virginia Tech, the most well-respected helmet safety testing organization around, gave the Blaze great marks. Their process tests helmets by dropping them at a couple velocities against various spots on the helmet at different angles. For each of these tests, they gather data on deceleration and change in rotational velocity, then put them all together via a somewhat complex formula to produce a Summation of Tests for the Analysis of Risk (or STAR) value, where a lower score is better. From there, they also provide a rating in number of stars out of 5 so that mere mortals can also understand what’s happening (too many stars… I know. Take it up with Virginia Tech).

So what’s the end result? The Blaze got a 12.69 STAR value, which earned it a 5-star rating. For reference, the best STAR rating for a 5-star MTB helmet was 8.41 by the Bluegrass Jetro (another ¾ helmet) and the worst was 13.96 by the Specialized Ambush MIPS. So is the Blaze a good helmet, safety-wise? Absolutely. The data is conclusive on that front. It beats a wide variety of other MTB helmets out there in the tests, including many helmets with MIPS or another rotational impact reduction technology. There’s hardly a better argument for the effectiveness of WaveCel technology than that. It plays with the big boys.

And what the heck is WaveCel anyway? My summary: it’s a Koroyd-style ventilated impact absorption layer with built-in crumple and slide properties which reduce rotational impact forces, just like MIPS. Basically, it’s a 2-for-1 technology that reduces both direct and rotational impact force. Koroyd has a bit of a reputation in the breathability department though… not super breathable. Wavecell is aided by larger ventilation holes than Koroyd, which does improve things. Still, I’d consider ventilation to be a weaker point on the Blaze.

While the Blaze is covered in ventilation holes exactly where I would have them, the WaveCel layer does change the way air flows through the helmet for the worse. Why? The holes of the WaveCell always point down towards the head, but airflow is more singular in its direction, always front-to-back. At any point in time, then, the front of the WaveCel layer is effectively channeling air towards your head through the vents, but areas like the top, sides, and back are not. They still serve as passive ventilation, which is worth quite a bit, but can’t compare to the cooling effect of truly channeling air to the head. I can’t say the increased coverage added by the ear pieces did much to reduce my hot-headedness either.

When the rubber met the road, that meant the Blaze was a comfortable helmet when I was riding in weather 70 degrees Fahrenheit and below. Removing the earpads gave me another 5 or so degrees of comfort. Any hotter, and I dripped sweat on the climbs. While I normally run hot, I don’t typically drip sweat, and I really don’t like it when I do. It’s unnecessary and distracting. For hotter days this Summer, I looked to other options as my helmet of choice. If I were to pronounce the ideal temps for this helmet, I’d say it shines anywhere up to the low 60s. I know it’ll be a go-to for hard winter riding this year up here in the PNW.

Fit: According to Trek’s size charts, I have a medium sized head. I ordered a Medium. It fit. No complaints.

Buy Now: Available from Trek