ProView – Blue Ice Blast Helmet Review

I don’t love wearing any helmet — but I don’t mind the Blast. I wore the Blue Ice Blast on my ascent to Cotopaxi and Chimborazo. After a long time of having worn other helmets on peaks like Mt. Rainier, Glacier Peak, and Mt. Baker that either felt clunky and uncomfortable or fragile, I think Blue Ice finally cracked it. Blue Ice made the perfect helmet. 

It is light, comfortable, and feels sturdy enough to protect against rocks or any other type of collision. Thankfully, I did not have to test the impact collision, but it’s not a dainty piece of equipment. It’s held up over these climbs where other helmets have deteriorated in the past. It’s functional, and it also looks good, which is hard to say for some other helmets. 

Ease of Use 

At Cotopaxi, from the parking lot, we put our helmets on and kept them on the entire climb. This was about the last time I thought about the helmet on our climb. We would be passing through scree on our first leg up to the Jose Refuges hut. The helmet comfortably fit over my buff, hat, and hood. But as I needed to take layers off and on, the helmet easily adjusted with the two straps. One for the chin and one for the back of the head. This additional level of adjustability meant the helmet always fit snugly on top of the head. 

Performance 

From the Refugio José Rivas camp we would climb another 2,000 feet, put on crampons, rope up, then enter the glacier. I was wearing an action camera mounted to the top of the helmet. Normally this would weigh down on the top of my head, causing the whole apparatus to slouch over my eyes. However, the back adjuster helped to alleviate the weight so the whole time the helmet feels slightly atop your head and you really do forget about it. Not to say that it’s not protecting you, but you feel as though you’re not bearing its weight while you climb in it. This helmet is light. This is due to the hybrid EPS/EPP foam shell, which seemed to be used at an absolute minimum. If it’s not needed, it’s not there. Where other helmets might use plastic, the foam keeps the helmet feeling airy but protective. 

The helmet also came with a helmet holder, which easily attached to the outside of my backpack and came in clutch when storing it when not in use. Like the approach to high camp on Chimborazo. During the summit attempt, it was much colder on Chimborazo, but the range of the straps allowed me to put all my layers on at once without any problems.  I appreciated the clips in the front of the helmet, and the strap on the back which kept my headlamp in place over the long hours of ascent in the dark. 

Features 

The helmet, while functioning as an ultra-lightweight (155 g at M/L)  tool looks classy. It has an undeniable minimalist design with tasteful mountain accents and a logo on the top Aramid penetration layer. As well as the chin strap buckle, which is mountain themed, and in the back of the EPP main shell there’s a little mountain engraving that elevates the feel of the helmet. The black colorway comes with red-accented EPS inserts that add to the premium feel of the product. The EPP main shell is sporty and intentionally constructed to conserve weight and maximize ventilation. The straps are made of fabric and are not uncomfortable and poking at you like in some other helmets.  It really feels that Blue Ice listened to what people needed: a light, comfortable helmet that had all the essentials, including a ski goggle/headlamp strap and nothing you don’t. The helmet does not provide any sort of warmth, but I think this is a good thing. I want to put on my own layers to adjust for the conditions; I would rather be too cold and put on a layer than be too hot and have no recourse. In this way, the Blast is adjustable to the max. 

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