When it comes to choosing helmets I like to take my lead from the professionals and I've noticed that more and more of the serious offroad riders are upgrading their helmets at the moment.

Like most serious bikers, I own quite a few helmets. How about you? Do you just have one helmet or do you have different helmets for different riding situations? One of the sights I consider quite amusing, for example, is seeing a guy wearing a full face helmets on a cruiser style bike, where everything is supposed to be cool and laid back.

So I have a standard full face helmet I use for long rides, because it's equipped with lots of communications gear and a helmet camera for recording the ride. I also have a HJC flip helmet I use during winter because it's very well sealed and waterproof in a storm. And more recently I've started wearing a Shark Evoline 2 helmet that allows the faceplate to flip aerodynamically to the back of the helmet and become an open face for riding cruisers.

One place where "the right helmet" becomes really important when you go off road. Going off road has become more popular with dedicated road riders like me since Charlie Boorman started making documentaries like "The Long Way Round". This has also led to a rapid growth in sales for supermotard style bikes.

On the dirt you need great visibility, light weight, lots of air flow through the helmet and protection from the dust of other riders, like the Shoei VFX-W series which sports a removable liner, so after hours of sweaty riding you can just swap out the liner, cheek pads and chinstrap cover and it's just like putting on a fresh helmet. There are also four shell sizes and five liner sets so you can choose the combination that fits your face the best.