Here we are, the Dakar 2022 is about to start, a grueling race of 8000 km and 4300 special stages in the middle of the desert. The start is expected on January 1st, arrival on 14th, after thirteen hard stages. Here, after 10 years in MotoGP, there will also be Danilo Petrucci who temporarily leaves the asphalt to put his wheels on the sand: he is the first rider in history to go directly from the top championship on the track to the most demanding off-road competition ever. But we are interested in the fact that the rider from Terni in the Dakar 2022 will bring a lot of MotoGP technology with him. Starting with a futuristic helmet developed by Nolan.
To look at it it looks like the usual, modern and sporty cross helmet, but it is instead a single piece of carbon, very light, and with a new internal padding (it’s called “Carbon Fitting Racing Experience”) and has a particular mesh construction made with filaments of active carbon, thermoregulatory, antistatic and dissipative element. This particular technology facilitates the diffusion of air in the upper part of the head which, in this way, remains fresh and dry. The internal padding also consists of side cheek pads and lining strips, all completely removable to be replaced in a race in a flash. And to allow Petrucci to drink in the desert, there is the “Camel bag” system (the name says it all) with a space dedicated to the installation of a hydration system and the fixing of the relative tube. For this, on the lower edge of the internal chin guard, there is a space to allow the positioning of the end of the tube with the suction valve in correspondence with the mouth.
And for those who have no intention of making the Dakar there is also a version derived from the Petrucci model and offered for sale for enthusiasts: it costs 550 euros and is called X-Lite X-502 Ultra Carbon. Nolan thinks of everyone.
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