POC Cytal Lite helmet

The Poc Cytal Lite helmet rounds out Poc’s new flagship helmet line-up, and between the Carbon version, the ‘standard’ Cytal, and this new Lite model there’s something for just about everyone. Assuming, that is, you’ve got a budget of at least £290. The Cytal Lite’s stablemates are both hugely impressive helmets, so the question is, will this new version be a worthy third leg to the triumvirate, or will it get lost in their shadows? Answer: it’s the third leg.

Before testing this helmet, I wouldn’t have described myself as a die-hard weight weenie – for me extreme low weights are nice to have, but not a necessity. My build is more sprinter than mountain goat, so I thought myself unlikely to be swayed by a helmet merely for its featheriness. As such, I was really surprised by the Cytal Lite. I’ve been wanting to try the Cytal range since I first saw the carbon version, and that eagerness was turbo-charged when the ‘standard’ model was adjudged by Virginia Tech as the safest road helmet it had ever tested.

Suffice to say I was biting off the postman’s hands when the Lite finally arrived.

My priors

I’ve been skiing in Poc and Smith helmets exclusively for the last decade or more – and as far as I’m concerned, Poc’s helmets are the most comfortable, bar none. It’s almost as if whatever mould Poc uses for a head could have been modelled on mine – it’s like an absolute glove, whereas most other skiing helmets, in one dimension or another, feel a little misshapen on me.

Smith is a close second to Poc, and my current cycling helmet is the Smith Trace MIPS, which I like a lot. My two minor criticisms are that it isn’t terribly light or well ventilated. The Cytal Lite absolutely aces it in both those regards.

Immediately – and I mean the instant you pick it up – I defy you not to utter some expletive at its weight. Having said I’m not obsessed by lightness, the Cytal Lite is arresting the first time you lift it.

When I tested the 288g Smith I said that it ‘wasn’t the lightest’ only by comparing it to other helmets’ weights on paper. And I have to say that I haven’t thought about the weight since writing that – until I wore the Poc. Going from a 288g helmet to a 194g helmet is a big difference.

The Poc Cytal Lite is noticeably lighter, ( to put it in context, at 194 grams, it’s the weight of a good size apple….) and coupled with the greater airflow and ventilation, it gets you one step closer to that free, helmet-less feeling we’re all chasing.

In fact, it occurs to me, that this is the centre of the bullseye. For non-pro riders – ie pretty much all of us – the reason for that is not because the 90g saving over your current lid is going to get you to the top of Mont Ventoux or your local climb a tenth of a second faster. It’s because in an ideal world we wouldn’t need to wear helmets, and we’d savour the feeling of having the wind in our hair.

Cycling is partially about freedom, and the lighter and airier your helmet gets, the more free you feel. This is why I’ve loved Hövding helmets, and I’m overjoyed that they’re coming back.

For fast road and gravel riding, though, the Cytal Lite is currently as close as we can get to the feel of helmet-free cycling.

More air

According to Poc UK’s Ash Winters, the Lite uses the same EPS as the Cytal, with the weight saving come from ‘its layup, cutaways and design changes’. Essentially, shaving weight where less material is needed, with the greater ventilation also cutting material. The straps the dividers are lighter too. Ash also tells us that the Cytal Lite has been ‘tried, tested and trusted by the riders of EF Pro Cycling’.

The rear of the helmet reminds me of the back of a supercar. The Venturi tunnels, which create low pressure to suck a Ferrari to the road, are employed here to make the Poc faster through the air and to offer greater cooling to your head.

Your scalp is particularly well supplied with blood vessels that sit close to the surface of your skin. This makes the head a powerful mechanism for cooling the body, so maximising airflow here is especially advantageous.

Extras

The straps are pretty good too. Both the straps and the divider are lighter than on the original Cytal, and they caused no issues.

The front vents make easy work of swallowing and gripping your inverted sunglasses, and my Koo Demos sat in there tightly.

Finally, it comes with a nice soft helmet bag, and I’ve got to say the helmet’s finish is very good. It looks and feels commensurately premium – as you’d expect at the sort of price.

The pads

The Cytal Lite comes with two sets of pads. The stock pads fitted don’t have a horizontal piece running along the front lip of the helmet. This is to aid ventilation and aero-ness, as it would partially block the air channel, but it can mean there’s a chance sweat could run between the vertically orientated pads – and perhaps into your eyes.

Hence the option of a horizontal pad, offering more complete sweat absorption at the cost of fractionally reduced airflow.

Even during hot summer rides I didn’t feel the need for the horizontal pad, as no sweat was making it into my eyes. I’d say this is down to a combination of the Poc’s ventilation channels working as intended and my Pogačar-like cruising speed. Well, possibly more of the former…

To Mips or not to Mips

Something else coming back to bite me from that Smith helmet review, was my conclusion that Mips was a ‘must-have.’ This leaves me in a somewhat sticky position as, obviously, I’ve absolutely fallen for this Mips-less helmet.

Value

I take my son to school every day on a Tern Cargo bike. If I had the money, I’d buy the Cytal and the Cytal Lite, using the Cytal for cargo bike duties and keeping the Cytal Lite for my OPEN bike without the e-assist. In an ideal world, the Lite would have Mips too, but that’s the trade-off for the low weight and airiness.

There are, of course, loads of options from other manufacturers, though first and foremost, I think helmets should and must be about fit. A good fit should be your starting point, and I think a comfortable helmet is also safer.

For this sort of money, the Lazer Z1 KinetiCore should be on your to-try list. George loved it and the KinetiCore in the name is Lazer’s alternative to Mips.

The Kask Elemento is another helmet at this price you can’t ignore. Jamie rated it highly, though he was put off by its £330 price. I’ve only worn one briefly, but found its fit superb.

Check out our best cycling helmets buyer’s guide for more options at a wide range of prices.

Conclusion

I genuinely feel guilty for just how much I love this helmet. If you’ve got a Poc-shaped head, the Cytal range is your Graceland, and now there’s something to sate all needs and tastes. The Mips-equipped standard £290 is a great choice and the most highly rated by Virginia Tech for road. The Cytal Carbon is a little lighter and costs £370 – but the star of the show for me is this Cytal Lite.

It’s incredibly light, the airflow is first rate and the fit – for me at least – is impeccable. It’s the nearest I’ve experienced to it not feeling like you’re wearing a helmet, and it looks great. The Lite, in truth, is impossible for me to give up now I’ve tried it, and I think Poc really has created a winner, if you’re prepared to part with that amount of money for a Mips-free lid.

Verdict

As close as I’ve experienced to a wind-in-your-hair cycling experience from an EPS helmet – but this super-light lid is pricey

All the deals displayed on our review pages are pulled from a constantly updating database feed of the best affiliate deals available. The criteria for deciding on what are the best deals is who is offering the lowest, delivered price. In most cases we will be showing the very best deal available online, but sometimes you may be able to find an item cheaper. If you can please feel free to post a link in the comments box below. To find out more about affiliate links on road.cc click here.