Giro Aerohead Mips II Review: Vingegaard’s TT Helmet

What to Look For

Aero and time-trial helmets are where triathletes can find some of the biggest free speed on the bike leg, and Giro’s flagship in that category has just had a serious update. The Giro Aerohead Mips II is not a tweak to the familiar Aerohead MIPS road helmet already reviewed on this site — it’s a distinct, race-focused TT helmet developed alongside Team Visma-Lease a Bike and wind-tunnel validated with two-time Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard. If your goal race calls for every marginal gain you can buy, this is the helmet Giro built for exactly that.

Giro Aerohead Mips II TT helmet
Giro Aerohead Mips II — developed with Team Visma-Lease a Bike and wind-tunnel tested with Jonas Vingegaard

Key Features

  • Mips Air Node rotational protection — a lighter, more ventilated Mips implementation than the Mips Evolve Core fitted to the standard Aerohead MIPS, aimed at cutting weight without giving up crash protection.
  • Dual magnetic Zeiss Optics eye shields — the helmet ships with a Clear shield and a Vivid Smoke tint, both magnetically attached so you can swap for conditions without tools; a step up from the single vented shield on the base Aerohead.
  • Wind Tunnel ventilation with a pluggable front vent — open it for airflow on hot training rides, plug it for maximum-aero race day. This dual-mode venting, plus the elongated tail shape, is the product of CFD/VR development and wind-tunnel sessions run with Jonas Vingegaard and the Visma-Lease a Bike team.
  • IONIC+ padding infused with Pure Silver — the same natural antimicrobial pad treatment used across Giro’s helmet range, here applied to a more substantial TT-specific pad layout to manage sweat during long, hard efforts.

Our Verdict

It’s worth being clear on what this helmet actually is: despite the “II” naming echoing the standard Aerohead MIPS road helmet, the Aerohead Mips II is sold and marketed by Giro and UK retailers as a dedicated time-trial helmet — exactly the category most triathletes should be shopping in for the bike leg, rather than a road helmet with an aero shape. It’s the direct descendant of the helmet that made its pro debut on Visma-Lease a Bike riders’ heads, refined through wind-tunnel testing with Vingegaard himself.

That pedigree comes with trade-offs. At around 570g it’s noticeably heavier than the 450g standard Aerohead MIPS, and the deep tail and largely enclosed shell mean less ventilation than a road helmet on long, hot rides — this is a helmet designed to be worn for an hour or two at maximum effort, not all day. It also sits at a different price point entirely: UK RRP is around £499–£515, roughly two-and-a-half times what the standard Aerohead MIPS costs.

For age-group triathletes training and racing seriously over 70.3 or full-distance courses, where you’re in the saddle long enough for aero savings to compound, it’s a legitimate buy if the budget stretches that far. For shorter, more technical courses or as an everyday training lid, the standard Aerohead MIPS (or a dedicated road helmet) will serve you better and leave money for other kit.

The Aerohead Mips II isn’t currently listed in the Tredz range, so the best route to buy in the UK right now is direct from Giro: check price and availability on Giro’s UK site.

Buying Tips

  • At this price, buy from a retailer with a clear returns policy so you can check the fit and eye-shield seal before committing — a TT helmet that doesn’t sit flush against your face loses much of its aero benefit.
  • If budget is tight, the standard Giro Aerohead MIPS uses the same IONIC+ Pure Silver padding tech for a fraction of the price and is the better all-rounder for training and shorter races.
  • UK stockists occasionally discount below Giro’s own RRP — it’s worth comparing Giro’s direct price against other UK retailers before you buy.