Hi, everyone,
In spring of 2021, I signed on to a Kickstarter put on by a company
(KAV Sports) that wanted to do custom bicycle helmets made using 3D
printing technology. It was expensive, but I was intrigued by the
idea. The helmet finally arrived just in time for a minor injury in
late spring. I started using it about a month ago when I got back to
riding, and I have gotten a lot of comments about it on rides.
The President of KAV, Whitman Kwok, reached out to me last week to
ask me how I liked the helmet. It's the most comfortable bike helmet
I've ever worn, by the way. We chatted, he asked who I rode with,
and I told him about SF2G and Different Spokes (SF-based LGBT bike
club).
He asked me if I thought there would be any interest in either club
for a group buy (5 or more) or even a custom design. I told him that
given the price point (something like $400 or $450), maybe not, but
I would mention it. It might be the most comfortable helmet I've
ever owned, but it's also about double the price of any helmet I've
ever owned. (Those of us who were in on the Kickstarter got a
"discounted" price of $300.)
So I'm passing that information on to see if anyone might be
interested in either a group buy or an SF2G design.
Another thing that Whitman offered us was a factory tour. I visited
their factory last fall when I got fitted; now they've moved into a
greatly expanded facility, and I'd like to see it. (I blogged about
my visit to their first facility and about the fitting process; if
anyone wants to read it, have a look
here.)
If others are interested, maybe we could do a ride down there
sometime. The process they are using to make these helmets is pretty
cool. The factory's in an industrial area of Redwood City, pretty
close to Bayway but on the other side of 101.
If there's any interest, let's do it. It's been so long since I've
done an SF2G ride, it would be great to have a little reunion and
see some folks.
David
PS - any other SF2G riders in on the Kickstarter?