The
Art of Helmet Design
Painted
by Dick Vale of Vale custom color in Stanton
California, my
helmet draws attention every
time I open the bag . My integral piece of safety equipment
happens to be a piece of art.
There really shouldn't be a reason
for a racer to wear a plain one color helmet, unless you like that kind of egg head, cue
ball look. Although not a cheap undertaking,
prices range form $200 to $1000,
painting your helmet with a personal design is
sure to get you recognized . or at least
distinguishable from the refueling crew.
My instructions to Dick were simple:
no "foo-foo" design, no flowers, no
fluff. It
takes a creative mind to come up with my
masterpiece. Dick can tell you that helmets are not
his specialty. At any given time you can see in his
shop an offshore boat, helicopter, many cars
and even the occasional fibreglass fish.
Sometimes it's best to let an artist do his
work.
Ask
the street for the premier helmet designer and
TroyLee Designs www.troyleedesigns.com
from Corona, California is a name
that's mentioned as by
far the most respected and controversial
artists in the racing industry. We were lucky enough to have a chat with the Dan
Dilkey, TLD
Operations Wizard, on what the process is for
getting your magnum opus made.
Best
to start with a plain, new helmet and a great
idea, photo, drawing or cartoon. Suffering from brain-fade and you can
skim through albums of previous work -
customers like Jeremy
McGrath, Shawn Palmer, Jean Alesi, Paul Tracy,
Ricky Rudd, Mike Metzger, Ricky Carmichael,
John Tomac, Dario Franchetti, have all
had their head gear design crafted here. All the work from sanding to painting is done by hand.  No two
helmets (replicas included) are exactly the same. The
paint is a special brew that Troy Lee has
developed over the years to withstand the
demands of racing, as experienced by the world's
fastest racers. The time frame is currently about
three and a half months for your helmet
to be painted.
If you'd like more information on getting
your helmet painted you can reach Dick Vale at
714-952-9005 or TroyLee Designs at
909-371-5219 or email them at helmets@troyleedesigns.com
As for
my helmet actually improving my driving -
I'd like to think so, but I'll have to put
it to the test. |
