The History of the Legendary AGV Helmet

As a Motorcyclist, you will have definitely comeIt was the development of the first fully fibreglass
across the name AGV, most probably due to thehelmet which led to the company being asked to help
fact that one of the world's most famousbuild a downhill ski helmet for the 1km downhill ski
motorcyclists wears them religiously, Valantino Rossi.speed record. With their expertise, they were able to
With the outrageous designs and the iconic numberproduce one of the finest ski helmets ever made
46 painted on them, they are almost impossible towhich catered specifically for this enduring sport. With
miss and the 7 time world champion wears themthe success of the ski helmet, AGV transferred
with pride. However the history of the companythese skills into the motorcycle market which
goes as far back as the 1940's and does not startculminated in the first ever full faced fibreglass
with the development of what is now known as onehelmet. It was this that became the blueprint for the
of the finest motorbike helmet companies in thehelmets we recognise today.
world.The AGV brand has been advertised through the
In 1946, Amisano Gino Valenza started a companyconsistent use of the helmets in the motorcycle
designing and manufacturing leather seats and leatherracing world. These helmets have been trusted to
bike saddles and it wasn't until 1947 that theyprotect the heads of world champion motorcyclists
entered the motorcycle helmet market. They startedsuch as Barry Sheene, Giacomo Agostini and more
off by experimenting with different techniques torecently Max Biaggi, Troy Corser and the legendary
create an innovative helmet which was unlike anyValantino Rossi. Rossi has even taken to designing his
other produced before. The popularity of theseown unique and extravagant styles which are
helmets grew rapidly, mainly in the sport racing world,occasionally produced for the retail market as replicas
due to motorcyclists wanting a more specialised andof the original.
innovative design. The company prided themselves inAGV have remained such a prominent feature in the
always striving for something better than the onemotorcycle helmet history due to the fact they
previously produced and this led to them beingcontinually manufacture products suitable for a
leaders in the development of the motorcycle helmet.variety of purposes from road and city riding to
AGV helmets made their mark in history in 1949 withprofessional racing. They have produced helmets of
the first ever leather shelled, open faced helmetthe highest quality and made them available for
being designed and produced. Previous to this, noeveryone to use. For everyday motorcyclists, there
other company had designed such a helmet and soonare some great helmets available from the AGV S4
it became an iconic move which was duplicated byrange to the brand new AGV Stealth SV with the
other companies. It wasn't until 1953 that the firsticonic union flag design. When purchasing an AGV you
fibreglass vulcanized helmet was produced whichcan be safe in the knowledge that you are investing
started off the chain of developments leading to thein one of the best motorcycle helmets the world has
helmets we would recognise today. The first everever seen, unfortunately this does not come with
fully fibreglass open faced helmet was produced athe riding abilities of Valantino Rossi.
year later and took the world by storm.