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Wixter Headband – Bikerumor Review

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We picked the über exciting category of headbands to do our first-ever formal product review…and it was awesome.  Seriously.  I’ve never been one to wear headbands under my helmet, but I have been one to constantly drip sweat onto my shades while riding, only to smear it worse trying to wipe the lenses clean with my jersey mid-ride.

So, when I met Mike Farney, president of Wixter / Raxter, at the Fool’s Gold race a few weeks back and he showed me the how the Wixter keeps sweat from getting anywhere near your shades, I perked up.  If you use headbands, read on.  If you don’t like sweat on your sunglasses, read on…this thing works!

What separates the Wixter from the common sweatband is a unique rubber strip along the bottom front edge that’s curled up to catch sweat and funnel it to the sides of your head, like a rain gutter.

Looks good, but being a non-headband wearer, I was thinking it could just be a gimmick.  Adding slightly to my skepticism was the fact that the rubber “gutter” flattened out a little when it was stretched around a head, reducing the lip area that should theoretically catch the sweat (see Fig. B, below).

It did the same thing when I put it on.  I picked two hot, humid, sunny days to test this thing out.  The first day was at the US Nat’l Whitewater Center in Charlotte, where the deep singletrack can be rainforest-like with damp, hot air.  I did one lap without it, sweated profusely and, yes, had to clean sunglasses when I stopped back at the car.  I grabbed a fresh bottle, toweled off my forehead and put on the Wixter.  This time, it was closer to noon, hotter and sunnier than first lap, but my face stayed relatively dry and, wait for it…no sweat dripped or ran onto my shades!

In fact, I quickly forgot that I had the Wixter on and it really only dawned on me how well this thing worked after I pulled my helmet off and remembered it was still on. Then I noticed the salt “crust” down my temples, indicating that the sweat had indeed been funneled to the sides of my head.  Hmmmmm, maybe there’s something to this “gutter” concept.

Next ride was local trails, hot, sunny day from about noon until 3pm.  Once the Wixter was on, I forgot it was there, which is perhaps the best compliment I could give it.  The stretchy material stays put without having to tie it too tight, is very soft and comfortable, and it does what it’s supposed to do.  Sunglasses stayed dry, and upon the post-ride inspection in the car mirror, sweat was again quite obviously funneled away from my face.

If you generally wear headbands or want to keep the sweat from dripping onto your shades mid-ride, give this a try.  It’s available direct from Wixter for $12.00 ($15.00 for Skullcap variety) and comes in Red, Blue and Black.

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Mike
Mike
15 years ago

Random Question: its it more of a headband or a bandanna? The pictures are somewhat vague if you have to tie it in the back or not.

And yes, I cannot believe Im really asking this question. Sigh. Back to work….

(Great job on the blog btw. Glad I stumbled across it a few weeks back! keep up the great work)

Mike Farney
15 years ago

For the Wixter to work optimally, the rubber channel needs to be formed correctly. It usually just as simple as reaching up and making sure the channel is not flipped down. If it is, simply flip the edge upward. The channel is preformed to this shape and will normally be in the channel shape or easily flip up into the channel shape. If you have trouble keeping it in the channel shape, it is an indication the headband is too tight. With the tie on style, you can easily adjust the tightness and this might be the best option for you if your have an extra large hat size. Otherwise the band style fits most people.

Give this product a try, we think you’ll love it.

Also, check out the RAXTER bike rack, http://www.raxterracks. com.

Jack
Jack
15 years ago

Have you ever compared this to Halo bands? The concept is the same though the implementation is a little different.

Gary
Gary
13 years ago

I actually was given a couple to product test recently In my opinion it just doesn’t work very well at all. I also gave one of my runners one to test as well and he came back with the same feeling. While I truly believe it’s a great concept, the sweat kept running into my eyes as much as it does without anything. I’ll go back to my visor.

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