ICON Ultraflite Misanthrope MIPS® Helmet

Some helmets try to blend in. This one refuses. The ICON Ultraflite Misanthrope MIPS is a full face street helmet wrapped in a black and red demon-skull graphic that looks like the cover art of a metal album, and underneath the artwork sits one of the most complete safety packages ICON has ever built. If you ride daily in the city, carve weekend roads, or simply want a helmet that protects properly without weighing your neck down, this is the one to look at closely.

A Graphic You Either Love or You Don't

The Misanthrope design covers the entire shell in twisted skulls, fangs, and blood-red detail over a matte black base. It is loud on purpose. Every piece of ICON motorcycle gear is built for riders who treat the street as their territory, and this graphic carries that attitude. Pair it with the included Dark Smoke face shield and the whole helmet reads as one piece, front to back.

If you like the helmet but the artwork is more than you want, the ICON Ultraflite in gloss black is the quiet version of this exact shell and safety package.

Real Protection, Not Just a Pretty Shell

Start with the shell itself. It is handcrafted from FRP composite fiberglass, a material chosen because it absorbs impact energy well while staying light. A lighter helmet means less fatigue on long rides and less strain on your neck in an accident. If weight is your first priority, the Ultraflite Carbon MIPS takes the same design further with a hand-laid carbon fiber shell.

Inside the shell is the part that matters most: the MIPS Brain Protection System. In plain words, most crashes do not hit your head straight on. They hit at an angle, and that angled hit twists your head, which is what causes many serious brain injuries. MIPS is a thin low-friction layer between your head and the helmet liner that lets the helmet rotate 10 to 15 millimeters independently during certain angled impacts, so less of that twisting force reaches your brain.

The certifications back this up. The Ultraflite Misanthrope meets DOT FMVSS 218 in the United States, ECE 22.06 in Europe, and PSC in Japan. ECE 22.06 matters most here. It is the newest and strictest of the common standards, and it specifically tests rotational impacts, the exact scenario MIPS is designed for. Plenty of helmets on the market still carry the older ECE 22.05 rating. This one does not.

There is one more safety detail riders rarely think about until they need it: emergency release cheek pads. If you go down, medics can slide the cheek pads out and remove the helmet with far less movement of your neck.

Two Shields, Zero Fog

You get three ways to manage light with this helmet.

The main face shield is the quick-change UltrafliteShield, and the Misanthrope ships with the Dark Smoke version installed. It is fog free and swaps out in seconds without tools.

A clear shield comes in the box too, and it is Pinlock prepared. Add a Pinlock insert (sold separately) and fogging stops being a problem even in humid or cold conditions.

Then there is the DropShield Ultra, an oversized internal sun visor you flip down with a switch on the outside of the shell, even with gloves on. Ride into low sun, drop the shade, done. One note from ICON: use the internal sun visor only when the main face shield is fully closed.

Comfort Built for Long Days

The interior liner uses Hydradry moisture-wicking fabric with Ax Suede contact points. It pulls sweat away from your skin, stays comfortable against your face, and comes out completely for washing. A removable breath deflector keeps your exhale off the shield in cold weather, and a removable chin curtain cuts wind noise from below.

Ventilation is where the Ultraflite quietly beats a lot of helmets at this price. Four intake vents feed air in, including a large MX-style chin vent, and two exhaust ports pull hot air out. Deep channels cut into the EPS liner move that air across your scalp instead of letting it sit at the vents. In hot climates this is the difference between arriving fresh and arriving soaked.

Ready for Bluetooth

The helmet is shaped to accept ICON's HelmLink Bluetooth communication system, sold separately. The speaker pockets and mounting are already accounted for in the design, so adding music, calls, navigation, and rider-to-rider intercom does not require cutting foam or forcing speakers against your ears.

Getting the Fit Right

The Ultraflite uses an intermediate oval fit, slightly longer front to back than side to side. This is the most common head shape worldwide, so most riders will find it comfortable straight away. To pick your size, wrap a soft measuring tape around your head about two centimeters above your eyebrows, at the widest point, and match that number to the ICON size chart. A correct helmet feels snug all around with no single pressure point, and it should not rotate when you shake your head.

If you are comparing ICON's street helmets, the ICON Airflite MIPS is the closest alternative in the range, with the same head shape and the same MIPS protection.