The Tago Plus CE is new from Scott, it drops right in at the top of the brand’s range and features good features and tech that bump it right up our charts making it one of our best mountain bike helmets you can get your mitts on.

Raise the peak to its high setting and there is space enough to park your goggles or glasses

For starters the Tago Plus looks terrific, and while that’s not going to save you in a crash we all want to look good on the trails. Besides, brands like Troy Lee Designs with the Flowline MIPS helmet and Fox with the Proframe RS made their names with exquisite design, and if it worked for them why not Scott too? 

The Tago Plus is big and chunky at the back with four big exhaust vents designed to help pull cooling air through. The obligatory extended rear coverage drops respectably low, but stops short of touching my ears at the sides. At the front there are ten vents, and a stubby visor that’ll sit in two positions – just right, or pushed up so you can park your goggles (just in case this is still a thing where you ride).

The yellow sticker is the only obvious giveaway the Stego Plus is a MIPS equipped helmet

Head protection

The whole helmet is wrapped in the usual polycarbonate shell to protect some basic in-mouled EPS foam inside, and there’s a MIPS liner subtly lurking in there too. Scott says the foam and straps are made from fully recycled materials, while the rest including the usual buckle are partially recycled. Decent green points then, further improved by the cardboard packaging the Tago Plus comes in.

Inside the padding is minimal, yet effective enough to keep your head comfy, even in hot conditions

Fit and comfort

Heads are funny old things, squished at birth and moulded into a unique orb during the first few years, there are no two alike. What I’m saying is that fit is very unique to a rider, but Scott has done a really good job maximising your chances of comfort. For starters there are three sizes covering quite a small range of head sizes, and the Large perfectly fits my head. Then the 360° retention strap and micro-adjust dial work well to keep the Tago Plus on without any pinch points, and it’s easy to twiddle when riding. Better yet, that retention strap can sit at three different heights to allow for the vagaries of your occipital bone (it’s real, look it up). Mine has an odd bump in, so I stuck the helmet into its lowest setting for a perfect fit.

Padding inside the Tago Plus is pretty minimal, but I like that in a helmet because all together the pads are greater than the sum of their parts. Pressure is delivered evenly and therefore the fit is totally forgettable, in a good way.

Visible through an exhaust vent is the slider, letting you adjust the height of Scott’s retention system

Riding the Scott Tago Plus CE

The Tago Plus is light at 370g in size large, and together with excellent fit that helps it sit low on your head it’s a pleasant place to be. That’s true in summer too, the venting is great and with minimal padding it feels cool and breezy. There’s less material to soak up your sweat too. The peak is minimal and perhaps not up to much in terms of keeping mud or sun out of your eyes, but that’s probably true of all peaks, which if we’re honest as mountain bikers are there purely to differentiate us from the gravel set.