BELL

About BELL

Established in 1954, it’s no coincidence that Bell is both the first name in speed and the first name in helmets. Born in the 1950’s California hot rod and racing scene, Bell founder Roy Richter built an entire industry anticipating the unmet needs of those with a speed-hungry disposition. People wanted to drive fast, Roy Richter made them fast machines then they wanted to race, he built them race cars too. When accidents increased Roy richter did something about that too and Bell Helmets was born. The company started in 1923 as Bell Auto Parts, named for its location in Bell, California. By 1956 helmet sales were far above projections. This resulted in the formation of the Bell Helmet Company as a subsidiary of Bell Auto Parts. Bell's first production helmet was made in 1954, the result of months of research and development. Richter, with the help of veteran naval pilot Frank Heacox, reverse engineered numerous helmets including some used in military aviation. That first helmet, named the Bell 500, featured a polyurethane foam liner,inserted into hand-laminated fiberglass outer shell. Laminating and polishing helmets by hand was relatively expensive but Richter believed it resulted in a stronger helmet. In 1968, the first full-face motorcycle helmet star was born. In 1971, Bell produced the first full-face off-road motorcycle helmet. Bell introduced its first bicycle helmet in 1975. Eventually, Bell introduced helmets for skydiving, skiing, hockey, football, baseball, fire, police, and military anti-ballistic uses.