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The Arai Tour-X5 takes everything that owners loved about the Tour-X4, builds on it, and fixes many of their gripes too, making for a great adventure lid
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Hirotake Arai on his Harley-Davidson. You wouldn’t guess it, but Hirotake’s straw hat was the foundation of the original Arai helmet.
By Daryl Ecklund
“I’m not a very good business person,” 81-year-old Michio Arai admitted during a conversation at the Arai headquarters in Omiya, Japan.
For me, that statement brought up even more questions: “Why be in business if you aren’t looking to make a solid profit? Why not change the round, boring Arai shape? How about adding some sharp lines like the competition? A new edgy look would spike sales, wouldn’t it?” Mr. Arai agreed with me, but there was one thing he was not willing to give up his pride. Michio prides himself on making the best helmets possible, delivering exceptional quality and providing rider comfort and safety, regardless of the cost. Everything else is subordinate to those goals. Arai’s philosophy puts strict constraints on the design features of an Arai helmet. I wasn’t going to argue with a ma