In between goggles and a ski helmet is a little strip of forehead that needs to be adequately protected from the elements. If it’s left exposed, you may find yourself walking around with a sunburned, wind-chapped, or frost-nipped stripe across your forehead that silently and prominently proclaims you a self-inflicted victim of the so-called “Goggle Gap.”

More significantly, however, a Goggle Gap can also be an indicator of poor helmet fit, a much more significant risk on the slopes.

Erase the Space
To help address these issues, a collaboration of snow sports industry manufacturers and associations has launched the Goggle Gap campaign to raise awareness about the risks and solutions, and to help folks “erase the space.”

And they’ve taken a decidedly tongue-in-cheek (forehead?) approach to the task at hand, in large part to help better resonate with their primary intended audience (kids through pre-teens). You can get a taste of it purely from some of the sub-heads on their campaign page, including “OMG! I do have a gap between my helmet and goggles! What do I do?”

The Key Takeaway
You can check out their poster below, but the short story is this. You shouldn’t have any bare skin showing between your goggles and forehead. If you do, adjust your system so that the brim of the helmet is flush with the top of the goggles; there should be less than a quarter-inch of space between the two.

If you can’t erase the space with your existing system, either your goggles or helmet don’t fit you properly, and it’s time to consider an upgrade. (Cue the holiday gift list.)

Happy Thanksgiving all!

“Equipped” is an AMC Outdoors blog, written by Matt Heid.