By Paul Post
“If you get in one of my cars, you get in to win.” — Enzo Ferrari.
This same mindset has helped Donnie DeVito and Jason Kirshon grow their business, KIRSH Helmets, to achieve coast-to-coast sales in just a few short years.
Now it’s gaining international exposure by playing a significant role in the new Michael Mann-directed film, “Ferrari,” released on Christmas Day co-starring Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz.
The Schenectady-based company, with production facilities in Queensbury, specializes in making half shell motorcycle helmets, the kind most popular with Harley-Davidson and Indian motorcycle riders.
Its most unique, revolutionary feature is a fluid liner, inside an aerodynamically designed shell, which keeps heads cool on the hottest days.
Film producers conducted a worldwide search for a company that could replicate the kind of helmets race car drivers wore in 1957, when “Ferrari” takes place, while providing the highest level of safety and protection for actors and stunt men as well.
The story focuses on Enzo Ferrari’s auto empire, which is in financial crisis.
To rescue it, he pushes himself and drivers to the edge in hopes of capturing the Mille Miglia, a treacherous 1,000-mile race across Italy.