{"id":37092,"date":"2024-02-21T09:23:25","date_gmt":"2024-02-21T14:23:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/?p=37092"},"modified":"2024-02-21T09:23:25","modified_gmt":"2024-02-21T14:23:25","slug":"area-company-designs-custom-helmets-used-by-stunt-drivers-in-the-movie-ferrari","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2024\/02\/area-company-designs-custom-helmets-used-by-stunt-drivers-in-the-movie-ferrari\/","title":{"rendered":"Area Company Designs Custom Helmets Used By Stunt Drivers In The Movie \u2018Ferrari\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
KIRSH Helmets DOT approved unique design includes a fluid liner inside a half-shell motorcycle helmet.
Courtesy KIRSH Helmets<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Paul Post<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you get in one of my cars, you get in to win.\u201d — Enzo Ferrari.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Now it\u2019s gaining international exposure by playing a significant role in the new Michael Mann-directed film, \u201cFerrari,\u201d released on Christmas Day co-starring Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Its most unique, revolutionary feature is a fluid liner, inside an aerodynamically designed shell, which keeps heads cool on the hottest days.<\/p>\n

Film producers conducted a worldwide search for a company that could replicate the kind of helmets race car drivers wore in 1957, when \u201cFerrari\u201d takes place, while providing the highest level of safety and protection for actors and stunt men as well.<\/p>\n

The story focuses on Enzo Ferrari\u2019s auto empire, which is in financial crisis.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span>\u201cWe got a phone call from people involved with production of the movie early on a Monday evening,\u201d DeVito said. \u201cBy Tuesday we had all of the parts and components put together, ready to move to Italy where they were shooting the film. Jay took the parts, put them in baggage and flew from JFK (New York) to Milan. They picked him up on Wednesday morning and went straight into production, working on the set with the props team, making vintage helmets that you see in the movie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are our DOT-certified helmets, modified with different paint schemes to match the museum pieces used by actual racers back in the Fifties,\u201d he said. \u201cThe stunt men and actors really preferred our helmets. They helped them stay cool on the set and in the cars while they were shooting in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

By Friday, Kirshon was back home after a job well done, which he and DeVito credit in large part to their employees, many of whom are military veterans.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are people who know how to get the job done, understand the task at hand and are able to do it in very little time,\u201d DeVito said.<\/p>\n

The U.S. Department of Labor has honored Kirsh Helmets four straight years with a Gold Award under its HIRE Vets Medallion Program, which recognizes firms that have a commitment to sustaining a veteran workforce.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps give meaning to the work that we do well beyond just the mission of the company,\u201d DeVito said. \u201cAnd it helps engage with other veterans and veterans organizations across the country that appreciate the work we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to be part of a major motion picture and to have been selected from among all the helmet companies in the world,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen they had to pick somebody who could do the job, provide exactly what they wanted and operate at a high level, we were able to do that and deliver in just a few days.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeVito and Kirshon founded KIRSH Helmets in 2017, shortly after getting acquainted at a Saturday morning RPI incubator event.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had just gotten his first patent issued and was talking to other entrepreneurs,\u201d DeVito said. \u201cI was fascinated by his work and the technology he had. It looked to be something that would really change the head protection industry. I saw his vision working in many different ways across sports and athletics, certainly in motor vehicles and motorcycles in particular, which is where his interest was.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeVito provides most of the business acumen, while Kirshon is the technology guru. After studying the marketplace, they wrote a business and funding plan, set about raising capital and moved into the NYBizLab in Schenectady, which helps small and start-up companies grow.<\/p>\n

Assembly and production facilities are in a building owned by Seeley Machine, on Big Boom Road in Queensbury.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNow we have 14 issued patents and several provisional patents have been filed in multiple jurisdictions around the world,\u201d DeVito said. \u201cIn the early stages of any business you\u2019ve got to focus, so we\u2019ve focused on motorcycle helmets, in particular the half helmet, which is 40 percent of all the helmets bought every year. About two-thirds are too small and unsafe, another third are too big and bulky, not a style that riders want to wear. Jay is a rider and his inspiration came from wanting to solve those problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year we had another great year, we sold all the helmets we could make,\u201d he said. \u201cWe moved into Texas, Arizona, Nevada, California and Washington state.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plans call for expanding the sales force to other parts of the country, but all production will continue to be in Queensbury. DeVito said support from Warren County Economic Development Corp. and local investors have been instrumental to the company\u2019s success.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s important is that the technology, the patented liner, can perform not only in motor vehicle crash helmets, but also in head protection for sports and athletics,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can talk about hockey, baseball, bicycles and workplace safety with construction helmets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Football is another obvious application, which would take considerable capital and a partner that\u2019s willing to adopt KIRSH Helmets\u2019 technology.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur technology offers an opportunity with a very wide global runway,\u201d DeVito said.<\/p>\n

Motorcycle accident victim Joseph Murphy is living proof that KIRSH Helmets work. \u201cAn individual on a side street pulled out in front of me, I laid the bike down and skidded across the pavement,\u201d he said, in a video on the company website. \u201cThe helmet hit the pavement. Firefighters explained to me what happened and said my helmet here saved my life. I wouldn\u2019t be here otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI do extensive amounts of research on any product I buy,\u201d he said. \u201cI looked at the testing. I\u2019ve seen other helmets that have gone through testing and basically fell apart on impact. This interior gel pad absorbs the impact. This helmet\u2019s actually going to save your life.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Paul Post \u201cIf you get in one of my cars, you get in to win.\u201d — 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\u2019s gaining international exposure by playing a significant role in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89,"featured_media":37093,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nArea Company Designs Custom Helmets Used By Stunt Drivers In The Movie \u2018Ferrari\u2019 - Glens Falls Business Journal<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2024\/02\/area-company-designs-custom-helmets-used-by-stunt-drivers-in-the-movie-ferrari\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Area Company Designs Custom Helmets Used By Stunt Drivers In The Movie \u2018Ferrari\u2019 - Glens Falls Business Journal\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Paul Post \u201cIf you get in one of my cars, you get in to win.\u201d — Enzo Ferrari. 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