Rudy Undertaking Insurgent Biking Helmet Evaluate

Lots of my youthful biking compatriots don’t acknowledge the Rudy Undertaking identify, however again within the Nineteen Nineties, it was distinguished within the professional biking scene. The Italian model had an plain model, defending the eyes and heads of legendary cyclists like five-time Tour de France winner Bernard Hinault.

Rudy Undertaking is alive and properly at present, and its new Insurgent helmet landed on my doorstep simply because the temperatures started to rise. The Insurgent has a traditional look; it’s not an aero helmet, however it additionally didn’t look tremendous ventilated.

I used to be cautious of coaching with it because the highs hit the higher 90s, however for my part, the helmet had a traditional Italian model that I couldn’t resist. So, I wore it on gravel and street rides all through the remainder of the summer time.

Briefly, the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent bike helmet hits all of the marks. It suits and ventilates properly, it’s mild, and my biking buddies and I agree that it appears to be like nice. Rudy Undertaking even graces it with recycled supplies. The one draw back is the MSRP of $350.

Rudy Undertaking Insurgent Specs

The Rudy Undertaking Insurgent’s supplies checklist is just like that of a lot of at present’s top-of-the-line street helmets. Its polycarbonate shell has carbon fiber panels, that are mentioned to supply structural reinforcement, permitting much less expanded polystyrene (EPS) padding. This helps the Insurgent attain its verified weight of 322 g in a measurement L.

The polystyrene energy-absorbing foam has a standard-looking consolation liner, however the front-facing part has a internet, which Rudy Undertaking positioned to cease bugs. The inside is deeply channeled for airflow.

Though there isn’t a devoted construction to particularly mitigate rotational impacts, like a MIPS liner or gel pads, the model states that the Insurgent passes rigorous rotational affect testing. It meets each CPSC 12.03 and CE/EN 1078 requirements and was awarded Virginia Tech’s highest security ranking.

The shell, consolation liner, and straps all comprise recycled supplies.

The Rudy Undertaking Insurgent straps shut with a magnetic FidLock buckle, and the helmet has eyewear storage ports.

Rudy Undertaking gives the Insurgent in two sizes, small/medium and enormous, and matte white and matte black colorways.

Rudy Undertaking Insurgent Match and Perform

Match

I’ve an elongated oval head, and the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent match completely. The helmet had a “deep” match, which means I felt like my head went means into it; it wasn’t simply sitting on prime of my head. For a helmet that appears “customary” in form, it had nice protection alongside the perimeters and again of my head.

The circumferential retention system had a large vertical adjustment vary. With it within the lowest place, the helmet had a fair deeper becoming really feel. I didn’t need to run very a lot stress on the dial in any respect, because the deep match stored the helmet secure even on the roughest gravel terrain.

I don’t recall as soon as in the course of the 3 months of testing once I needed to reposition the helmet. It’s nearly ordinary, particularly when sporting bigger, fuller-coverage biking glasses; helmets usually bump the highest of the frames.

The strap divider may be very huge; it’s the widest I’ve seen in bicycle helmets. Nevertheless it felt snug. At first, I assumed the bigger floor space on the aspect of my face would trouble me, however it unfold stress, and I didn’t discover it whereas driving.

The chin strap closes with a magnetic Fidock buckle. That is my private choice, however I’m not a fan of Fidlock on any of my helmets. I spend an excessive amount of time figuring them out after many years of ordinary helmet buckles. It’s only a operate of my age.

The deep and safe match stored the helmet so secure that it seemed that it was lighter than its 322g weight.

Air flow

This side of the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent was probably the most shocking. Sure, the helmet is roofed with loads of vents, and the channeling inside regarded promising. Nevertheless it has a “traditional” look that doesn’t scream “airflow” as many trendy super-ventilated fashions do.

However immediately, even at slower speeds, I may really feel the air transfer throughout my scalp and out the again. With temperatures hovering close to 100 at instances and the humidity continually excessive, I used to be pleasantly stunned that the Insurgent was the perfect ventilating helmet I’d examined to date this yr. It’s a notch underneath the Specialised S-Works Prevail 3, however third place in air flow is a great distance again.

General Consolation

The Rudy Undertaking’s nice and deep match, stability, admirable weight, and glorious air flow made it some of the snug helmets in my in depth quiver. Many helmets hit one or two of those standards with excessive marks, however it’s uncommon that one registers excessive in all of them, and Rudy Undertaking did that for me with its Insurgent.

I feel it may need flowed much more air if the bug internet had been eliminated, however I didn’t really feel the necessity. And I’ve been stung by wasps flying into my lid twice, so there’s that.

Sturdiness and Nitpicks

The polycarbonate and carbon-paneled shell on the Insurgent coated every thing right down to the decrease fringe of the polystyrene liner, which is reassuring to a man who’s all the time by the way dinging helmets. The shell additionally offers the helmet a really stable really feel within the arms.

Some shells are skinny and indifferent from the polystyrene in locations, which permits it to crumple quickly if pressed. Not so with the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent; the shell and EPS liner have been stable and felt like a single construction.

One other space the place some helmets can really feel fragile is the connection level of the circumferential retention system. Some appear and feel like stick-on afterthoughts, however not so on the Insurgent. The attachment factors are embedded securely with substantial anchors within the EPS liner.

Lastly, biking helmets nearly all the time use Velcro stick-on tabs to safe the consolation liner, and the half that’s supposed to remain on the EPS liner will usually come off. This was additionally the case with the Insurgent, as a handful of the tabs got here off the EPS with the liner. However as soon as I secured them one time within the appropriate place, these tabs remained in place by a number of padding elimination cycles. With the quantity of sweat I used to be producing, I needed to wash this liner usually.

My solely different nitpick, aside from personally not being a fan of Fidlocks for helmets, was that the bug internet interfered with some sun shades when stowed within the devoted ports. Some ear stems acquired hung up within the internet. And possibly some of us would need shade decisions past white and black.

Conclusions on the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent Bike Helmet

For cyclists with oval head shapes in search of a helmet for street and gravel, the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent sits excessive within the pecking order. It doesn’t have a weak level so far as match and efficiency.

And in response to those that noticed the Insurgent, it’s a handsome helmet. It doesn’t have the now-bland aero look, and it has traditional traces that harken to the times of leather-based helmets, which, by all means, have been fairly ineffective however cool nonetheless.

The one huge stumbling block was the value. At $350, it’s one of many priciest helmets I’d examined up to now that wasn’t a full-on aero street race mannequin.

However past that price ticket, the Rudy Undertaking Insurgent is nearly devoid of any negatives. And that’s from somebody who’s leery of biking product releases completed solely to supply one thing new.