Canyon Deflectr RLS Bike Helmet Review: Game-Changing Safety Technology

Reasonably priced. Very light. Studies amusement that RLS is safer than MIPS. Innovative, one-handed helmet strap system.

More colors would beryllium nice.

Ever since its inception successful the aboriginal 2000s, Swedish marque MIPS has had a monopoly, much oregon less, connected inclusion successful high-end motorcycle helmets. Its device—revolutionary astatine the time—deflects rotational interaction distant from the caput successful the lawsuit of a crash, thereby reducing the likelihood of encephalon trauma. However, it has besides provoked galore companies to probe and make their ain proprietary rotational interaction extortion units, astir of which are antithetic takes connected the aforesaid concept—a snug interior webbing that is capable to determination independently of the helmet's outer shell.

British marque RLS took a caller stance connected rotational interaction protection, moving its instrumentality from the wrong of the helmet to the outside. In doing so, the institution claims that its exertion tin trim the hazard of concussion by 4 times erstwhile compared to accepted helmets. Studies astatine the standard-bearing helmet-safety laboratory astatine Virginia Tech University person confirmed those claims, giving the caller Canyon Deflectr RLS—the archetypal commercialized helmet disposable with RLS—their highest standing aft caller testing.

Peel Away

Like immoderate different caller exertion brand, RLS is hardly new. Its founders and earliest employees spent years toiling successful a bid of warehouse bays successful East London, trying to find a mode to amended support against rotational impact. Like each large root stories, it wasn’t until the eleventh hour, erstwhile the marque was astir retired of effect money, that the institution decided to effort thing caller and perchance revolutionary: polycarbonate shot bearings.

RLS engineers fastened hundreds of the tiny bearings to adhesive strips, which they past stuck to the outer shells of helmets. Those strips were past covered successful different furniture of hard helmet shell. Et voila!

The thought down RLS exertion is that erstwhile the helmet impacts a hard surface, the shot bearings rotation disconnected the strip, forcing the outer furniture to shear distant from the helmet. Those outer layers release, hence the company’s name, RLS, oregon “Release Layer System.”

According to information gleaned from thousands upon thousands of interior tests, on with autarkic investigating and verification from labs similar Virginia Tech’s, RLS is said to trim the probability of encephalon wounded by anyplace from 68 percent to 84 percent erstwhile compared to a non-RLS helmet.

Chinny Chin Chin

A fewer weeks ago, I visited RLS’s office successful their East London warehouses. After they showed maine information and analytics, videos of however the RLS strategy works, and adjacent real-time tests, they sent maine location with a Deflectr Trail RLS, marking the brand’s collaboration with beloved German direct-to-consumer marque Canyon.

At archetypal glance, the Deflectr looks similar immoderate different upland motorcycle helmet. It’s bigger and bulkier than a emblematic roadworthy oregon commuter helmet, with added extortion for the basal skull and a sun-blocking visor. On person inspection, a bid of panels, somewhat raised from the helmet’s surface, becomes apparent. Beneath these panels is wherever the genius of the RLS strategy lives.

In practice, the Deflectr worked conscionable fine. It acceptable well, acknowledgment to its dial-adjust acceptable system. At 326 grams, it didn’t enactment added strain connected my cervix implicit the people of a fewer agelong way sessions.

Despite the perchance revolutionary exertion that lives conscionable beneath those outer ammunition panels, the Deflectr RLS is conscionable an off-road motorcycle helmet. The lone unusual prime present is the chin strap, which Canyon calls its HighBar System. Unlike your emblematic strap, wherein a brace of nylon strips are fastened beneath your chin, the Deflectr features a stiff (though comparatively pliable) integrative set that pulls down from the beforehand of the helmet and nether your chin, and uses a dial strategy to tighten to fit.

I deliberation astir helmet straps enactment conscionable fine. Still, the HighBar System means that the rider tin marque one-handed strap adjustments connected the fly, sometimes portion riding. Anyway, erstwhile I had the helmet connected and fastened to my head, I forgot astir the helmet’s strap strategy entirely.

Over the people of respective hours and a fewer twelve way miles, I had small to accidental astir the Deflectr RLS, which is precisely what you privation successful a motorcycle helmet. In different words, erstwhile a motorcycle helmet is good made, it’s thing you should hide is there.

Other than the unusual prime of strap (which, arsenic I mentioned, I got implicit quickly), the lone sound I person is however the Deflectr RLS is, arsenic of this writing, lone offered successful 1 of 2 colour options: matte achromatic oregon metallic olive. While those are some chill and all, those of america who thrust beneath the brutal confederate prima cognize the worth of a achromatic oregon light-colored helmet.

The illustration helmet I was sent came successful a truly absorbing blocky black/white colour combo that some looked chill and went a spot further successful keeping the temps astir my skull down. Here’s hoping determination are much colour options connected the horizon. According to Canyon’s website, the monolithic vents astatine the apical of the Deflectr, combined with the ample intake and exhaust vents enactment successful tandem to support your caput cool. Still, sometimes, successful the dormant of summer, achromatic tin beryllium a rider’s champion friend.

According to RLS, the Deflectr is conscionable the archetypal successful what volition soon beryllium a enactment of bike, motorcycle, climbing, and adjacent operation helmets. And astatine conscionable $160, it’s importantly easier connected the wallet than immoderate of its modern high-end helmets, which tin easy tally into the $300 range.