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“RLS is first and foremost designed to protect what makes you, you”, says RLS founder and CEO Jamie Cook.
--->Image from RLS site 😆
Yo Dawg, I heard you liked Mips, so I put a Mips on your Mips, so you can have a helmet in your helmet on your helmet.
Probably no worse than if your visor breaks off and goes into your face?
I too am seriously going to consider getting one of these on day one. Half shell is due for an update.
Hmm but does this mean the helmet is toast after the first little crash, or can I put the pieces back together?
I know helmets should be replaced after a crash, but if I'm forced to do so just because it disintegrated this tech sounds a bit less cool.
Edit: Actually bothered to read their FAQ, it mentions panels should be reattachable, along with the urge to use "common sense" in doing so. So probably like any other helmet... Their animation made it look like there's a million tiny balls releasing upon impact😅
RLS is so effective, that in an independent study, RLS was found to reduce the risk of concussion by 4x on average compared with conventional helmets***
Yet the study linked is
1) Not peer reviewed
2) Not actually published yet
3) Is hugely biased. Quote from the study: "Competing interests: This work was funded by HEXR Ltd. All authors are employees of HEXR Ltd or Dropmatics Ltd, which may benefit from the findings."
HEXR is the company behind RLS, so they directly benefit from a study about increased safety from RLS. Also, canyon supplied the helmets for the control group, but the press release says Canyon will be another manufacture to use RLS. So they, too, benefit from this study and are directly involved in it. I'm not sure how this can be claimed to be independent?
The results could be accurate, but honestly with that much bias I'd be taking the whole thing with a large pinch of salt.
Edit: I see that it is ranked number one in Virgina Tech's ranking, so maybe I should go put that salt on my hat and eat it.
It's all ball bearings nowadays.
I also want to point out the use the term “conventional helmets” quite a bit. What defines that? Something without mips? A helmet without anything and its just foam? Because I feel anything with the goal of concussion and TBI prevention will outshine a standard foam helmet. Kind of like saying that your offroad purposed built vehicle is 99% better off roading than conventional vehicles (Conventional Vehicle: Your Moms Prius.)
Fun unique find
gonna come around the corner with my conventional helmet and low-side on spent RLS helmet marbles I can just feel it
Ceramic bearing upgrade for my helmet, please..
Enduro Max bearing helmet next...
Can we assume this is a v2 commencal supreme, carbonated and tucked?
I don't know why, but if Scott didn't hide the shock, I think it would look something like this..
this thread is good again
good job everyone and thanks ball bearing helmet for making it happen
I don't know why, but if BOLD didn't hide the shock, I think it would look something like this..
That RLS system seems perfectly effective as long as long as nothing else than the deflect panels are touched during the impact. Which will be the case in a vast majority of situations, especially on road and smooth surfaces.
But during a mountain bike crash on rough surface a pointy rock, small root or branch can potentially catch the edge of one of the helmet vents or EPS in between panels. In that precise situation, the RLS have no effect. In that situation MIPS still allows the helmet to deflect a good part of the rotational effect.
So, to my eyes, for mountain biking helmets the RLS should not replace the MIPS or similar systems but be used as an additional security. RLS solo in road helmet is perfectly fine.
I'm going to send my new bike tech to the shop and tell him to get me helmet bearings to see how he reacts.
I believe you can run the ceramic ones without grease.
You probably can, but you shouldn't. Any bearing even with the "gothic arch" style race design will experience microscopic amounts skidding. Running a bearing dry might feel good in an unloaded test but the moment the load is applied lubricants will help
According to their IG, Transition is announcing something tomorrow. Video clip is from the Kamloops Bike Ranch and looks like it could be dj-related. Or maybe finally the official release of the new Bottle Rocket? (but probably not. The clip doesn't seem to match a BR release)
Looks like the carbon version of a CrossWorx Dash290
My thoughts exactly.
"It's all ball bearings these days. Perhaps you guys need a refresher course
Oh and I'm going to need some gauze pad and 3-1 oil."
New PBJ, Alloy frame now:
https://www.transitionbikes.com/Bikes/PBJ
random- do you think Yeti DH will ever see production?
Been wishing for that to happen for years now!
Not technically a mountain bike tech rumor, but it's very funny to listen to gravel riders insist they aren't just reinventing 1990s mountain bikes and then see product releases like this... https://www.bikeradar.com/news/rockshoxs-rudy-xl-gravel-fork
60mm of travel and clearance for 2.25" tires. This thing would have crushed the NORBA XC circuit. All it's missing is some stanchion boots.
in some capacity, yes. their website currently has the DH bike under the special projects page / moniker. they've done limited runs of the special projects bikes in the past, like the first run of the 4x bike where they made 100 frames. given how much it would likely cost and the niche status for DH bikes that would be my best guesstimate.
Looks like they've also invented rear suspension...
https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/bikes/road-bikes/gravel-bikes/drop-b…