Review: 2011 Urge Endur-O-Matic Helmet By Olly Forster in Reviews,Urge Modern trail bikes are lightweight, agile and capable of tackling any terrain with the freedom to ride like a lunatic and explore to your hearts content. With this new style of riding comes new risks to the rider and taking a full face helmet and excessive armor isn’t going to work. For me, regular XC helmets look too much like road helmets and I cant abide that, I’m a mountain biker and the last thing I want to do is look like a ‘roadie’. Skate helmets are an obvious choice perhaps, but they lack some of the design features that the right helmet might have. The Urge represents a combination of styles, taking elements of both the traditional bicycle helmet and the skate helmet to produce something that not only looks unique, but serves the purpose of it’s intended use through the well thought out features incorporated within it. Trail bikes can give you a feeling of invincibility with the weight to travel ratio they offer. Its good to know manufacturers are aware of the demands this kind of riding requires and that there is a good selection of product available. Urge have realised this from day one and the Endur-O-Matic lives up to it’s name. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-14.jpg Nothing looks like an Urge helmet, but there is far more to this than strange looks and unique styling. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-13.jpg A design feature that resonates through the Urge product line are the unique round vents to which the Endur-O-Matic has a total of 8, each one measuring 30mm across and positioned in a pattern that channels the air right where you need it most. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-12.jpg The Peak If like me you’ve bought your fair share of replacement peaks over the years and you know how frustrating it can be to pick yourself up from a crash to find your peak in pieces. This gets especially frustrating if the colour and style you need is long since unavailable and with the the added cost and hassle involved in buying a new one, a crash can be painful in more ways than one. Urge have taken a totally new direction with their peak design; made from a plastic that is pretty much indestructible, bending with an impact to return to it’s original shape with no stress or fractures. The peak also plays another important role in letting the helmet roll in the event of an impact reducing any jarring effect to the neck caused by the ground reacting with an extended and rigid peak. The peak also weighs less than a gram and works with the round vents to assist on-coming air into the the helmet’s internal channels keeping your head cool. A lot of thought has gone into the peak alone and that’s just the tip of the ice-burg with Endur-O-Matic’s functionality. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-11.jpg Style Check out the lines! I was on the fence to begin with and not quite sure where my stance was with regards to the looks of the Endur-O-Matic, but the more I look at it, the more I love it and the more I’ve enjoyed wearing it. I think I’ve got a good eye for design, but there will be those who disagree and think that the Endur-O-Matic is too far away from the perceived shape and style of what is more commonly available. It should be for this reason alone that those who want something both original and functional will love the Endur-O-Matic. This is not an ugly helmet, it just doesn’t look like anything else anyone has ever released and it is for that reason that it should be celebrated. Embrace your individuality, who wants to look just like the guy next to you on his black bike in his black gear with earthy tones with a dull multi vented roadie looking helmet on, not me and I’m not the only one. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-05.jpg The designers at Urge have also spent a lot of time on the aesthetics of the helmet’s colours and graphics. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-02.jpg The Endur-O-Matic is a unique looking piece of kit that will no doubt grab attention. It is also a piece of kit that will divide opinions on the looks and styling alone, but mountain bikers all too often follow the herd and respond to fresh design with skepticism. I’m sure that with time, even the hard line traditionalists out there will warm to the Endur-O-Matic. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-03.jpg The Fit The first thing that struck me about the Endur-O-Matic was how light it is, 320 grams for the Large, which is pretty much nothing in the hands and not even noticeable on the head. The second thing I noticed was the lack of retention system, a common feature amongst traditional bike helmets and something I’m sure most of us are used to. The lack of any retention system was an initial concern that faded away after a few hours in the saddle. Once on your head and thrashing out a bumpy descent, the Endur-O-Matic didn’t move or even alert me to the fact I was wearing a new helmet. This thing is comfy! The ‘Gangsta’ pad is the front pad, which drops 15mm below the moulding and in doing so remains in constant contact with on coming air remaining dry and in doing so, stops any excess sweat from trickling into your eyes. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-06.jpg The Reason the Endur-O-Matic doesn’t need a retention system is that your head is actually ‘cupped’ in the helmet resulting in greater coverage for both protection and fit. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-051.jpg The back of the helmet is more like a that of a full face, coming down further and looking solid, something that will appeal to those who ride on the ragged edge and more often than not come a cropper while pushing their riding. http://factoryjackson.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/urge-helmet-04.jpg The best thing about this helmet has to be that you don’t look like an extra from a Super Mario game with a mushroom on your head. The Endur-O-Matic was designed to have a low profile with a narrow volume and not look crap on your head like some helmets we won’t mention. This was the first helmet I’ve had besides the Pro-Tec Bucky Lasek that has had such a good profile. I should point out that the Bucky Lasek has no EPS, just foam, another reason why the Endur-O-Matic rocks as it meets all the safety standards and then some, unlike the foam Pro-Tec.
