New design improves airflow through the helmet and over its surface
(Image credit: Abus)
The Abus GameChanger aero cycling helmet has been a fixture on the heads of the Movistar team since 2017 and latterly is also used by Alpecin-Deceuninck, although with Canyon branding. Now Abus has launched an updated version which it says improves aerodynamics and ventilation.
Gone are the Giro Synthe-like perforated side pieces in favour of a larger slot vent over the forehead. Abus says that this eyebrow vent provides 32 per cent greater airflow into the front of the helmet.
Venting at the rear has been improved too, with a redesigned, larger, star-shaped exit port that Abus claims improves exhaust air outflow by 20% over the helmet’s predecessor. The internal air channels have also been redesigned, using the Venturi effect to speed up airflow.
Abus says that its re-engineered venting also makes it easier to perch your cycling glasses either in the front or rear vents of the helmet.
Redesigned venting provides easier sunglass storage in the front or rear of the helmet (Image credit: Abus)
Changes to Abus’s Aeroblade, which sits on the top of the helmet towards the rear, are also said to help to draw air out of the helmet more efficiently. The Aeroblade is involved in the helmet’s aerodynamics as well, with Abus saying it’s fine-tuned the helmet for speeds between 46 and 52kph, typical pro riding speeds, and for a more head-down riding position than version one of the GameChanger.
That’s involved changes to the helmet’s rear Kamm-tail, which has been extended so that the GameChanger 2.0 behaves aerodynamically like a helmet 11 per cent longer than its predecessor. The trailing edge of the Kamm-tail has also been lowered by 8 per cent to cater for the typical heads-down position of riders when in the drops.
Abus has been slow to add MIPS or other rotational impact tech to its high-end road helmets relative to its competitors, but the GameChanger 2.0 is optionally available with MIPS Air Node. This builds MIPS’s sliding plane technology into the supports for the helmet’s internal padding, resulting in lower weight and less interference with internal airflow than with the original MIPS plastic liner.
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The GameChanger 2.0's aerodynamics have been optimised for riding at 46 to 52kph in the drops (Image credit: Abus)
Abus has also tweaked the design of its straps, with a new, wider anchor at the V where the two 12mm wide straps meet, which it says helps ensure that the helmet stays in its optimal position. The MIPS version of the GameChanger 2.0 includes a Fidlock magnetic buckle, which features in some of the best road bike helmets and which Abus says will be of particular use to triathletes looking for fast bike leg transitions.
Finally, you can fit Abus’s QUIN crash detector in the new helmet. As with the Specialized ANGi helmet-mounted system and many of the best bike computers, this uses accelerometers to detect a potential crash. It then connects to Abus’s smartphone app via Bluetooth, with the phone sending out an alert with your coordinates to designated contacts.
Abus claims weights between 260g and 275g for the three different GameChanger 2.0 sizes on offer, in line with its predecessor. The MIPS helmet is offered in four colours and costs £279.99 / €299.99. Forego MIPS and your colour choices increase to 11, while the price drops to £239.99 / €279.99.
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Paul has been on two wheels since he was in his teens and he's spent much of the time since writing about bikes and the associated tech. He's a road cyclist at heart but his adventurous curiosity means Paul has been riding gravel since well before it was cool, adapting his cyclo-cross bike to ride all-day off-road epics and putting road kit to the ultimate test along the way. Paul has contributed to Cyclingnews' tech coverage for a few years, helping to maintain the freshness of our buying guides and deals content, as well as writing a number of our voucher code pages.
