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The Fox Rampage RS is a full-face helmet with a carbon fibre shell that wraps a whole host of safety features.
This new lid is lighter than the Rampage Pro Carbon at just over the 1kg mark. It uses the MIPS Integra Split system to better protect your head from rotational impacts, along with a dual EPS foam liner, in a bid to keep your head as safe as possible without weighing it down.
Thanks to the two sets of padding that come in the sturdy helmet bag, the fit is impressively comfortable.
Get riding and there’s more airflow than you might expect, too.
While it might not be cheap, the Rampage RS is priced competitively against the best full-face helmets and feels as if it’s worth every penny on the trail.
Although I preferred the looks of its predecessor, the Fox Rampage Pro Carbon, this helmet's less angular appearance has grown on me.
Fox Rampage RS helmet need to know details
- Features MIPS Integra Split technology to help deal with rotational impacts
- Comes with a second set of thicker pads to help tailor fit
- Weighs 1,011g in size medium
- Dual EPS and EPP liners are designed to manage different impact speeds
- Meets ASTM F1952 standards for DH and NTA 8776 for ebike use
Comfortable and cool
Slip the Rampage RS over your head and it feels familiar, comfortable and an easy place to leave your head for lap after lap in the bike park. That's assuming it fits like a glove from the get-go.
Compared to, for example, the Troy Lee Designs D4, my Rampage RS felt a little roomier. However, a swap to the set of thicker pads Fox includes in the sturdy helmet bag enabled me to feel as snug as a bug inside the Fox lid.
While the D4 and Rampage RS feel very similar either side of your face, around the back of your head and over the brow, the padding on the D4 across the top of the head is a touch softer, thicker and plusher.
This doesn’t detract from how comfortable the Rampage RS feels, though. There’s plenty of cushioning in the pads to create a plush but stable feel while you’re being bounced about the trail.
My only real niggle was the chin strap. This needed to be adjusted carefully to ensure the double carbon D-ring buckle or the fabric pull tab didn’t irritate my chin.
I found I could shuffle the strap padding around a bit to fix this, but it feels as though Fox could extend this slightly to alleviate the issue. Still, it was a minor, infrequent problem for me.
Once you're moving, the Rampage RS vents well, considering how enclosed your head feels and the number of ports dotted around the shell.
At slower speeds, the D4 feels marginally warmer than the Rampage RS.
It’s only on really hot days that I fully appreciated the venting, which enabled me to keep the lid on my head when queuing for the lift or chatting at the top of the trails before setting off.
On mellower trails that require a little more lung capacity, the mesh cover at the front of the chin bar did a good job of letting air flow freely when I was gasping.
This, and the relatively low weight of 1,011g, means the Rampage RS works for enduro riding or racing, just as it does for downhill.
Peaking interest
Fox gives you the choice of two fixed positions for the peak – which it says is GoPro-compatible. After experimenting on a couple of runs, I opted to shift it into the higher position.
This was largely to keep it out of my eyeline, because I’m quite fussy about visors creeping into my field of view.
On top of that, the higher of the two positions looks better.
I wasn’t totally sold on the shape of the Rampage RS, but it grew on me, helped by moving the peak up a bit.
It's hard to comment on the overall safety of the helmet. I’ve only had one crash so far, with a very minor knock to the head that left the helmet totally unscathed and my head feeling fine.
While the asking price seems quite high, the Rampage RS is a feature-packed lid that’s comfortable, airy enough for sweaty days on the bike and comes with some well-considered extras.
How we tested
Rob tested the Fox Rampage RS in a variety of locations. These included cold and wet runs at various locations throughout the south west of the UK, along with lap after lap of Queenstown’s Skyline bike park and Coronet Peak DH track during the New Zealand summer with much higher temperatures.
Lighter weight with more safety tech
Inside the Fox Rampage RS’s carbon shell, you’ll find two layers of foam. One is Expanded Polystyrene (EPS), the other Expanded Polypropylene (EPP), to deal with the demands and different speed associated with each.
Generally speaking, EPP will handle lower-speed hits better, while EPS is there for the faster impacts.
Fox has included some channelling on the inner-most shell to help improve airflow over the top of the head.
On top of this, there’s the MIPS Integra Split system. This sees outer and inner shells connected via small elastomers, which enables the outer to move very slightly over the inner.
This should help protect your head if you hit the ground at an angle.
On top of all that, Fox includes some extras not all other helmet brands do.
Along with the second set of pads to help tailor fit, Fox includes an extension for the peak. This is intended for riding in the mud and rain, and is designed to offer a little more protection from the elements.
Fox Rampage RS bottom line
The Rampage RS is a really comfortable helmet with decent venting and enough safety features to give you peace of mind when you’re bombing down the hill.
Although it’s pricey, there’s a lot on offer here, from the additional padding to tailor the fit to the added extras such as the peak extension for riding in the mud.
Combined with the top-flight performance, it's worth the cash if you’re serious about riding downhill or enduro.
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