IXS Trail RS Evo helmet review

As IXS’s middle-weight open face lid, the Trail RS Evo hopes to blend protection and coverage with weight and ventilation so that you’re protected and don’t overheat.

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IXS Trail RS Evo helmet details

Constructed with an EPS liner that absorbs impacts, it’s wrapped with an in-mould polycarbonate shell designed to protect the EPS from damage. This protection extends around the rim of the lid. There are ventilation channels between the top and side vents, with 22 vents in total.

The retention system is adjusted with an indexed thumb wheel that alters the size of the cradle. The cradle also has three points of vertical adjustment to change the helmet’s depth on the wearer’s head.

The visor isn’t height adjustable but has a quick release system so that it can break free in the event of a crash. The chin strap is fastened using a clip buckle and the strap splitters can be vertically adjusted.

The Trail RS Evo wasn’t included in Virginia Tech’s helmet safety impact tests.

IXS Trail RS Evo helmet performance

Even with the cradle vertically adjusted to its shallowest position, the IXS Trail RS Evo sat deeply on my head with a generous, cavernous-like fit. This depth was felt more at the front of the helmet than the rear, with the front rim sitting low on my forehead just above my brow.

Because the lid was low at the front, its rim was in my field of vision when descending and climbing. It didn't ruin the ride, but it was frustrating seeing the rim at all times. Even with extensive re-adjustment, I couldn’t find a setting that meant it wasn’t in my peripheral vision.

The generous fit means the Trail RS Evo is comfortable when worn for long periods, with no hot spots or irregularities in its shape around its circumference.

On top of that, the padding felt soft and luxurious, and because it has full-depth cushioning across the brow, it absorbed sweat well and reduced dripping until it became totally saturated on particularly hot rides or climbs.

It also felt airy on slower climbs, especially compared to some other lids on the market, such as the Troy Lee Designs A1. This ventilation was also helped by the lid feeling pretty light on my head.

Due to the fixed peak, it wasn’t possible to move it out of the way to park goggles on the front of the lid. However, because the front of the lid is so low, you’re unlikely to want to use goggles with it anyway. There’s a lot of interference between the frame and lid, which either pushed the helmet up off the back of my head or the goggles down hard on to my nose.

Things weren’t much better with glasses, with their arms constantly pushing against the underside of the retention cradle despite plenty of re-adjustment attempts. When they were worn over the cradle, they slipped down to their original position, and when they were sat between my head and the cradle, the arms caused uncomfortable hot spots.

The problem occurred on all of the glasses I tested with the helmet, and proved to be the most frustrating quirk of the Trail RS Evo.

IXS Trail RS Evo helmet bottom line

Despite the Trail RS Evo being fairly comfortable and offering reasonable coverage, it doesn’t have any safety features such as MIPS and wasn’t compatible with all of the goggles I wore with it.

It was also uncomfortable with all of the glasses I tried, with the cradle pushing against the arms.

For the price, there are better helmets with more tech out there.