Is it a Snowmobile Helmet?
I have been conflicted whenever I wore the TOBE Ventus Heated Helmet this season. For context I have owned and worn a lot of snowmobile helmets over many seasons. For whatever reason, I have also kept many of them. It is natural to compare all of them when testing a new option, and I have concluded that the TOBE Ventus Heated Helmet could be better.
Its Best Features
The TOBE Ventus Heated Helmet impressed me immediately with two features.
- The internal visor is easily accessible to drop in front of your vision on the left-hand side of the helmet. It can easily be deployed with your gloves while riding. It does not ice up when not in use in the helmet. It blocks the bright sun, the purpose of an internal shield.
- The Fidlock magnetic closure is the best feature of this entire TOBE helmet. It is so easy to fasten and also unfasten with this unique-in-the-industry closure. When your helmet is new, you have to adjust the length of your strap for your chin and the balaclava you wear, but after that it works flawlessly.
Adjustable Visor
Most helmet visors look functional, but when the sun sets in the west as you ride home, very few visors actually block the sun as they are supposed to. This TOBE helmet has some adjustability in the visor that many helmets do not offer. After my first few rides, I set the visor as low as possible so that the functionality of the visor worked better and as intended.
Heated Face Shield
TOBE claims the Ventus helmet is heated. I have come to understand that the helmet itself is not heated, just the face shield. The heated face shield, however, works as intended. The comment I have is that there is a trend by competing helmets to provide larger shields with an unencumbered, larger field of view. Sadly, the heat strips in the Ventus helmet’s shield leave very little room to see the trail in front of you.
When plugged in, it works very well; it provided a fog-free trail in front of me every time. I observed at various temperatures, and I noticed this on my very first ride; often the RCA plug-in was not even required. The Ventus heated helmet allows quite a bit of air to flow inside. The extra air is what keeps the shield clear. While this prevents fogging, it is also the reason the helmet is not as warm as I would have liked.
Venting
There are two options for this TOBE helmet.
- There are two vents at the very front that are manageable with your riding glove. They are easy to understand – open vs. closed – as they are large enough to feel. They provide adequate air directly to your chin and mouth.
- The other two vents are over your forehead on the top of the helmet. These vents are almost impossible to open and close while riding, however. Effectively, there is very little room between the top of the helmet and the overhanging visor. When both top vents were open, it was indiscernible if they provided very much venting.
TOBE Goggles Fit Seamlessly
Later in the season, I removed the heated shield. I replaced it with a set of TOBE Revelation Photon Tech Goggles. These goggles fit this helmet extremely well with no air gaps or spaces to expose your skin. Also, the goggles did not slip out of place at any time.
Outfitted with goggles is when the Ventus helmet “woke up”; it seemed to be more in its element. My days riding with goggles as an optional set up seemed to be what the helmet was originally designed for. Effectively, my vision was improved and the airflow was comfortable, not cold. TOBE has created a seamless mating of their Revelation goggles to the Ventus heated helmet.
Season’s Conclusions
My opinion is that the purpose built in versatility with the four-season flexibility of the Ventus helmet is also its downfall. It is sold as a snowmobile helmet for cold weather, but it is purposely designed to be worn in multiple applications. It was also designed for our summers, thus to be worn as a motorcycle helmet. So it is versatile and adequate, yes, but it is not exceptional as a cold-weather trail helmet for snowmobiling.
When wearing the Ventus helmet in warmer weather, matched with goggles, it would find a place in my gear bag. This test just reinforces that, as snowmobilers, we often need specific gear depending upon the regions we ride in. We need gear that matches what we actually do. Too often, we make our choices based on the influence of logos, bright colours, or YouTube ambassadors.
In conclusion, TOBE’s Ventus heated helmet is a fine piece of equipment. Consider it as your helmet if your riding matches what it was engineered, designed and manufactured for.
A large thank you goes out to our partner, Shop MSD, for entrusting us to test, demonstrate and evaluate their multiple snowmobile products. We appreciate their trust and continued collaboration.
— — — — —
Keep Reading
TOBE Ventus Heated Helmet First Impressions
