Another radical TT helmet: Bahrain Victorious debut unreleased Rudy Project ‘Wingdream’

Shortly after the Visma-Lease a Bike team broke the internet with their astonishing new time trial helmets from Giro, it emerged that Bahrain Victorious riders were sporting something very similar themselves, in the form of an unreleased helmet from Rudy Project.

Their thunder was perhaps stolen by their rivals, but on any other day, they would have stolen the show with a new helmet design that features an enlarged profile and super-wide visor.

It was the second bombshell helmet reveal in the same day, confirming the trend for bulbous, freakish helmet design as the next step in the pursuit of aero perfection.

Read more: Visma-Lease a Bike and Jonas Vingegaard debut spectacular new time trial helmet

At time trials so far this season, Bahrain Victorious riders had been using helmets from Rudy Project’s Wing line, with a traditional compact design. However, their squad for Tirreno-Adriatico rocked up to the stage 1 time trial on Monday sporting what looked more like an army helmet, and not just because of the camo print.

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The helmet protrudes at the ears to meet the super-wide visor

Rudy Project has not yet offered any details surrounding the helmet, but has teased its launch, which is set for May, and hinted it is named the ‘Wingdream’.

“A two-year quest for aerodynamic perfection. Developed in collaboration with Team Bahrain Victorious,” wrote the Italian brand on social media. “Redefining the limits of speed and efficiency. Prepare for an aerodynamic performance that will leave you breathless.”

The Wingdream follows hot on the heels of Visma’s new Giro lid, and the likes of Specialized’s ‘head-sock’ TT5, the POC Tempor, and the Redeemer 2Vi from Sweet Protection. These enlarged designs act as a sort of shield, reducing the amount of wind that actually hits the rider’s body and instead encouraging it into smooth airflow over the helmet’s surface.

The Wingdream may not pack the vertical punch of the new Giro helmet, but it does extend out and down from the sides to meet the super-wide visor. As a result, more of the neck and shoulder region are covered, and the air, in theory, would ‘wrap’ around the body more effectively.

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There's not much of a tail here

Also unlike the Giro, there is virtually no tail, and certainly no danger of falling foul of the UCI’s maximum length limit of 450mm from front to back. Instead, the helmet appears to wrap back around the crown of the head, in a design that will draw army helmet references. In fact, the camo print - as opposed to team colours, may be part of the mystery, with unreleased products often wrapped in complex designs as this makes them harder to replicate and copy.

Read more: Tirreno-Adriatico stage 1: Juan Ayuso stuns Filippo Ganna in opening time trial

We’ll have to wait for more information when Rudy Project, which has worked with aerodynamics experts Swiss Side in the past, unveils the full details.

What do you think of the Rudy Project helmet and the increasing trend for radical-wide designs in general? Let us know in the comments section.