Cardo VENTURE | FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Updated: Oct 3
Cardo Venture Helmet | 1-day first impression and review. By Simon Thomas, 2Ride The World
CARDO VENTURE REVIEW
One day. Ten riders. Six hours off-road at Sweet Lamb. Is this the real deal?
Setting Things Straight
Before we start, a few answers for the naysayers.
Did Cardo invite me? Yes. Cardo asked me to Sweet Lamb with nine other riders to try the new Venture.
Did I pay for the day? No. It was an invite from Cardo.
Did I keep the helmet? Yes. I asked to keep it and they said yes.
Do I have to say nice things? Absolutely not. Cardo trusts me to share my honest thoughts.
Did Cardo read this before it went up? No.
Is this a long-term test? No. It's one day and about six hours in the saddle. I'll come back to that, because it matters.
Comms and Us
Lisa and I have clamped, stuck, strapped and sworn at a lot of helmet comms over the years. Most of it worked. Some of it almost worked, which is actually worse. Needless to say, after having ridden over half-a-million miles around the world on 6 continents, we've come to understand how critical good, reliable comm's can be. Sure, listening to music while you ride is nice, but when you depend on being able to easily communicate with your riding buddy or even a larger group of riders, when safety is key, well that's when a solid comm's system pays for itself.
Lisa and I have worn and tried so many helmets and so many comm's systems that we've lost count. I'm only mentioning this in case you've stumbled across this review and wondered who's writing it and why I believe my opinion is valid enough to share. Let's get into it.
When The Email Invite Landed
So when Cardo said they'd built the whole system into a helmet, I was interested. I was also braced to be a little underwhelmed as I have been by other systems in the past, that promise the earth and don't quite deliver.
A Quick History Lesson
Cardo isn't new to this. They launched the first Bluetooth headset for motorcycles in 2004, the Scala Rider, followed by the first rider-to-rider intercom in 2007 and a one-mile-range unit in 2009. Later they introduced the first mesh communicator, the Packtalk.
The Venture takes that mesh technology and puts it inside a dirt helmet. It's built on the ECE 22.06 Leatt Moto 8.5, and Cardo calls it the world's first off-road helmet with fully integrated mesh communication and JBL sound.
The shell is Kevlar and fibreglass in three shell sizes, with four-density impact foam and Leatt's 360° Turbine system. It has quick-release cheek pads for emergencies, a double D-ring, a breakaway peak, and ECE 22.06 and DOT homologation. It costs £699 in the UK, and $799 or €799 elsewhere. OK, that's the basics out of the way.
The Playground
The Sweet Lamb Adventure Acedemy sits in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales, on 6,600 acres of off-road terrain. It has proper rally heritage, too. It hosted Wales Rally GB for many years and the Lombard RAC Rally before that. The gravel roads are still used for rally testing. In fact a DAKAR entrant was there on the day we visited, prepping fhis Porche for Africa and the race start.
In April 2024 Ducati opened its DRE Adventure Academy here, in partnership with Sweet Lamb Riding School. There are four levels of training from novice to Level 3, and crucially the hospitality area has Lavazza coffee on tap :-). Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Good coffee at the end of a gravel track in the Welsh hills...brilliant!
Now The Helmet...Out of the Box
It fitted. I don't mean "it'll do once it's broken in." It fitted straight away.
There were no pressure points on my head. Nothing on my ears. The cheek pads were snug but not tight and the helmet felt light, very light. Cardo says the Pro-Fit pad set is flexible and moulds to different head shapes. I went looking for a sore spot over six hours we rode, and I never found one.
One Button. Ten Riders.
This is the bit that got me...
One click on one button. A few minutes later, ten of us were talking to each other. We stayed connected all day.
That has never happened to me before. There was no fiddling, no "can anyone hear me?", and nobody drifting off the network. It just worked. The system connects up to 31 riders at a range of up to a mile. We had ten, which was noisy enough.
Where's the Unit?
Hardly anywhere. The Cardo unit takes up next to no space on the outside of the helmet. It's slimmer and sleeker than anything I've used before, and nothing is bolted to the side. It just looks and operates like a high spec off-road helmet, and I guess that's the point.
The Sound
This will sound cheesy, but it's the best audio I've heard in a helmet.
The best way I can think of conveying the audio quality is to say that Listening to music in there is like wearing a pair of expensive, high-spec headphones. The speakers are 40mm units with sound by JBL, which didn't mean a lot to me, until I heard voice and music through them. The sound quality really is impressive!
The Quiet
Several of us noticed the same thing. We were riding at speed off-road and the group chat was still clear and easy to follow. The 'lack' of wind noise was very obvious.
In the afternoon, Lisa called me and I'd forgotten to turn my phone off. We had a short call and towards the end she asked, "are you having lunch?", "NO, I'm riding, I'm on the bike...why?" I asked. She was stunned, there was almost zero road or wind noise coming across the line. She had no idea I was taking the call in my helmet, while blasting around the Welsh countryside.
Power
The battery lasted the whole day and still have a substantial amount of charge left. Charging is simple and clean. There's a USB-C port at the back of the helmet. You plug in a cable and that's it. No dismantling, no clicking, nothing taken apart.
Built to Be Fixed
Here's something I learnt after the day, and it impressed me more than I expected. The microphone, the JBL speakers, the wiring and the comms unit are all separate pieces. Each one can come out, be serviced and be replaced on its own. Cardo describes all the electronic components as removable, serviceable and upgradable.
So if a speaker dies or a mic gets crushed, you don't bin a helmet. You fix the bit that broke.
When It All Goes Wrong
Nobody likes thinking about the crash. But a helmet with its electronics built in raises an obvious question: what happens to it after a bad off?
Cardo's answer is a coupon. Cardo say the coupon reduces the price of a replacement helmet, comms included, to the equivalent of a lid with no comms installed. I'm told you need to register for the warranty programme to qualify.
They've thought about the bad day as well as the good ones.
What I Can't Tell You
I've had one day in it, so I know nothing about how it copes with months of mud, drops or crashes. Cardo rates the remote and microphone IP67, but the main unit at the back is IP54, and the speakers have no rating. The helmet is covered for five years, the comms tech for three, and the battery for one year here in the UK. Those are their claims, not my findings.
There's also a catch to know about. The full mesh only works within the Cardo ecosystem. Other major brands can connect over a live Bluetooth intercom, but a mixed group loses the mesh benefits. If your mates run something else, plan for that.
PROS & CONS
PROS:
Instant, pressure-free fit
One-button mesh, ten riders connected all day
Slim, fully integrated unit
Stunning audio
Remarkably low wind noise
All-day battery
Charges through a built-in USB-C port
Every electronic part removable and replaceable
Replacement coupon if the helmet is damaged in a crash
CONS:
£699 in the UK
One day isn't a long-term test
No visor
Not ideal for cold weather riding
OVERVIEW
I turned up sceptical. I left with a helmet I'd have happily kept on for another six hours.
The fit was right, the connection was right, and the sound was right. The whole thing did what it was meant to do and stayed out of the way. Is it the real deal? On this evidence, yes. I'll say more once I've had it longer than a day.
See you down the road, ride safe, ride far…
Simon
GEEK TIME: CARDO VENTURE
Shell: Kevlar and fibreglass composite, three shell sizes, sizes XS to XXL
Weight: from about 1,250g for the helmet alone, and 1,470–1,550g with the tech
Protection: four-density impact foam, 360° Turbine technology by Leatt, ECE 22.06 and DOT
Safety extras: emergency-release cheek pads, double D-ring, breakaway peak
In the box: a visor extension, a helmet bag and a USB-C charging cable
Comms: second-generation Dynamic Mesh, up to 31 riders, range up to 1.6km / 1 mile, natural voice operation, live Bluetooth intercom with other major brands, over-the-air updates
Audio: 40mm speakers, sound by JBL
Waterproofing: remote and microphone IP67, main unit IP54, speakers unrated
Serviceability: all electronic components removable, serviceable and upgradable
Warranty (UK): five years helmet, three years electronics, one year battery
Price: £699 UK, $799 / €799 MSRP
On a final note, I have to say a very big thank you to Roberto Garagarza for the excellent photographs. It was strange not being the one behind the camera but great to be able to just get on and ride. All the images here are Roberts and remain his copyrighted property. If you'd like to see more of Roberto work see here: https://robertogaragarza.com/work
All images, Copy right Roberto Garagarza - @roga______ www.robertogaragarza.com
I appreciate your insights on the Cardo VENTURE! It sounds like a must-have for enhancing rides, echoing my experiences with Snow Rider. Communication is key in adventures!