GO FASTER WITH EYEWEAR
by Ed Arnet

Master Cross-Country National Champion Johnny O'Mara is the one who first turned me on to tunable optics. It was at the 2003 version of the Rim Nordic XC Series. Johnny was an Oakley Technician at the time, and he explained to me that this was Lance Armstrong's favorite lens as he snapped a vented version of the Hybrid S G30 into our black Pro M Frame.

You can only go as fast as you can see, and the G30 made me faster. Picking the best lens for Rim Nordic is difficult. You start out in the shade and then continue to pop in and out of the sun and back into deep shade while working busy singletrack through the San Bernardino National Forest.

The lens needs to protect against direct sunlight, and at the same time, needs to retain high intensity contrast in the shade. At Rim Nordic the roughest, most technical climbing and descending sections happen in the shade; many times you enter into the dark sections at speed.

That's why the G30 lens that Johnny O' set me up with was such a revelation. With that lens and both in light and dark conditions the trail was intensified and it became much easier to confidently pick lines and to keep the eyes moving ahead and surveying the upcoming trail.

Now 48-years-young, my vision is beginning to dull. So he went to the local Sport Chalet to look for an even better lens to match his vision.

Oakley offers 24 options for each of the 3 different Radar lens shapes. The two that stood out as viewing significantly better in light and dark conditions were the G40 and G26. The G40 has more low light clarity, and it's in darkly lit conditions where my vision has trouble. Although the G26 Iridium is a target-shooting-specific lens, it really brightens up the look of shaded trail. Oakley states in their literature that the G26 Iridium is not to be used for other activities. When you look through the lens it has a blueish hue that seems weird at first. But you do get used to it. The clarity in low light is so incredible, I am able to use the G26 Iridium well into dusk with better vision than without eyewear.

Another cool feature to the G26 Iridium is that although it is such a super light lens, the Iridium coat still completely eliminates glare in direct sunlight. It's a great do-it-all lens.

We chose the Path-style Radar lens. Both the $80 G26 Iridium and $60 G40 lens are only available in a non-vented format. Even with the vented Radar chassis, and compared to a Radar with a vented G30 lens, it's possible for the G26 Iridium and G40 lenses to fog climbing at grinding speeds in extremely cool conditions.

Whether Oakley's or not, explore what lens options are available for your eyewear. Look for a lens that intensifies the type of terrain that you ride. Your speed will improve because of it.

OAKLEY RADAR ONE YEAR LATER

In the April 2008 print MBA a reader questioned the five-star rating on the $220 Oakley Custom Radar. It's a point well taken, but to answer the question, yes we will and do spend that money on elite product that will make me faster.

There is more to the new Oakley Radar then we were able to fit into the review. It is the first Oakley to totally one-up the ubiquitous M Frame. The Radar has even better fit-every-face styling. Its tougher, spring-retention chassis holds the Radar naturally on the face. Oakley includes an adjustable nose piece that can be used to further tune the Radar's exact position.

The new 3/4 frame securely locks and integrates the lens. This will forever eliminate the locking hooks in the upper corners of the lens from cracking when overstressed. Oakley Radar earstems are pinned in steel and stay open when sliding the glass on. This and the smoothly rounded tips of the stiff, shorty earstems allow the Oakley to be easily slid through helmet straps as the lightly tensioned chassis instantly sucks the Radar on the face. It rates the Oakley as a favorite at Norba Glass Exchange Zones.

Oakley's optics have always been well received, and now they include hydrophobic technology. The special coating repels sweat, dust and eyebrow glitch. It keeps the lens cleaner during a ride and makes it much easier to clean at the end of the day. We also find the Hydrophobic Radar Lens to be more scratch-resistant.

The Oakley Radar's starting price is $155. In the April print issue's Thumbnail Thrash review we tested the elite Custom Radar. With the Custom its possible to tune frame color, icon color, lens tint, lens shape, lens style, and even have the lens custom etched. It takes more money to build something that is unlike anyone else's, and that has a lot to do with our Custom Radar's $220 going price.