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For the last ten years, professional cycling has been dominated by two things: Lance Armstrong and Oakley ‘M’ frames. With the American now departed from the sport, Oakley ‘M’ frames have also been replaced by the recently released Oakley Radars. The new design carries many similarities from its predecessor, including an all-encompassing single lens design.

The Radars have been well received in the professional peloton with many riders switching to them, including Norwegian sprinter Thor Hushovd and French Tour de France hope Christophe Moreau.

What’s changed?

While the new design is similar to the ‘M’ frames, the Oakley Radars are far more ergonomic. Oakley has introduced a ‘hydrophobic’ lens coating which they claim repels water, dust and skin oils off their ‘high definition’ lenses.

 They’ve put vents into the sides of the frame itself to allow extra cooling. The nose and ear pieces are made of unobtanium which is designed to increase in grip when damp (sweaty). Oakley also promises ‘the perfect fit’ with a three-point fit system and interchangeable nose pieces.

I was pleased with the performance of the Radars. They were ultra-comfortable and secure, with excellent clarity. I’m not sure whether the hydrophobic lens coating lived up to the hype surrounding it although I found it useful on a few occasions. The Radars arrived in an impressive amount of packaging which is a reflection of the indulgent price tag. You get the feeling while sorting through the protective cases that these are no ordinary pair of sunglasses and the beefy frame carries an air of ‘you’re going to break before these do’.

I ran them under water immediately and noted that water ran straight off the lens, although there wasn’t a major different between the hydrophobic ability of the Radars and the other regular cycling glasses that I tested.The first time I used the Radars on the bike I was very pleased with their performance, I’d been using some pre-Tom Boonen era BBB glasses and the difference was incredible.

The Oakley’s felt great on and had a high quality lens, despite a small amount of streaking of sunlight when held at an angle to the sun.

Comfortable and Cool

 The three-point fit surpassed Oakley’s claims and the sides of the frame didn’t pinch the sides of my head like other cycling glasses, including ‘m’ frames. Whether or not the Unobtanium grips assisted in securing the glasses is unknown, although I tried running water over the ear grips before rubbing them and they felt remarkably similar to slippery wet rubber.

I was initially skeptical of the ‘surge’ points that allow air through the frame to help cool you down although there were moments when I believe I felt some relief through the vents. Around 15 minutes into the debut ride I felt like little bugs were flying into me before I realised it was raining. I accredited not noticing the rain drops to the hydrophobic coating. It didn’t seem to come in handy on the next climb, however, when sweat sat peacefully inside the lenses.

I received the glasses at the same time that the drought broke in SA and they got a fair bit of wet weather use. I think it’s safe to say that the lenses don’t ‘repel’ water but they assist in its removal and discourage streaking.

They are most certainly better than the BBBs. Radars are available in three lens designs. The ‘Range’ model is the largest and gives you a lot of protection on the bike, the ‘Path’ model sits in the middle of their range and I tested the ‘pitch’ design which has a fairly high cut around the base of the lens.

Despite this, the glasses were still pretty dominant on my face and either of the larger lenses would have been pushing the limits of fashion over functionality aboard my reasonably small head.

The Damage 

The major drawback of these glasses is the price tag. The Radars come in frame and lens combinations and the jet black frame with grey lenses are at the bottom end of the range with a RRP of $250 which is twice as much as a lot of the competition.

Oakley must be confident in their appeal though, the most expensive polarized models top the market with a RRP of $369. If you’re after an elite pair of glasses with that ‘only here while I’m not racing in Europe’ look or if you just want to show off to your coffee shop buddies then these are the spectacles for you.

While they couldn’t be considered ‘value for money’ in comparison to the burgeoning performance sunglass market that hovers around the $150 mark, Radars sit in a class of their own in terms of quality, comfort, clarity and Oakley style.

The Radars are supported by a one year warranty and a range of interchangeable lenses are currently being released in the US. For $250 you get a good pair of sunglasses, some extravagant packaging and that ‘pro-cyclist’ feeling every time you look in the mirror.
That’s not a bad deal.

Key points: What? Oakley Radar Pitch (tested jet black/grey)
Price? $250 RRP
Where from? www.oakley.com.au or any authorized Oakley dealer.

Written by Wil Eather

Photos

Photos (C) AFP