Oakley’s latest eyepiece, the Airbrake is now available. The Airbrake is a stunning goggle and features Oakley’s new SwitchLock Technology that drastically simplifies the lens changing process. When we played with them at SIA we were pretty impressed. The SwitchLock does exactly what it promises, and makes changing lenses a snap.
It’s still an Oakley lens, which I find a bit stiff, but otherwise great to ride in. If you’re a fan of Oakley goggles though, this is a big step up.
OAKLEY RELEASES REVOLUTIONARY NEW SNOW GOGGLE
Airbrake™ Goggle Optimized by Oakley SwitchLock™ Technology
FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif., October 11, 2011 – Oakley, Inc. today announced the release of Airbrake™, the world’s first snow goggle to take advantage of SwitchLock™ Technology. A revolutionary innovation available only from Oakley, SwitchLock Technology makes the process of lens changing hassle-free and fast while maintaining optimal impact protection and ensuring optical performance is in no way compromised when the lens is mounted — a potential issue with ordinary interchangeable lens systems.
“This is a leap in goggle evolution, and it was developed to serve professional skiers and snowboarders who demand the very best in convenience, performance and protection,” said Oakley CEO Colin Baden. “We started from scratch to reinvent lens interchangeability, and that meant overcoming the challenges of optical clarity and impact resistance that ordinary goggles fail to address. The result is an entirely new system that maximizes vision and protection while letting the athlete adapt quickly and easily to changing light conditions. Airbrake brings all the comfort, durability and style that pros expect from the Oakley brand, and it is available to anyone who wants to take performance to the highest elevation,” Baden concluded.
Recent winner of the X Games Superpipe competition, snowboarding superstar Shaun White will serve as an Airbrake ambassador to help Oakley spread the word about the unrivaled advantages of the new goggle. The world-famed gold medalist has been a devoted Oakley athlete since his early teen years.
With Oakley SwitchLock Technology, the Airbrake goggle lets winter athletes quickly switch to the lens tint that provides the best combination of filtering, color balance and visual contrast. An integrated lever releases the currently mounted lens so an alternate can be installed instantly with minimal handling. Even a slight bend in a lens can cause visual distortion, but when an Airbrake goggle lens is mounted securely in place, there are no stresses that could distort its shape and compromise vision.
The innovative new goggle combines a protective front zone of rigid material with a flexible O Matter® chassis. Specially engineered architecture eliminates nasal pressure and maximizes airflow while maintaining an adaptable fit, even in extreme cold. Strap outriggers balance pressure, and they are designed to work with or without a helmet. Airbrake is further enhanced with a triple layer of polar fleece face foam that wicks away moisture while evenly distributing pressure across the entire contact zone.
To fight fog buildup, Airbrake utilizes F3 anti-fog technology combined with a vented dual-lens design (one lens on top of another, affixed together). All lenses are made of durable, optically pure Oakley Plutonite® to block 100% of all UVA, UVB and UVC.
Airbrake provides premium impact protection that has become synonymous with Oakley goggle technology. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has rigorous testing requirements for impact resistance, and their Z87.1 test set is the industry’s golden yardstick. Airbrake meets every requirement of ANSI Z87.1 to offer the level of impact protection demanded by world-class athletes.
Two lenses are included with each Airbrake goggle, and additional optional lenses are available in a wide array of performance colors. They cover the performance spectrum from low light to bright sun, and they include lenses that increase visual contrast to deal with “flat” light that hides terrain detail.
Visit Oakley.com to learn more about the company’s sport performance innovations including Airbrake, and to get the latest updates on its growing family of professional athletes.
About Oakley, Inc.
Established in 1975 and headquartered in Southern California, Oakley is one of the leading sports brands in the world. The holder of more than 600 patents, Oakley is continually seeking problems, solving them with inventions and wrapping those inventions in art. This philosophy has made Oakley one of the most iconic and inimitable brands on the market, with innovations that world-class athletes around the globe depend on to compete at the highest level possible. Oakley is famed for its insuperable lens technologies such as High Definition Optics® (HDO®) which is incorporated into all Oakley sun and prescription eyewear, and all premium Oakley goggles. Oakley has extended its leadership position as the world’s leading sports eyewear brand into apparel, footwear and accessories collections. Laser focused on the consumer, Oakley has both men’s and women’s product lines that target Sports Performance, Active and Lifestyle consumers. Oakley is a subsidiary of Luxottica Group. Additional information is available at www.oakley.com.
