The Oakley Limited Edition BMX Chrome Radar Path Array is a tip of the hat to the fact that so many great pros on the road and the trail first found love for the bike on a BMX track. The color of the Chrome frames carries on what's now an annual tradition for Oakley: As the Tour de France rolls around they release a small run of, um, garish-color shades for their sponsored riders. In 2007 it was the Neon Yellow "Retina Burn". In 2008 it was the "Atomic Orange." In 2009 it was "Anti Freeze" Green in honor of Oakley-sponsored sprinting specialists Mark Cavendish and Heinrich Hausler. And now for 2010 they give us Chrome.
Another tradition with Oakley's Tour de France shades is that they're tough to come by and that they don't last long. Oakley says they're only making 1,500 worldwide. Demand always outstrips our ability to track more down. So if you're keen on them you'd best not sleep on it.
The BMX Chrome is a standard set of Oakley Radars with two extra details of note: One is the bling of their Chrome frames. The other is the fact that this is an "Array", which in Oakley-speak means you get three sets of lenses with three sets of matching earsocks. The Jade Iridium lens transmits 17% of available light, making them an ideal lens choice for medium-to-bright days. The Violet Iridium transmits 55% of available light, making them better for cloudier medium-brightness days. And the Positive Red Iridium lens lets 15% of available light through, making it your best choice for super-bright days. Perhaps even more important is the fact that each set of lenses shimmers in the sunlight, perfectly complementing electricity of the frame to perfection. You can match the lenses, respectively, to Green, Purple, and Red earsocks.
Like all Radar models, the lens is hydrophobic with a new oleophobic coating for better vision. Sweat won't streak your lens and muddy up your field of view. Rather these coatings cause moisture to run off the lens with no residue.
The frame is made from Oakley O-Matter. There is soft Unobtanium at the temple ends and the nose to better grip the face. Unobtanium is slightly hydrophilic, so it will grip better when wet and sweaty. The lens is made from Plutonite and has Oakley's famed High Definition Optics (HDO). The Radar comes with a zipper case that has room for a spare lens and a custom microfiber bag, useful both a lens cleaning cloth and soft storage.
