While it took me a while to get this done, this has become a tiny story about something that happened over a month ago. It’s my own behind the scene story about MTB downhill equipment, told from the farthest place from what’s actually new and hot in the scene as of now.
Out of various disciplines of mountain biking, downhill is where most serious riders, if not all, use goggles just like in motocross or snow sports. But then I was the rider going down the hill in Niseko last month wearing protective DIY eyeglasses, all that for this one reason, a sad story about things gone.
My good old Oakley goggles that have served me in skiing, snowboarding, and mountain biking. I only had the snow lens on hand, so I was secretly preparing some clear lens for them. I used to have a clear double lens but it came to the end of its life years ago. The persimmon one work real fine with great fogging resistance but is a bit too dark in summer.
So I grabbed some plastic sheet at a hardware store, wielded some punch and scissors, then voila! Seems usable, with comfortable, huge field of view. The frame is a bit sweaty and dusty so I might give them a little wash…
Bad move. Well I’ve got another pair!
Which just disintegrated the moment I touched em. You too, Brutus?!
I loved the first pair for the nice low-profile color, which was a blend between the original fluorescent pink and the black dye I added. There was a time when 4Runners with “Naeba” (ski resort) stickers in these very fluorescent colors were dope, and these guys WERE the icon from that era.
The encounter dates back to early 1990s. There was an MTB shop in West Side Ikebukuro, Tokyo that I’d go to without actually shopping much at all, and the folks were always super nice. One day, I spotted these goggles in the trash can there. I asked and found out someone had used em up. After exchanging a few words, these guys made their way out of the bin, and into my hands.
The rest is history, though may not be in your book. So for a rundown, they have supported my vision, chiefly in ski fields in places like Nagano, Hokkaido and Colorado, and that they did well.
1999, Arapaho Basin, Colorado. I actually didn’t stick it. Laid out straight enough to match my ego and under rotated. What a fail. Anyhow the goggles survived this one nonetheless.
So, with fond memories left along the way, the Pink and the Green have finally retired and gone back to where they belonged, at least where they had a quarter century back. What an outstanding performance and longevity. Thank you.