Goggles Goggles Goggles
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The one thing I tell snow customers at Surfside is that if your feet hurt or you can't see, your day is over. Drop cash on boots and drop cash on goggles. But you walk into a store or look online and there are soooo many goggles. Where do you even start? Everyone's faces are different, but here is a little guide of my favorites and what I consider to be the best per company...
Smith:
Personal fave: I/O
The I/O is the original "easy change" goggle, making it quick and simple to change lenses due to varying weather conditions. Each model runs around $175, but comes with a high light and low light lens (which makes the price much more reasonable). My favorite lens is the red sensor mirror. It is dark enough for sunny days and bright enough for tree runs, clouds, or end of the day shade. The vaporator feature in the lens helps with fogging by increasing air flow. The size of the I/O is the perfect fit for my face, but they make the I/Os for smaller faces and the I/Ox for the fan of oversized goggles. Next year they are releasing the I/O7 which I was lucky enough to demo in Mammoth and I loved it as well. It seems to be somewhere between the I/O and I/Ox.
Oakley:
Personal fave: Airbrake
I got hooked up when I worked at Oakley and it is the only reason I was ever able to afford these goggles. For a whopping $220-240 price range, the Airbrake is one of the most expensive goggles on the shelf. It is their take on the easy change lens and has every bell and whistle Oakley offers. I definitely would say that their eay change tech is by far the easiest and most secure. All you do is pull a little lever on the side to unpop the lens and then snap it closed when you have the other lens in. It has the skeletal nose bridge, which I find to be the most comfortable on the market. This nose bridge works like a breath right strip where it opens up your nose to allow for easier breathing in the altitude. My favorite Oakley lens is hands down the black iridium. They also make the best storm lens, high intensity yellow.
Von Zipper:
Personal fave: Feenom
Although each company has an easy change goggle options, the El Kabong from Von Zipper seems to be the least easy. I prefer the Feenom and just sticking to one lens from these guys. The Feenom offers an array of lenses and colors and has a good overall fit for most people. Von Zipper offers great goggles for a pretty good price compared to a lot of other companies. I have been a life long fan of their sunglasses and I have worn a few of their goggles as well. All of their lenses and tech features are high quality, but I think if you are going for a pair of Von Zippers you should be going for the flair factor. They definitely have the most fun color ways and prints. They even have a colab with Stance socks!
Electric:
Personal fave: EG2.5
Oversized goggles were and are quite a popular trend, but there is good reason behind it; comfort, protection, and ultimate peripheral vision. The EG2's are for sure the most popular of all oversized goggles, but I lean a bit towards the EG2.5's these days. They are still big, but a bit more practical and fit most girls' faces better then the EG2's. This past season Electric massively stepped up their game in the color ways department with all sorts of toned down colors and matte finishes. And even though they look and feel large, the EG2's and EG2.5's are compatible with almost all helmets.
Zeal:
Personal fave: The Level
Zeal is a smaller company based in Boulder, definitely starting to gain some momentum over the last few years. They are known more for their technical goggles that feature cameras and GPS, but after getting to demo the Level model in Mammoth, I realized what nice quality they have in their more basic models as well. The lens quality was great and the prints for next year are awesome! And they are based in Boulder, so how can you not love them?
I know I have left out some of the other goggles companies. Anon, Spy, Sabre, and all the others are great as well, these are just the best of the best in my eyes and I hope you get to try some of them out!
Smith:
Personal fave: I/O
The I/O is the original "easy change" goggle, making it quick and simple to change lenses due to varying weather conditions. Each model runs around $175, but comes with a high light and low light lens (which makes the price much more reasonable). My favorite lens is the red sensor mirror. It is dark enough for sunny days and bright enough for tree runs, clouds, or end of the day shade. The vaporator feature in the lens helps with fogging by increasing air flow. The size of the I/O is the perfect fit for my face, but they make the I/Os for smaller faces and the I/Ox for the fan of oversized goggles. Next year they are releasing the I/O7 which I was lucky enough to demo in Mammoth and I loved it as well. It seems to be somewhere between the I/O and I/Ox.
Oakley:
Personal fave: Airbrake
I got hooked up when I worked at Oakley and it is the only reason I was ever able to afford these goggles. For a whopping $220-240 price range, the Airbrake is one of the most expensive goggles on the shelf. It is their take on the easy change lens and has every bell and whistle Oakley offers. I definitely would say that their eay change tech is by far the easiest and most secure. All you do is pull a little lever on the side to unpop the lens and then snap it closed when you have the other lens in. It has the skeletal nose bridge, which I find to be the most comfortable on the market. This nose bridge works like a breath right strip where it opens up your nose to allow for easier breathing in the altitude. My favorite Oakley lens is hands down the black iridium. They also make the best storm lens, high intensity yellow.
Von Zipper:
Personal fave: Feenom
Although each company has an easy change goggle options, the El Kabong from Von Zipper seems to be the least easy. I prefer the Feenom and just sticking to one lens from these guys. The Feenom offers an array of lenses and colors and has a good overall fit for most people. Von Zipper offers great goggles for a pretty good price compared to a lot of other companies. I have been a life long fan of their sunglasses and I have worn a few of their goggles as well. All of their lenses and tech features are high quality, but I think if you are going for a pair of Von Zippers you should be going for the flair factor. They definitely have the most fun color ways and prints. They even have a colab with Stance socks!
Electric:
Personal fave: EG2.5
Oversized goggles were and are quite a popular trend, but there is good reason behind it; comfort, protection, and ultimate peripheral vision. The EG2's are for sure the most popular of all oversized goggles, but I lean a bit towards the EG2.5's these days. They are still big, but a bit more practical and fit most girls' faces better then the EG2's. This past season Electric massively stepped up their game in the color ways department with all sorts of toned down colors and matte finishes. And even though they look and feel large, the EG2's and EG2.5's are compatible with almost all helmets.
Zeal:
Personal fave: The Level
Zeal is a smaller company based in Boulder, definitely starting to gain some momentum over the last few years. They are known more for their technical goggles that feature cameras and GPS, but after getting to demo the Level model in Mammoth, I realized what nice quality they have in their more basic models as well. The lens quality was great and the prints for next year are awesome! And they are based in Boulder, so how can you not love them?
I know I have left out some of the other goggles companies. Anon, Spy, Sabre, and all the others are great as well, these are just the best of the best in my eyes and I hope you get to try some of them out!