TESTED: Oakley Trillbe sunglasses
Oakley rarely put a foot, or tyre, wrong in sporting eyewear. Richie Tyler took the new Trillbe to the trail to see what their latest offer.
Review and images by Richie Tyler
Oakley have never been backwards in coming forwards. You'll have to forgive the pun but for the best part of 40 years, the US company has planted itself as the most visible sporting eyewear on the planet.
The brand new Trillbe represents Oakley's latest effort to grab the attention of cyclists. In recent years there has been a shift in cycling eyewear away from shallow, wrap-around lenses to something more akin to ski goggles.
Responding to this trend in kind, the Trillbe possesses a massive, one-piece lens. I'm yet to find a sunglass lens superior to Oakley's and the Trillbe is no different. In spite of experience with a wide range of brands and styles, the clarity of an Oakley lens is what truly sets the brand apart.
Dramatic though their size may be, there are some real benefits to the comparatively oversized lens afforded by the Trillbe. It provides incredible coverage, protecting your eyes from both the sun and foreign objects in a manner smaller lenses simply can't match.
The Trillbe are touted as "performance lifestyle" sunglasses. The trifecta of on-trend shape, protection and an incredibly low weight, lends credence to this.
The glasses are incredibly comfortable to wear, thanks in part to their aforementioned weight. A fixed, keyhole nose piece may not suit every nose, but they rested comfortably on mine throughout testing. The interface between glasses and helmet was also comfy. The flat profile of the arms provide minimal interference with the harness of my helmet (a Kask, for reference).
Whilst the protection is impressive, there are a couple of downsides to this lens shape. Fogging is an issue, due to the limited opportunity for airflow. A quick dip of the head on a descent was enough to clear them after a fog-inducing climb in Sydney's humidity.
I also found that my brow line sat around three-quarters of the way up the lens, resting against it. It means more regular cleaning as grease builds up on the back of the lens at this point. It's worth noting that this is due to the particular shape of my face and may not be an issue for everyone.
A good look
The Trillbe look great when paired with a helmet. Depending on your appetite for attention, they may also prove useful as day-to-day sunglasses (steel framed versions are available for off-the-bike action). While a range of more demure colour options are available, the fluro green and white frames of the pairs I tested reinforced Oakley's reputation for grabbing attention.
On that point, it wasn't long before my testing pool was larger than just myself. Coffee shop conversations about the Trillbe would take the following course:
Intrigued riding buddy: "What the hell are those?"
Me: "Oakley's Trillbe, they're brand new."
IRB: "Can I try them on?"
Reactions to the Trillbe like this reinforced my instinct that these will not be to everybody's taste. But if you're after a pair of sunnies with high-quality optics, low weight and the big-lens look, it's worth having the staff your Local Bike Shop to swing open the door of the Oakley case.
Hits
• Like it or not, you're going to grab attention.
• Super lightweight design
• Great protection from sun and foreign objects
Misses
• Lens shape not ideally suited to head-down nature of cycling
• Fogging
• You'll want to carry a cleaning cloth with you
RRP: $159.95
From: Oakley Australia
