Adidas 2017 Eurobike
Features / Thu 1st Sep, 2016 @ 9:30 am
The humble pair of riding specs has come a long way from two pieces of reasonably see through plastic designed to keep crap out of your eye while making you look as special as possible. Adidas have always been at the forefront of eyewear technology and recently they have been charging forth with a spec list to make Vladamir Putin weep. For 2017 they have a few things in the pipeline including the new Zonyk range and also over on the apparel side of things a new pair of boots aiming to offer plenty of protection aptly aimed the Trail Cross Protect. There are also some goggles in the pipeline for a later release but more about those later…
The Zonyk adds a touch of fashion to the eyewear range, featuring loads of lens options and plenty of colourways to cater for all tastes. Available in 4 styles, the Zonyk Pro, Zonyk, Zonyk Aero Pro and the Zonyk Aero, we’ll break that down for a you a little more, as a mountain biker, you should be looking at the more styled Zonyk Pro and Zonyk versions, the Aero designs are aimed at the style conscious roadies out there but of course as with anything there are no rules and you can wear whatever you feel like, or whatever you feel suits you best.
The difference between the Pro and standard versions is the removable sweatband on the inside rim of the specs. This is removable, so you could turn a pair of Zonyk Pro’s into Zonyk’s just by forgetting where you put your sweatband. Sound OK? Good, essentially think of these as a more fashionable pair of specs over the excellent Evil Eye Evo Pro series which definitely has a more sports focussed look. A pair of specs you can wear both on and off the bike if you like.
New lens tech means an addition to the Vario Lens which adds a mirror effect, so when your lenses are clear there is still just enough of a sheen to hide the shame of the night before. Perfect for the more nefarious rider with secrets to hide and people to avoid.
Over in the footwear department, the excellent Trail Cross SL shoes get a colour change for 2017, if you haven’t tried a pair of these you really should. Our test editor Ewen Turner rates them very highly, the grippy sole makes them perfect for time spent out of the saddle and off the bike, while the stiff lowers allow plenty of power transfer through the pedals.
A totally new show is the new Trail Cross Protect, while it might look like a winter boot, the aim here has been to provide added protection rather than to make a water tight show. There is no membrane inside the show but Adidas have used there know how to reduce the seams on the uppers to almost zero while adding a water-repellent coating to the top section of the shoe to keep the elements out.
The big news is the D3O inside ankle insert which is there to protect you from impacts in an area that is known to suffer when riding. D3O if you haven’t heard of it was one of the first materials on the market to be soft until impacted, meaning it is a flexible and comfortable under usual use, but hardens when things get exciting…
The new Backland Dirt goggle won’t be out until May 2017, we got a sneak preview though and they features some impressive features, the real highlight was the removable foam backing which velcros to the goggle frame. This means you can easily remove and chuck it in the wash along with the strap, no more muddy, tired looking googles, now you can make them look box fresh with minimal effort. In addition to that, in line with the UCI ruling there isn’t a tear off lens but there is a roll off system which can be purchased seperately. Adidas actually got some real mud, mixed it with paint and made this cool display to show off the new goggles, it’s the little details that these guys go to that gets us. If they care this much about a display case, imagine the effort they put into their products.
For more information head to Adidas.
By Rou Chater
Rou Chater is the Publishing Editor of IMB Magazine; he’s a jack-of-all-trades and master of none, but his passion for bikes knows no bounds. His first mountain bike was a Trek 820, which he bought in 1990. It didn’t take him long to earn himself a trip to the hospital on it, and he’s never looked back since. These days he’s keeping it rubber side down, riding locally and overseas as much as possible.
