Categories: Kit

Jaw Dropper: Velominati Jawbones

Velominati Custom Jawbone Configuration

I’m the first to admit that we are probably over doing it on the Velominati Kit article thing. That being said, I simply have to put one more out there, which will double more-or-less as a product review.

I previously wrote a piece on Radars and Jawbones wherein I asserted that Oakley Radars are the ideal cycling eye wear and the following about the Jawbones:

Imagine my amazement, then, when Oakley released the Jawbones. They are ugly and look like they’d be even hotter than normal sunglasses, with no open-air system between the glasses and the cheek. Besides, the dual-color version that many pros have been sporting is no good whatsoever and should be abandoned as quickly as possible.

I’m guessing that by this time you’ve figured out that I bought a pair of Jawbones. As with many things in marketing, when you get beat over the head often enough with an image, you gradually become accustomed to it. Over the last season, my initial repulsion turned into acceptance turned into appreciation.

One theme with the Jawbones that helped win me over was that the pros started to get creative with the many color combinations available and used them to create a bit of a mean appearance. A light-colored frame paired to a dark jaw gives a sort of “shovel” look – kind of like a bulldozer with it’s blade down. Enter the first of the Velominati kit concepts and my imagination immediately drifted to the Jawbones and possible Velominati-specific configurations. Velominati Media Czar and I traded configurations and finally settled on silver frames, dark gray jaws, orange bolts, and orange lenses. We were terribly tempted to opt for the orange jaws as well (in his words, “We both want to like the orange”, but they didn’t hold enough visual weight to create the “mean shovel” look, so we ultimately opted for the dark gray option instead.

Finally – after weeks of petitioning – the Finance Committee finally approved the purchase of said Jawbones (my Velomihottie holds a controlling vote). Here you have them paired to our kit:

They did very well on their maiden voyage; light and not nearly as hot as one would expect with the vented lens options. And, when they get a bit warm during a climb, they still fit perfectly into the vents of my helmet, so I’m still happy.

Configuration:
Frame: Silver
Jaw: Dark Grey
Thru bolt: Atomic Orange
Lens: Fire Iridium Vented
Lens: Clear Vented
Icon: Matte Black
Earsock: Black

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

Cyclops says:

Jun 14 2010 at 12:32 pm

Mike bike is nude carbon with silver and red graphics and my cycling club kit is black with white and red. I like the stealhy understated look so I would go this way.
Cyclops says:

Jun 14 2010 at 12:33 pm

Oops, no html action - so I would go this way:

Click Here
frank says:

Jun 14 2010 at 12:37 pm

@Cyclops
Updated your post. That is a mighty fine config indeed. In fact, KRX-10 was inclined to push us in the black direction as well, although I personally am not a fan of black sun glass frames. I prefer white, but it was a bit too bright with the dark jaws, so we opted for silver.

Here were the finalists:
[album: http://filemanager.dutchmonkey.com/photoalbums.php?currdir=/frank.velominati.com/Jawbones/|width=595|height=512]
Jarvis says:

Jun 14 2010 at 12:59 pm

Definitely the right decision of the finalists. Nicely understated.
frank says:

Jun 14 2010 at 3:23 pm

@Jarvis
Thanks. It was a tough call. I can't overstate my Velomihottie's patience as I deliberated for hours - nay weeks or even months - on exactly what configuration was best.

Me: "OK, honey, which do you like best? This one or *click* this one?"

Her: "Mmm-hm. That one *turns page in magazine without looking up*."

Me: "Yeah, me too. But what about the bolt color?"

Her: "Mmm-hm. That one's good."

Me: "Yeah, I think so too. I'm glad we agree on everything, always, without exception."

Her: "Mmm-hm. *walks out of room*."

And this from a woman whose pet peeve is when people are too color-coordinated.
john says:

Jun 15 2010 at 11:54 am

1. I'm jealous as hell. Those are wicked pissa.(high Maine compliment)
2. The iridium lenses will hide your pain in Tour de Blast.
3. Great Frank photo, that should be a post. What's in a picture? Too much to comment on here, all positive. All nice.
4. Oakley is genius for making these customizable, they will sell many. I've owned various Oakley's for cycling over the years and have never strayed. And I end up wearing them for everything. My polarized Radars were the bomb until I saw these.
5. Daddy want.
crossy says:

Jun 15 2010 at 4:53 pm

hey - I know this is way off topic but.... check this out!

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6694173/
brett says:

Jun 16 2010 at 12:23 am

@crossy
Yeah, that's been up on here for about a week now.

@frank

I just went through the Oakley configurations, and then realised I came up with the black pair that you have in the finalists! I tried orange jaws too, but it was just too much.

Being a prescription wearer, choosing glasses is an expensive task. I've been rocking my Rudy Project Ekynox SX's for about 5 years now, with the RX insert. It means I can change lenses and still have my vision. And they invoke the spirit of Der Kaiser every time I put them on...
frank says:

Jun 16 2010 at 6:32 am

@john
They give you a free bag for doing the customization (in which you can put stuff inside if you wish), and the glasses come with a second set of lenses and a case. Thats like a $100 of free stuff.

@brett
People ask me about prescription options and I never know what to say. I wear glasses, but my eyesight is not so bad and I just ride without. I forgot the Rudys have prescription inserts, and so do Geof's Adidas glasses.

I've heard the Oakley's prescription inserts are not only very expensive, but they also distort the peripheral areas.

Speaking of peripheral vision, I went for the vented lenses to try to keep the potential of fogging down, but the holes for the vented glasses really messed with me for a little while as I got used to the weirdness around the edges.

And now you've gone and mentioned Der Kaiser. What a stud that guys was. Am I wrong for missing the likes of Cipo, Jan, and Ullrich every time I watch a bike race?
Ron says:

Jun 16 2010 at 3:55 pm

Ha ha ha...I know that experience of bugging your sig. other WAY too much about a new cycling decision. Yep, done it with customizing Oakleys too. Hmm, seems like us cycling freaks are a bit alike!

As for the Jawbones. Never worn them, so maybe they are great on the bike and function trumps form. And, I'm even a fan of kind of wild looking shades. But, in my opinion they are pretty darn hideous. Never seen any I've liked much. I think they are even uglier than the Radars.

But, they do match your kit, helmet and bike pretty well. So enjoy them! Sorry to be negative, but I just can't get on the cyclowagon with these.