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Spy introduced their “Foundation” motocross goggle a few months ago and I have been giving them the ol “Keefer Tested” torture setting. I love a wide peripheral goggle, but I also want the goggle to seal to my face and fit inside a wide range of helmets that I wear. There has been a trend of wide peripheral goggles being introduced the past couple years, but only a few get me a excited enough to actually wear them after initial testing. The Spy Foundation goggle has been giving me those “post testing” signs and here is why.
The Spy Foundation goggle is a High Definition (HD) Lexan® lens that is designed to provide sharper and more accurate vision in all lighting conditions, while reducing distortion in the peripheral areas. It comes with an installed Spectra™ lens and bonus clear lens with posts. Spy’s RISE™+ ventilation system utilizes the Venturi effect to draw air through subframe vents above the goggle and in-between your helmet, this is said to create a vacuum that pulls hot air from behind the lens. The Spy Foundation goggle offers a 45mm roll-off system, triple-layer Isotron™ face foam with moisture-wicking Dri-Force™ fleece, that is facially contoured to try and provide a comfortable, dry seal that lasts. Spy’s spoiler-style outriggers keep tear-offs lying flat while trying to provide a tight and secure fit to the face. An extra-wide 45MM silicone-ribbed strap (trust me it’s wide) stops goggle slipping and shifting while being aggressive on the track. Lastly the Spy Foundation goggle includes a free removable nose guard and 10-pack of tear-offs (that’s pretty cool).
The Foundation goggle’s peripheral vision is excellent and provides enough room to fit in a wide range of helmets such as the 6D ATR-2, Fox V3, Shoei EVO, Arai VX-Pro4, Bell Moto 9 Flex, and Fly F2. However, you will have to be patient and get it to set correctly inside your lid, especially because the outriggers are very close to the edges of the eyeports of most of the above mentioned helmets. I did notice that once the goggle was on my face that the foam of the Foundation goggle was very plush and soft feeling. The foam was also good enough to soak up most of my sweat that I provided for the test during the hot summer months (in the desert). The fitment to my face and around my nose was nothing to write home about, but in the world of goggle fitment, no news is good news I say. If I don’t have anything to say abut fitment, it usually means that the goggle fits nicely. In other words, if I am not bitching about the thing, it’s pretty good. It didn’t pinch my big obnoxious nose and sealed my face well enough that it didn’t allow any unwanted dirt inside the goggle. The ventilation was excellent, but it was almost too good at times because it draws so much air that when I was riding faster/flowy type tracks, it caused my eyes to water (because it draws so much air through the ports). On most motocross tracks I tested it wasn’t a problem, but on trail rides and fast sections of the track you will be able to feel this.
Changing out lenses is not as easy as an Oakley Airbrake goggle, but it wasn’t that much of a pain that I was cursing Spy’s name. It was painless enough that Mrs. Keefer could handle the duties with out any problems. The clarity of the lens wasn’t anything “crazy good”, but it was nice that when you stacked seven tear offs on the lens, that it didn’t distort my view on the track. I can appreciate this because there is nothing more annoying to me than losing my vision because I want to run more than four tear offs.
The price of $110.00 is steep for a non-rigid lens, so just be forewarned when you go to purchase. The Spy Foundation goggle comes in nine different color ways and is available now. You can check out the complete line of Spy goggles over at spyoptic.com.
