New Partnership: BLOC Eyewear

With the start of the 2018 race season just weeks away, I’m excited to announce a new partnership with BLOC Eyewear.

BLOC Eyewear have been creating high performance, sports focused sunglasses & goggles since 1988, using innovative technology to push the boundaries and ensure their products work from everyday use right up to professional athlete level.

I had the perfect opportunity to test their goggles recently on a freeride trip to Chamonix with 2 times World Freeride Champion (2012 & 2015) Douds Charlet & French halfpipe Champion Babs Charlet. Riding split boards, we took on some pretty wild backcountry that saw us climbing with ropes & crampons, as well as abseiling down some near vertical slopes in search of fresh tracks. Having boarded at well over 4,000m in the Himalayas (Gulmarg, Kashmir) I’m always keen to take on a challenge, so getting up to 3,842m on the Aiguille de Midi in the Chamonix Mont-Blanc Massif felt like a good place to be…

Split boarding was a new experience and something I loved, it’s a long time since I last rode skis (20yrs!) so it felt strange at first, but the ability to to traverse all types of terrain opens up a whole world of options. With two of the best guides, a good breakfast  & a can do attitude you literally get anywhere!

A set of Moon 2 goggles also helps :D

Luck was definitely on our side for the last day heliboarding, we had perfect conditions and what felt like the mountain to ourselves. There’s something so special about seeing the mountains this way, if you’ve ever watched Red Bull videos on YouTube with Travis Rice and wondered what it’s like to skim over the tree line in bright sunshine… well, it’s just mega.

Back to the UK and it’s time to focus on the season ahead in the Ginetta GT5 Challenge. With the first race of the year falling at Oulton Park over Easter weekend I’ve got a full program of testing ahead of me with Richardson Racing, meaning simulator sessions and track time, all backed up with fitness training. The latter is a big part of my normal routine, but it’s a good time to ramp it up off the back of boarding, and a surf trip to Sri Lanka in late December really helped increase the strength in my arms and shoulders.

Right now I couldn’t feel more ready for what lies ahead, and I’m seriously excited to be partnering with BLOC Eyewear as a brand ambassador.

You can follow the whole championship with LIVE coverage on ITV4 for TOCA rounds & Front Runner (British GT rounds), as well as on my social media & website (www.gocharlie.co.uk).

For more information visit www.bloceyewear.com