Rolex BaselWorld 2010 Predictions
What I Would Like To See
BaselWorld 2010 is just around the corner and in less than three days we will learn what Rolex will be introducing!!! I feel like a kid on Christmas waiting for Santa Claus!!!
I also mentioned I would offer my other idea for what I hope to see, and I almost forgot to post it, until I went to Rolex.com today and noticed the following really cool image!!!:
This Rolex.com ad is amazing for many reasons. First and foremost, it mentions how Georges Mallory was once asked "Why do you climb Mount Everest" to which Georges Mallory famously responded "Because it's there!!!"
Georges Mallory and Andrew Irvine pictured above on Mount Everest in 1924
What is so interesting about Rolex.com specifically referring to Georges Mallory is that Georges Mallory attempted to summing Mount Everest in June of 1924 as part of the first of three British Mount Everest Expeditions from the early 1920s. Georges Mallory, and his climbing partner, Andrew Irvine (pictured above) literally disappeared into the clouds on the North-East ridge while attempting to conquer Mount Everest as seen in the photo below. In other words, if you look closely, you can actually see them in the photo below as they approach the Summit.
The last time the team was seen and photographed was just a few hundred meters from the summit!!! Their fate was not know for 75 years, until 1999 when his body was recovered by an Everest expedition which set out to find his remains.
To this day, it is still a mystery as to whether Mallory and Irvine were the first to ever successfully summit Mount Everest.
In the Rolex.com ad, the animation before the photo first photo asks:
Why Always Look For The Best?
Why Follow Your Dream?
Why Climb Your Own Everest?
Because It's There!!!
I think this verbiage is so profound because that is really what Rolex is about!!! Rolex has historically been a watch brand that people wore when they chose to push the envelope of what is possible. In my mind, as I have said before, if Rolex could be summed up in one word, it would be "Achievement."
The way Rolex chose the language in their ad is so cool!!! It is why I have always loved Rolex!!! There is just something almost magical about the brand and their watches that inspires people from all walks of life to achieve amazing things–All the way from Chuck Yeager to Dr. Martin Luther King and way, way beyond!!!
My best guess/hope is that Rolex will introduce an all-new Rolex Explorer II, but they could also introduce a new Rolex Explorer I.
Back in April 2008 I created the artwork below for what I thought an all-new Rolex Explorer II should look like. I designed the watch with many different color combinations because I think people are bored with just black and white dials and want color.
My best guess is that if Rolex comes out with an all-new Explorer, that it would or should be 42mm. I also think it should have a spinning bezel because people love spinning bezels.
My design reference below has even larger Maxi-Markers and Super-Fat-Hands and a Supercase. I also replaced the upside-down 12 o'clock triangle with a jumbo Rolex Crown at 12 o'clock which I think gives the watch a bolder, more trademark look, and yes I know my bezel insert has an "18" in place of the "22" but I couldn't find the original file to update it ;-D
I also called my design version the Explorer 3, but I don't think Rolex would change this designation. Hey, I created this 3 years ago!!!
Rolex BaselWorld 2010 Predictions
The Return Of The RED SUBMARINER?
[Originally Published February 20, 2009]
Only Rolex knows what they are going to be introducing in less than a month at BaselWorld in Basel, Switzerland. I believe it is likely they will be introducing the all-new stainless steel Rolex Super-case Submariner with Maxi-Markers and fat hands. I hope Rolex has the wisdom and design prowess to bring it back as a Red Submariner.
When I say "Red Submariner" I mean I hope they put a red SUBMARINER designation on the dial as you see in the image I created below. I think the classic black Rolex Submariner looks a million times better with the touch of red on the dial. I think it looks boring in all white. Black and white is too cold and sterile and reminds me of black and white TVs. The stainless Submariner needs a touch of color.
The red, white and black color combination has always been unbeatable. If Rolex does not bring back the Red Submariner, I am going to buy one and have the Submariner designation painted over in red, because I have to have this watch!!!
Of course Rolex has made different Rolex Submariner models in the past with the red Submariner designation, and the last production model was the Reference 1680 which was produced from 1967 to 1976.
Soon I will show off my other idea for what I think Rolex will hopefully introduce this year at BaselWorld. If you are not familiar with BaselWorld, it is the most significant watch-industry trade-show, held once a year in Basel, Switzerland. Rolex first introduced the Rolex Submariner in 1954 at the Basel show.
On a side note, I could not help but notice how absolutely timeless Rolex design evolution is. In particular, it blows my mind how true the statement is in the story below this one from 1974 that says "In an age of obsolescence and gimmickry, the simple classic virtue of a Rolex is indeed a rarity." I could not help but notice how similar the Submariner from 1974 is to the one pictured above.
