One of the coolest parts of owning a watch company is the unique opportunity to build the watch of your dreams. Executing a single timepiece requires countless design decisions, and over the past eight years, we’ve always strived to consider every detail and perfect the balance between value and performance.
While specs and features like USA assembly and sapphire crystal are essential, a great watch will always be more than the sum of its parts.
Ultimately, a great watch relies on a holistic design vision and the emotional connection that it elicits from its owner. This emotional connection is very personal, so the perfect watch for YOU will not be perfect for ALL.
As co-founders with similar backgrounds and tastes (and wrist sizes), we tend to gravitate towards the same types of watches. We both prefer vintage watches over modern designs, and we both prefer sub-40mm cases.
That said, we do tend to diverge in terms of our daily watch rotation and rarely find ourselves wearing the same watch on a given day. To provide the community with more insight into our tastes and preferences, we thought it would be cool to profile the two watches we’ve worn the most over the past 12 months and explain why they’ve become favorites.
Q&A with Ryan Torres and Reagan Cook
1. What has been your favorite watch in 2024?
Reagan: The 38mm Vaer R1 Racing Chronograph has rarely left my wrist since mid-way through 2022. Unlike many watches in our collection, it’s designed to make a statement - not just about USA craftsmanship and ocean functionality - but also about the aesthetics of Vaer as a brand. Some might call it a strange-looking watch, with its bulbous case and prominent sapphire bubble crystal, but if it’s weird, it’s my kind of ‘weird.’ Having designed the watch myself, there is also probably some sense of pride in the way that it turned out and the success it has seen since it was first released. Anytime you’re doing something unconventional in design, there are many more opportunities to fail; the fact that the R1 Cream ‘worked’ is a testament to our company’s progress in product development and manufacturing.
Ryan: The 38mm Vaer D4 Meridian Solar Diver has been my daily go-to both in and out of the water for most of the past two years, and in my opinion, it’s as close to perfect as any sub-$500 watch out there today. It’s got the classic case proportions and aesthetic of a vintage Rolex while still delivering the type of unquestioned accuracy I need when I’m traveling to remote areas. I love our automatics, and I bring them into rotation for special occasions, but most of the time, the “dual-threat” functionality of a solar watch like the D4 is what I most often reach for when I’m heading out the door.
2. What about your daily watch makes it your favorite?
Reagan: As I already said, I like the R1 Cream because it’s a bold design, and it’s not afraid to call attention to itself. I love the 1970s as an era for design and style, and wearing the R1 brings me back to that period. Additionally, what stands out to me is the balance between its vintage aesthetics and its functional complexity. The cream dial is a nod to classic racing colors, and the chronograph function, with its sub-dials, offers a practical utility that I find myself using more often than I would have expected. I’m also fond of cars and the history of Motorsport. I like that the watch’s design speaks to this passion, reminding me of larger-than-life figures like Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, James Hunt, and Mario Andretti, who wore similar watches while racing in Formula 1.
Ryan: The D4 Meridian Black Solar Diver is my favorite because it perfectly aligns with my lifestyle. It’s incredibly versatile and reliable, thanks to the solar-powered movement. Knowing that I’m wearing a watch that charges with the power of the sun gives me a sense of freedom when I know I’m going to be relying on my watch in the outdoors. In terms of style, the minimalist black dial and bezel are sleek and go well in any context, whether I’m at the beach or in a meeting. I love to gift our watches to awesome guides and outdoor professionals that I’ve worked with over the years fishing, splitboarding, and surfing, and the D4 38mm is the watch that I’m always most excited to take off my wrist and pass on.
3. What are the activities you do while wearing your watch?
Reagan: Like all our watches, I wear the R1 everywhere. As an owner of the business, I feel like it’s part of my responsibility to put our gear to the test, and that means beating it up, and, honestly, trying to break it. While I don’t surf or skateboard anywhere close to the extreme conditions as some of our brand advocates, I’m proud to say that my R1 has handled plenty of waves and has spent well over 100 hours in the ocean. I’ve also used it for dozens of hikes, and in the winter, have had fun timing runs with the R1 strapped to my belt while skiing and snowboarding.
Ryan: The D4 is with me during almost all my outdoor activities—surfing (above on a glassy wave in Mentawai, Indonesia), hiking, fly fishing, and even backcountry split-boarding. It’s built to withstand the elements, and I’ve put it through its paces in various conditions from 100F+ degree surf trips to -13F snow trips. Whether I’m catching waves or exploring new backcountry lines, the D4 has proven to be a reliable companion. Because it doesn’t look like a typical outdoorsman’s watch, it sparks plenty of conversations. When people ask me: “What kind of watch is that?” I love the opportunity to tell them about the brand and the story and why our USA-assembled solar watches are such a great fit with the life I love living.
4. What straps do you most often wear on your watch? And for what occasions?
Reagan: For more formal settings, I usually pair the R1 with our premium jubilee steel bracelet—it complements the high-polish pillowcase perfectly and adds a touch of sophistication. When I’m heading to the ocean, I switch to our nylon khaki single-pass strap, which offers more comfort and security when I’m on the move.
Ryan: About 90% of the time, I’m wearing my D4 on a Recon Single Pass Olive strap. It’s comfortable and functional and perfect for wearing under a wetsuit (and it looks great). When I’m going out on the town, I usually swap into the steel bracelet, which gives the watch a more polished appearance.
5. How does your watch represent Vaer’s mission as a brand?
Reagan: The R1 USA Racing Chrono encapsulates Vaer’s commitment to American manufacturing and design excellence. It’s a watch that honors the past while being firmly rooted in the present, showcasing the quality that comes from years of hard work and dedication to a goal. Even 10 years ago, no one would have expected there to be a place in the market for a $500 USA-assembled meca-quartz chronograph that was also rated to 10ATM water-resistance, and had a sapphire crystal. It’s a strange combination of ideas, but it’s a combination that reflects the priorities of our company.
Ryan: The D4 Meridian Black Solar Diver also represents Vaer’s mission in every way—it’s durable, sustainable, and designed for the modern adventurer. The fact that it’s assembled in the USA is a testament to our belief in the value of domestic production and the preservation of American manufacturing heritage. The solar-powered movement speaks to our commitment to long-term thinking, and corporate social responsibility. It’s a watch that isn’t just about telling time; it’s about enhancing the experiences of those who wear it - and that’s at the heart of what we do at Vaer.
6. What travel or adventures have you had with your watch?
Reagan: I’ve had the fortune of traveling quite a lot in recent years, and the R1 has been with me through all of it. I spent six weeks working and traveling through Europe last summer, and this year, I toured East Asia. Whether it was Copenhagen or Tokyo, it felt great to be stepping out into a new city with a watch that I knew would make a strong statement about my design choices and personal style. I love that I could wear the same watch at night as in the water the same day - helping me travel light and cut down on my “carry-on essentials.”
Ryan: The D4 has been with me on countless adventures—surfing trips to Baja, Indonesia, Hawaii, & all up and down the California coast, backcountry expeditions in the Sierras and Rockies, and more than a few destination weddings in far-flung corners of the world. Its reliability in different environments has made it my go-to travel watch. I’ve tested it in both saltwater and freshwater, with board shorts and black tie attire, and it’s always delivered for me.
7. What are some hidden details about your watch that most people wouldn’t notice?
Reagan: As a designer, hidden details and “Easter Eggs” are one of the coolest things to consider when designing a new watch. It’s hard to predict what people would or wouldn’t notice, as I feel like most watch lovers are very detail-oriented. That said, a few little things that I love on the R1 include the fact that the box/bubble domed glass is actually sapphire crystal (this is very rare, and a very expensive manufacturing feature), the fact that the high-polish twisting lyre lugs on the R1 case match the twisting lugs on the Vaer dive models, the fact that the steel bezel area on the watch is finished with a coarse sun-ray radial pattern, creating a high-contrast with the polished area, and finally, that there are four small lume dots at the 2,4,8 and 10 positions on the dial, matching with a pattern on many other Vaer designs.
Ryan: The D4 is a bit more straightforward compared to the R1, but even still, there are plenty of cool little details for fans to obsess over. Firstly, fans of watch history will appreciate the fact that the Meridian design is a blend of 3 iconic dive watches: the Rolex Milsub, the Omega Seamaster 300, and the Blancpain 50 Fathoms. Secondly, one of the reasons that the D4 is often mistaken for a much more expensive automatic is the fact that it uses a ceramic bezel. This is a RARE feature for an affordable diver, and it speaks to the value proposition that Vaer represents. Finally, the D4, like many of our other premium USA-assembled watches, has an awesome engraving on the case back that some people might miss—a four-wave pattern that symbolizes the watch’s connection to the ocean. It’s a personal touch that reminds me of the adventures I’ve had with the watch and the connection of our brand with the water.
