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Testing Some More Sunglasses

04.12.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 8 Comments

When I posted awhile ago about my switch to sunglasses that are worn over eyeglasses, Bike Noob reader Nate Schrader noticed that I had a mild concern about their stylishness — or lack thereof. Nate works for SunglassWarehouse.com, and said he wears a pair that may offer a more contemporary look. He sent them over, along with a second pair of glasses similar to the ones I currently use, and asked me to see if they work for me.

The glasses are quite different. One pair has the flared out lenses favored by bike racers and other fast riders. They wraparound the face, and theoretically deflect wind. In terms of style, they’re a more “with it” look than ordinary glasses. The other pair is traditionally shaped, a medium size, with copper-colored lenses for better edge definition in overcast conditions. I’ve been able to try out both pairs, and I have a definite preference.

Last weekend, I wore the “Overcast” glasses on my trip to San Marcos. They slide easily over my biking eyeglasses — a pair several years old that I no longer wear for daily use, but that work well when I ride. The copper lenses did just what they advertised. When I left the house on a cloudy morning, they made everything sharp. When the sun came out later in the day, the glasses cut the glare. After a ride of more than four hours, I was unaware the glasses were there, they were that comfortable.

Sunglasses with copper lenses. Medium size. Good stuff.

Size matters

The Overcast glasses came in medium size.

“What’s different about those glasses?” asked my wife.

“They’re not as large as my other ones,” I replied.

“I knew there was something about them that made them look better,” she said. “They don’t look as dorky — like old man glasses — as your other pair.”

Uh, thanks…I guess. The lenses were a little bit smaller than the over-the-eyeglass sunglasses I wear every day for driving and cycling. For her, it made a big difference in looks.

For me, the size issue had less to do with looks than with comfort. They just felt good. I think I might have to adopt these as my regular biking sunglasses.

So does build

Contrast that experience with the other pair, the so-called “sports shield” sunglasses. I’m afraid I can’t say much good about them. While they might be slightly oversized, compared with glasses of that style that are not made to be worn over eyeglasses, they simply don’t get the job done.

The Sports Shields. I think I’ll skip these.

The problem seems to be their shape. The wraparound style doesn’t lend itself to wearing over eyeglasses. The lenses catch on the point where the eyeglass lenses meet the temples, so the sunglasses stick out a bit from the face. The nose bridge doesn’t quite sit on the nose. I experimented by wearing these over different pairs of prescription glasses, each one smaller than the previous one. Finally, I dug out a pair of eyeglasses that I haven’t worn in at least a couple of years. They have lenses much smaller than the rest of my glasses, because they’re for distance vision only, and not bifocals. The wraparounds fit a little better over these. But they’re not really designed to be worn over eyeglasses — it’s just that their size and shape made them possible candidates.

I took my usual Tuesday evening laps around the Veloway. It’s a ride that I can finish is less than an hour. I certainly wouldn’t want to wear these sunglasses any longer than that, not only because they’re not at all comfortable, but because the poor fit leads to other problems — most notably glare from the sun getting in between the sunglass lenses and the prescription lenses. It almost negates the purpose of sunglasses to begin with.

In addition, they’re not well built. The sunglasses have an overall cheap feel about them. The frames, glossy black plastic, seem almost brittle. They didn’t crack or break while I wore them, but they do make creaking noises, as though the plastic is being stressed in some way. If I didn’t already have alternatives, I might consider wearing these, but they are really an unsatisfactory solution.

To be fair, SunglassWarehouse is in the business of selling inexpensive sunglasses. Everything retails for under $20, and the sports shields are priced at $13.56 during a “Tax Week Special.” The copper-lensed overcast glasses are on sale for $15.96.

If you’re a cyclist of a certain age like me, these types of sunglasses might be worth considering — if not for biking, then maybe for other purposes, like driving. But get the ones specifically designed for the purpose, and don’t try to make do with something just because it “might” work.

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Old Man Shades

11.27.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

My prescription shades. At the MS150, 2009.

Ever since I began biking, I’ve worn my prescription sunglasses. For the most part, they’ve been fine. But they’re my distance prescription only, and I need a bifocal for reading. So whenever I looked down at my bike computer, the numbers were blurry. And lately, the distance prescription has been getting a little fuzzy. I even asked readers of this blog for advice about replacing them.

Last summer, Pat and I were on a group ride together. At a rest stop, I noticed the ride leader Kathleen’s sunglasses. They were the big plastic kind that you slip on over your prescription glasses. Maybe not the most attractive eyewear, but effective. I asked her about them.

“I broke my prescription sunglasses,” Kathleen said. “With these, I can wear my regular glasses, and put these right over ’em. And if I ever break ’em, for just 20 bucks at Wal-Mart, I can get a new pair.”

I actually had some experience with those kind of sunglasses. But I always associated them with old people. My late father had several pair. His were the solid dark green kind that made him look like the subject of a satirical cartoon about Florida retirees. He was constantly offering to give me a pair. I vowed to avoid them in the interest of personal dignity.

But two summers ago, while we were on a driving vacation, my prescription sunglasses really started to bother me. When I left our hotel one evening to drop my wife off for some shopping, I realized I had left my sunglasses in the room. Rather than go back to the hotel to retrieve them, I went to a nearby Wal-Mart and checked out my options. The old man shades were there, but they were better than the ones my dad had worn. These made an attempt at style, with black rims and shaped lenses. I bought a pair.

Pat thought it was pretty funny that I would wear them, and for a long time, I only wore them while driving, where they wouldn’t be obvious. If anyone noticed that I was wearing old man shades, who cared? They were past me and out of my life in a second or two anyway.

After the episode with Kathleen, I thought about wearing those shades myself while on the bike. My first couple of experiences with them weren’t good. They sat on top of my regular glasses, and pressed them down into my nose. The bridge of my nose was sore after riding for an hour or two.

But I’ve since gotten new prescription eyeglasses, and although they are almost the same as the ones they replaced, the old man shades sit more easily on them. No nose pinch anymore. Two weeks ago, I decided this would be the way I would go.

Sleek and stylish. Yeah, right.

So I guess I’m officially an old man now. But I don’t care. They work. And, I can even read the small lettered information on my cyclocomputer. I wore them on the club ride last weekend, and no one said anything — at least to my face — although I recognize they could have been chuckling to themselves on the inside. I’m going to keep wearing them.

I do, however, make one concession to style. At the university where I work, they stay in the car and I wear my old prescription shades around campus. Can’t have my students thinking I’m more of a codger than they already do.

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Prescription Biking Glasses

10.31.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 16 Comments

Starting the Outlaw Trail 100 with my old sunglasses.

For years, I’ve worn the same sunglasses for biking that I do for anything else.  They’re at least five years old, with glass lenses. (Although the lenses appear amber in the picture, they’re really dark gray — the early morning light has a weird effect.)

When I got them, I asked that they just contain my  distance prescription, because I felt at the time that I didn’t need bifocals outdoors.  They’ve been okay.  They’re a little heavy, because of the glass lenses, and the prescription could use a little more oomph now.  I think the next pair of cycling glasses I get will also have the bifocal prescription, which would help immensely when I have to do bike-related things like read the pressure gauge on my tire pump, or try to follow a cue sheet on a long ride. They’re not particularly stylish.  (Not even remotely.)

Stylin' the oldies but goodies at the MS 150.

But they are a little better than the ones I experimented with at the MS150 earlier this year.  These, too, have only my distance prescription. Surprisingly, the prescription  is still good — a bit better than my everyday sunglasses.  They’ve got gray lenses too, but there’s a bit of vermillion mixed in, and when they pick up the red color of the frames, the lenses look dark red.  But they’re at least 15 years old, and they look it.  After seeing pictures of myself in them, I stopped using them.

So lately, I’ve been thinking it’s time for some new biking shades.  One thing that’s always appealed to me about biking glasses is their wraparound style.  But because of the curved lenses, I wondered if they lent themselves to complex prescriptions.  I’ve poked around online a bit to see what’s out there, and the ones that are most interesting to me are also the most expensive (Of course, it works that way with bikes, too).

Yeah, something like these.

I noticed that Performance has a moderately-priced wraparound sunglass with interchangeable lenses — and it can also take a clip-on adapter for your prescription.  You just attach it to the nose bridge on the inside of the glasses.  If it’s any good, it might be just the ticket.

But I have to defer to the expertise of Bike Noob readers.  Do you wear cycling glasses with prescription lenses?  What kind?  How well do they work for you?  Do you have experience with the clip-in prescription adapters?

Will Bike Noob have to continue wearing his flat lenses and being uncool out on the roads?

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