I'm due my next eye test and I can feel that my long distance vision is getting worse. I currently have varifocals, which were mainly for my close screen and reading. I also have quite light sensitive eyes so wear sunglasses a lot.
What are people's solutions to wearing glasses riding / walking / outdoors generally?
I'm wondering if an 'indoor' pair of varifocals and an 'outdoor' cheaper long distance pair is a route to go, but that leaves me short of sunglasses...
Photocromic varifocals here. When i didn't need varifocals i had prescription sunglasses but now i wonder why i didn't go photochromic sooner. Love them, wear them for skiing, biking, walking....
A wear glasses all day everyday but always wear contact lenses for biking, walking etc. I know that's not what you've asked for but you've also not ruled them out in the op.
Most opticians will give you a trial, so it's with a go, then any cheap glasses over the top. I honestly don't know how people manage wearing glasses when it's ringing etc.
I've a single pair of glasses and they need worn for everything but sleep.
Never been an issue, they stay on securely unless I've a real sweat on and I'm looking down (like when I'm burst on a turbo session, so rarely).
I do need a new pair so need to sort that out.
I am worried about getting them muddy and then scratching them, hence the thought of two pairs.
I hadn't considered contacts.
I've a pair of Rad8 photochromatic varifocals which I just wear all (most) of the time.
But, I don't fully get on with them when riding. Partly the varifocal distortion I find slightly off putting / haven't got totally used to, certainly for fast or tech MTB, and partly because even when 'clear', there is a very slight tint to them, not noticeable in daylight, but in low light/night riding, I do notice it.
Currently, I can get away with riding without glasses (although always carry them with me, as I can't see well for close up work, so navigation or repairs, I need them on), but wear the glasses for everything else.
TBH, I'm due an updated test, and might look at a separate pair for riding (probably bi-focals rather than vari) and a normal pair of varifocals for everything else.
Also worth noting that photochromatic don't work in the car, which is actually where I'd wear sunglasses the most.
I am worried about getting them muddy and then scratching them, hence the thought of two pairs.
Yes - this is an issue too - not sure whether my glasses are more scratched because they are my only pair, but the scratches/smears I do find off putting, which is another reason I tend not to use them when riding)
Also worth noting that photochromatic don't work in the car
Sure mine (Specsavers) work, just slower to react.
I’m pretty short sighted, with astigmatism and wear varifocals all the time, including riding. Scratches and dirt not an issue as long as you don’t wipe them dry. A scoosh of water to rinse the dirt off and then a soft cloth.
I use photochromic rad8 single vision glasses when riding, and just accept I have to look like an eejit when squinting at my watch or take them off if I have to do anything fiddly to the bike.
I've been wearing Oakley Photochromics for over 30 years now. I'm on my third pair. They are for distance which means I do have to squint a little to read my Garmin if I'm wearing them.
Another contacts wearer here. I only wear them for sport/outdoors. They deal with the blinded by wet lenses/condensation issue very well but may not be ideal depending on your prescription. I'm short sighted but need varifocals now (age related eyes). Seeing the map/compass/Garmin and distance is not perfect and I'm nearly at the stage where I need readers to go with my contacts for close up work.
You can get varifocal contacts but I didn't get on with them.
I'm mildly short-sighted and wore contacts for 30 years but when my close vision started moving away with age I went to varifocals. Then I found the varifocals didn't work well on a computer screen so also had a pair of computer specific (which work paid for). I found the computer glasses were fine for everything around the office or at home and only used the varifocals for driving. Last year I replaced the varifocals and the new ones are fine for computer as well - the point being that varifocals are not all the same, and the better lenses can cover a wider range. I still use contacts for paddling rivers and surf and until recently for skiing (I now have tinted varifocals for skiing and sea kayaking) and I use an old pair of frameless (very light) varifocals for off road riding.
Ive been using Variofocals for about 8 years now. Having used daily disposable contact lens with a distance prescription for cycling duties for a few years and found them a total faff to put in/take out, only comfortable to wear for 3-4hrs, horrible if you get grit/mud in your eyes, no use whatsoever for close-up work, or, later on for being able to read my cycle computer properly. I now have a pair of Rad8 photochromics with the same prescription as my everyday variofocal glasses/sunglasses for cycling and hiking/running. No complaints: no warping issues, fine for all weather/sun/overcast etc, don't seem to mist up much, work well for night riding too as the normal untinted colour is slightly yellow, they are also fine for driving (my cars' digital dash is 100% clear) . The lenses and frame are super durable and after about 2yrs of hard use are still unscratched.
Variofocal Rad8's tend to look more like "normal" glasses as the lens is flatter (so less wrap-around) which may or may not be a deal-breaker, but I really like mine.
There are quite a few options out there for varifocal cycling glasses : Rad8 and Optilabs are the most obvious but also companies like Rudi project, Oakley etc make them as well but obviously they're more expensive, so well worth doing as in my experience being able to see properly both long and short distance really helps your riding.
Another all day varifocal user - except when I'm out on the bike or out for a walk in the wet, then it's multifocal disposable contacts.
Haven't gone varifocals, (too many people feeling seasick and costing 100s), so have office glasses and going out glasses. I have a best pair of each and a cheap cycling pair of each. wear the cheapo office on the trainer watching Netflix, wear the cheapo outdoor on the MTB or road bike, don't really worry if they get muddy.. Have a prescription oakly sunnies for the summer, and no probs w mud, just rinse w water from my bottle if dirty, and carry a cleaning cloth. Had them 8 years and still dandy.
Cheapo glasses from glasses.com or similar
I’m pretty short sighted, with astigmatism and wear varifocals all the time, including riding.
Same. I put on a slightly larger lense size for riding. I've sunglasses for distance only, and use disposable contact lenses for surfing. I've tried them for riding too and they are best for rain and thick mist, but I just prefer glasses.
[unfortunately] what an excellent thread. I need to sort this all out for myself. Will look at the various options
Whilst we're here, any recommendations for prescription ski goggles?
and use disposable contact lenses for surfing.
I use them for pool swimming, under well fitting leak proof goggles. I have one near and one distance lens, works perfectly once I got used to it.
For MTB I use Uvex prescription safety glasses - cheap enough to replace every few years, tough and keeps the mud out of my eyes. 5510 / 5512 / 5513 are visually similar to sports glasses.
I took a very low speed tumble in summer with normal metal framed glasses on which got a bit bent and cut my nose. Never biking in them again!
What are people's solutions to wearing glasses riding / walking / outdoors generally?
Umm, put (prescription) sunnies on face, go outside and do things like a normal person would.
Needing prescription specs isn’t the life shattering disability some people seem to think…
Umm, put (prescription) sunnies on face, go outside and do things like a normal person would.
Needing prescription specs isn’t the life shattering disability some people seem to think…
Yep, that's what I've been doing for 5 years.
But I'm now noticeably starting to lose vision out on the road which worries me. I want to see the view. I look at maps, and now that's really difficult without my glasses. So while not a disability it's starting to impact me..
While I'm off for an eye test in a couple of weeks, and knowing my glasses need replacing through damage and changing prescription, I thought I would plan ahead.
It's looking like opting for an indoor pair for close work/take them in case for map reading, and a cheaper and more outdoor focussed pair, maybe with photochromic coating. My current metal half framed glasses worry me if I ever crashed as well.
I've got some decent Julbo sunnies and I see they do prescription varifocals lenses too.
I ride in my glasses (varifocal). I don't think too hard about the scratching but I suspect I do less off road miles than many.
I've sailed and done everything outdoors in glasses since my early 20s. I'm used to them being covered in mud and salt so maybe I'm less than averagely sensitive to a few scratches. At £500+ for a pair of varifocal glasses these days I maybe ought to be a bit more responsible with them 😂
I’m another one with photochromic varifocals for riding (for 5+ years) and I wouldn’t change them for anything. I’m slightly short sighted so need them more for middle to long distance. I initially tried fixed focal length, and whilst they were ok most of the time, they were impractical for short distance vision, such as looking at maps, and made me feel a bit dizzy when going up steep stuff. I also tried clip on inserts and found them too uncomfortable. In the end I went with direct glaze prescription glasses. They were pricey but have been worth every penny for the use they’ve had and the hassle-free miles they’ve covered - pretty much fit and forget when I go out. I’ve had quite a few scrapes whilst wearing them too, and haven’t managed to scratch them yet.
[unfortunately] what an excellent thread. I need to sort this all out for myself. Will look at the various options
Whilst we're here, any recommendations for prescription ski goggles?
Search for OTG goggles or 'over the glasses' googles and just wear them over normal glasses. My kids use them they have a little more space inside but looks normal with a helmet on.
I have varifocals for everyday stuff, some prescription sunnies for outdoor normal, and some Rudy Project sunnies with prescription inserts for biking with multiple lenses.
The Rudy Project sunnies worked better than contacts and goggles at a very shitty Caersws in November.
I had photo chronic glasses which did work in the car, but made me look like a proper weirdo when you're sat in the office next to a window wearing sunnies.....
Selectspecs.com for cycling glasses. I’ve just had 2 pairs delivered last week, £46 delivered for the 2. My previous pair were from them in 2020, got smashed recently when I crashed. You need to know your PD - the distance between your eyes, otherwise, everything else is on the prescription you are given. I just use single vision for outdoor use, I’m short sighted, so cant see far off. They do do varifocals, but it’s so difficult to get a good quality varifocal that for them I’d be paying a lot more locally.
Pffft, five years? I’ve been spack-eyed for three decades and still managed to lead a mostly normal life…
In answer to your concerns OP, I have several pairs of normal (very cheap) glasses that I wear day in day out, I also have a couple of pairs if photochromic glasses which I find useful if your day takes you in and out of sunlight (but really good photochromic specs do cost a bit more than I’m willing to spend on general knocking about glasses). I have a couple of pairs of wayfarer type prescription sunglasses, one pair lives in the car permanently just in case, the others get carted about lots I wouldn’t cry if I lost/broke them, cheap frames, basic tinted lenses not super expensive.
For riding I use some Tiffosi glasses with an insert, the outer lenses are interchangeable and I have everything from clear to mirror tinted but tend to use the photochromic lens 90% of the time.
Basically you just buy glasses to suit whatever activities you do on a daily basis, they don’t all have to be Oakleys or the specsavers specials where the salesman somehow convinced tou to pay for all the coatings (My dad once spent ~£400 on a very average pair of glasses somehow).
Or if you like poking your own eyeballs there’s always contacts and even more options for sunnies.
Your aging eyes will cost you a couple of hundred quid over the next decade or so, but it’s not the worst affliction there are people living without functional renal systems or missing major limbs, we just have blurry vision for 30 seconds every morning…
Depends on your prescription. I've got astigmatism so contacts don't work very well for me. I use safety glasses with a reading segment for riding - £13, last well but cheap enough so I don't care about them getting scratched. Vaifocalsfor the rest of the time.
Been wearing glasses for 45 of my 51 years. Contact lenses were the game changer. I only wear them for biking and skiing, and now can’t ride properly in specs - I’ve never found a pair, even fancy Oakleys, that don’t bounce around if I’m barrelling over rough ground.
im at the point I’ll need varifocals soon, but I’ll probably stick with single vision contacts and just carry a set of cheap reading glasses to deal with mechanicals that I need to see close up for.
ive never had too much issue with scratching lenses. Sweat however seem to make the coatings flake off over time, which is a problem as I road ride, commute and gym in them, all of which can have me dripping onto the lenses.
Basically you just buy glasses to suit whatever activities you do on a daily basis, they don’t all have to be Oakleys or the specsavers specials where the salesman somehow convinced tou to pay for all the coatings (My dad once spent ~£400 on a very average pair of glasses somehow).
given that you have been wearing specs for 3 decades that’s a strange sentence. I’m presuming you are blessed with a fortunate and relatively straightforward prescription.
Many of us on here have a complicated prescription plus astigmatism and £500 for a pair of functioning varifocals is the standard price for lenses in a mid priced frame. Boutique branded frames would add on an extra £100 probably.
I'm due my next eye test and I can feel that my long distance vision is getting worse. I currently have varifocals, which were mainly for my close screen and reading. I also have quite light sensitive eyes so wear sunglasses a lot.
What are people's solutions to wearing glasses riding / walking / outdoors generally?
I'm wondering if an 'indoor' pair of varifocals and an 'outdoor' cheaper long distance pair is a route to go, but that leaves me short of sunglasses...
As a life long glasses wearer, I would actually argue quite strongly that it is a disability, albeit a common one that pretty much everyone gets as they age. They're expensive, you have to have regular tests, which cost. Personally I can't see that well with out them on.
For things where you don't need eye protection (eg walking / general outdoors) just a pair of prescription sunnies.
Anyway, on to options for seeing outside while riding.
Best option for a long ride / all day riding - contact lenses. Then you can just wear whatever sunnies etc you want. Personally I don't like the feel of them, so don't like wearing them every day. If you don't mind them, then crack on. I just get dailies and a couple of 30 day boxes last for ages. Slight downside, you have to have another eye test every year as well as the main one.
Passable option, best for short rides - Prescription sunglasses. However you won't be able to get curvy ones. So if you like proper coverage, then this isn't ideal I personally think.
Ugly option but good for short rides. Sunglasses with prescription inserts. If you're wearing the clear lenses, then these look terrible. But they're practical. Decent coverage if you get wrap-arounds along with just being able to plonk them on and ride. Expensive as well.
Cheap but decent option - If you're ok with goggles, just get a pair of OTG goggles and you're gravy. They're cheap and you can wear your normal specs underneath. Make sure you've got a spare pair in the car, so you can drive home if you wreck them in a crash.
In fact that's good general advice, make sure you have a spare pair of specs in the car incase of a off that wrecks your specs.
I've been wearing glasses for 60 years, varifocals for the last 25. I have an expensive pair for everyday use, and some Rudy Project Rydons with a bifocal insert for cycling, and I usually use the photochromic lenses. I've given up on photochromic lenses for everyday use because I found it depressing that it was always gloomy, and I've given up on sunnies because I never had them on me when I needed them and I really CBA to carry them around all the time.
I've had two pairs of these wrap around sunglasses with clear prescription lenses for a year, one set for cycling and one set for everything else besides sitting at the pc. £180 total, second pair half price.
https://www.boots.com/kyusu-k-sunm-1802-mens-prescription-sunglasses-black-10246320
After using Lidl clear non-prescription lens cycling glasses for ~6 years, these were a revelation, my eyes had got a bit worse and these worked on a road bike (as in I was still looking through the lens rather than over the top).
I just use daily contact lenses for sport, and wear them several times (they last longer than daily if you keep them in contact solution). Game changer, and then you can wear what sunnies or clear glasses you like.
I still use contacts for paddling rivers and surf
I've been waiting for a while for my eyes to get bad enough for contacts so I can get rid of the readers and wear hats again, but then I was told that you cant wear them for swimming/kayaking etc. So was that wrong? I'm off to specsavers at the first chance I get 🙂
I have a sensible pair of Photochromic varifocals for everyday but found them useless for riding with wind closing my eyes / watering / mud so bought a pair of Rad8 Photochromic varifocals which have been awesome and I cannot recommend them enough with really good aftersales support too.
James
Hi Matt, in my not so humble (dispensing optician) opinion this is what I would recommend. I also worked for Specsavers for many years so know their stuff very well…
You can use their two for one offer to get a pair of work varifocals (super reader1 I’d choose, it’s a Zeiss design and I love my pair) and a normal vari for outdoor (Tailor made) photochromic make sense but not great in car. The also look terrible until totally clear when you go inside. You will pay £180 for the vari plus £40 for anti reflective coating(get this) and I think £70 for photochromic and get the work ones for £40 (coating price). This is on top of one frame (othe one free). Some Specsavers will do a third pair half price for the sunnies or a separate photochromic pair. All in you are looking at about £350- £450for two really decent pairs depending on options. More if you need thin lenses I’m afraid.
From there you can double or triple the above cost if you go proper top end at an independent (Essilor XR series) but their coatings are harder wearing and the varifocals are incredible.
You can also go considerably cheaper at Specsavers, but online for varifocal would be a gamble without someone talking to you and measuring properly.
PM me if you want a proper chat I am happy to do the dispense for you to walk in to a store and choose specs. I still work in Witney occasionally (Oxon) but it’s miles away.
Hey Matt. As a local option, have a chat with Tony at Stirling Optical. Tony is a keen cyclist and a properly nice guy. He should give you some good advice.
I'll need to give him a shout as well...thanks for the recommendation.
Hey Matt. As a local option, have a chat with Tony at Stirling Optical. Tony is a keen cyclist and a properly nice guy. He should give you some good advice.
👍