 Poster: A snowHead
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Hello People
I've asked a few questions on here since i first decided to have a go at a skiing holiday and have had help and advice with everything from my choice of resort to brands of ski wear and thermals!
Now, for my next question (!)
I have done a search of the forum to check i am not duplicating a post but i cannot find anything that fully addresses my query. Apologies if i've missed something!
Anyway, my dilemma is this...
I have been trying to research what goggles to buy and have got totally snowed under (excuse the pun) and confused with all the information.
I am skiing in France in mid January. I have no idea how cold or how bright it will be. I know i should be looking for double lenses as this will cut down on fogging in the very cold weather, but i have no idea what colour lenses to choose! I know this makes a huge amount of difference, but i'm totally confused. I think i should be aiming for orange as people seem to suggest this is a kind of "catch-all" colour, suitable for mose conditions.
A few people on other threads have recommended buying in resort to make sure your lenses fit the conditions, but this is a no go for both me and my partner as we are both glasses wearers and will require prescription lenses, which brings me onto question 2...
As glasses wearers (short sighted and astigmatism) we will both require prescriptions. I have been advised not to buy goggles that go over my glasses as these can be bad for fogging. Which leaves me 3 options:
1) Buy goggles and have prescription lenses fitted
2) Buy goggles and have some inserts made
3) Go to an opticians and get fitted up for contact lenses. Buy normal goggles and some disposable contact lenses.
Can any glasses wearers offer me any advice on this? One of my worries is I've not yet seen ski lens suppliers that offer correction for astigmatism, so i'm thinking the contact lens option might be best (although I don't much fancy sticking fingers in my eyes).
Any help gratefully received. Comments/advice/anything.
Thank You.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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magic_hat,
Option 3, no question.... I use dailies and buy a month's worth which keeps me going for a few years at least. I am about to get a new supply. Goggles and glasses can get lost/mislaid/smashed after a fall so again contacts come into their own. Take a few spare in case you lose one but I have never ever lose a lense in over 20 years blah, blah.
Then chose goggles for low light, the darker orange type tint the better for low light. And the reason you test them in the resort
against the sky is because you want to see how effective they are in situ. I have had expensive lenses and cheap lenses and it really is a case of what works. Buying online does not garauntee to get you a lense that works the best, so we try them against the sky on a flat light day ...literally...!!!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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magic_hat, Yep JT is right....option 3 if at all possible. No matter how sophisticated the goggles you buy with OTG you will almost certainly have some problems with fogging and comfort, especially if you end up having to wear them all day so. If you can't get contacts to suit then go for prescription goggles apparently Tesco's opticians are doing them for £35(see here). Addidas and Bolle both do clip in inserts that fit their ranges which you can get glazed for around £50 - added to the cost of the goggles it's fairly expensive. You will want a pair of prescription sunnies too, you ought to plan for good weather, as a glasses wearer you will find that most of your pockets/backpack is taken up with various different eyewear for all occasions!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Option 3
But....the 'goggles over glasses' does work - you need to treat your glasses with anti-fog coating - you can buy it from swimming stores (it's intended for swim goggles but never seems to have harmed my glasses for the 1-2 weks a year I do it). Alterntaively never stop moving and then they won't steam up 
I tend to wear my prescription sunnies instead - only switching to 'goggles over glasses' if it gets really bad weatherwise..
aj xx
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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magic_hat, ski goggles tend to have universal-coloured lenses these days. They're intended to enhance shadows in white-out conditions and not significantly reduce the amount of light entering your eyes. Goggles are primarily used by skiers to stop snowflakes entering the eyes when it's snowing. Sunglasses don't stop this happening.
Few people wear goggles in good light or bright sunlight, unless they're skiing at very high speeds, so you don't need dark lenses unless you're intending to do this. Wear sunglasses in nice weather - they are a lot less sweaty!
It's always a good idea to take goggles up the mountain in the morning, unless you're absolutely sure of a good weather prospect for the day.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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If you get on with contacts then that is best as other Snowheads have said. Particularly if your eyesight is really bad and you need prescription lenses to get around mountain restaurants, find the toilet etc. Saves you having to keep changing from one set of eyewear to another. Least chance of fogging also.
My eyes aren't too bad so I wear Bolle OTG goggles with a Bolle prescription insert. S & R used to sell the insert, which you can take to any opticians to get glazed, for whatever prescription you have. I am not sure if they still do them. I seem to remember Adidas did an insert as well.
Unless you want to fanny about with more than one set of goggles I would just get a mid-range orange or violet tint suitable for a broad spectrum of conditions. For really bright conditions you can always fall back on sunnies but I just tend to stick with the Bolle mid-range violet lens all the time.
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| ajhainey wrote: |
| But....the 'goggles over glasses' does work - you need to treat your glasses with anti-fog coating - you can buy it from swimming stores (it's intended for swim goggles but never seems to have harmed my glasses for the 1-2 weks a year I do it). Alterntaively never stop moving and then they won't steam up |
Sorry, got to disagree....I have tried all the products under the sun, wipes, sprays, even spit! Still ALWAYS suffer with some form of fogging. My worst nightmare run was from Grand Motte in Tignes where my glasses AND goggles both fogged and then froze because it was -26 degrees. Couldn't see with them on, couldn't see with them off got off the mountain only by feel and by following close on the tail of Mr HH so he could lead me down. Not an experience I ever want to repeat which is why I've gone for Option 3 myself this year!
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Definitely option 3 - buy some goggles for flat light and some sunnies for sunshine!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Wow - cheers for all the replies!
Lots of comments, lots of info! Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to respond!
Lots for me to think about, but a pretty conclusive vote for Option 3 so far!!
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magic_hat,
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Lots for me to think about, but a pretty conclusive vote for Option 3 so far!!
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I am short-sighted, Option 3 is no good for me, since I used to wear lenses, but can no longer tolerate them, any sort.
I use prescription sunglasses with Reactolite lenses together with Oakley L Frame goggles. Additionally, I have just treated myself to some new shades from Adidas, the E.E. Explorer with a clip in insert made to my prescription. These shades have interchangeable lenses to suit conditions. My goggles, (worn with the glasses, not the Adidas shades) never steam up, unless I put them on my head, with or without my helmet. I am totally lost without my specs, so I always carry a spare pair.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I have got to go with option 3.
Another factor that influenced me is that goggles with perscription lenses tend to be in the more expensive end of the market.
With contacts, you can go for the £20 ish end of the market rather than the £40+ price of the perscription type
Most opticians are doing free trials for contacts at the minute, and as you will only need them for one week, it's a cheap option
I wear the contacts when on sun hoidays too so that I can swap back and forward from my sunnies without having to dig out my glasses again
I tend to find that I constantly switch between sunnies/ goggles / no glasses all the time when sking (depending on conditions) and if I add in my normal jam jars, it's another glasses case to carry. If you do go with glasses, make sure you keep them in a hard case, because you are guaranteed to fall on them at some stage
If you want a contacts supplier, try www.costalcontacts.com, they are about 1/3 the price of the highstreet opticians (though do get an optician's advice on which brand / model to buy)
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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If you are not a contact lens wearer then I advise giving them a go before you get out for your ski holiday, it takes the eye a little while to adjust to having a chunk of plastic (however technically groovy) stabbed in it! best get the eye watering/blinking/weird feelings over with before you add skiing into the mix!
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magic_hat, Just to keep it going. I'm both short and long-sighted - astigmatic thrown-in if you prefer ! ( just the effects of old age in my case). I started skiing last year without any corrective lenses - this didn't seem to matter as I was going to fall over anyway and any attempt at avoiding things was a total waste of space. During last season I tried corrective goggles ( crap 'cos correction doesn't work on big curved surfaces so are tiny and useless imo) . Bought varifocal glasses in yellow - tint in the hope that on bad-weather days I could wear goggles over the top. It works but if you tell your optician he'll have a fit as it is bad for your vision to have varifocals on piste due to the movement and sudden change in focus required.
I've now settled for single strength contacts for distance correction and carry small 'cheapo' reading glasses so that I can read the wine lists. I would add that I have never worn contacts before but the effort to ski is more than worth it. A long way to say it but:-
Number 3 is your only option !
Last edited by So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much  on Thu 24-11-05 17:47; edited 2 times in total
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You know it makes sense.
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Focus dailies are fantastic lenses for sports - as said above - a months supply only costs about £35. I usually wear RGP lenses - but always use the dailies for trips. On the goggle front - I just bought a pair of Oakley A frames with the persimmon (orange lense) - I have a small face and found that the cheaper models tended to leave slight gaps at the sides. I've used very cheap goggles in the past, but these are fantastic in comparison. Try plenty of styles and makes on - comfort is vital and in bad conditions wind blown snow will work into any little gaps around the edges.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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magic_hat, France mid-Jan could be very cold and more likely to be flat light or whiteout than blazing sunshine, when as others have said you'd use sunglasses anyway. So you'd want an orange or universal lens colour to enhance contrast and help you to see the bumps. Double lens is a must for really cold conditions. I don't wear glasses other than for reading so can't help on the optical side of things.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| homphomp wrote: |
| ajhainey wrote: |
| But....the 'goggles over glasses' does work - you need to treat your glasses with anti-fog coating - you can buy it from swimming stores (it's intended for swim goggles but never seems to have harmed my glasses for the 1-2 weks a year I do it). Alterntaively never stop moving and then they won't steam up |
Sorry, got to disagree....I have tried all the products under the sun, wipes, sprays, even spit! Still ALWAYS suffer with some form of fogging. My worst nightmare run was from Grand Motte in Tignes where my glasses AND goggles both fogged and then froze because it was -26 degrees. Couldn't see with them on, couldn't see with them off got off the mountain only by feel and by following close on the tail of Mr HH so he could lead me down. Not an experience I ever want to repeat which is why I've gone for Option 3 myself this year! |
Sorry - I guess I should have said 'can work'...It seems to be person (rather than goggle?) specific? My OH wears goggles over glasses all day, everyday, on the slopes and very very rarely has a problem (8weeks and counting). I always tended to fog up (although the anti fog seems to have fixed that, although I haven't used it often)....all I was trying to say is that there is another option that's worth trying if you don't fancy contacts? I admit it doesn't work for everyone!
aj xx
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I agree with contact lenses. If you don't fancy putting your fingers in your eyes then try the ones you wear for a month and sleep in. I have these and they're fantastic. other advantages are that you don't fog up when you go into restaurants - I used to wear reactolites and was forever cutting people dead!
to stop fogging: do not put your goggles on the top of your head - always keep them on your face. If they do fog up - don't take them off, just pull them away from your face a few times to let the air get behind them. You may have to do this multiple times, but it will work. 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Thank you to everyone for your comments.
As always, the response has been fantastic and i am really grateful to everyone who took the time to respond.
Much appreciated.
I'm off to make an appointment for a contact lens trial! Cheers people
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Just had a check-up which they say is compulsory before you buy a new batch.... 
and everything ok for the season. There are better lenses than dailies but are more expensive and efficient as regards short-sightedness. I can't recall the name of the lense type the optician used but I accept the compromise of a good distance lense against a poorer reading one but it might be just my prescription with Focus dailes. Its either that or a laser job and do you notice how many opticians still wear glasses..??
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| David Goldsmith wrote: |
magic_hat, ski goggles tend to have universal-coloured lenses these days. They're intended to enhance shadows in white-out conditions and not significantly reduce the amount of light entering your eyes. Goggles are primarily used by skiers to stop snowflakes entering the eyes when it's snowing. Sunglasses don't stop this happening.
Few people wear goggles in good light or bright sunlight, unless they're skiing at very high speeds, so you don't need dark lenses unless you're intending to do this. Wear sunglasses in nice weather - they are a lot less sweaty!
It's always a good idea to take goggles up the mountain in the morning, unless you're absolutely sure of a good weather prospect for the day. |
Mid-January was the date mentioned for this holiday? I can think of a few bright sunny days mid-January when I was very grateful for goggles rather than sunglasses, epecially first thing. Temperatures of -28°C and a spot of wind as you get out of the cablecar at 3000m, and (hopefully) magic hat will be converted to using a helmet too!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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PG, I well remember those chilly days last year. I get watery eyes in the cold weather and the googles cured that problem.
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I have a reasonably high astigmatism OS -2.75 OD -3.25. Dailys don't even come close as they normally only go to around -0.75
I haven't been able to find any reasonable priced lenses for the -3.25, but Bausch & Lomb Softlens 66 Toric come damn close 2 boxes of 6 (one for each eye) $55.78 with www.costalcontacts.com. Being 66% water they are extremely comfortable for the occasional wearer like myself. I think they do a 2-week disposable now as well as the monthlys.
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FAQ
