I end up not wearing sunglasses a lot because I ride/race early morning and I hate when glasses darken the road. I need/like to see the road as is. On a sunny day, I wish I had glasses.
Questions for glasses for both bike and run:
1 - Polarized or not polarized?
2 - Is there a style that can both block the sun but also brighten road (like yellow tinted)
3 - Can you recommend a solid not terribly expensive brand and even style?
Thanks!
There are many brands out there with interchangeable lenses. I don’t like running or riding without sunglasses, but if I know I am going to be out when it isn’t fully bright out I will use yellow-tinted lenses. I use Rudy Projects and just pop out the normal polarized lenses and swap in yellow. I like having the eye protection at least when riding.
Look into some of the models with photo chromatic lenses that are nearly clear in low light, but darken as needed as it gets brighter. Tifosi makes quite a few models with various types of their Fototec lenses that aren’t terribly expensive.
any issue with seeing bike computer/watch with polarized?
any issue with seeing bike computer/watch with polarized?
I never have. The polarization of the LCD screen appears to be in the same plane as the lenses. If I turn the computer sideways I can’t see it, but at any angle I would normally be looking at it, it is perfectly fine.
I have had 3 different pairs of polarized (Zeal, Smith, Revo) and the polarization is different on all of them with respect to how they treat screens (phone, bike computer, car GPS). I think the bike computer depends on what model and what kind of screen it is. Something that looks like an old school digital watch would probably be better than some of the newer stuff.
+2 on the Tifosi, I picked up a pretty cheap pair recently and like them a lot. Oakleys look better, but these work well and are comfortable on both run and bike
+2 on the Tifosi, I picked up a pretty cheap pair recently and like them a lot.
+3 on the Tifosi. They make great glasses for a pretty decent price. I’ve been using the same pair for 3 years. I love them. Wear them at 4:30 am on my summer runs when it’s still dark and protects me from them damn nats flying in my eyes. When it gets sunny, they darken right up.
Through this forum I was able to pick up a pair of Spy Optics…have to say I am loving them…
Another vote for the Trifosi polychromic sunglasses. I wear mine for cycling, running, and kayaking. They transition very quickly and are surprisingly good at improving contrast. I was wearing them while hiking recently, and I kept them on even though it was shady because the contrast of the terrain was better with them.
Due to life situations outside of my control I am one of the cheapest guys on the planet. Which makes the sport of triathlon a little more challenging. Instead of buying one pair of sunglasses for $100+ I prefer to buy a few pairs of cheaper glasses. I have seen some from Rock Bros. that have interchangeable lenses but I have never tried them so I don’t how good they are. No doubt they aren’t as good as some of the others people have recommended on here but these come in for $20 or less on eBay. I like that because I can get more than one pair for a fraction of the cost and when I lose a pair in the ocean (which happened recently), I don’t care. I just go get my other pair out of the glove box and continue as normal. The ones I currently use are X-Loop. They are around $10 a pair and so far I’ve had no issues with them. And they offer them in many different frame and lens types.
No sunglasses on either. I used to wear them on the ride but once sweat gets on them they’re a hindrance and I also found that it was harder to see potholes when you went from light into a shady spot of the road. I’ll only wear them now on the sunniest days.
(Note that I’m talking about ***racing ***a tri. For training or just plain bike riding I’ll wear them. But there I can stop and clean them off)
On the run I just wear a visor.
Polarization is mainly to deal with glare which isn’t usually a problem on the roads so I would save yourself some money and go regular.
A friend recently suggested I avoid polarized lenses on the bike bc they can minimize road surface vision, for example oil or other substance on the road. Any comments?
You don’t need polarized glasses (over non-polarized) on the bike but in my experience they’re not going to make you miss anything that regular sunglasses wouldn’t also make you miss.
Yes with polarised they cut the glare off reflections off water.
If you’re on the road I like to see the puddles and the reflections help.
TBH in the real world it’s not a deal breaker. Worst thing is that when I turn my phone sideways for photos I have to take my polarised glasses down !
A friend recently suggested I avoid polarized lenses on the bike bc they can minimize road surface vision, for example oil or other substance on the road. Any comments?
I suppose that might be an issue in theory, but I’ve been riding with polarized glasses for years and have never had an issue seeing oil, water, or the millions of banana peels that the cyclists around here seem to love dropping in the bike lane. 
I have Smith PivLock V2 and I often use the amber lenses in the morning or evening. I would love to try their photochromic lenses, but I haven’t had an extra $80 laying around recently.
I used to be in the “buy cheap and replace when they break” camp, but I eventually bought more expensive glasses and I’m not going back to cheap any time soon. I wore my first pair of Smith Optics for 7 years until the frames broke while I was swapping lenses. Smith warrantied them by giving me the original retail price off of a new pair.
I have been wearing Nashbar Platte photochromic sunglasses for 3 years and they’ve been great. The automatic adjustment is perfect for different times of days and conditions. I have had zero issues with fogging and they are comfortable all day. At $30 I am not overly worried about losing or breaking them. The one time I negligently scratched them Nashbar sent me free lens replacements (they were supposed to be $20 but they just sent them for free).
I like my Rudy photochromic non-polarized ImpactX 2 lenses. With the photochromic lenses I can grab the same glasses every time without worrying about light conditions, and I prefer non-polarized to better see surface water. I have the Rydon frame. The lenses alone were about $50 on sale.
I have two pairs of the Ryders Via Photochromic sunglasses and they work great from early morning/evening rides and runs to mid-day. They have three different colored lenses available - I use the dark grey photochromic lenses but they also have yellow and brown. Not bad price either compared to others out there at $89.99.
Look into some of the models with photo chromatic lenses that are nearly clear in low light, but darken as needed as it gets brighter. Tifosi makes quite a few models with various types of their Fototec lenses that aren’t terribly expensive.
Another vote for Tifosi. I have three pairs, including one pair with EC Fototec lenses and another pair with High Speed Red Fototec lenses. http://www.tifosioptics.com/technology/lens/