eye protection

[mtngrrrl]

Hey all you four-eyed geeks out there, I need your advice on good eye protection. I used to wear contact lenses and glacier goggles when I went up high or on snow. Now, however, I'm out of contacts with no immediate plans to replace them. Do any of you use ski goggles over your eye glasses with success? It seems to me that most ski googles would not give adequate UV protection for a snow and high altitude combination.

 

I had been under the impression that if you are looking at my face and can see my eyes through the lens, the lens wouldn't give enough protection at high elevation. If I'm wrong, please let me know.

 

Finally, I need a quick (and hopefully not spendy!) fix, so for now I can't wait for someone to make me custom prescription goggles. I'd love to do that someday when I have the money!

 

Thanks in advance. I'm out for the day, but I'll check in tonight.

[allthumbs]

Hey Haireball, are phototropics the same thing as regular old photogreys, or whatever they call them. I mean the std. issue street lens that change color? If so, are they UV 100% B and C and all that shit? This is my first serious question...be gentle on me.

 

trask

[mattp]

Haireball -

 

I used to climb without prescription glasses, and it seemed to me that even the best sunglasses available would interfere with my ability to see the details of the rock such as the "holds" on a slab climb so I would endure the brightness and glare in the interest of being able to climb better. Now I have to wear prescription glasses and I am reluctant to try tinted glasses because I fear that I would have the same reduced detail. How do the "phototropics" perform for you -- is there any reduction in visible detail?

[Greg_W]

quote:

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Originally posted by mattp:

[QB]I used to climb without prescription glasses, and it seemed to me that even the best sunglasses available would interfere with my ability to see the details of the rock such as the "holds" on a slab climb...[QB]

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Never saw anyone stop 30' up a pitch and fish into their pocket for their eyeglasses until I climbed with Mattp!

 

Greg

[Dru]

fitovers make you look cool too like this idiot

 

 

[ 06-19-2002, 01:57 PM: Message edited by: Dru ]

[allthumbs]

hahahaha is that REALLY you, sprayshaw? hahahaha

[Cpt.Caveman]

I wear Beer Goggles

[Rodchester]

I use ski gogles in very cold and windy weather, usually winter. I have never had problems with the eyes.

 

It is my understanding that the darkness of the lenses and the filtering of UV A B & C rays are not always related. (Maybe some eye guys out there say diffent?)

 

The majority of the times on glacier and snow I use presecription glacier glasses. I used the classic round glacier Julbvos for years and have no complaints. Cost 40.00 bucks for the frames and them paid 50.00 bucks for the lenses. Most will charge around $100.00 for the lenses.

 

I now use a pair of similar style CEBEs that are a little smaller and more comfortable. I love them. Cost me about $50.00 to have the lenses put in (I know the guy). I have seen some guys that charge a small fortune, skip them and go to a regular eye guy....doing the lenses is not rocket science.

 

You want to use plastic lenses, because glass can shatter and weighs too much. You want to have them put a scratch resistant coating on the lenses...becuase plastic does tend to scratch (main problem with plastic).

 

You can go with just about any combo on the UV filer and darkness/tint. Go with at LEAST 90% on the UV A B & C filtering. I have 95% with a medium to darker tint. If you make it too dark you cannot use them in the transistional times (dusk, dawn, cloudy days where UVs still pierce the clouds, etc.).

 

I have used this system many times between sea level and over 20,000 ft. with no problems.

 

I do not wear them water ice climbing, or I should say rarely. I prefer contacts ther because I am fat and have no talent and often steam up my glasses when on steep stuff. I have used them on easier alpine rock with no problems.

 

There is my 50 cents...sorry if I didn't help. Let us know what you go with, and why.

 

 

[ 06-19-2002, 03:05 PM: Message edited by: Rodchester ]

[salbrecher]

Didn't you watch "Vertical Limit", they where only wearing goggles and they were on K2 !

[Dru]

Get Fitovers from MEC or similar.

 

The brand sold at MEC costs $30 and gives full UV and glacier protection. Fit over your regular prescription eyeglasses and you look like a cool senior citizen (you know how they wear those things on cruise ships and so on...)

 

I have used these for ~15 hr days at elevations over 10 000 feet with not only no eye dazzle, but no sunburn on the skin around the eye. Also gives you some of the protection of a ski goggle in that if they steam up you can lift them up a bit and still look out through your regular glasses, whereas if your prescription sunglasses steam up you are screwed.

[Jim]

You can also get a good pair of glacier goggles (with shields) and have an optomotrist put in a pair of prescription glass lenses. There is a reason to avoid plastic lenes but I don't remember it. There was an article in Climbing this year.

[haireball]

for nearly 30 years I have used nothing more than prescription glasses with phototropic lenses. at altitude, I make side-shields out of duct-tape or first-aid tape. this has proven adequate for me on Orizaba, two Denali trips, and Aconcagua. I love the phototropics, because they eliminate the hassle of having to carry different eyewear for different light conditions. although initially expensive, a single pair of phototropics is substantially cheaper than two pair of prescription lenses... I do add generic ski-goggles for extreme-wind days...

[mtngrrrl]

Thanks for all the info. I'll have to make some calls on the prescription glasses and see if I can find a good deal from a local opthomologist. Might be the best option in the long run. I looked some years back, but it was a chunk of change so I didn't bother to investigate further.

 

Turns out I DID find one last pair of contacts, so I cleaned them up for this weekend. I prefer glasses to contacts, so I appreciate the advice along those lines. Other than the stylin' fitovers, it doesn't sound like there are many options in the way of googles.

[Ibex]

quote:

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Originally posted by Rodchester:

I use ski gogles in very cold and windy weather, usually winter. I have never had problems with the eyes.

 

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My brilliant (and shortlived) idea of wearing ski googles ice climbing ended after 10 minutes of **seriously** fogged lenses forced me to stop. On alpine/windier stuff they might have good enough ventilation to work.

 

quote:

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It is my understanding that the darkness of the lenses and the filtering of UV A B & C rays are not always related. (Maybe some eye guys out there say diffent?)

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That is correct. The UV coatings are separate and unrelated (for the most part) from the darkness of the lense. Anybody else out there have a UV filter protecting the lense on their 35mm SLR...?

 

quote:

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I now use a pair of similar style CEBEs that are a little smaller and more comfortable. I love them. Cost me about $50.00 to have the lenses put in (I know the guy). I have seen some guys that charge a small fortune, skip them and go to a regular eye guy....doing the lenses is not rocket science.

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This is something I wish I had done, I paid $300ish bucks for custom made glacier glasses. There are certainly cheaper ways of doing it, but I must say, I am **VERY** happy with the quality of the optics. For those interested souls, check out www.opticus.com out of boulder, co.

 

quote:

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You want to use plastic lenses, because glass can shatter and weighs too much. You want to have them put a scratch resistant coating on the lenses...becuase plastic does tend to scratch (main problem with plastic).

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The main reason for getting glass (which is what i ended up getting) is the better optics, and the durability of the coatings. As long as you dont break them (they really are pretty tough) they will have a longer life than the plastic lenses. As far as the weight goes, as long as your prescription is under 2.5 diopters, the weight isnt really a problem. If you wear "coke bottles" get plastic.

 

Another thing I have to say on behalf of opticus, is that they have a **LOT** more experience with high-altitude eyewear than your local optometrist, and excellent customer service. They can tune the lense material, frame, coatings, and tint to get exactly the product you want, and will even send you samples of the lenses to look at before you buy. With just a phone call with them, and you will be much further ahead of the game.

 

FYI, i got the Julbo Atlas with "Froggy the Gremlin" lenses (red mirrored front) that makes the world look green when you look through it. They look a little wild, but they work like a champ.

 

http://opticus.com/naked.jpg

 

http://opticus.com/froglens.jpg

 

Good luck!

 

Shawn

[Guest]

if you go ice climbing or any steep routes on rock you'll use contacts. problem with glasses - they fog up ice climbing and they are hard to deal with when it's raining. a friend of my lost a contact on the aproach and started climbing with glassess.he chucked them after one pitch and climbed with one contact- and named the route "blind eye". it was way better to climb with one contact in then with regular glassess (at least for him)

[haireball]

answering questions: yes, phototropics are the same thing as "photogreys"; at 6000m they are virtually black. Mattp, I've worn them for so many years I wouldn't be able to compare them with anything else - they are part of me-after this long, any "problem" with them I probably wouldn't recognize as a problem...in some ways, it's easier than being 20/20 and using sunglasses, because I just put them on when I wake up in the morning and take them off when I bed down at night, and forget about them in between.

[Illimani94]

As a former four-eye (LASIK last year, the best option IMHO), and user of 4 or 5 pairs of 'scrip glacier glasses...

 

1) Plastic lenses are preferable to glass. Glass does have better optics (though not by much) and don't scratch as readily. It's also heavier, break-prone, and must be coated to get the UV absorption. Any of the optical plastics absorb 100% UV naturally, so no UV coating is required. A SCRATCH-RESISTANT coating definitely is unless you want to replace lenses every year.

 

2) One argument for glass lenses if your 'scrip isn't too bad ( I was -8 diopters in both eyes before the zap) is photograys. As someone else mentioned, photochromic lenses can go from moderately tinted in flat light conditions to DARK in bright and cold conditions. My photograys got as dark as any glacier glass lenses I've seen. Photogray is in the glass, and it doesn't wear out with time. There's also a brown photochromic if you prefer the contrast-enhancing brown lenses. Down side? Glass, so high corrections are heavy. Breakage is more of an issue as with all glass lenses. There is a plastic photochromic lense material. It's range of darkness isn't nearly as good as photograys, and the effect apparently wears out after a few years.

 

3) For most conditions, glacier glasses are better than goggles. Sturdier, less prone to fogging. I like frames that have removable side shields, but then I'm more prone to overheating than many.

 

4) Frames I've used that tolerate prescription lenses well. Cebe 4000, the standard Bolle glacier glass frame, the classic round Julbo. I especially like the fit of the Cebe frame, though it is expensive. The important thing is to find a frame that hugs your face and allows minimal light leaks around the frame and side shields.

 

Good luck. Actual prescription glacier glasses can be expensive, but I've never found a "fitover" type of glasses that didn't have distortion problems or fogging.

[cj001f]

I'll second the recommendation to get real Glacier Glasses from opticus. They may take a bit longer, but they are excellent. I went with the Julbo Mont Blanc Micropore - a darn nice frame - though the classic round works too. Stay away from the plastic aviator style julbo frames some Optometrists offer - the frames are cheap, and the lenses usually aren't dark enough.

 

I can't say that I recommend plastic lenses. Yes they are a bit lighter, but they scratch much, much easier. As for Ice Climbing w/o glasses - I can't say that I've ever had problems with glasses fogging - or goggles, if you put them away for the approach, and put some scuba type anti fog stuff inside.

 

Carl