Ski goggles

Looking for some advice regarding ski goggles. I'd like to buy a new pair for my OH as a surprise for Christmas and am considering a pair of light sensitive (photochromatic as I read it?) ones made by Scott. Does anyone have any experience of light sensitive goggles in general such as speed of changes in lens colour etc?

If not, any recommendations? They need to be suitable to go over glasses but no need for helmet compatibility. Ideally a sensible coloured frame. The ones I'm looking at are reduced to £65 – don't really want to spend any more than this and ideally a bit less.

Current ones are Uvex, have a yellow-orange tint and a tendency to fog up, probably as they are low end of the market (bought for our first ski trip several years ago).

Thanks

I have got a pair of bolle photochromic goggles bought last season, really good apart from brightest sunshine, you do not notice the colour change I think the reaction is slower in plastic than in glass but no issues of the lens bring inappropriate to conditions, no fogging and the peripheral vision very good. The coating is on the surface of the lens so need to be careful how you handle them and how you're carrying them when not wearing them. If your husband has lightreactive glasses under the goggles you the full spectrum of filters needed from bright sunshine to white out

Dear Lynn,

I would suggest you have a look at this website for your ski goggles.

They have a wide variety, are all very reasonably priced and are a pleasure to deal with!

http://www.snowbiz.co.uk/

They also sell a wide variety of other snowsports equipment, again at very hard to beat prices.

A few people on here, Ally G for one bought new luggage from them.

Thanks

I've got a pair of Bolle Racing Snake variables - Vermillion Gun if I remember rightly is the tint

They dont go over my glasses per se as I have an insert that is basically the lenses snapped into the frame

Very comfortable, react quickly to changes

They dont go down really low so I still carry my bright yellow ones for "white out" moments but they're generally great allrounders

Lynn

I'm also an OTG goggles user. Getting the correct sized lens, to fit over even small spex can be quite a challenge. Get this bit right and the steaming up problem will go.

Can you make your gift a voucher?, he really needs to try them on properly.

I have been tempted away a couple of times, but always end up going back to Oakley L Frame's.

The issue with fogging up is just as much about fit as about design. If there are gaps between the lower part of the frame and your face, especially around the bridge or your nose, breath will fog up the inside of the goggles no matter how much you spend.

I would rather have a modest pair of goggles that fit, rather than an expensive pair that don't any day.

Therefore Bandit's suggestion of a voucher or a picture is a good one.

Last time I was in Decathlon, I noticed that they have a new range of goggles out that have different sized frames, but that all accept the same range of different lenses. I haven't tried them but the concept is worth looking at.

Another option - Does he already have a set of Oakley or other high end goggles that he likes and fit well? If so, maybe you could look into getting him a couple of different lenses for those. that way he has the right lens for different conditions. this takes the fitting part out of the equation and so you can give him something other than a voucher.

I've never tried the modern photosensitive lenses before but it is hard too imagine that they would be fast enough to deal with rapid changes from shadow to bright sunlight that you can often get when skiing. I suspect that the light that causes the change in transparency has already done the damage by the time the lens reacts.

Thanks for your replies, some interesting points that I hadn't even considered, especially regarding fit. I've decided to leave the 'surprise' aspect – will just buy him some he likes (and that fit properly over his frames) at a later stage. He does have a pair of Adidas Evil Eye wrap around sunglasses with changeable lenses which work well a lot of the time.

I wear glasses myself and couldn't get away with OTG goggles at all. After a couple of days where I couldn't see a thing due to fogging I gave up and skied either in my glasses (cue streaming eyes and probably not safe) or just goggles (a bit blurry but still manageable.) I now wear daily lenses which OH would love to do but sadly can't due to his prescription and the fact that he's diabetic.

I was also considering the photochromatic version for myself as I ski most of the time in goggles rather than sunglasses, so interesting to hear of other people's experience of them.

Lynn, if your husband is already wearing E.E. sunnies, they have an insert clip for a prescription lens (I have some) The clip also fits into the Adidas Goggles, definitely the Yodai and the Robin, but there may be more. Pricey goggles, but very smart and well made.
Something to consider?