Everything you need to know about best snowboard goggles! Read on to find out quickly and easily all you need to know about goggles!
WHO… has the BEST goggles on the market!!!
WHAT… to look for when buying goggles !!!
WHEN… to use goggles versus sunglasses.
WHY… they are an integral and VERY important part of your snowboarding gear arsenal…
Contents
WHY you need goggles and sunglasses
Lets start off with WHY you need goggles and sunglasses…The most compelling reason to wear ski or goggles is that they allow you to see comfortably and safely when its snowing lightly and windy or snowing heavily with or without wind…
Even if it is not snowing or windy and you are cranking in some deep powder you are gonna need those snowboard goggles…
If you have ever been snowboarding on a day when its windy with blowing snow or its snowing heavily and you didn’t have of goggles, YOU can relate to this ALREADY!!!
If you have NEVER been snowboarding on a snowy or windy day
TAKE MY ADVICE….MAKE SURE you buy a good pair of GOGGLES before you need them…They are very expensive at the resort or on mountain shops !
I ALWAYS carry two pairs whenever I go snowboarding !
It can be near impossible to see and it can be very uncomfortable too…
THOUSANDS of snowflakes bouncing off your eyeballs can be a kind of torture…
I have had numerous times when my goggles either got knocked off and filled with snow or fogged up and I couldn’t see through them and decided to wing it without them on…
That usually lasts all of 5 minutes or by the time I reach the bottom of the run….whichever comes first…At which point the goggles get cleaned out and wiped off and back on they go!!!
You can get away with no goggles or sunglasses on a flat light day, but if its snowing out, you need those goggles, conversely if it is super sunny out you are gonna need the sunglasses too.
Features Of Best Snowboard Goggles
Next we look at WHAT features are in a top quality pair of goggles…
GOOD QUALITY snowboard goggles are not cheap!!!
LENSES,COATINGS AND COLORS…Buy the best goggles you can afford…
LENSES… Lets look at them first…
Scratch Coatings
The majority of lenses for snowboard goggles are made of polycarbonate plastic …It is highly impact resistant…BUT it is only moderately scratch resistant…
A lot of lenses are coated with a high tech hard finish which increases the polycarbonates scratch resistance…make sure to check that…As the more expensive goggles are usually coated…
If they are scratch coated,they are way more difficult to scratch up, but you still need to take good care of them… I find that because I am always in the trees…Tree and bush branches will scratch even the best of lenses on the outside…AGAIN it is a good idea to be able to buy replacement lenses…
Double Lens
Your snowboard goggles need to have double lens…A totally sealed airspace between the two lens is necessary if that seal is broken, then the inside of the lenses will fog up and they are history…You will need to buy a new replacement lens…It is a good idea to make sure you can buy replacement lenses and that they are widely available …They are way cheaper to buy than buying a whole new set of snowboard goggles…
Interchangeable Lens…
are also a good idea…That way you can change lenses quickly and easily if the conditions change from snowy to sunny or visa versa…
Anti-fog Coatings…
The best quality snowboard goggles have a anti-fog coating on the inside of the snowboard goggles lens…
The BAD NEWS is you have to be careful not to damage the coating or scratch it….I always screw this up and I end up having to buy a new set of lenses or snowboard goggles every season…
I learned something NEW From the Internet yesterday!
The word is that the antifog coatings get soft when wet…So the advice is to BLOT the wet lens on the inside, DON’T RUB or WIPE HARD…Then at lunch… dry them out and then you can wipe em…COOL TIP…I am definitely going to buy a SMITH Snow wiper this year…
Lens Colors And Shapes
Another factor is the lens color and lens shape as well as the frames perimeter shape…the best snowboard goggles will have a wide perimeter and allow you to see as wide an area as possible…
YOU DO NOT want blind spots or tunnel vision… Snowboard goggles lenses come in many colors and some colors are better than others for different lighting conditions…
- A lighter lens color such as a clear or yellow is good for snowy,cloudy,foggy or dark lighting conditions…
- A darker lens such as bronze, brown, amber, blue, or green are good for brighter lighting conditions…
- Grey lenses give the truest overall color definition…
- A brown or bronze lens gives enhanced color definition and depth perception…
- Rose colored lenses are used for hazy and flat lighting and give the sharpest contrast…
My own PERSONAL choice is a rose colored lens…For me they give the best performance in all but the brightest lighting conditions … I have tried every color there is and for me, a rose color lens works the best…The color I do not favor are the yellow lenses…I just cannot see well with these as it seems to distort my vision even in very low light…I HAVE used yellow lens at night and been happy with them…AND… alot of my friends like a yellow lens for flat light or snowy conditions, so personal preference after experimentation is the way to go.
My SUGGESTION is to try as many colors as possible and look outside with them if you can….Go outside…and see how things look…Hey let the sales guy know you aren’t gonna bail….let them know you need to see the outside lighting not just inside the store….Some of the best lenses have a mirror finish on the outside and give you a feeling of anomitity…Solitary types and the mystery type crowd tend to like these as you can’t see peoples eyes or faces who are using these lenses…
POLARIZATION is also a factor…Lenses that are polarized reduce glare and reflection off the snow considerably,which generally is a GOOD thing…BUT be aware that it has a slight side effect… which is… a polarized lens sometimes makes it difficult to tell soft snow from hard ice…Be careful if you snowboard on sunny days in areas with variable snow conditions….Those transitions can be an accident waiting to happen…
THERE are two main lens shapes…Cylindrical and Spherical…
- A cylindrical lens tapers from the middle thinner towards the side edges.
- While a spherical lens tapers thinner towards the top ,bottom and sides of the lens… The spherical lens is used in top of the line snowboard goggles and is more expensive but has less distortion than a cylindrical lens…
Good Fit… Comfortable Fit!
Make sure you buy a pair of snowboard goggles that will fit your face….Snowboard goggles are usually sized to fit small, medium and large faces…Kids also have snowboard goggles sized for their face…
If you got a bigger or smaller than average nose, it is a good idea to take that into account also!!! If you wear glasses there are OTG ( Over The Glasses) snowboard goggles made for specially for you also…
But warning…Wearing glasses under snowboard goggles is double jeopardy, most people I know ONLY do so out of necessity…Even if your snowboard goggles are fog free,prescription glasses tend to fog up and then you are basically cruising half blind… there are better although more expensive ways…
If you can…wear contacts…OR check out SPORTEYES.com …They can many times create a prescription lens for your snowboard goggles…A lot of the online shops can also arrange to have prescription lenses created for your snowboard goggles…
The best snowboard goggles have a soft foam liner that fits your face snuggly with no gaps…The snowboard goggles should have no gaps anywhere to let snow in between your face and the frame…The foam liners on the snowboard goggles have a comfortable fabric membrane such as Microfleece that prevent the moisture from your face wicking into the foam liner itself…My own personal experience is that if the foam liner gets saturated with juice, then the snowboard goggles will tend to fog up when you are stopped or in a gondola or hooded chairlift…
The strap should be wide and easily adjustable….BE sure you spend a few extra minutes to adjust the strap just right!!! Sometimes I have been in a hurry and ended up with my goggles being too tight on my face and soon uncomfortable or a little too loose and they got knocked loose and allowed snow inside…
Goggle Frames And Vents
The snowboard goggles frame should be flexible and unbreakable, but not too flexible…I have owned a few pairs that didnt hold the lens in place very well due to too much flex…The best quality snowboard goggles have as many vents as can possibly be used…The more venting for good airflow and getting rid of moisture the better.
Helmet Compatibility
Lots of Snowboard goggles these days are HELMET COMPATIBLE, but some are better than others…
Make sure you check !!!
If you can buy your snowboard helmet and goggles that are designed for each other at the same time and at the same place… it is a good idea…The forehead bridge of alot of helmets tend to block the top vents on alot of goggles and then you get fogged up…Most snowboard goggle makers now adjust their frames and vents outward or down slightly to prevent the vents from being blocked…The top vents also tend to collect snow between helmet and snowboard goggles top and can become blocked that way…End result is fogging at the top of the goggles…
Another problem can be Helmets prevent your snowboard goggles from sitting snugly against your face at the goggle strap connection juncture…This is the second biggest problem with helmets versus goggles.Many snowboard goggles designers have offset the strap connection farther outwards which helps prevent this problem…Make sure you are aware of this and pick your snowboard goggles accordingly…
Ok what else??? Well making snowboard goggles lenses is now a major science…There are so many things involved…Most snowboard goggles use the latest sunglass technology to block out UV rays…Especially the snowboard goggles designed for bright lighting…But the bottom line is you NEED to see clearly in ALL conditions found on the slopes…
MY ADVICE is to borrow some snowboard goggles from your friends and family and try as many snowboard goggles as you can in different conditions if possible…Usually thats not too feasible or possible…So if you are buying off the net…shop, shop and shop some more and learn as much as you can before slappin down your cash……and pick the most expensive snowboard goggles you can afford…Pick the goggle frame and lenses that will give you the best all around performance in different conditions…
A good place to learn more about snowboarding goggle technology is SMITHSPORT.com
sport sunglasses
Again the other good resource to get schooled all about snowboard goggles and sunglasses too PLUS all kinds of other sports eyewear is SPORTEYES.com where you can learn all about goggles and sunglasses!
These guys got it together…They carry a staggering selection of eyewear for snowsports and just about every other sports activity you or I could imagine! Plus they can create prescription lenses for snowboard goggles, to eliminate the need for glasses…Check out their FAQ section to see what they have to offer…A truly professional and tech savvy company, I highly recommend them for snowsports optics and any other optic needs you might have!
WHO MAKES the best snowboarding goggles???
Well there are a bunch of top notch goggle companies…Im gonna drop some names now, so you can get your list going and then do some research and shopping. …This list is NOT in any order…So check em all out before you decide what to buy… MY TOP 10 LIST of companies that make snowboard goggles are Smith, Carrera, Spy Dragon, Briko, Oakley Zeal, Von Zipper, Bolle Scott, Electric and Burton…
Ok its MY TOP 12 LIST…I added a couple…
Each company has its strong points, So let me mention a few points before we start to check out who sells goggles…Smith has been in the goggle business a really long time..They know everything there is to know about snowboard goggles.They also have one of the largest selections of goggles and replacement lenses…Other companies to mention are Dragon , Spy and Oakley, All 3 of these companies make really good goggles and have a good selection of goggles in a variety of price ranges…One company I like alot…They got killer goggles, but for now it’s a secret…Keep on reading until I give it away, you will be glad you did!!!
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