Snow Goggles vs Bike Goggles
Comments
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Some snow are double lensed and have different venting...
it is all in the detail."Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
Snow will have to deal with higher uv amounts due to reflected light from the snow - lenses are probably built to a different specification to cope?0
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slimboyjim is correct, the lenses that come with a lot of snow goggles by default are made for being very high up in the alps on bright days with lots of glare, so have pretty low light transmission. Yellow lenses have higher transmission and are supposed to enhance contrast in muted light.
I've got a pair of Von Zippers and assorted lenses for snowboarding, and tried them out with the MTB in the snow. A blue lens with about 80% light transmission was fine for riding at night, though I'd rather have a perfectly transparent one. The lenses for them are front vented and doubled as nicklouse mentions, so demist very quickly and pretty much always by themselves, especially as you get faster, which is very handy indeed.
Bike goggles would probably be no worse at all in terms of visibility, as long as you don't have any problems with them misting. I reckon if you're going to be trying them in lots of different conditions it might be worth paying the extra for ski goggles, but you can get them around half price on ebay sometimes.0 -
ddraver wrote:hmm, skiing in January - do i expect good weather or not....?!
Decisions!
new goggles....."Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
ddraver wrote:hmm, skiing in January - do i expect good weather or not....?!
Decisions!
All Oakley snow goggles are double glazed. Their MX range are single glazed and should not be used on snow as they will mist easily.
I tried a few cheaper brands before buying mine and they have been 100% mist free. I have a set of Crowbars and have 3 lenses that I swap into them, depending on the conditions. I've got HI Yellow (19% filter and incredible in very low light), Persimmon (28% filter, great for thin high cloud) and Fire Iridium (84% filter, perfect for bluebird days and dead cool). All lenses are optically perfect.
Although they have survived many tumbles in my racksack, last year, I broke two lenses in a luggage bag during a flight. Oakley changed them under warranty with no quibbles. For the quality of that customer service, I would always recommend Oakley.Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
+1 to all the double glazing comments etc above. You should be able to use a ski goggle no probs on the bike but other way round you may get misting problems.
Have a look on Ebay, there are many people selling genuine Oakley goggles at big reductions. I've got a set earlier this year with Orange permission lens for skiing and a clear one for on the bike.0 -
I have a set of Fox anti-mist motocross goggles. I'm guessing these will be ok to go snowboarding in scotland early next year right?
Otherwise I have some oakley monster dogs sunglasses that will protect my eyes.0 -
Is there any goggles out there that can do both MTB and snow? Or is it a definite no go? Obviously the lenses need to be inter-changeable but Ive no idea which ones to go for, Oakleys ideally!0
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Is it just the UV filtering that's the main difference then?0
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JB83 wrote:Is there any goggles out there that can do both MTB and snow? Or is it a definite no go? Obviously the lenses need to be inter-changeable but Ive no idea which ones to go for, Oakleys ideally!
Yes the goggle frames are essentially the same. Just the ski ones might have more venting. The lenses are most definitely different. The Oakley ski lenes are double glazed to help with de-misting and they usually come in darker tints with more UV protection.
If you want a goggle to do both. The most reliable way is to buy a ski goggle and a replacement lens of your choice suitable for biking too.
Also note the Oakley ski goggles and bike goggles are slightly different frames even though they may have the same name. eg Lenses made for Oakley Crowbar Ski goggles will not git Oakley Crowbar bike goggles.0 -
yeehaamcgee wrote:Is it just the UV filtering that's the main difference then?
that and ski goggles contain more anti-mist properties and usually they come in different tints to help with the flat light when in snow.0 -
Ok, I see. But generally, I should be ok then? I've used my goggles on the bike when snow riding a few times, and if it was really bright, I just put my sunglasses on underneath.0
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yeehaamcgee wrote:Ok, I see. But generally, I should be ok then? I've used my goggles on the bike when snow riding a few times, and if it was really bright, I just put my sunglasses on underneath.
Sunglasses under clear goggles would be slightly worse than turning up at a trail centre in lycra. You'll be OK provided no one sees you.
Skiing or boarding will likely have you sweating more than when cycling and the goggle must be able to prevent misting when your face is sweating behind it. I once made the mistake of buying cheap £20 goggles, which I used for the first time coming down a mountain I did not know, in a blizzard and low cloud, alone. They steamed so bad that I had to ride without them, which meant it wasn't safe to do more than walking pace as I couldn't see the snow contours. A 20 minute descent took 1.5 hours. I was cold, wet and exhausted from riding so slowly. I would never let cheap kit put my life at risk again. It may be that bike goggles will not steam up but you should be 100% sure of this before needing to rely on them.Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
Hang on, what? Why would I sweat more at -10degrees whilst boarding, than I would whilst hucking my bike down a mountain, in a full pressure suit and full face in 35+degrees summer heatwave?
Are you sure you're not just being conned here? I've not had any significant steaming problems with my goggles (apart from my first super-cheapo pair)0 -
It is really easy to work a sweat up boarding.0
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I know this, but I also know it's not as easy as when riding down a mountain all armoured up in mid summer. You can always wear less when boarding.0
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Your boarding/skiing clothing will be warm enough for you to not die of exposure on a chair lift. This will mean that when riding down the mountain your body may well be exceeding 35degC inside your jacket and pants. You will be wearing your goggles during the most physical part of the activity.
When cycling, you will use your goggles when blasting downhill and will probably not be pedalling much so are creating little heat. When riding up a trail centre hill and generating the most heat from exercise, you are unlikely to be wearing your goggles over your face.
The final point is that the outside temperature on your warm cycling day will most likely be too high for mist to condense on the inside of the lens, even when the humidity inside the goggles is at 100%. Without double glazed lenses, even low humidity percentages will result in condensation if the inner lens temperature is cold enough. With only one lens, condensation would be a certainty.Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
I think its down to the colder air temperature not the actual effort levels. In the summer the air is warmer so the sweat stays as vapour and escapes out of the goggles. But in colder climate the sweat condenses quickly and is harder to move than if it was still vapour.
Thats just a guess by the way so I could be totally wrong.
If I had well ventilated biking goggles id be inclined to give them a go while skiing. You could maybe try them out on colder but good weather days and switch to sunglasses if they steam up and don't clear. If the weather is clear I usually ski with sunglasses don't always wear goggles.0 -
Have you ever been downhilling? It's not just a case of casually rolling down a hill. By the end of a run you will be physically spent. Your whole body takes a slamming.
Interesting point about the humidity and condensation though.
(Oh, and when using them for riding in the snow, I am definitely working up a sweat)0 -
its the cold, not the sweat, that causes the misting. Hence why MTB goggles don't mist after a sweaty ride.
Just see what happens when you go from a warm gondola, chalet, restaurant etc. Even sunglasses will mist up in those circumstances simply because your face is warmer than the air. You can get away with single layer lenses in the mountains though if your are a bit careful but double layers are just a lot nicer and easier.0 -
^^See now that makes more sense.0
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Well it kind of makes sense but its the other way around. You mist up when coming from the cold and going into a warm restaurant, gondola etc, not when leaving with warm goggles. Water droplets form on cold surfaces, not on warm ones.
Cold air cannot hold as much moisture as warm air simply because the air molecules are packed closer together. This is why warm moist air will lose its water when it is cooled.
Its also why warm air can be clear at low level, forms clouds at a boundary with colder air and canl form rain when the warm moist air is cooled sufficiently by an unstable airflow or by being forced higher over a hill.
On a cold, windswept mountain top, I would not want to rely on single glazed goggles for getting me down safely. Actually its more than that. When on my board I want to rip it up and having the best visibility possible is a big part of that.Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
See, that makes sense too. Your blathering about not sweating when DHing does not though.
And come to think of it, I've seen a perfect example of it. Working in a mobile sound studio recently, it was toasty warm inside, but when someone popped in from outside (-10 degrees C) his spectacles steamed up immediately.
Might be worth investing in some proper gogglage then.0 -
It's the lazy way that I do downhill that caused the blathering.
Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
Bar Shaker wrote:Well it kind of makes sense but its the other way around. You mist up when coming from the cold and going into a warm restaurant, gondola etc, not when leaving with warm goggles. Water droplets form on cold surfaces, not on warm ones.
Its actually both but the warm to cold is more pertinent for snow sports. E.g. getting out of the gondola/cable car you need to be able to see where you are going, going into the warm you don't need your goggles.
Condensation forms on cold surfaces, so when you go from a warm environment to a cold the air cools the goggle lens, the warm air inside the goggles therefore condenses on the inside of the lens, i.e. misting. This is annoying as you can only get rid of it by removing your goggles and unless the goggles have good venting the air flow will not demist when you get moving.
The double lensed goggles help prevent misting by preventing the inner lens cooling and therefore preventing droplets forming on a cool surface.
If the condensation were on the outside of the lens (as would happen when you enter the warm) you could simply wipe it with your gloves. Double glazing won't help here either as its the outside lens which is cold and where the condensation forms.0 -
I have never steamed up going from a warm environment to a cold one but lack of airflow when on a lift can affect cheap goggles.Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
Boardman FS Pro0 -
Try it, get some cheapo goggles. Take them off when on the hot gondola (the new supper gondola in Val Thorens which holds about 30 people is a good one as it gets very toasty) to remove any issues with airflow but put them on before you get out. Step out of the gondola into the cold.
Bingo, your goggles have misted on the inside. Simple.0 -
Surely if you take the goggles off in the gondola, then whether they're double glazed or not makes no difference?flet©h wrote:Try it, get some cheapo goggles. Take them off when on the hot gondola (the new supper gondola in Val Thorens which holds about 30 people is a good one as it gets very toasty) to remove any issues with airflow but put them on before you get out. Step out of the gondola into the cold.
Bingo, your goggles have misted on the inside. Simple.0
