Whether you’re skiing The Lecht in a total Zero Vis Blizzard Whiteout, or boarding on the bluest blue sky day in Chamonix, you’re going to have to protect your eyes with ski goggles.
In low light you’re gonna need light enhancing lenses and on those blue bird days you don’t want to fry your retinas beyond repair(this can happen!). For this, nothing is better than a good pair of goggles.
People will argue that they prefer sun glasses. Well, I suppose that’s personal preference. But for me, goggles are the only eyewear that’s going to give you full protection from the glare of the sun and snow and keep the weather out.
Plus; when those falls happen – yes, they do, we all have them,- I don’t want my eye protection flying off my head never to be found again or my leg snapping into my eyeball that I’ve paid good money to be protected from those harmful rays!
So, if you like your eyes well-protected and you also want to look really cool, here are some tips on choosing the right goggles. There’s a big market to choose from and it can be baffling if you don’t know where to start.
Whether you’re on a budget or you want to throw some cash around, always look for goggles that have a well ventilated double lens. It really helps to keep them from fogging up. Most goggles over £20 will have these.
In the lower end of the budget, brands like Bloc do kids and adults sizes and for around £20 for an adult pair.
These goggles will have an orangey coloured lens, which is great in the low light conditions that are typical of Scottish Skiing/Snowboarding.
These will be basic goggles but if you are on a budget or you’re taking to the slopes for the first time and aren’t sure how much use you’ll get from them, they will serve your purpose well.
However, if you want something a little more high-spec and don’t mind spending a bit extra, there’s a lot more to choose from.
Oakley are the only brand to consider. Yes, they look cool and pretty flash but the lens quality just can’t be matched by other brands and independent tests have proved this.
If you don’t want to be part of the ‘Oakley’ crowd there’s Smith, Spy and Anon to name but a few. These are all extremely good too.
If you want to go super bling Anon are the brand for you.
Most of the more expensive brands will have interchangeable lenses so you can customise your look and also get the right lens for varying conditions. They’ll also have things like a fleece lining on the foam to stop sensitive skin developing from sweating. Whatever goggle you choose make sure they’re going to protect your eyes 100% from UVA, UVB, UVC and Blue Light.