timtak

I am not sure whether or not I have a flexibility problem with keeping my head up or not. Lets say you are right. But that is for me, beside the point. Keeping your head up is, according the Lance Armstrong video I linked to above, ill advised. I think he, not you, is right.

BoSoxYacht

You are entitled to believe whatever you want, but it's easier to breath with your head up, and your balance is better.

dalava

Buy a regular sunglasses of your choice, and then replace the lenses with someone like lensesRX.com who has pretty good price. I've done 3 pairs now and they are very good. Oakley prescriptions are nice but they are $$$$$$.

therhodeo

He's talking about TT position. Its not "ill advised" its just not quite as aero depending on your fit and gear if you're trying to gain seconds in a world class TT. Beyond that Lance looked awful on the bike. He didn't get the nickname "buffalo" for nothing.

bbbean 

My rudys don't use an insert. They use a single prescription lens with progressive prescription.

GovernorSilver

Pretty happy with my Rudy Project sunglasses. My local optometry shop steered me towards them (instead of Oakley, which they also carry) after I complained about my glasses falling off my face due to sweat while cycling. One of the reasons was the Rudy Project sunglasses can be configured to my prescription. The shop can grind the prescription lenses itself, which saved quite a bit of money over options like Maui Jim who grind prescription lenses at their factory instead of letting local optometry shops do it. Yes, I have prescription insert lenses mounted behind the sunglass lenses.

I've been commuting by bike 1-2 times a week this summer. Rode in 95 degree F (heat index 100-something F) heat and humidity this past Sunday. I've also been rained on a couple of times this summer - just light rain thankfully. No problems with fogging up so far in any of these summertime conditions. I'll probably get the transition-style lenses soon, in anticipation of the end of Daylight Savings Time, after which I will have the sun rising and setting in my face during my morning and evening commute rides.

BoSoxYacht

Who made the lens, and what frame design?

Is it a shield lens, or traditional 2 lens design?

bbbean 

I have two pair. I have a pair of Ketyums I bought direct from Rudy in 2011, and they made the lenses. In 2013, my prescription had changed, and SportRX made me new lenses in my new prescription. Last year, I bought a pair of Arpoon half frames and lenses from Sport RX. Both frames currently have progressive lenses (so I can read my Garmin and still see down the road) made by SportRX.

FWIW, my Arpoons (lighter than the Ketyums, probably because the wrap around isn't as severe, allowing for a thinner lens) saved my eyes and cheeks from extra trauma in an accident last month - both lenses had dime sized abrasions well into the lens. Sport RX replaced the lenses for free. The Ketyums double as my shooting glasses, and they've been hit with bullet fragments, g## powder, and gravel. Both pairs are worth what I pain for them and then some!

allen254

i cant wait to get my rudy project i got the RP Ryzer XL's in prescription polarized i should be getting them this friday.

allen254

i think they can be made by rudy or your optometrist ,, My optometrist is making them at his shop he makes them him self and he is very experienced

timtak

Why anyone would trust BoSoxYacht's opinion over that of Lance Armstrong, and their own experience, I am not sure.

People spend heaps of dosh on Italian aero carbon frames, super light mech, and carbon bottle cages for a few seconds off their TT times. I have not measured my time but craning my neck up is appreciably more ineffective and uncomfortable. The problem my glasses is the dorkiness alone. But then spandex - which can also cost a lot more and saves a few seconds off TT times - was dorky once. So when people like Cavendish get sick of craning their necks, sports glasses with frames at the bottom of tall prescription lenses will come.

The upper rims of the cool, and protective Rudy's shown above, even with prescription lenses as opposed to inserts, would obscure my vision, .

#1 Online Eyeglasses, Sunglasses and Prescription Lenses Shop sounds promising, if there were strong lower-half-frame frames available. My optician would do that too.

BoSoxYacht

I have as many TdF victories as Lance.

Honestly Timmy, why would anyone take your advice? Do you think your Strava "victories" make you a credible source of information?

timtak

It is not that I think that others will take my advice on any characteristic of mine, but that readers may experience the same problem, and recognise that which I am suggesting -- frames at the bottom of tall prescription lenses-- is a solution.

This is not rocket science, and it should not require pro (or anyone's) endorsement, but the fear of dorkiness, that is to say looking different, is very great.

BoSoxYacht

proper bike fitting isn't rockets science either, but it's clear that you failed at bike fitting 101.

BoSoxYacht

This might help you.

Think cycling's a pain in the neck? Periscope for bikes lets cyclists relax their head while keeping their eyes on the road | Daily Mail Online

colnago62

Lance Armstrong's opinion is just that, opinion. Did you believe his opinion that the only way to win the Tour was to dope without question? Take a look at the position of top pros when they ride, there heads are not all down. Even pursuit riders, who have no reason to look to miss hitting anything, will ride with their heads up. Kilo riders also.

timtak

Well as I say, it seems to me pretty self evident that craning one's neck up is neither pleasant nor aerodynamic, not requiring even a pro's opinion. If not "ill advised" then at least "non optimal." I am not saying that dork glasses will make folks smash world records, but be a good addition to the near-sighted rider's kit.

Looking at how track riders ride seems like a good idea. It seems to me that the majority of pursuit riders
https://www.google.co.jp/search?hl=e....0.BaKIdbbbu3Q
and kilometre track riders
https://www.google.co.jp/search?hl=e....0.MPhaTnowvVU
would have difficulty, in the position they ride, looking through prescription RX inserts.

A lot of them seem to be using visors, probably for similar reasons.

Thank you. A prism has been suggested before and I don't think it is a bad idea for those that want to keep their head right down. A general principle is well illustrated with this graphic.

colnago62

The visors are believed to improve aerodynamics. I have talked to riders who also use visors so they can wear their prescription glasses.
Making statements of riders positions being painful or uncomfortable without talking to the rider about it really reduces your credibility. I know people who can pull their thumbs back to their wrists; I can't. That doesn't mean it is painful or uncomfortable them. Cavendish in an interview talked about his position on the bike. He does work that allows for a comfortable, low position. He feels the ability for him to be so areo is an advantage in the sprint. Lemond is a good example also. He had natural flexibility that allowed him to ride with what amounted to a track setup on the road. He could ride all day in the drops without issue. I get that you can't and are working on ways to overcome that issue, which is great. You don't need to make stuff up to justify your goal.

bbbean 

So - where are you racing, and how's your season going?

JakiChan

You're doing it wrong. Garmin data is all that matters.

therhodeo

Quite the strong argument you make.

bbbean 

I stand corrected!

timtak

Thanks to your great saddle suggestions, colnago62, and the karate (stretching) that I took up a year ago, I now ride in my low low drops, both in and out of my seat, for long periods. Thank you! I am not sure what I am making up. That riding with ones neck up correlates with back discomfort? See the kickstarter link, or this thread on another road cycling forum.


The $1.2 (USD), ones one dollar 20 cents including shipping, sunglasses arrived from China. They are excellent quality, appear durable, grip my head well, and look good, and since the lens is once piece, it should be possible to chop off the top part of the frame and bolt on cycling dork lenses (tall oblong prescription blanks). I will do that as soon as the $13 prescription blanks arrive. $1.2 Sunglasses by Timothy Takemoto (50) , on Flickr

I only compete with myself on my commutes these days, since my wife realised that I was doing dangerous things to attempt to win KOMs on Strava. The only other reason why people might take my bar position and spectacle recommendations is that I took up cycling to get fit and thin and in large part I achieved that objective. Fitness is hard, but the long and low cycling style, achieved by bar position, dork glasses, and colnago62 saddle position advice, is a good incentive. Thanks again.

colnago62

There you go, making stuff up again.

BoSoxYacht

I like his fake Oakley Radars. I'm sure their optics are horrendous.