Glasses in the Rain?
 

This may have been covered in an old thread, but I couldn't find anything on it. Am wondering what the bespectacled cyclist does to keep the rain from making the trip treacherous. Raining hard today on the way home and went to look over my left shoulder for oncoming traffic before I put the old left turn signal out there and was quite surprised to find I couldn't see! Or hear since it was raining so hard. (Took the recommended option of pulling off the road and did the old finger-as-windshield-wiper routine.) I heard of RainX for cars and an antifog spray for glasses, but wondered if there's something tried and true to repel rain from glasses. (I don't really want to wear anything more over my glasses either.) I also don't want to ruin my glasses. Ideas?

If it gets really bad rain/sleet/snow wise I don safety glasses (warm weather) or goggles (frigid temps) treated with Rain-X. They keep my prescription glasses relatively moisture free.

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pro...b3381a_300.jpg

Full coverage fenders for upspray and a baseball hat or golf visor for the downpour. When at a stoplight pull your glasses towards the end of your nose, slightly. That'll keep them from fogging up while stopped. I wear plastic goggles purchased at Home Depot for 5.00. Drilled 4 3/32" holes across the top of each lense to help w/fogging and it works real well.

I have experimented with those and I basically like the result, but I am too slovenly to keep them unscratched so it's never been a long-term solution for me.

So mostly I stick to a baseball hat under my helmet to keep more of the rain off, and then just live with the rest of it.

This time of year when I drink coffee at a stop light, while going in to work, the cup will steam my glasses and that is frustrating but hey caffeine cannot be denied.

Believe it or not, the visor on most helmets really helps to keep the rain off glasses. It works for me and i've been in some pretty heavy downpours here in Hawaii. When it rains i just move my helmet a little more forward and lower the front end for more protection.

I have to wear glasses all the time - I've never, ever had a problem with not being able to see...unless I'm stopped at a light and my glasses fog up, clearing up as soon as I'm going again. I make sure that I wear a visor on my helmet. It works great. No problems with water at all.

Rain-X can't be used on plexiglass or lexan glasses.

Read these threads, lots of info:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...for-sunglasses
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...eir-sunglasses
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...in-and-glasses
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...rom-fogging-up
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...yewear-in-rain
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...in-Rain-Thread
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...e-rain-Glasses
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...nglasses-clean
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...in-and-glasses

You have your priorities straight.:thumb:

Damn... I hope I don't get sued!! (BTW, I'm one those people who went against the grain and didn't believe in WOMDs in Iraq despite the 'evidence' that was presented) ;)

I know a friend who got prescription goggles. Cost him $200 bucks but I've been thinking about the same thing.

Wow, thanks. Will work on this on a trial (and error) basis. I have those clear plastic goggles (stored with the string trimmer!) and will try them tomorrow, which I am assured, will be as rainy as the previous five days...

Hmm.. I've never thought about mine. I do have a visor on my helmet and fenders and I've never had a problems seeing in the rain.

My eyesight isn't that horrible so if it is raining I just go without glasses. I put them in my bag in a crush-protected zone. I can see well enough to notice big metal objects nearby and can distinguish red from green. Reading street signs is a little fuzzy but I basically know where I'm going most of the time.
I don't know how the prescription goggles would help the situation though--still going to have to deal with the water drops all over them.

I'm not able to maintain a speed sufficient for rainex to be effective. While in rain, I just put up with it. I definitely do not see as well as on a day without rain, but it hasn't been a major problem for me, ( yet ).

try a cycling cap. they do wonders in the rain.

My solution cost $3,500 but it has resolve the issue entirely....LASIK. I still wear glasses to protect my eyes, but the anti-fog cycling glasses work WAY better than my presciption glasses ever did. I didn't use rain-x, but I did use cat crap and had good luck with it.
http://www.daddiesboardshop.com/Prod...es/catcrap.jpg

I just let my glasses get wet. I haven't found that wet glasses are that big an impediment to seeing.

As for LASIK/not wearing, I'd wear safety glasses if I didn't need prescription glasses. My glasses I'm wearing now have a significant ding in close to the nose on the right lens from a rock thrown up by a car tire a few days ago. Without the glasses at best I'd be looking at damage to the eye at best, it could have caused me to fall at worst and that could have put me in the path of a car (most of the roads I ride on have cars doing 50-60 MPH).

I prefer a baseball cap with the longer bill. I can't ride without glasses, so clear lenses are crucial to me. Cold weather cycling with fogging is an entirely different problem that I solved with a Home Depot type of safety glasses, so far down to about 0 degrees F on a 14 mile commute of about one and a quarter hours.

I don't bother with the safety glasses above about 35 degrees, and have no fogging problems at that temperature and above.

Same here. Cycling cap doesn't do any better than a helmet visor so if either of those is all you need, good enough. But I need a baseball hat.

I've had enough stuff PING off my glasses that I would always at least wear shades if not safety glasses if I did get lasik (which I apparently will not be a good candidate for for another 5-10 yrs)

it looks so cool,would like to own my glasses,then i can take on it in the rain...

I only ever had problems in the rain when it was also windy. The rain would get blown into my face. I wear contacts these days and I like them better anyway.

Use that little patch of felt or whatever it is that's on your glove thumb to wipe the lenses once in a while. Make sure you don't use the side you wipe your nose with. :)

Me too I'm lucky enough to be able to see well enough to just take the glasses off & deal with it. Yes, there's danger of getting hit in the eye with something I guess. At least I'll never see it coming.

I have bifocal safety glasses. I'm farsighted with only minor defects in my far vision, so my only problem involves close reading. Not a big issue on my commute, but just in case there are bugs I have the safety glasses on a strap around my neck

Yes, I currently have a nice little ding in my right lens where it took a hit from a rock. Not to mention the number of bugs that I've had whack me all over the last few weeks.