Hi everyone

I'm not sure where to post this so I figured I would post it here. I'm a new rider and the other day I did my longest ride of 17.2 miles. I don't know how long into the ride but my eyes were getting blurry and at one point I almost fell of the sidewalk cause I was focusing on my eyes to much..whoops..lol

but anyways..does this happen to anyone else? I wear contacts and they do bug me but I'm not sure if it was the reason. does wearing sunglasses help cause i wasn't wearing any? i don't no if it was just a one time thing cause it usually doesn't happen but I also never rode for 17 miles. most of my rides are usually around 10miles. any advice would be great!

YES

It may be that your contact lenses were drying out, which causes the shape of the lens to change, which causes the CL's prescription to change temporarily, which can cause your vision to blur. There are more serious but more rare posibilities, but when you hear hoof beats you should think of horses and not zebras.

Sun glasses may help, but not specifically because they are tinted, but because they are sheltering your eyes from the wind. My problem is not as extreme as yours, mine water a lot in cold and windy weather, a cheap pair of clear safety specs sorted them out. They are good for night-riding and cloudy weather, I do wear tinted specs on sunny days to kill two birds.... stop the watering eyes, and UV protection.

I can imagine the wind would dry your contacts as well?

I never, ever, ever ride without some sort of eye protection.

wearing some sort of glasses will alos keep bugs & dust from your eyes

^^+1. I have a terrible problem with my contacts drying out. So much so that since I got lenses, I can no longer aim the car's A/C vent at my face. Kinda have to aim for the chin area. Anyway, I had a similar problem, add in bugs and what not, and sunglasses were my saving graces. Run out and get some cheapy sunglasses or clear lenses, that way if you fall over and scratch/break them you're out $10 and not however much your good ones cost. I got some lightly tinted ones with UV for when I hit heavily shaded areas. You'll want to make sure that they cover most of the area around your eyes to keep wind from whipping around the lenses and hitting the sides of your eyes. This is exceptionally annoying. I also got those retainer things in case they slip off my nose or whatever.

Seventeen point two miles on the sidewalk?

What's wrong with this picture?

+1

My response to the question if someone asks me why I don't ride on the sidewalk is usually, "Do you really want 300 pounds of bicycle and bicyclist barreling down on your mother at 15 miles per hour as she comes out of the door of the department store with her shopping bag, or would you rather wait for a safe place to pass me on the road?

Wear sunglasses when it's sunny. Wear a sweatband or skullcap when it's hot to help keep sweat out of your eyes. Dehydration can affect vision, so drink plenty of fluid while riding.

If the problem persists, see an opthamologist.

I wear sunglasses because they fit tightly onto my face and keep the wind out. When it's dark and I wear my regular glasses, the wind creeps in through the top and sides and my eyes dry out very much and try to water like crazy.

So, another +1 for eye protection while riding.

yeah, I think some sort of eye protection is in order.

You got wind, light, and debris beating on your eyeballs... protect them, then get off the side walk ;-)

what is wrong with riding on the sidewalk? i'm not like a intense biker who goes 20mph. I probably averaged around 13 or so. i'm riding a hybrid and not a road bike either. sure...i had to stop when a car was turning in or out but i didn't mind it at all. i feel safer on the sidewalk :-)

I don't like sunglasses and never rode with them until yesterday (been riding for about 2 months). Night and day. I started without them then put them on. The eye watering stopped, nothing else flew in my eyes and it was all around more pleasant. I'm sure i'll ride without sunglasses again, but I'll at least bring them with me at all times, because they do come in handy.

Based on yesterday's experience, I'm almost certain they'll help.

13 mph is faster than joggers, and certainly faster than I'd want to go on sidewalks -- in my neighborhood, anyway. I take the street whenever possible, but if I can't -- if it's too narrow, too busy, and too fast -- I'll find a sidewalk and take it easy.

Anyway...... back on topic...

If I wasn't already wearing glasses, I'd certainly wear something to keep the wind out of my eyes. Tinted, clear, Oakleys, Foakleys, whatever; if my vehicle doesn't have a windshield, I'll get a mini version for my eyeballs.

In addition to wearing sunglasses, how about bringing along some of those single-use eye rewetting drops (e.g. Refresh Plus) and using them periodically.