Bollé prescription multifocal wraparound glasses
Where bought and price
In2Eyes, Surrey Hills, Victoria
http://www.in2eyes.com.au
$820
How it is used
2 to 4 hour rides several times a week, in all seasons, on road or hybrid bikes
Description
Custom made lenses in Bollé Ecrin frames, made in Europe. New technology with wrap around lenses in high prescription (up to about -8) which are also multifocal. For us short sighted riders, this is groundbreaking! Previous limit was about -4. My script is about -6. Can be done in clear, polarised or photochromatic (transitions). I chose photochromatic in a clear to grey tint.
Positives
+
Lenses excellent quality of vision
Proper wrap around even with multifocals in my -6.5 prescription
I can ride on the drops and still see ahead, awesome!
Trivex shatterproof lens
Photochromatic
UV coated
Optometrist knew what I wanted and was very thorough
Two weeks for custom manufacture and delivery from Bollé in Italy
Negatives
-
Frames need foam pads to be comfortable on my ears
Heavier than regular glasses, may need elastic cord at back to stop them slipping down in warm weather
Additional notes
The optometrist is a critical part of this process. Being quite short sighted, I have met a few. Jessica and Jason (who is also a cyclist) were thorough and did a great job.
It took a few minutes to adjust to the wrap around lens in my high strength. Made the room swim about when I turned my head, got used to it fairly quickly, but you wouldnt want to play squash in them. The frames didn't fit my ears well, they have a sharp bottom edge which became a pain after 20 minutes. Fixed it with a bit of self adhesive foam door seal wrapped on the arms, might try a bit of silicon wrap instead. Will see what the optometrist suggests.
Ok, went out the bike, and they were great. After ten minutes adapted easily and it was just like my regular specs, except wider distance vision area and no wind in my eyes. The reading area was good too, enough for using a phone (for Strava). And the photochromatic thing was fine, so no need to take second pair on rides in future.
Three hour ride and very comfortable.
Recommendation
Recommend both the optometrists and the glasses. At $820, not cheap. However they tick all the boxes, and I haven't seen anything better. If I get at least three years out of them they will be money well spent. More use to me than spending the same cash on a new groupset.
I will try to get a better fit on my ears. Your ears may be different.
OVERALL SCORES
Quality
Performance
Value for money