Sunglasses or proper goggles?

[Scoop 0]

Hey I just got my Z1 Evo helmet turn up in post. YAY! Lovely, but I bought a set of Curvz glasses to go with it. Looks very cool, but on the ground the glasses dont feel completely secure.

Anyone got any info. Is it me being a tart or is there something I can do about this. Like bin the glasses and get proper goggles or can i get a kinda of elastic seperatly that fastens round back of head.

Also the Pro Dytter fits in the pouch lovely, but that kinda upsets how the glasses sit too. GRRR

Any else had these problems? Last thing I want to do is jump then be blind cos glasses have flown off. Had that happen on a motorbike over 100mph and was a brown trouser moment then!

Any suggestions/feedback would be appreciated

Thanks...

Sam

[mr2mk1g 10]

Until you're licensed you will be required to wear clear goggles anyway so that your instructor can see your eyes.

Once licensed its up to you... though I suggest you stick to goggles till you're completely comfortable with the idea of doing an entire jump with the wind blowing in your eyes because you glasses came off/are ineffective.

You'll also often find that RW coaches or just people on RW jumps will want to be able to see your eyes too so bear that in mind.

[Scoop 0]

Yeah, I kinda thought that might be the case. Ahh well, my alti is nice anyway! haha. To be honest, for the moment, I think id rather have some goggles, even though what I bought are supposed to be proper skydiving glasses, I havent got much faith in them

Out of interest, what do other people wear?

Goggles? Glasses?

[mr2mk1g 10]

both and neither.

The eye protection I wear look just like a set of sunglasses but actually have foam protection round the frame and an elasticated lanyard running round the back of my head which I can clip on and off from the arms.

I have the best of both worlds... although I've yet to be able to find a place which sells an exact replacement... all the one's I've found so far are similar but crappy versions of the same thing.

In the UK I think by far the majority of people wear goggels, although I know several people who are quite happy with normal sunglasses and rarely have an issue. As I said though - it's when you do have an issue with them that you want to worry about. If you don't feel comfortable dealing with that in freefall yet don't put yourself in that position.

[Peej 0]

Quote

Out of interest, what do other people wear?

Goggles? Glasses?

I wear sofft goggles on freefly, camera and wing suit jumps. I have nightmares about catching a foot in the face and having a pair of el cheapo sunglasses shatter and cut up my face. Yes, i know i sound like Zoolander

I have worn my sunnies on high hop and pops though...

Advertisio Rodriguez / Sky

[StevePhelps 0]

I wear Gatorz (sunglasses) when I jump video. I wear clear goggles when I jump into a demo or do a coach jump.

[matthewcline 0]

Factory Diver on RW loads.

GatorZ on Tandems (some Demo's).

Clear Goggles on Demo's (mostly), CRW and night jumps and as an instructor.

Matt

An Instructors first concern is student safety.
So, start being safe, first!!!

[tcnelson 1]

Quote

Out of interest, what do other people wear?

Goggles? Glasses?

the best i have flown are a pair of glasses made by WileyX. they have a thin elastic band for security and they have dense foam around the inside of the eye glass that is much more durable than the foam you see on normal goggles. the elastic band can be removed and they can be worn as regular sun glasses if you wish. they are constructed of plastic and the lenses are polycarbonate (a plastic) so, i don't worry too much about them breaking. i picked them up online for about $80. i have also flown Gatorz radiator sun glasses and they look awesome but, for me, they let wind in above my eyes when i'm headdown. i'd also hate to bend or break them on a freefly jump as they are about $130!

"Don't talk to me like that assface...I don't work for you yet." - Fletch
NBFT, Deseoso Rodriguez RB#1329

[Deuce 1]

Properly fit Gatorz will stay on through anything, pretty much. I wear mine on tandems with no helmet, on freefly jumps with an Aviator open face, and on RW jumps under my full-face.

I wear clear goggles, or no goggles under my full face when I think eye contact is important. (It's not with my regular 6-14 way RW group, like they could give a poop)

[GravityGirl 0]

Be careful Gatorz or other sunglasses. They don't fit everyone well enough for freefall. You should try them on first.

If you choose sunnys, you should be able to have them sit flush against your cheeks without allowing too much air in. Some is okay.

They should be secured with a strap such as Chums or another brand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace and Blue Skies!
Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear!

[Ragnarok 0]

I wear my Wiley X goggles. They are prescription and have an elastic band - and they do stay in place.

I have a Bonehead Havoc coming in this weekend - and I will be able to wear my glasses with it. I am hoping that I can remove the face shield from time to time - and I will wear the goggles when I do.

It is a good idea to protect your eyes and invest in something that will do just that.

_________________________________________
Twin Otter N203-Echo,29 July 2006
Cessna P206 N2537X, 19 April 2008
Blue Skies Forever

[AndyMan 7]

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Properly fit Gatorz will stay on through anything, pretty much.

I wouldn't go quite that far. Mine work great with my tight fitting FTP, but depending on how the wind is hitting my face I'm nervous about them when wearing a looser helmet. I wouldn't wear mine without a helmet or a croakie.

They are good, but I don't recomend them to newbies. Doing a whole skydive without any eye protections sucks.

My wife says: "I hate it when people I'm jumping with are wearing dark sunglasses. I can't see their eyes, and it annoys the piss out of me".

_Am

__

You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[Frenchy68 0]

I wear Gatorz and never had any trouble with them, except on tracking dives, where I wear goggles (too much air in the eye for too long...).

"For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

[Superman32 0]

I jump mostly with my Gatorz and occasionally with goggles depending on the jump.
I love my Gatorz for jumping and everyday use because they are very light weight.

PS. As a student, you may not be able to wear a full face or shaded goggles, much less sunglasses. Check with your instructors before you find yourself about to load the plane and be told you can't jump.

Inveniam Viam aut Faciam
I'm back biatches!

[lewmonst 0]

Gatorz are awesome. Just bend them to fit your face tight, use a croakie and make sure it's on there well. I love my Gatorz, and the company is awesome. Great warranty. If anyone wants to check out a few different pairs, find me in Perris.

peace
lew

http://www.exitshot.com

[koppel 4]

I've done plenty of jumps without goggles/sunnies doing camera. Used to film a TM who would forget passenger goggles about once a week. No real problem if your looking up doing RW etc.

It sounds like your allowed to go straight onto sunnies as soon as you get your license there. Here in OZ its at least 100 jumps before your allowed to discard the clear goggles for tinted or sunnies. Makes sense to be very familiar with your gear and landing etc before you start to reduce your vision.

I had a frap at around 800 jumps caused in part by new goggle type sunnies that restricted some of my periphial vision. I should have checked them out more rather than just thinking how cool I looked. oops

I like my canopy...


...it lets me down.

[BRYANGOESBOOM 0]

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I've done plenty of jumps without goggles/sunnies doing camera. Used to film a TM who would forget passenger goggles about once a week. No real problem if your looking up doing RW etc.

It sounds like your allowed to go straight onto sunnies as soon as you get your license there. Here in OZ its at least 100 jumps before your allowed to discard the clear goggles for tinted or sunnies. Makes sense to be very familiar with your gear and landing etc before you start to reduce your vision.

I had a frap at around 800 jumps caused in part by new goggle type sunnies that restricted some of my periphial vision. I should have checked them out more rather than just thinking how cool I looked. oops

Isnt skydiving all about how u look ???

Not only will you look better, feel better, and fuck better; you'll have significantly increased your life expectancy. --Douva

[Scoop 0]

Hehe, cheers people. Im ordering up a nice set of clear no frills goggles. Once ive got more comfortable with it all ill look at playing with the glasses and getting some elastic.

As they are now tho, Im not the lsightest bit confident theyll stay on, paticularly with my washing machine exits! Haha, only jokin, honest!

[Zoter 0]

Be careful about getting stuff to wear/have that looks 'cool'.........its a bad trend to start
Wear things that WORK !

Plenty....plenty of regular skydiving goggle brands out there that are 'shaded' to to take out the sunglare if needed.....and they wont give you as many issues as 'sunglasses/shades' might
.....but as already stated ....be sure you are allowed to wear them....eye contact when learning is very very important......

[Scoop 0]

Oh yeah definately. Thats why ive banished them to the cupboard. Itll look really cool when im dangling from the pylons with my cool shades smashed on the floor because theyve come off!

[skywade 0]

I wear clear goggles made by Dan Decker who lives in the Nashville, TN area. They are a simple design that works great. I have used the same pair for 4 years now.

[bojanb 0]

I can warmly recommend Sorz goggles. They are very comfortable and secure, and I think they look pretty cool.

The mirrored ones are transparent enough that other people can see your eyes from up close. But you can also get clear ones if eye contact is an issue.

[jumpyld 0]

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Here in OZ its at least 100 jumps before your allowed to discard the clear goggles for tinted or sunnies. Makes sense to be very familiar with your gear and landing etc before you start to reduce your vision.

s

i think that this is inherently wrong, and a poor and possibly dangerous philosophy.

You don't reduce your vision by putting on sunglasses. In most cases, you increase your vision by blocking glare and you protect your delicate eyes from UV. Most skydives are conducted during quite sunny weather conditions, and the glare and UV that is scattered by an overcast sky (or reflected from scattered clouds below exit altitude) is almost impossible to get away from.

If a student wants to wear sunglasses or tinted goggles i think that they should be allowed to - i know that i have very light sensitive eyes and can't see a thing if i'm squinting through clear goggles. One's face can convey one's emotions with or without naked retinas. Personally i don't like to see anyone's eyes on a jump - sunglasses tell me that they care about their vision and they won't be squinting at me when the sun is at my back.

For most of the day i jump with Arnette Titan, Rage or Slide sunglasses (some prescription, some not... depending on whether i want to wear my contacts). For sunset loads or days when the light is flat i use higher visibility yellow or orange lenses to further increase my vision. Arnette have the best ratio of price to performance for my dollar, and Gatorz are quite good as well. The fact with sunglasses is that no two faces are alike so you want to try on many different styles to see how they fit your face. A small amount of venting is necessary to prevent fogging, but of course this venting is quite efficient at 120+ mph, so look for a good snug fit and use the cloth/elastic retainer bands (i have found Suiters and MICRO Suiters to be the best brand, depending on the temple thickness of your sunglasses. Nike eyes are a good chioce too... many of their styles come with two and sometimes three sets of lenses for different lighting conditions. When trying on different styles keep in mind that you want a fairly flat temple to fit beneath your helmet... Oakleys often give a good "seal" but have thick temples that don't fit under a snug camera helmet.

Perhaps it's because i'm a lighting designer by trade that i'm passionate about this subject... i just think that tinted eyeware for students should not be taboo - as a coach and instructor i would rather enhance the student's vision with proper eyewear than see their eyes.


---

important safety briefing... don't f*ckin' die!

[flyangel2 2]

IMO, you can't get good eye contact with sunglasses.

If you are jumping with someone else, they won't know you are looking at them.

If you are jumping with someone else that has sunglasses, how can you tell they are looking at you?

I wear my sunglasses for the plane ride and then put them in a good case in my jumpsuit. After I land, I put them back on.

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[mdrejhon 8]

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Here in OZ its at least 100 jumps before your allowed to discard the clear goggles for tinted or sunnies. Makes sense to be very familiar with your gear and landing etc before you start to reduce your vision.

That's weird...

I was wearing my gray-tinted sorz goggles from sometime around the 40th jump or so. However, I wouldn't wear regular sunglasses, but these tinted Sorz were very good. I even did some sunset jumps with them, as soon as I made certain I was able to pull them downwards while wearing a helmet. Which I did under canopy, so they wouldn't darken my vision when landing shortly after sunset.

Now I have a full face helmet, so this is all moot.

And, please be careful of using glass glasses of any kind, in a naked manner (without covering them up with goggles or a full face). I have jumped with someone (I was in the same formation skydive!) who had a reserve ride because his glass glasses fogged up when briefly going through a cloud, and resulted in him doing a pull that was low enough that he snivelled to Cypres altitude (and cutaway the main)... Glass glasses aren't as fog resistant as plastic sunglasses and goggles are. I am pretty certain that goggles and full faced helmets are safer.