I’m a cyclist who claims that I was born with a pair of sunglasses on my face.  I don’t think I’ve ever been out riding without a pair on…yes, even when it’s raining I’m wearing sunglasses.  Today we have Nate Schrader from SunglassWarehouse.com providing a guest post on what to look for when purchasing cycling sunglasses.  He’s a cyclist like us and provides great information on protecting your eyes, and his company also sells some cool sunglasses at an insanely cheap price.

What To Look For In Cycling Sunglasses

By Nate Schrader | The Sun Authority of SunglassWarehouse.com

It was a few years ago when I picked up my cousin’s pair of crazy looking sunglasses from the table. They weren’t the Oakleys I was accustomed to, and the lenses were orange with holes near the frames. I don’t even remember the brand, but they were the odd duck in my book of sunglasses.

My cousin, who’s been on many charity bike rides after going through cancer treatments and beating them, put his experienced cyclist ego aside and informed me they were sunglasses for cycling. If you’re like I was, you could imagine that biking sunglasses will have some special features specific to biking, but you might not know all of them or what they are. I can tell you after biking to work at Sunglass Warehouse (and maybe doing a little research for you on the Sun Authority!) that the right pair of sunglasses do make a difference and can save you headaches, flat tires, and maybe even your life.

Sunglasses like these half-rimmed sports sunglasses with small nose pieces and tough lenses are a good example of cycling sunglasses.

First Things First: Protection

THE most important thing you can have in sunglasses is UVA/UVB lens protection. Usually acceptable at UVA/UVB 400, this lens feature blocks out the sun’s harmful UVA and UVB rays that cause glaucoma and other eye diseases. Plus, if you wear sunglasses without this protection, the darker lenses make your pupils bigger and let in even more light and even more harmful rays – the opposite of what you want!

Polycarbonate lenses:

Next is all about full-faced protection. Polycarbonate lenses are much more flexible and can absorb flying objects’ impact than glass. A wrap-around style that curves along the sides of your face will block even more sun, dirt, and those pesky summer mosquitoes from infiltrating your vision. Plus, if you’re a contact wearer, wrap-around styles provide a better barrier from wind at high speeds to keep your eyes fresh without eye-drops.

Seeing the Unforeseen: Comfortable, Enhanced Vision

Your next few features to look for aren’t always utilized, but in the worst conditions these two qualities can make a huge difference. If you’ve ever encountered that bright glare from the backs of cars or nearby buildings or bodies of water, you’ll probably agree that a blinding stint of glare could be the end of your ride. Polarized lenses will stop that glare faster than a red light in your groove. Although some cyclists avoid polarized lenses to better spot oil spills and puddles on the road, polarized lenses always have a place on your face on sunny, dry days.

The right lens color: can make all the difference in spotting those rocks, nails, and other flat-tire causing demons lurking in the bike lane by increasing your vision’s color contrast. Here’s the best lens tint colors for the given conditions:

• Bright & Sunny: Grey and green
• Overcast: Copper and amber
• Cloudy & Nighttime: Yellow and clear

*NOTE: Yellow sunglasses are thought to improve night vision, but actually do not. Clear lenses are the best lens color for your late night rides.

This Pair Fits Just Right: an Enduring Fit

I use the word enduring because on those longer rides, tighter fits become more noticeable. You want to make sure they’re lightweight with rubber grips to prevent slipping on your hotter rides. The smaller the nose piece, the better, because combined with a half-rimmed style, your peripheral vision is clear to see what’s in front of you and those crazy right turners to your left.

Ventilation and Padding:

Finally, ventilation and padding, and maybe even an elastic strap will improve both fit and vision. The padding will increase distance between your face and your lenses, which will help prevent your lenses from fogging up. Just like rolling windows down in your car, vented lenses and frames will help with fogging too. I’ve seen some styles with an elastic strap to ensure your shades stay put, but most cyclists will agree a strap is not absolutely necessary.

Hopefully now things make a little more sense for your next trip. Remember that there’s not just performance benefits to wearing sunglasses, but eye health benefits too. So for those long rides constantly under the sun, remember that the bill of your helmet probably won’t be enough. If you have any questions, or any preferences on features to look for, comment below and help your rookie riders out!

Thanks again to Nate Schrader from SunglassWarehouse.com’s Sun Authority, a resource for “everything under the sun.” When he’s not helping others with the best sunglasses match, he’s training for his next cyclocross race and starting up a bike-share program in his home town of Indianapolis.

As I’ve been known to say in the past….“My Momma tells me I was born with a pair of sunglasses on my face”.  Yep, I honestly can’t remember too many days in my life when I wasn’t sporting a pair while cycling or doing anything else outside.

So you just have to know that when a company approaches me and asks if I’d like to review a pair of sunglasses, I’m going to say yes.  But over here at Loving the Bike we don’t like to do just plain old reviews….we like to bring you into the mix and supply a giveaway as well. Have a read through what I think of these sunglasses and if they sound like something you’d like to have for yourself, simply sign up for BTB’s Newsletter (click here to sign up) and then leave us a comment saying that you’ve got yourself signed up and you’re in to win.  The lucky winner will get a pair of the BTB 400 Series sunglasses. (Contest is now Closed).

The Review

The folks at BTB gave me a pair of their 910 glasses to check out because I have a smallish face and these are one of their recommended choices for my size. Here is a quick overview of what these sunglasses have to offer:

• Complete UVA and UVB protection
• Polycarbonate frame
• hypoallergenic temples and nose-pieces with an Anti-Bacterial agent for heavy perspiration environments
• Serious impact resistance (see video below)
• Ballistic Rated…I’m not sure what that means, but it sounds pretty cool

What I Liked

• It could just be coincidence, but I have been on 6 rides since getting my pair of 910′s in the mail and each and every one of these rides have been fantastic.  I’m a bit of a superstitious freak so I can’t help but think that the glasses had something to do with it.
• With such an incredible impact resistance on the lenses, it makes me feel good knowing that if a rock came flying off a car tire and hit me, my eyes would be very well protected.
• When I’m out on the bike, it’s not about fashion…but these glasses look really good and the vain side of me thinks that’s very important.
• I like how they categorize each of their glasses to what size of face they are best suited for.  That’s a big plus when ordering sunglasses online.
• This lens test is cool and worth watching:

What I Didn’t

•  The 910 model fits very closely to the face, so on some of my sweatier rides I had sweat run down onto the lenses and blurred things a little for me.
• Although the frames are proven to be very impact resistant, they didn’t feel ultimately secured to my face.  I’m not sure how to explain this one, but they don’t seem to lock into my face like some of my other sunglasses do.

The Company

BTB Sunglasses prides themselves on offering “the best $100+ glasses for under $50″.  I have to admit, I was a little sceptical of how good these glasses were going to be and wasn’t sure about having them send me a pair to try out.  But after checking out their website and seeing all the facts, information, and detail they put into it…I knew they were worth a try.

This is a Husband and Wife run company and they really look to have put all they’ve got into delivering a quality product whether you’re looking for cycling sunglasses, sports sunglasses, or running sunglasses.  A portion of each sunglass sale is donated to the BTB Foundation…a non-profit that helps to actively promote youth participation in all ball sports for a healthier and active lifestyle.

Final Thoughts

Any lesser known sunglass company is always going to have a battle competing with the big dogs like Oakley, Arnette, and Spy….but if you aren’t brand obsessed, then the BTB’s are definitely worth checking out.  Find the style and fit that works best for you.  Better yet, keep your expensive name brand sunglasses for day to day use and get a pair of these to drip all that sweat on during your ride.

Tip: Be sure to rinse off your sunglasses after every ride.  If not, the salt in your sweat will start eating away at the plastic and will also eventually mess up your lens.

The Giveaway

This contest is now closed.  Congratulations to Michael Zubia, the winner of a great new pair of BTB 400 Series Sunglasses.  Thanks to everyone who entered.

As we said at the top of the post, be sure to head over to www.btbsunglasses.com and sign up for their newsletter.  Once you’ve done that, leave a comment below (yes, we trust your good honor) and you’re in to win a pair of BTB 400 Series sunglasses.  We’ll take entries up until Noon EST on Monday (October 3) and announce the winner soon after.  For anyone who doesn’t win and still wants to get a pair of these glasses, BTB has provided a 20% off coupon to our readers. Purchase a pair of their glasses and when checking out, enter LOVING20 as the coupon code.