eyeglasses and helmet choice

[argent brick]

racer 7, my biggest problem with glasses is getting a pair of progressives that has more than a degree or two of beamwidth for any particular mode. for example, in order to read a book or my laptop screen, the usable area of the lens is so small that i have to move my head instead of my eyes. same with the distance and middle areas. i am always cocking my head at weird angles just to find the tiny area of lens that works. i've been to three different eye doctors in the past six years and they all end up the same. maybe i should go for regular old bifocals.

i thought about lasik but then i'd have to live the rest of my life with a pair of reading glasses tethered around my neck. my dad had cataract surgery and they fixed him up with a long-distance left eye and a "reading" right eye. as weird as it sounds, he said his brain got used to it, so maybe i'll have a look at contacts that use the same idea.

but i've been wearing glasses since 2nd grade, and i'm 55 now, so i'm used to them.

btw, my bike is a '76 R90/6 that's a fixer-upper, but it is one of the (potential) finer things in a way i guess.

-eric

Eric,

Sounds like you were not trained correctly about progressive lenses. They are the closest thing to a "one lens for everything", but they do have some limits. They are not for everyone. "Move your head instead of your eyes" is how they are designed to work. If you were not informed of that, your eye specialist is not doing his or her job. Also, if your optician did not discuss different lens options and their advantages, they did you wrong.

I do recommend progressives to patients if they have never worn bifocals but now need an add power in their Rx. However, if a pt. has been wearing bifocals for a while, I normally will not suggest changing. It just depends upon the patients needs and life style. Personally, I prefer bifocals over progressives because of my Rx, but use "distance only" glasses when I ride so I can have a larger field of view. I know that will change someday and I will need bifocals all the time.

I can tell you that you really get what you pay for when buying glasses. The more costly progressives will give you better optics with less distortion. You may also get a little larger "beamwidth" with the better lens. I wonder what lens material you ended up with. To bad you don't live out here in wine country, we could set down and talk shop and bikes. That would be fun.

BTW, My first bike was the baby brother to yours. A R60/6. I miss that bike.

[tommcgee]

To bad you don't live out here in wine country, we could set down and talk shop and bikes. That would be fun.

Sounds like a good excuse for a road trip to me.

[rad]

I never ride without some form of glasses. In 45+ years of riding I have never selected a helmet based on glasses use. This is because I have always found it rather easy to make the needed changes to the inside of every helmet so my glasses fit.

[83014]

I found out something a few years back about progressive grinds for the no-line bifocal. Not all 'progressive' grinds are the same. I tried the chain discount version and was ready to return to the standard bifocal but a colleague suggested I look for the real brand 'Progressive', which I got from my local optometrist. I don't have top move my head to find the sweet spot. It's like looking through clear glass. If you've given up on progressive, try again, but make sure it is 'Progressive' and not the chain store version. There is a difference. As for the real subject of this thread, I chose frames with straight temples (like Oakleys) which are easy to slide in the opening. On one helmet, I pulled back the lining and carved out a groove in the foam to facilitate the task. My next helmet had the space already.