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From: rebyl_kayak <rebyl_kayak_at_energysustained.com>
subject: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 19:55:05 +1000
G'Day,

The optician tells me I need reading glasses and that spectacles to correct
for astigmatism would help with .long distance vision. This doesn't surprise
me as I can no longer read the symbols on my VHF radio and increasingly find
it difficult to discern a lumpy sea on the horizon. By the same token my
paddling buddies tend to spot whales and identify birds ahead of me.

In cloudier climates this is probably not much of a problem, but in Oz we need
to wear sun glasses to protect from UV as well as cope with glare. So I'm
planning to buy a set of bifocal prescription sunglasses. To date I've always
bought polaroid lenses as they are way better than tinted sunglasses for
seeing rocks under water. However, polaroid prescription sunglasses are really
expensive and worse still the optician says they make it harder to read
instruments and his bus driver clients won't use them, preferring to use
tinted spectacles instead.

If it turns out that a VHF or GPS screen is harder to read with polaroid
lenses then it would make sense to opt for tinted prescription glasses and to
use cheap polaroid non-prescription sun glasses for negotiating rocks when its
unlikely I'll need to read GPS or VHF.

Does anyone have experience of using prescription sunglasses and whether
polaroid lenses are a problem with LCD screens. Its not something I can test
without buying prescription lenses as I can't read the screens in any case!

All the best, PeterO
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From: Paul Montgomery <paul_at_paddleandoar.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 02 Aug 2009 04:31:39 -0700
On Aug 2, 2009, at 2:55 AM, rebyl_kayak wrote:

> Does anyone have experience of using prescription sunglasses and  
> whether
> polaroid lenses are a problem with LCD screens. Its not something I  
> can test
> without buying prescription lenses as I can't read the screens in  
> any case!


If you google "cheap eyeglasses", you will find information and  
websites about ordering prescription eyeglasses online at incredibly  
cheap prices. This way you can try several options without breaking  
the bank. I haven't done it myself, but I plan on it.

Paul Montgomery
paul_at_paddleandoar.com
http://paddleandoar.com
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From: Craig Jungers <crjungers_at_gmail.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 07:55:42 -0700
On Sun, Aug 2, 2009 at 2:55 AM, rebyl_kayak <rebyl_kayak_at_energysustained.com
> wrote:

> However, polaroid prescription sunglasses are really
> expensive and worse still the optician says they make it harder to read
> instruments and his bus driver clients won't use them, preferring to use
> tinted spectacles instead.


Before I had cataracts and subsequent surgery for new lens implants I had a
huge vision correction and had to buy prescription sunglasses. Back then (at
the very beginnings of the Internet) prescription glasses of any sort were
expensive enough so that I had purchased two pairs of stainless steel frames
and just rotated them requiring the opticians to prepare lenses for those
frames. They never much liked that. :P

The problems with polarized sunglasses became evident when I was flying
gliders. The light through the plastic canopy would be polarized in a
different direction and then the polarized sunglasses added just enough
change to make it difficult to see other gliders. Plus instruments (which,
in a glider, you generally just glance at.... the most important instruments
are often set up to make sounds so you don't even have to do that) also had
a fuzzy aspect when looked at through polarized sunglasses. I quit using
them then. Saved me a bunch of money and I never missed them. My wife drives
a schoolbus and I just made her move from the cheap Wal-Mart sunglasses to
Serenghettis. Sometimes you just don't want to scrimp.

Several things I *did* find out about sunglasses in general, however:

1. I tend to end up with badly scratched lenses unless they are glass. I
don't care what sort of treatment they put on them or what they are made out
of if not glass. Opticians don't like it when you buy glass lenses for some
reason.

2. The sunglasses that are "variable" (clear when it's dark.... dark when
it's sunny) never quite became clear enough after a few months. This may
have changed now. It wouldn't be important with regular sunglasses but if
you added this to your normal eyeglasses that you wear all the time it might
be important that they clear up completely at night.

3. I lost sunglasses or broke sunglasses (mostly broke the frames) much more
often than I did regular glasses. This is even weirder than it seems because
I wore glasses 100% of the time when I was awake (and 10% of the time asleep
in the reclliner) so one would think that losing them or breaking them would
be about the same rate for regular glasses as Rx sunglasses. But not so.
Oddly enough, since I had the surgery and now either buy Ray Ban or
Serenghetti sunglasses I never lose them or break them. Go figure. At any
rate, I bet the loss rate for ocean paddlers is even higher than white water
paddlers (which was what I was doing then).

4. I also found that for everything other than flying gliders I could just
buy cheap flip-up sunglasses. They look dorky though but at my age I
*always* look dorky so who cared?

If I were doing it again I'd get contact lenses and buy good non-polarized
sunglasses. I don't know if contacts can correct for astigmatism but I know
you can get them with corrections for close up. I would *never* want to go
back to wearing glasses and would undergo almost any hardship to avoid that.

Second choice would be tinted sports-type glasses.

Oh... one other thing. Go see an opthalmologist before you do anything.
Opthalmologists are physicians who specialize in diseases of the eye and
aberrations in vision and they know a LOT more than opticians do. It's
something everyone should do every few years anyway... especially as we age
and especially when we live in high-UV areas.


Craig Jungers
Moses Lake, WA
www.nwkayaking.net
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From: James Farrelly <JFarrelly5_at_comcast.net>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 12:22:57 -0400
On Aug 2, 2009, at 10:55 AM, Craig Jungers wrote:

> Second choice would be tinted sports-type glasses.
>
> Oh... one other thing. Go see an opthalmologist before you do  
> anything.... especially as we age
> and especially when we live in high-UV areas.


Wife and I went to a big sporting goods store in the US and found  
quality glasses that are polarized and had built in bifocals. They  
are the slip over your prescription frames type, look reasonably hip  
and function well. Cost about $50 US.

Jim et al
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From: Hal Levine <hal.11_at_comcast.net>
subject: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:25:02 -0400
Our LL Bean outlet store has very nice polarized FLOATING sunglass they
say are for fisherman.  I have 2 pairs and they only cost $18 each.
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From: Joe P. <jpylka_at_earthlink.net>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 08:37:58 -0400 (GMT-04:00)
I am a great, great fan of polaroid glasses.  Tinted lenses are simply no substitute for the glare reduction afforded by polaroids. 
Nonetheless as you pointed out, they ain't cheap.  I get past that by using clip-ons over my regular glasses.  Here in the states I can also find huge polaroid fishing glasses that also cover the sides and can cover my personal glasses. Overall they're cheaper than prescription polaroids and I don't feel bad if I lose them.

I think that what people have difficulties with is that with some forms of glare, such as reflections from wave peaks, there is a difference in what each eye receives.  This can create a problem with 3-D perception -- it certainly looks funny enough.  But, you can get used to it.  I can certainly understand why, say, a bus driver would have problems with this -- he would be far more dependent on unimpeded depth perception.  

One other aspect of polaroids is the enhanced contrast between sun and sky; unfortunately it is direction-sensitive, though.

Joe P.

-----Original Message-----
>From: rebyl_kayak <rebyl_kayak_at_energysustained.com>
>Sent: Aug 2, 2009 5:55 AM
>To: paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net
>Subject: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
>
>In cloudier climates this is probably not much of a problem, but in Oz we need
>to wear sun glasses to protect from UV as well as cope with glare. So I'm
>planning to buy a set of bifocal prescription sunglasses. To date I've always
>bought polaroid lenses as they are way better than tinted sunglasses for
>seeing rocks under water. However, polaroid prescription sunglasses are really
>expensive and worse still the optician says they make it harder to read
>instruments and his bus driver clients won't use them, preferring to use
>tinted spectacles instead.
>
>If it turns out that a VHF or GPS screen is harder to read with polaroid
>lenses then it would make sense to opt for tinted prescription glasses and to
>use cheap polaroid non-prescription sun glasses for negotiating rocks when its
>unlikely I'll need to read GPS or VHF.
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From: MATT MARINER BROZE <marinerkayaks_at_msn.com>
subject: RE:[Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 23:42:11 -0700
 PeterO wrote:

....>>>If it turns out that a VHF or GPS screen is harder to read with
polaroid
lenses then it would make sense to opt for tinted prescription glasses and to
use cheap polaroid non-prescription sun glasses for negotiating rocks when
its
unlikely I'll need to read GPS or VHF.

Does anyone have experience of using prescription sunglasses and whether
polaroid lenses are a problem with LCD screens. Its not something I can test
without buying prescription lenses as I can't read the screens in any
case!<<<<<


Years ago I would put polaroid flip-up clip-ons over my clear glasses when out
in the sun but looking through so many reflecting surfaces was not the best
situation and, besides being especially dorky, the plastic polaroid lenses
scratched up rather quickly. For the last twenty years or so my everyday
glasses are bifocals that darken in the sun. For skiing, kayaking, and some
driving (when the sun is reflecting off of car rear windows and trim ahead of
me) I have a pair of prescription polaroid sun glasses. With them it is hard
to impossible to read the speedometer and gauges. I don't think you can get
polaroid bifocals so reading or closer work requires me to lift them up too my
brow for awhile. Of course, I still do that occasionally with the bifocals too
(but not nearly as much as I had to do before bifocals). This is the best
combination I've found and since my prescription is stable these glasses have
only needed an occasional replacement of the nose pads. I'd get both frames
identical so that if you did break a frame you could put your bifocal lenses
into the other frame. I did this exchange with my old non-bifocal lenses when
my bifocal frames were damaged. That brings up the main downside of the
bifocals. I switch to the older non-bifocals I keep at the head of my bed if I
want to watch some TV while laying in bed. With the bifocals you don't see
distance well looking through the bottom of the lenses.



Both pair are in kid's titanium metal frames that can take face plants and
such while skiing without bending or breaking. Being nearsighted I like to
have smaller lenses to cut the glass weight (that the lenses getting thicker
out to the edges cause). So they are small for lightweight while still being
real tempered glass (rather than polycarbonate) for the best scratch
resistance.



I also have floating retainers to hold them to my head better and float them
if they do come off in the water. Years ago I lost a pair of glasses once when
racing a skin on frame kayak Chris Cunningham had at the S. Lake Union wooden
boat show in my street clothes. We hoped to beat all the rowing boats in a fun
race using kayaks. We kept passing the leading rowboat on the corners and it
would pass us again on the straightaways. At one point my choice was getting
hit by a returning oar or making a radical draw stroke to move out of the way.
I pulled the unfamiliar kayak right over during the draw with the unfamiliar
paddle (that looked to me like plywood blades screwed on to a broomstick). I
should have just grabbed my glasses as soon as my head hit the water but
instead I tried to roll the kayak and the water ripped my glasses off my face
in the process.
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From: David Flory <daflory_at_verizon.net>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:48:57 -0500
On Aug 3, 2009, at 1:42 AM, MATT MARINER BROZE wrote:

> I don't think you can get
> polaroid bifocals so reading or closer work requires me to lift them  
> up too my
> brow for awhile.

Matt, you can get polarizing bifocals. My sunglasses are bifocals  
because I'm farsighted and need them to be able to read anything close  
up. Used to use that all the time in Monterey where I would paddle out  
for a while and just sit there reading a pocket book listening for a  
whale blow. They work quite well.

I, too, go with identical memory titanium frames, for the same reasons  
you mentioned, plus they don't corrode after exposure to seawater.  
That is something that has been a problem with at least some component  
of all my other frames I've had over the years. Titanium is great  
stuff, my Citizen Solar watch has a titanium case and band and still  
looks almost new after more than 5 years of paddling and some diving.

Fair winds and happy bytes, Dave Flory, Flower Mound, TX, U.S.A.
--
Speak softly, study Aikido, & you won't need to carry a big stick!
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From: Steve Holtzman <sh_at_actglobal.net>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 07:24:57 -0700
rebyl_kayak said:
 
> Does anyone have experience of using prescription sunglasses and
> whether
> polaroid lenses are a problem with LCD screens. Its not something I can
> test
> without buying prescription lenses as I can't read the screens in any
> case!

I wouldn't paddle with anything but polarized sun glasses. The glare
reduction is amazing. I have noticed that if I turn my waterproof camera
vertical that the LCD becomes impossible to read, but that is a minor
inconvenience. I have no problem using my radio or gps.

The glasses I use are the prescription ones found here
http://www.spexusa.com/home/ not cheap but really work great on the water
and they float!! Also, I have never had them come off while rolling or
anything else. Several of my friends use the non-prescription version and
love them too. Not affiliated with them in anyway, just a satisfied
customer.

Steve Holtzman
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From: Bradford R. Crain <crainb_at_pdx.edu>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:07:15 -0700
   I don't wear glasses except perhaps to read, and most of the time I can
read pretty well w/o glasses after I've had some coffee. My reason for
kayaking is mostly to get to the fish, and camp on islands which you generally
can't drive to. For fishing, and paddling in general, I've gotten a lot
of use out of inexpensive polarized sunglasses with carbonate lens. I  
emphasize
the word inexpensive, because eventually the glasses will get  
scratched, broken,
lost, or deep-sixed. In Oregon, I would wander into G.I. Joe's and pick up 3-6
pair of these items, since they were pretty cheap. Now that G.I. Joe's has
gone bankrupt, the game may be over. For people who require real glasses, I
assume you will need to consult with a professional, as Craig has suggested.

Brad Crain

Quoting Steve Holtzman <sh_at_actglobal.net>:

> rebyl_kayak said:
>
>> Does anyone have experience of using prescription sunglasses and
>> whether
>> polaroid lenses are a problem with LCD screens. Its not something I can
>> test
>> without buying prescription lenses as I can't read the screens in any
>> case!
>
> I wouldn't paddle with anything but polarized sun glasses. The glare
> reduction is amazing. I have noticed that if I turn my waterproof camera
> vertical that the LCD becomes impossible to read, but that is a minor
> inconvenience. I have no problem using my radio or gps.
>
> The glasses I use are the prescription ones found here
> http://www.spexusa.com/home/ not cheap but really work great on the water
> and they float!! Also, I have never had them come off while rolling or
> anything else. Several of my friends use the non-prescription version and
> love them too. Not affiliated with them in anyway, just a satisfied
> customer.
>
> Steve Holtzman
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From: Mark Sanders <marksanders_at_sandmarks.net>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Sun, 2 Aug 2009 12:08:45 -0700
I can't comment on polarized glasses, as they've never impressed me, but
whenever the talk gets around to perscription sunglasses, I have to plug my
source: http://zennioptical.com

Hard to beat prescription glasses starting at $8.00! Add an 80% tint for an
extra $5.
They don't offer polarized lenses, but for another 5 bucks they'll put on an
anti-glare coating, although I have not tried it.
They say the plastic they use is above industry standard and I can say I've
been very impressed with their low propesity to scratch.
YOU CAN'T AFFORD NOT TO BUY THESE!
I have no affiliation, but I do have a vested interest in keeping them in
business, as I tend to loose my glasses to Davey's Locker more than I care
to admit.
Best of all, you don't have to run to the optometrist every year to get a
new prescription to replace you're lost specs!

Mark Sanders

-----Original Message-----


G'Day,

The optician tells me I need reading glasses and that spectacles to correct
for astigmatism would help with .long distance vision. This doesn't surprise
me as I can no longer read the symbols on my VHF radio and increasingly find
it difficult to discern a lumpy sea on the horizon. By the same token my
paddling buddies tend to spot whales and identify birds ahead of me.
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From: Paul Hayward <pdh_at_mmcl.co.nz>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 2009 02:23:26 +1200
rebyl_kayak said on 2 August 2009 21:55

> Does anyone have experience ... prescription sunglasses 
> and ... polaroid lenses ... problem with LCD screens

I've been kayaking with polarised prescription sunglasses for about 7 years.
Wouldn't be without them.

I've always been short-sighted and so I've been through most of the
variations of eye-correction. I wore specs for 20-odd years (sometimes with
flip-up Polaroids). Then around 1978 I switched to contacts and wore
Ray-Bans (Ambermatics and G-somethings).

Finally, about 7 years ago, with the spectre looming of needing reading
glasses on top of the contacts, I had my eyes lasered. This was triggered by
avoiding the hassle of reading glasses - but also because of the joy of
going without contacts while kayaking. Rolling is now more fun and now
fussing with lens solutions in a tent (after a long day or before dawn) is
behind me. Thankfully. 

The laser process was pretty accurate - OK for a driving license - but it
left me with a mild astigmatism that I can correct with a prescription lens.
I decided that I would correct the eye completely in my sunglasses and just
do without when not wearing sunnies. That has worked well.

I speak of 'the eye', as I chose to have one eye set up to be long-sighted
and one-eye short-sighted. That way, I can drive and enjoy the view - but I
can also read small print. It hadn't occurred to me that this was possible
until I started reading up on laser eye surgery on the Net. When I went to
discuss the possibilities with the surgeon, he almost wept. He'd given up on
asking people to consider it (nobody seemed to want to) and here I was
asking him to do it. We checked out my ability to cope with it (using
dissimilar contacts for 3 months) and then went ahead. Most people are fine
with it, but it seems few consider it. It's worked very well for me.

Anyway, sorry to bore you with all that - but just wanted to establish that
I've been through most of the vision stuff over the last 50 years and I'm
now very, very pleased with polarised prescription light-sensitive
sunglasses. For kayaking in sunny & shallow conditions, I love them. For
reducing eyestrain in glare on the water or driving - ditto.

Only a couple of things to watch out for:

(a) looking at anything with its own polarisation. I remember playing with
this when the old flip-ups came out. Take two polarised lenses and slowly
rotate one of them and no light will get through when they are 90 degrees to
each other. My new Canon camera has an LCD that is polarised (two previous
ones did not). When held normally, I can't see anything on the Canon's
screen. When held vertically (in 'portrait'), there is no problem. I believe
some car dashboards are polarised as well, but I've been lucky - I can't
remember ever renting one with the problem. None of my Garmin, my cellphone,
my SH-VHF and my various notebooks do polarised - so I have no problem
working with them in sunshine, wearing the polarised sunglasses. Only if the
salt is so thick... but that's another story.

(b) They are costly - so work out a way of not losing them. I looked at the
various retainers I'd used over the years and none of them are really
secure. On land, I'd always had good luck with the RayBan wire ear-loops
that wrap half-way round your ear - but I once ripped off a pair of those
with a roll (in deep water - of course - damn!). The other slip-on or tie-on
straps look like they will work really well until they age - and with my
luck I'd find out that they had deteriorated - the hard way. So, I copied a
trick I saw on a pair of sunglasses worn by a visitor from Canada and
drilled two tiny holes - one in the end of each ear-piece. Make the holes
just big enough for a small wire swivel (the thingy you put on the end of a
fishing line, to make swapping lures easy). String the two swivels together
with a short length of cord. I use very fine shock-cord. You can attach the
swivels & cord for water-use in seconds and remove it equally fast. It lives
in my car and if I had to, I'd make up two or more. When I put on my sun-hat
or helmet (both with chin-straps) - it will take a major event to lose the
glasses. When not on my face, they live in a drawstring bag on my PFD
shoulder strap (seemed the safest place). The transfer from face to bag gets
100% of my attention ;-) 

This system has worked for 7 years of year-round kayaking;  most days
wearing the sunglasses for some of the time. So I'm happy that it works well
and has made the investment in good glasses worthwhile.

With some trepidation about fogging-up, I went to the eye-socket filling
style of sunglass. After years of the Aviator (or RayBan Shooter) styles, I
traded some ventilation for much better side glare protection. Now, if I
really sprint and then stop, I can fog them a bit - but it doesn't happen
often. I just push them down my nose a bit for a few minutes until I cool
down. The benefit of protection from the glare from the side and below is
well worth it. I also seem to get less sweat (from my forehead ) onto them -
I don't know why.

Best Regards
Paul Hayward, Auckland, New Zealand
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From: rebyl_kayak <rebyl_kayak_at_energysustained.com>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 2009 08:23:29 +1000
G'Day,

Thanks to everyone for all the advice on prescription sunglasses. I'm going to
try tinted prescription bifocals as well as a combination of ordinary
prescription glasses and a cheap pair of large polarised glasses to wear over
them just to experiment with the LCD displays of my VHF and GPS.

Its odd but after six months of spreading all my gear over the water when
wiped out in the surf , I changed to keepng glasses on with a strong cord and
tied on hat that keeps eveything together even when dumped in the surf.
Subsequently never lost a pair of sun glasses.

Many thanks, and all the best, PeterO
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From: Rafael en prodigy <silidriel_at_prodigy.net.mx>
subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 2009 19:49:16 -0500
Good Day,

I have a story to tell here. I finally decided to get transition,
progressive glasses, which unfortunately are the most expensive, and tied
them with a string that had a floatation foam. On a demo roll on a flat lake
5 feet deep they came loose. I was terrified but saw the float and picked it
up, only to find out the glasses were gone. These glasses had no drop shape
ends.

I tried to fix the position and started diving on non clear water, and could
only feel the sand but nothing to be seen. I offered a reward to fishermen
who worked for an hour in the area until one guy shook a stingray and almost
got stung. 

We left the place and I got myself another pair with good round drop ends,
again transition and progressive, because it is the only thing that has
worked for me. Since I wear them all the time, on the water or in the
office, they don't get scratched, or jammed on the table, on my pocket, etc.
I can see close or far and on the outside they darken with sunlight.

Two weeks later one fisherman came with the glasses I had lost, and they had
no noticeable scratches. Let me tell you that the lake is 4 miles diameter,
and two of his friends were sweeping the bottom bed for oysters with a fork
type thing, on the sector that they thought we were when I lost them,  and
the glasses came with the shells, stones and sand. Of course they got their
reward.

I was amazed and now I have two pairs of transition progressive glasses. The
second pair has withstood a good number of rolls. So I recommend good round
thick ends, that will retain the string. 

Best Regards,

Rafael
Mexico
www.mayanseas.com
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From: Doug Lloyd <douglloyd_at_shaw.ca>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Prescription sunglasses - polaroid vs tinted
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 2009 22:15:44 -0700
Try bigger surf. :-)

> G'Day,
>
> Thanks to everyone for all the advice on prescription sunglasses. I'm 
> going to
> try tinted prescription bifocals as well as a combination of ordinary
> prescription glasses and a cheap pair of large polarised glasses to wear 
> over
> them just to experiment with the LCD displays of my VHF and GPS.
>
> Its odd but after six months of spreading all my gear over the water when
> wiped out in the surf , I changed to keepng glasses on with a strong cord 
> and
> tied on hat that keeps eveything together even when dumped in the surf.
> Subsequently never lost a pair of sun glasses.
>
> Many thanks, and all the best, PeterO
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