Snowboarding goggles are as important as your jackets and pants for snowboarding. Any skier or snowboarder would tell you that there is nothing worse than having badly fitted snowboard goggles. Not only does it make it difficult to view anything while snowboarding, but it also increases the chances of getting injured. So, to avoid this kind of situation, every snowboarder should wear goggles as they are designed to protect the rider's eyes from cold and wind. They can reduce glare, increase contrast, protect you from harmful UV rays of the sun while allowing you to clearly view the terrain.
Though you are professional in snowboarding, it can be a little confusing for you to begin your search for the best snowboarding goggles men and women. All the basic snowboard goggles will offer minimal protection from wind and cold. However, they are not going to give you full protection for sure. And, not being able to see the snow while snowboarding will ruin your day as fast as your poorly fitted boots or pants.
So, to experience yourself in the mountains to the fullest, you need to choose the goggles by considering the features, like lens type, lens color/tint, interchangeable lenses, frame size, and fit. These features are beyond the features that come with the basic snowboarding goggles. Hence, let us take a look at the different features of goggles that you should consider while finding the best snowboarding goggles that make you feel it is the right fit for you.
Features that should be in the Snowboarding Goggles
1. Lenses
Having a pair of snowboarding goggles with the right lens and the perfect fit with your helmet allows you to have an amazing winter adventure. There are a variety of snowboarding goggles available in the market to provide the rider protection from fog, glare, cold, and winds.
A) Lens Type
To find out the best snowboarding goggles, the first thing to check out for is its lens type. Snowboarding goggles have two types of lenses : Cylindrical or Flat Lenses and Spherical Lenses.
Difference between the cylindrical lens and spherical lens in snowboarding goggles:
The cylindrical lenses have a horizontal curve while remaining flat vertically. Whereas, the Spherical lenses have both the horizontal and vertical curves around your face. It will give your snowboarding goggles a bubbled look.
Cylindrical lenses are lower-profile and cost less as compared to spherical lenses. However, they distort the peripheral vision. Hence, usually, snowboarders prefer spherical lenses during snowboarding.
Though manufacturers have made the modifications in cylindrical goggles, they will always have more surface area where the sun rays fall and create blind spots. On the other hand, spherical goggles have strategically planned curves to reduce glare.
Cylindrical lenses have flat edges that lead to visual distortion at some angles, but this is not the case with spherical ones. Though manufacturers have developed technologies to reduce the visual distortion in cylindrical lenses, they can beat the distortion-free visual provided by the spherical lenses.
Also, these spherical snowboarding goggles are the top snowboarding goggles which got popularity for its antifogging property in the lenses of the goggles.
B) Lens Color
You can find dozens of lens colors when coming to buy top-quality snowboard goggles from reckoned brands like Oakley Snowboarding. The amount of light that a snowboarding goggle lens allows to pass through them is known as Visible Light Transmission (VLT). VLT is measured in terms of the percentage of light that is entered through the lens falling somewhere between 0% and 100%.
Depending on the color of the snowboarding goggle lenses you choose, the VLT percentage varies; for low light visibility, you should consider the lenses with VLT 60-90%, whereas, for bright or stormy days, goggles with low VLT of 5-20% are suitable.
C) Multiple and Interchangeable Lenses
It is always best to have two pairs of snowboarding goggles or one pair of snowboarding goggles with multiple lenses to swap out. Having multiple snowboarding goggle lens colors on hand can help the snowboarders to maximize their visibility and performance throughout the day.
However, if you're going to ride your snowboard in two different environmental conditions but don't want to carry two goggles with you, then snowboarding goggles with interchangeable lenses can turn out to be the best option.
2. Size of the Frames
If you want to buy the best snowboarding goggles, you need to consider the feature called frame size for sure. You can find the top snowboarding goggles frames in small, medium, large or oversized sizes. Not all sizes fit everyone. So you should choose the right frame size that fits your face accordingly. Many companies are manufacturing large or oversized goggles to provide a more peripheral vision to the user. And there is another option available as the best snowboarding goggle frames are over the glasses that allow you to wear your prescription eyeglasses under the snowboarding goggles.
3. Lens Tech
Like lens type and tint, you need to check the technology used in snowboarding goggles. They come with UV protection that protects your eyes from harmful UV rays at high altitudes.
Apart from this, you need to decide whether you want a polarized and non-polarized lens. Polarized lenses act as a filter of vertical light and can cut glare more effectively than non-polarized ones. Moreover, they will improve overall visual clarity. As a result, it will reduce eye fatigue.
4. Features that Makes Your Snowboarding Goggles to Fit Your Face
Always make sure that foam follows the curvature of your face without having pressure points. Also, there should not be any gap between the foam and your face to avoid wind or snow to flow through. The goggles which have adjustable straps are considered to be the best snowboarding goggles, as it allows you to adjust the straps around the helmet as per your convenience and comfort. Also, make sure that there is no gap between your goggles and head while choosing the snowboarding goggles.
Conclusion
So, these are all the features or factors that you should take into consideration to get the best snowboarding goggles for you. Always remember that choosing snowboarding as your sport needs many precautions and utmost safety & vision is the most important element in this type of extreme sport. So, never forget to wear goggles while snowboarding to express you in the mountains without any hurdles.
Nowadays, even snowboarding goggles for kids are available in the market with varied lenses for different lighting conditions. Such goggles offer your children with complete protection from everything that comes across their path while snowboarding. So, those who are looking for the top snowboarding goggles can buy it from Amazon. We hope that you guys like this article and get benefited from all the information provided to choose the right snowboarding goggles.
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