I have always resisted the idea of running in sunglasses. Somehow, I just cannot get excited by the prospect of having something on my face that adds to the already-abundant sweat and makes my vision go all foggy. Besides, with my fuel belt, my phone, my training watch and everything else, don’t I already have enough stuff when I run? I don’t like the feeling of being bogged down.
But I’m nothing if not open-minded, so when I was offered a pair of Guideline Eyegear Draft sunglasses – specially made to cater for the needs of athletes – in exchange for a review, I thought, “Why not?”
The first thing that struck me when I received the sunglasses was their weight – or the lack thereof. The glasses I use for watching TV, which look like this…
… are roughly the same weight as the Draft sunglasses and the case they come in, which look like this…
Armed with the reassurance that weight was not going to be a problem, I picked a bright sunny day and took the sunglasses out for a test run. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.
The sunglasses fit me like a very comfortable glove. I can shake my head around and tilt my head to look at the ground, and they don’t budge. They don’t do that annoying thing glasses sometimes do, of sliding off the bridge of my nose. At the same time, they are not actually tight. The arms curve inward to ensure a snug fit, but then the ends curve very slightly outwards, so as to avoid digging painfully into my head behind my ears.
A couple of other nice features make these sunglasses comfortable for athletes. Like this:
Floating nose pads: no more uncomfy dents on the bridge of my nose!
And this:
Brow ventilation prevents the glasses from swimming around in a pool of sweat
Functionally, the glasses are great. I tested them on a bright, bright day, and they did a good job of protecting my eyes from the sun’s glare. They didn’t shift while I was running, and I didn’t have any sweat dripping into my eyes. I had one teeny, tiny complaint: three times during a 5K run, the lenses fogged up. But each time, they cleared by themselves within seconds, without me having to take them off.
Going forward, I will definitely incorporate these glasses into my regular outdoor running outfit. I look forward to trying them out in the winter, on a day when the sun reflects off the snow.
An added bonus? These glasses look pretty darned cool!
Disclaimer: A pair of Guideline Eyewear Draft sunglasses was provided to me in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Photo credit for all images: Kirsten Doyle
