I use contacts in the car. According to some team doctors in IMSA that is crazy and bad, they only recommend using glasses. I have never been a fan of wearing glasses and have used contacts for years, never really had any bad experiences with them - so not sure if those doctors are correct or not but they swear glasses > contacts.

If you deal with dry eyes I can see contacts in the racecar creating an issue.

 

Tried progressives for 2 days hated them . Wear glasses for distance and to race .

Was always scared of racing with contacts . I race a lot with visor cracked or open all the way was always scared if something irritated the contacts my race is over.

 

What frames are you using for either a Stilo or Stand21 helmet - both of these fit pretty tight on me so just wondering what works without destroying the frame or giving you a headache as the frame crushes your temple.

 

The do take some time to figure out and get used to.

Me too on the glasses only while on the track.

Couldn't imagine if one got dislodged or moved while on track. That wouldn't go well.

 

Glasses under a helmet is no problem as long as you get the right one (go for those with a larger face opening) and test fit. It does take a bit of practice to get your helmet/ balaclava /glasses all positioned properly. Progressive contacts are a big comprise with visual acuity, as any optometrist will tell you. I tried these once autocrossing and found myself getting “lost” in the sea of cones and withdrew from the event. It was very unnerving to have this occur after years of experience, and I only put 2+2 together after talking to the eye doctor. They are fine for sitting in front of the computer or commuting but not safe for motorsports.

 

Each to their own---my experience is my sight is greatly improved with multifocus contacts compared to progressive glasses, on the track and off.

 

My experience is no progressive lens. I was wearing contacts but dynamic focus was being impaired by the cataracts and so it affected depth perception.
After cataract surgery and standard lens implants, I have 20/20 uncorrected vision and fantastic depth perception.

 

Been wearing glasses since i was 23 - super mild prescription for distance. Near wear them at home but I have had a couple of injuries to my corneas over 20 years ago and always wear them for safety / at the gym / skating / and racing. Used to keep the visor up. No way i would have done that without glasses. but a few broken windshields and someone's tailpipe drilling me changed that visor habit when i saw the stuff that come off INSIDE the car ( even with plastic windshield). So i wear glasses and keep the visor down. Safety. Visor down is warmer. Saving my vision is key IMHO.

of course in recent years my arms have gotten shorter. I can't stand progressives and the effect of peripheral vision. I don't wear really large frames so i can peak under them to read small print etc.

As for wearing them under a helmet. Never been a problem. I have several frames that i bought specifically because they are narrow with temples that i can easily slide in. I prefer them anyway.

 

Totally different equation for me - pretty much blind in the left eye (not worth correcting), so I use glasses - not poking anything into my only good eye.

As you can imagine, one good eye (corrected to 20/20 or better) is as good as two for clarity - except for periphery and depth perception.

Funny story, you don't know what you're missing until you finally 'get it'. It was not until I hit 40 that I actually appreciated the depth perception issue, something that's been 'normal' to me since birth. Getting a car evenly into an 8 foot garage space is always off a few inches, not for lack of trying.

Keeps my trackmates on the their toes LOL

 

Progressive fulltime here. Pleased with them in helmet - top air flowing over them helps keep them from fogging - when not using top air I aim the Cup dash vent at them to keep clear. I like being able to see the gauges and the track.
Main trick for new users is taking stairs - if you look straight down you are looking through close vision part and stairs are out of focus - turn head a few degrees left or right and you are looking down through distance vision areas and can see stairs fine. Since they are progressive you will quickly learn a slight tilt of the head brings gauges into clear focus - after a bit it becomes instinctive requiring no thought.

 

I got Lasik about 6 years ago. It's been an excellent decision! I highly recommend. I was pretty much useless w/o correction, extremely farsighted (~+3.5), so being 20/20 uncorrected now is just amazing be able to function w/o being tied to glasses or contacts.

However, corrected I was about 20/10, so for things that really require precise vision it was a notable decrease. I ended up getting computer glasses, and last year I got a set of prescription lenses for my Oakley sunglasses. I run visor up and use my Oakleys in the race car now and for daytime street driving. No issues with fogging. It definitely improves my driving on track, I can see that flagging station or race incident at the end of the straight that slight bit sooner now.

Do whatever is required to see better! Your driving will improve! It's noticeably easier to "look ahead" when you can actually see ahead...goes without saying. The more your vision is impaired, the more it feels like you're driving through fog, which causes you to naturally lower your focus.

 

When you order the glasses you can specify to some extent where on the lens the transition occurs. For driving you’d probably want it lower so you don’t have to tilt your head down so much for the full distance section. Also, adjusting how they sit on your face can make a big difference. Move the little nose supports closer together to make them sit higher=more biased to close vision & vise versa. Another option is to just get a dedicated pair optimized for driving. You can get a decent frame + progressive lens from zenni optical for only $50.

 

Good question. I didn't read all replies, but I have contacts, progressives, and single-prescription (distance) with bi-focal readers (clear and sunglass versions). I thought I would hate progressives b/c my eyes were always very sensitive to swapping left/right lenses that were slightly different prescription. However, I like them. Took only a day or two to get used to them.

However, what I have found is the most important thing to me, regardless if I am wearing the progressives or the bi-focals (with distance vision) is getting them on properly with the helmet. Actually, with progressives this is more important because they must sit in the exact right place. If you have expensive frames that are tiny, you might have issues. I put my helmet on and then the glasses. The frames need to be strong enough so you can push the earpieces into the right place. The helmet foam likes to redirect the earpieces, so they need to be robust so you can put them where they belong.

Also, the bifocals work perfectly for me. When I glance at the dash, it is perfectly clear.

 

I wore glasses for 30 years. Did lazik 5 years ago and it’s been awesome. I’d suggest at least looking into it.

 

Bifocal contact lenses, provided your vision isn't too bad. Have worked for me, although I am kind of slow. .