OPTICAL BREAKTHROUGH FOR VISUALLY CHALLENGED BIKERS

The problems with spectacles are numerous.

Just like visors they mist up

They get covered in rain / dead flies when you lift the visor to clear the misting

They must be removed before fitting / removing full face helmets

They invariably slide off the tank where you have placed them while fitting / removing said helmet.

O.K the latest flip front helmets make it a bit easier but lets be honest - on a bike specs suck.

For those who can wear them contact lenses are great idea but for those unsuited to contact lenses there has been no solution ... until now.

On the recent Plockton run Ron Davidson (aka 50% of Event Co-ordinator) well known BMW Winebago rider and spectacle wearer turned up minus his trusty spectacles.

Initially it was assumed he had joined the contact lens brigade, after all the Beemer is the ideal bike with a resplendent inbuilt vanity mirror (complete with light!) in the top box with which the rider can easily fit and remove contact lenses.

It turns out that Ron has however gone for a new solution - the optically corrected visor.

A recent optical breakthrough in helical Fresnel lens technology has allowed a complete visor to be etched into a lens using laser etching technology first developed for laser eye surgery.

Currently only available through Spectacle Express a new standard Arai, Shoei or BMW visor (other makes to follow) is sent to a specialist optical company in Switzerland for etching to the wearers prescription. Currently only single vision visors are available but the company is working on a bi-focal version for the more mature spectacle wearing rider. The visor is returned in around a week and can then be re-fitted to the helmet ready for the road.

Ron used the visor throughout the weekend in both sunny and rainy weather and he reports that he had no problems except when he lifted the visor too far entering Callander and suddenly realised he couldn't see the white line!

Some suggest that it has actually improved his cornering ability and he was at one point seen chasing a VFR through the twisties until the cans in the Beemers fridge moved upsetting the balance of the bike.

We could not extract from Ron the cost, other than that it was cheaper than laser eye surgery on both eyes.

Members who are interested in finding out more should contact Ron.


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