41 replies to this topic

[John Player]

Since i have recently become a contact lenses user, i was wondering which drivers are/were also users. F1 and other series.

Which one is better for racing, glasses or contacts?

[Rob]

I think Ralf Schumacher used contacts. Possibly Jacques Villeneuve too.

[OO7]

As long as they remain secure under 5g of braking.

[Peat]

I race karts with contacts and they can be a right p!sser sometimes. When 1 falls out 5 minutes into a 45 minute stint, you're in for a long afternoon! Buuuut, theres also nothing worse than a set of glasses sliding down your nose and bouncing around over kerbs etc. You start to see double.

As above, Schumacher Jnr, Villenueve and obvious glasses wearers like Bourdais, Comas, Moore (deceased). Must be more...

Edited by Peat, 17 April 2012 - 17:45.

[GeorgeCartwright]

glasses wearers like Bourdais, Comas, Moore (deceased). Must be more...

Alain Menu

Edit: Also, as a motorcyclist and a glasses wearer, I've found that the helmet pressing against my ears keeps the glasses firmly in place. On top of that, they're only regular frames, if extra security was needed I'm sure there must be a way of making frames that are more solidly attached. The only issue I've ever encountered with wearing glasses inside a helmet in having them steam up, highly undesirable!

Edited by GeorgeCartwright, 17 April 2012 - 17:55.

[faaaz]

I had no idea that F1 drivers could wear contacts, all those G forces would probably make your eyes water too much. But in saying that, during sports my contacts have never fell out, nor during violent roller coaster rides..

I think wearing glasses would be pretty tough. Especially if they fogged up inside the helmet, which I think Bourdaris had a problem with. Also with all that sweating, if even a drop goes on your glasses, it becomes really annoying and hard to see.

[ionutz2oo0]

as a motorcyclist who wore both, i prefer the glasses. They are kept in place by the lining of the helmet and the balaclava. Contacts are tricky because if you open your visor just a bit dust might be getting in your eyes or fuel as was kimi's case in brazil.Watering eyes don't help also. with the normal glasses, the main problem would be fogging up. I never had sweat drip on them.

Edited by ionutz2oo0, 17 April 2012 - 18:10.

[Otaku]

I race karts with contacts and they can be a right p!sser sometimes. When 1 falls out 5 minutes into a 45 minute stint, you're in for a long afternoon! Buuuut, theres also nothing worse than a set of glasses sliding down your nose and bouncing around over kerbs etc. You start to see double.

As above, Schumacher Jnr, Villenueve and obvious glasses wearers like Bourdais, Comas, Moore (deceased). Must be more...

And what about something like this?

[Schumacher7]

I'm no optician so I'm wondering would it be possible to make a prescription visor?

[Watkins74]

I'm no optician so I'm wondering would it be possible to make a prescription visor?

I was tempted to say that with enough money anything is possible. As someone who wears contacts and glasses I would think your visor is to far away from your eyes. I would say the majority of people who need prescriptions have two eyes that require different prescriptions. I am guessing that a visor is far enough away where you couldn't control the placement of the correction for each eye without having an overlapping section that would cause less than perfect vision. In other words your right eye may look through the correction for the left eye.

I am not sure that made any sense at all. I am preparing to be owned by an eye doctor.

Edited by Watkins74, 17 April 2012 - 19:06.

[f1fan1998]

I race karts with contacts and they can be a right p!sser sometimes. When 1 falls out 5 minutes into a 45 minute stint, you're in for a long afternoon! Buuuut, theres also nothing worse than a set of glasses sliding down your nose and bouncing around over kerbs etc. You start to see double.

As above, Schumacher Jnr, Villenueve and obvious glasses wearers like Bourdais, Comas, Moore (deceased). Must be more...

do you race pro-karts in the UK? If so, do you race in an endurance championship named EKC?

[Baddoer]

I raced karts pretty much okay with contacts, can't rememeber them falling out

[Peat]

do you race pro-karts in the UK? If so, do you race in an endurance championship named EKC?

I race pro-karts in EPEC (European Prokart Endurance Championship) and also Club100 (TKM).

I have only had a lense come out about 3 times in the last 5 years, so it's not a major problem if i keep myself adequatley hydrated....

[itsademo]

I was tempted to say that with enough money anything is possible. As someone who wears contacts and glasses I would think your visor is to far away from your eyes. I would say the majority of people who need prescriptions have two eyes that require different prescriptions. I am guessing that a visor is far enough away where you couldn't control the placement of the correction for each eye without having an overlapping section that would cause less than perfect vision. In other words your right eye may look through the correction for the left eye.

I am not sure that made any sense at all. I am preparing to be owned by an eye doctor.

It certainly would be possible to make a visor that has two differnt perscriptions at the same point on the visor because each eye will be looking at any place from a slightly differnt angle (think of 3d TV's that dont need glasses, or the old picture cards that depending on what angle you looked at them from showed upto 3 differnt pictures for the idea).
However would it work as a perscriptive lens i have no idea due to distance from eyes, but in theory there should be no reason why it could not be made to work.

edit add looks like not only is it possible but you can buy them now
http://www.buxleyfar...ckton/visor.htm

and a second unrelated link
http://www.google.co...gVUxBNb6N2wZyxQ

It seams they are much more commonly used in American football

Edited by itsademo, 17 April 2012 - 21:53.

[Rob]

Edit: Also, as a motorcyclist and a glasses wearer, I've found that the helmet pressing against my ears keeps the glasses firmly in place. On top of that, they're only regular frames, if extra security was needed I'm sure there must be a way of making frames that are more solidly attached. The only issue I've ever encountered with wearing glasses inside a helmet in having them steam up, highly undesirable!

I'm also a glasses-wearing motorcyclist. I've got around the problem by using a Foggy Mask. It deflects your breath downwards and away from your glasses!

[libano]

probably much easier to get your eyes lasered...

[manmower]

That's funny, I sometimes have to resort to mouth breathing and using my upper lip as a deflector to achieve the same effect. Thankfully the chinbar does a good job of hiding that spectacle from innocent bystanders.

I don't know about Rx visors but I've heard of Rx goggles for MX style helmets. Bollé do them I believe.

[SirRacer]

probably much easier to get your eyes lasered...

+1

It's not like they can not afford it...

[Zippel]

Possibly Jacques Villeneuve too.

Yeah, JV was a big contact lense user in races. In an interview in F1racing Mag back in 2004/05 he suggested there were a number of F1 drivers who secretly used contacts but when pressed on who he just said 'I don't know'. Weird.

[KavB]

I don't know how they can drive on the limit wearing contacts. Your vision isn't at its best while wearing contacts. I'm surprised they wouldn't get laser eye surgery instead. I suppose the very slight chance of your vision being impaired, and thus ruining your career may put them off.

[karne]

Mark Webber!

There's a picture getting around from a few years ago of him wearing glasses, and I know at that time he was wearing contacts, but whether he's still wearing them or has had the laser surgery I don't know.

[Pilla]

Surely they can get prescription visors on their helmets? Otherwise I'm guessing its like snowboard goggles with glasses, they clip onto the visor itself and not on your nose, etc.

[josh868]

Jason Bright had a prescription windscreen in v8 supercars this year at the clipsal 500

[faaaz]

I don't know how they can drive on the limit wearing contacts. Your vision isn't at its best while wearing contacts.

That depends, since the lense is closer to your eye, I always felt you would have better vision. The only difference i find is when your contacts get old or dry, then the vision is not as good...but for a fresh pair, I find the vision to be just as good if not better.

[Jaybools]

Jason Bright had a prescription windscreen in v8 supercars this year at the clipsal 500

**** that's awesome.

I wear glasses and whenever I drive on track the helmet tends to keep them in place, no issues for me.

[CoolBreeze]

If you apple some tooth paste on your glasses then wipe it off, they'll never fog up.

As for your sweating dropping onto the glasses..that can never happen, as the balaclava covers practically everything besides your eyes. Only beneath your eyes, you might get sweat.

[Rob]

If you apple some tooth paste on your glasses then wipe it off, they'll never fog up.

Tooth paste is abrasive, so I'd be a bit nervous about trying that.

[Ralliart]

Nelson Piquet wore contacts. Photo sequence of him putting them in in a Schelmilch (sp?) book.

[GeorgeCartwright]

I'm also a glasses-wearing motorcyclist. I've got around the problem by using a Foggy Mask. It deflects your breath downwards and away from your glasses!

That looks ideal, where can I get one?!

Also, with regards to laser surgery, it's something I've looked into myself but was put off when I heard that as a side-effect it makes your night-vision worse. Could just be an urban legend but I didn't fancy the risk after I heard that.

[Peter3hg]

+1

It's not like they can not afford it...

Not all eye conditions can be corrected through laser eye surgery.

[SirRacer]

Not all eye conditions can be corrected through laser eye surgery.

Yea not all, the most common do though

[UPRC]

I was tempted to say that with enough money anything is possible. As someone who wears contacts and glasses I would think your visor is to far away from your eyes. I would say the majority of people who need prescriptions have two eyes that require different prescriptions. I am guessing that a visor is far enough away where you couldn't control the placement of the correction for each eye without having an overlapping section that would cause less than perfect vision. In other words your right eye may look through the correction for the left eye.

I am not sure that made any sense at all. I am preparing to be owned by an eye doctor.

I can see pretty well through my glasses when I hold them several centimetres away from my face, so something like a "prescription visor" could be doable in theory.

[Rob]

That looks ideal, where can I get one?!

If you're in the UK - http://www.respro.co...ing/foggy_mask/

It uses velcro to stick to the inside of your helmet. If you take your time to fit it properly it works wonders.

[RSNS]

Yea not all, the most common do though

I raced with glasses (I never wore contacts), I did have to often breathe through my mouth (misting). But apart from that the glasses always stayed put, never jumped or moved and I was able to see perfectly well.

[thiscocks]

I think Jason Plato needs some.

[GeorgeCartwright]

If you're in the UK - http://www.respro.co...ing/foggy_mask/

It uses velcro to stick to the inside of your helmet. If you take your time to fit it properly it works wonders.

Awesome, thanks a lot

I think Jason Plato needs some.

Haha, indeed! We can add that to the list of things Plato needs, right alongside a punch in the mouth from Sheddon.

[KavB]

That depends, since the lense is closer to your eye, I always felt you would have better vision. The only difference i find is when your contacts get old or dry, then the vision is not as good...but for a fresh pair, I find the vision to be just as good if not better.

Usually your prescription is lower for contacts than with your glasses due to it being closed to your eye. Maybe it's just me though

[d246]

Jason Bright had a prescription windscreen in v8 supercars this year at the clipsal 500

Reminds me of the Billy Conolly joke of his dad having a prescription windscreen. When people see an old man with a massive head in their rear view mirror behind them, they shift out the way quickly. Could be useful in tin-top racing!

[Henrik B]

I can see pretty well through my glasses when I hold them several centimetres away from my face, so something like a "prescription visor" could be doable in theory.

One of several problems is that each eye needs it own glass. When you make a lens (contact or glasses) you place the focal center in front of the pupil and that lens only works for that eye. If you place the lens so far away from the eye that "wrong" eye can look through it, it will get heavily distorted. With contacts and glasses (and surgery) working as well as it do, it's not practical to try and make a optic visor.

Schumacher will pretty soon need reading glasses, so he will need to get some kind of progressive correction.

[OO7]

Jason Bright had a prescription windscreen in v8 supercars this year at the clipsal 500

Wow, I'd like to find some more information about that!

BTW Welcome to the forum josh

[Brandz07]

Jason Bright had a prescription windscreen in v8 supercars this year at the clipsal 500

I did a bit of 'Googleing' on that and found the article, only when I saw the comments at the bottom did I realise it was posted on April fools... I don't think he really has a prescription windscreen. It'd be cool though!

[John Player]

I did a bit of 'Googleing' on that and found the article, only when I saw the comments at the bottom did I realise it was posted on April fools... I don't think he really has a prescription windscreen. It'd be cool though!

Yeah, that was an april fools joke.