Sunglasses – Serengeti Velocity
In all my years I think the most I have ever paid for a pair of sunglasses was about £35, that was about to change… big style!
So whats so special about a pair of sunglasses that I should decide to smash the maximum I have spent ? Well there are a few things that need to be taken into account when deciding on a pair such as weight, polarisation and build. Ever noticed how all the frames of pilot glasses, especially the arms, are so thin and flimsy in the movies, there is a good reason for it, that being comfort. You will be wearing these for quite some time so you really want something light, then you need to remember that you will also be wearing a headset for the same amount of time, that means the foam/gel seals of the headset, especially if you are using a passive set, are going to be pressing on the arms of the glasses around and behind your ear ! This has the potential to cause quite some uncomfortable flying. Then you need to take into consideration polorisation, have you ever tried using your touch screen phone/tab whilst using polarised sunglasses? yeah, you cannot see a thing can you! So not a lot of use to you if you intend flying aircraft equipped with all the latest glass panels instead of the more traditional gauges. Then there is the shaded gradient of the lens, when flying you will only be glancing down at the gauges to check all is how you expect it to be and what you don’t want is for it to be all dark and ineligible, so you are looking for a pair glasses that will have a gradient on the lens that lightens at the bottom.
So that’s the base requirements set down, now its time to choose a pair, but where do you start? I searched through forums and looked at what the ‘pilot supplies’ sites on the internet were offering. Then I tried to narrow down the options, one thing for sure when it comes to sunglasses is that one style does not suit all faces / head shapes so I ignored those that I knew did not suit me. Then there is the price, this removed even more options, and thinking about comfort and lightweight I targeted titanium frames. I then came across the Serengeti range and so did a search on the web for reviews. I found plenty of good reviews for them and so I decided to take a closer look, did they have any styles I liked and would fit my face/head shape. I finally decided on the Velocity range, non-polarised with a driver gradient. The frames are titanium and so lightweight and the lens technology adapts to the varying levels of light, there was just one major issue… the price. Typical of living in the UK, the price of these glasses were over £60 more than you could obtain them from overseas, such as the states. Even with the postage you would save a good chunk of money. These particular glasses were retailing at £179 !
Now I am no rich man and the thought of spending £179 on a pair of glasses just did not compute, so I started to look at sites in the USA that would ship to the UK and more importantly ship it as a gift ! Fast approaching Christmas it got put on the back burner until I received an email just before the New Year about a sale at one of the pilot supplies sites I had been looking at, the glasses were now down to approx £130 ! This is pretty much as much as it would have costs me had I purchased them from overseas, it was also the same site that was selling my chosen headset at the best price. It’s still £130 i thought for a set of glasses, yes I was saving a lot of money on the usual price but still… Then I put it into perspective with the route I was taking, the price of these glasses was equivalent to just one hours flying costs once I had managed to obtain my licence, this is an expensive hobby I am stepping into, some things just will cost more than I would usually be willing to pay and so they were ordered.
As you can see, they come with a good quality cleaning cloth and in a good sized hard case to protect them. Some may not like the hard case due to its size, but I think its a small price to pay to ensure the glasses stay in one piece. The glasses suit my profile very well indeed and I am very happy with them, the lens completely wraps across my eyes allowing no visible sunlight in my field of view unless I deliberately look as far left or right as possible. Combined with the Sennheiser headset, the arms are comfortable and do not pinch behind the ears, this no doubt will not only be down to Serengeti but also due to the Sennheiser headset having a softer section of gel in the area for the arms to allow them to reduce the pressure and still wrap around them to keep out any unwelcome noise.
I may have smashed my standard price limit for a pair of sunglasses, but I’m very happy with my purchase.