ProView – Julbo Aerospeed Sunglasses with Reactiv Lenses

Not Your Dad’s Transition Lenses

Function

My first foray with the Julbo Aerospeeds was a morning skin up Buffalo Mountain in Summit County, Colorado. Never having used transition lenses I didn’t know what to expect — would I be fumbling when clouds passed over the sun, or blinded when it crested over a ridge as we neared? The morning started in relatively low, early light and evolved to direct sun on our ascent, and, pleasantly, I didn’t notice the glasses drastically changing their tint as we moved up. They went from nearly clear when we started out to a dark grey at the peak in the height of the sunniness, and I had to take them off to notice that they had changed (and then was instantly blinded when I took them off to look…) After our ascent we had a short skin back to the car that started out with some sun and then turned cloudy and began to snow heavily. Again, I didn’t even notice the lenses changing with the lighting – I could see clearly throughout our travels without having to think about swapping from low-light to high-light lenses or squinting or straining my eyes. With other glasses, I likely would have swapped from shade to sun lenses and back again throughout the day to adapt like this.

Next I took these on a couple after work mountain bike rides. I was again impressed by how quickly and seamlessly they transitioned as I weaved into shady treed areas and back out into open fields going from full to setting sun. I even made a few comments to my riding partners about “how light it still was outside” and then realized that it was actually close to dusk, my glasses had just adjusted so I didn’t even realize that it was getting darker outside – the glasses were staying at a constant comfortable tint for my vision. 

Finally, I took them on an evening run and they adjusted well to dimming and brightening conditions as clouds came and went over the sun. I loved both how secure they felt (no bouncing!) and where they sat on my face. I often have to push sunglasses up as they slide off my nose from bounce or sweat, and then sweat drips from my face onto the actual glasses, however, these ones stayed put right where I wanted them midway up the bridge of my nose.

Fit & Style

These sunglasses looked like work glasses/protective clear when I first pulled them out of the package, but fit more like real performance sunglasses and look more athletic once there is a slight tint. The other frame color options might help with this. The glasses are big, which I totally appreciate especially on snow – my eyes feel protected on the sides and give me better peripheral vision protection rather than just straight ahead.

The fit was also great while biking and they stayed securely on my head while bouncing over rocks downhill. In addition, my helmet has a removable chin guard and I love how they fit under the helmet both with and without this attached – I enjoyed them both on some easy downhill  as well as cross country riding.

The Final Word

I would definitely recommend these glasses. My initial skepticism of transition lenses was overturned immediately after their first use. The transitions are seamless and effective, they provide a wide area of coverage, and they feel light and comfortable during use on their own and under hats and helmets.

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