Ekoi Guerra Gold Limited Edition Mirror Lens

The Ekoi Guerra Gold Limited Edition Mirror Lens glasses are a striking set of sunnies with a strong field of vision, very good venting and a decent amount of adjustability. They could do with having a little more curve and a little less length in the arms, though.

As the name suggests, they are a limited edition model, and their golden frame is easily their most distinguishing feature. They certainly have an element of bling compared to more traditional black or white frames, but although I thought they were a bit a garish to begin with, they grew on me and now I think they actually look fairly stylish.

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These half-frame glasses have a good wraparound to give additional protection when on the bike. It means that they also have a decent field of vision as there's no frame to get in the way of your peripheral vision, helping to see cars creeping up behind you or to get a quick glance at a rival in a race.

Ekoi claims that the lenses are 'unbreakable polycarbonate', which may be a bit of a stretch – I am sure if I wanted to I could break them – but that said, they do seem very durable, resisting scratches and drops, and I'd say are on par with the toughest I've used. I had a couple of stones and bits thrown up at me while wearing them and they protected my eyes well and didn't mark the lens.

As well as being robust, they are also of a high quality, with no distortion or warping.

Switching out the lenses isn't quite as simple as Ekoi makes out, and I struggled with removing the nosepiece, but they do have a fairly well designed central locking system that rotates to release the lens. You can get a number of different tints in addition to the Smoke lens on test, which is the traditional black offering.

> Buyer's guide: 18 of the best cycling glasses

In my opinion, the thing that sets well-designed glasses apart is their ventilation and penchant for fogging. I'm happy to report that these are some of the best I have used, with the only fogging I experienced being when stopped at traffic lights for over a minute in damp conditions; nothing else, even when I was trundling up a 15% waiting for a couple of friends, which is impressive. This comes from the six vents that run across the top of the frame and the fact that the nose-pad keeps the glasses far enough off your face that air can circulate behind.

One element of the glasses that could be improved is the arms: they are almost perfectly straight and long. I found there was more pressure on my temple than most glasses, and I often needed to move them around to get them on when wearing some helmets that sit lower around the ear. However, at the front the adjustment on the nose-pad gives them a good flexibility and they sat nicely on my nose. They aren't uncomfortable, and still sit on the head nicely, but perhaps aren't as comfortable as others I have used.

> Read our guide to the best cheap cycling glasses

They also come with a faux carbon cylindrical case which is very attractive – if you are into glasses cases. In addition they also have a Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis pro rider – these are his 'preferred choice of eyewear', says Ekoi) cleaning cloth, although I think mine may have been a bit older as I had Fabio Aru on mine, commemorating his 2015 Vuelta victory.

For well vented and limited edition glasses, the RRP of just under £90 (the exact price depends on the current exchange rate) is around what I would expect to pay.

Overall, I like these glasses. They have a distinctive look and they perform well in terms of protection, field of vision and venting to prevent fogging. I think the arms could be improved by being shorter and given a curve, but this is a minor niggle on a quality pair of glasses.

Verdict

Good venting, field of vision and protection, but changes to the arms would make them even better