With little to no fogging, good eye coverage and an unobstructed field of vision, Rockrider’s XC Race Photochromatic mountain bike glasses deliver a strong performance for their low price. The light-sensitive tinting works really well too, which is good – it saves you using the flimsy lens-swapping mechanism.
- Smiths Optics Wildcat glasses review
- TSG Scope helmet review
- 10 pieces of essential mountain bike clothing for beginners
At 39g, the XC Races are barely noticeable – thermonuclear colouring aside – once on. Coupled with an unrestricted view, they’re a very unobtrusive bit of kit once in action. The only time I did notice them was, in fact, thanks to the neon yellow nose piece catching my eye, and there isn’t another colour frame option in the range that is still photochromatic.
(function () {
var s = document.createElement(‘script’);
s.type = ‘text/javascript’;
s.async = true;
s.src = ‘//link.monetizer101.com/widget/pc/app.bundle.js’;
s.onload = function () {
new PriceComparison({
shopId: 660,
isoCurrencyCode: “GBP”,
isoLanguageCode: “en”,
geolocation: false,
resultLimit: 3
});
};
var x = document.getElementsByTagName(‘script’)[0];
x.parentNode.insertBefore(s, x);
})();
Rubber grippers at the ends of the arms and across the nose keep them firmly in place, wet or dry. More impressive is their resistance to fogging up, even when provoked. They can cloud over on slow, steep climbs in mild and damp conditions, but clear quickly once you move a bit faster.
The lenses are no doubt helped here by two cutaways on each, but there’s no sense of a draft from the gaps or any lack of protection from flying filth. The provided soft bag is good for cleaning when they do get mucky, and the XC Races come in a padded case to keep them protected in a bag or bike box.
The polycarbonate lenses are photochromatic, meaning they darken and lighten in response to light levels. I never noticed it actually happening, and never found I couldn’t see or was having to squint – the change is rapid, smooth and effective. They’re also 100 percent ultraviolet (UV) resistant.
The lenses are removable and while the mechanism is easy to use it doesn’t feel exactly robust… at least with this version there’s no need to test durability with frequent swaps.
No, the Rockrider XC Races don’t have the high-end feel of more expensive brands, but they are a light, effective and competitive set of specs. They protect your eyes from debris, UV and glare, resist fogging and arguably look pretty good (or at least pretty 80s) while doing it. Plus, in the rough and muddy-tumble world of off-road, the low price helps protect your wallet when you faceplant into a tree while admiring your retro-reflection in a puddle, too.
You may also like:
- Is it worth converting your mountain bike to tubeless?
- The best money-no-object gravel and adventure bikes we’ve tested
All the deals displayed on our review pages are pulled from a constantly updating database feed of the best affiliate deals available. The criteria for deciding on what are the best deals is who is offering the lowest, delivered price. In most cases we will be showing the very best deal available online, but sometimes you may be able to find an item cheaper. If you can please feel free to post a link in the comments box below. To find out more about affiliate links on road.cc click here.
