Corrective Lens Goggles?

Check out the thread Open Water Swimming > Recommended Goggles? And look for Speedo Optical Anti-Fog goggles or www.aquagoggles.com either run less than $20 a gair.

keep sounding like a salesperson BUT Barracuda does have corrective lens goggles. They list, in their catalog, their "Standard" with an RX price of $63. This was last year but still less than $190. I'm not sure if they'd make one eye one thing and the other another. Diopters of -1.00 to -8.00 are available. Even their Medalist line is $52.50 for RX. www.barracudausa.com Sometimes opticians also sell swim goggles and can custom grind the lens to your exact rx. Probably more expensive BUT if your eyes don't "match" then you get a better "view" of the pool! These aren't usually Speedo brand (at least not at my optician). I've had good luck with just the plain Barracuda off the shelf, everyone can purchase models without correction. Yeah--I can't recognize you if you're at the other end of the pool or change your suit--BUT I can see the bottom of the pool and my watch!

I wear View goggles with the strongest 'lenses' they offer... -7 diopters. I've had no problems with them. You can buy the lenses seperately... For examply, you can buy a -5.5 for one eye and a -7 for the other eye. The lenses pop into the goggle frame easily and seal well. I haven't had a bit of trouble with leaking and I've been wearing them for about a year now. I think I paid about $30.00 and have been pleased with them. If I didn't use them I wouldn't be able to read the pace clock. The only real problem I have with them, but its something that happens with all goggles... the plastic lenses are soft and scratch easily if you don't take care of them. Another problem I have, but it isn't the 'goggles fault'... I also need correction for reading (yeah yeah yeah... bifocals or progressive)... I can't read my workouts unless I remove the goggles and hold the paper up to my nose! I've just recently contacted Barracuda to see if they make a lense that would give me both distance and near vision... They don't have an "over counter" lense, but if I will send them my prescription, they will give me an "estimate" on the cost of custom goggles. (guess I could continue to look like a dork and not worry about holding the workout up to my nose) Search on optical goggles... Baraccuda, View and Kiefer all offer 'prescription' goggles and if you don't need something 'fancy' like bifocals in the pool you can get them for a reasonable price. Lainey

My $0.02 - I've had 5 different brand of corrective goggles. Aquagoggles (www.aquagoggles.com) and View goggles are both good, can be ordered with a different lens power for each eye without a price penalty. They are both UV protective (if you swim outside at all). The View goggles will probably irritate your nose if you have a large nose/ nose bridge. The Aquagoggles have Silicone gaskets/headstraps and the View are of some weird plastic that don't last as long. The View goggles have a wider field of vision. The Aquagoggle's only drawback is that the connection of the goggle to the strap is a bit more fragile than most. Of these two, I prefer the Aquagoggles and use them for both training and open water racing. Kiefer and Speedo make goggles, but aren't UV protective and you have to buy 2 pair to mix & match lens powers. The Kiefers have a silicone gasket/headstrap and Speedo has a foam gasket. Of these two, I much prefer the Kiefers - they are nearly indestructible. I HATE, HATE, HATE Barracuda goggles. They are the invention of Satan. Don't buy them unless you have already used them and know that you can get the rotten things to work without leaking in some finite amount of time. I had a custom pair made for $130+ and could never get the miserable things to not leak no matter how much I fiddled with them. They ruined my first race (an open water 2 mile) and I got an eye infection as a result of them leaking. Two thumbs way down. -LBJ

I have years of history trying out different types of corrective goggles. They all provided adequate correction for my near-sighted eyes. Unfortunately, all of the corrective goggles have inadequate nose bridges for my face, with its big nose and relatively deep-set eyes, and I found them all painful. After years of pain, pitiful pleas on this and other forums, and advice from many friends and fellow swimmers, I had my eyes 'Lasik'd' last year about this time. This has definitely fixed my problem, and may even have been cost effective. Certainly my quality of life and swim practice has improved. One think I found out since my operation, that I didn't know before, is that, with scratches and fog, the optical quality of goggles is not that great. I have to lift my goggles to see distant clocks, especially in bad light.

I've been using Speedo and/or WaterGear optical goggles for several years. I have a pair of WaterGears now that have lasted about a year, so far. They cost about $30 and they're available by mail order from World Wide Aquatics (www.worldwideaquatics.com). I've also used the Speedo goggles which cost about $25 or $30 (not $190, as your optometrist said) -- they don't seems to last as long as WaterGears. Both come in diopters from -1.0 to -8.0, but as another poster said you have to buy two pair to mix and match diopters (I've never felt any need for that though, even though my glasses have two different strengths).

I use WaterWear, available through catalogs. Because my eyes are very different, I buy two pair (about $26 each) and mix and match. I save one pair for meets. I make the strap so tight that I wouldn't want to swim a long practice in them. When I get to meets, I know they are adjusted correctly. I think mine last a year or more. I buy them infrequently enough that I don't keep track of how often. I originially got Rx goggles for open water. I didn't want to be out in the ocean and not able to see anyone. However, practice was so much more enjoyable with them. I could see who was in other lanes (talking is important); I could see the clock; I could hear (or understand) the coach better. In meets it's great to be able to see the times when you finish. Betsy Durrant

If you have deep eye sockets, it's really difficult to keep any brand of regular style googles from leaking and/or hurting like hell. The larger "Seal Mask" type that cover the entire eye area, though they don't look very sexy, are geat if you have deep-set eyes or a large nose or anything else that make wearing smaller goggles torture. As a bonus, peripheral vision is excellent with this type of goggle. They probably would not be suitable for the truly competitive swimmer as the design is not very streamlined. I wish they would make corrective lenses for this type of goggle.

I love my -200 Sprint goggles for about $30. My daughter uses both $8.00 plain Sprint googles and $15.00 Seal Kids goggles that we have the Optician or Opthamologist install +10 3M press-on lenses for her aphakic (cataracts removed) condition. My suggestion is to just buy the best fitting and less costly comfortable goggles, then have your eye professional install the press-on lenses in them. clyde

I have contacts that I use exclusively for swimming in practice and meets and am very happy with them. My wife uses Keifer Rx goggles, and swears by them (about $20, buy 2 pair for different corrections). My rationale is that I don't want to bother trying to find my glasses while not in the water, or worry about their safety while I am wet ( they have been subject to numerous indignities while not on my face).