Friday, 10 February 2012

Those pesky high tech gadgets


One of the complications of riding the fixed is what to do about punctures.
My Giant Bowery has Schwalbe Marathon tyres on it which, until recently, hadn't ever suffered a puncture despite having been on the bike for over two years.
Just hours after meeting up with two of the old ( should that be former) SBR team members and boasting about my winter riding....yes you've guessed it.
Out I went to the bike shed at work, it was about -2 degrees C with snow forecast. As I touched the bike I knew......flat tyre!!! A massive shard of rock salt straight through the thick tyre and Kevlar belt.
I sprang into action: 15mm spanner.Check. Inner tube. Check.Tyre levers. Check. Pump...No. Natty Co2 inflation device.Check. Co2 cannister. Check.
I put the cannister in and pulled the lever, nothing, not so much as a whimper.
As luck would have it there was a fellow cyclist nearby who lent me an old fashioned pump, something I will carry in the future.

Luckily I got home before the snow started in ernest. Sadly it fell so thickly that it was back to four wheels the following day by order of Mrs Optician Editor.
Be careful out there folks.

Tuesday, 7 February 2012


From time to time the Optician team try out various products under its tried and Tested banner. While this n=1 approach isn't always popular it's a great way for the team members to get used to the features and benefits (or otherwise) of optical products. The opportunity to have products tried in a real world setting is increasingly popular with companies who reap the obvious benefits of promotion.

At the moment I happen to be wearing No7's Duette hybrid contact lens but I am also trying out B&S's Anti-Fog lens treatment from Dibble Optical. This is a gel that is applied and then buffed into the lens.

With all the snow on the ground at the moment and a real nip in the air its a great opportunity to try out the anti fog treatment whilst commuting to work.

Normally when I stop at traffic lights pretty much most eyewear fogs up immediately. But riding with CLs only is not a great idea with grit and debris floating around. In the past most treatments to prevent misting haven't been brilliant but this latest one from Dibble is looking quite promising.The trick seems to be putting it on correctly.

Last week I tried the gel on a pair of clear, prescription Oakleys but wasn't too impressed.While one section of the lens remained fog free the rest steamed up. Water droplets also collected on the front surface This morning I tried the B&S Anti-Fog on some Adidas evil eye halfrim pro cycling specs. These are good performing specs from an anti-fog perspective and the light enhab=ncing lens is great for dingy mornings. I tried to apply a little less gel and buff it less. the result: one lens was comletely clear and the other not bad. I will have to experiment. The vision from the Duette lens is very sharp so all round a pretty good combo.