I’ll be the first to admit that I have a crooked head. A baseball cap invariably shifts downward and to the right. Whenever I look in the mirror and shift the hat so it is straight, it kinda feels crooked. The same goes for any bike helmet I wear. It always looks crooked. This has also always wreaked havoc on any pair of glasses I have ever owned. After a few months they start to look bent out of shape when I take them off my face and hold them in my hand. Needless to say when I purchased my first pair of prescription fishing sunglasses from Action Optics in 2002, I went in knowing that at some point the natural wear and tear would be brutal on these new specs. I can tell you 5 years later the lenses and the frames are still going strong.
When I was in college I owned a cheap pair of dark, rose colored sunglasses. They weren’t prescription, but then again my eyesight was pretty close to 20/20. I found the contrast to be perfect for my senses and I wasn’t thrown in the least by the slight distortion of the natural colors. So when companies began offering prescription polarized fishing sunglasses in copper, I knew I had to have a pair. I shopped around a few different high end fly fishing shops (Is there another kind?) and tried on a few different pairs. I wanted to get something with the new copper color as well as something I could wear off the stream. I settled on International Angler in Aspinwall, PA and they ordered my Action Optics specs direct from the manufacturer. I chose the Cayo model (discontinued in 2004) with CR39 impact resistant lenses and plunked down my $220 and a recent prescription.
When I first slid them on my face it was a slightly overcast afternoon and I was amazed at the contrast and the enhanced colors I could now notice. Objects seemed to pop. Up until this time I had only owned gray or brown prescription sunglasses and I had always been somewhat disappointed having remembered the beautiful dark rose colored glasses of a decade before.
In no time I was wearing the glasses at every chance I had and with a pair of Chums these became the perfect pair of riding sunglasses. When I was bouncing on my mountain bike through the woods I was able to pick up subtle shades of roots and rocks even in lower light. On a road ride in bright sunshine they comforted my eyes and even though I may have been straining my legs, my face felt relaxed.
On the stream they performed just as they should have. The rock in the middle of the run was suddenly a smallmouth bass and I saw my success rate soar. It also made wading that much more safe and enjoyable.
As I hold the glasses in my hand and look at them I can see they have conformed to my head. They certainly aren’t straight anymore, but the nylon frame fits my face perfectly. The hinges have held up remarkably well. Secondly I would say that the lenses have performed flawlessly. Never have they popped out of the frames and considering the number of times these have been dropped and banged around that is an amazing feat.
Smith Optics purchased the Action Optics brand name several years ago, and they currently honor any warranty issues. My next pair will be in amber for low light conditions and you can be certain I will purchase from Smith. Their customer service department is a class act and I wanted to thank Linsey, Christy and Carrie.