4.14.2010

The Saga of The Running Sunglasses

The Green Girl's family has always jokingly referred to her as 'Charlie Brown' because unfortunate things often happen to her. I often experience events that 'would never happen to anyone else' but I don't dwell on these things and I maintain my happy Green Girl positive outlook.

Having personal stories that are often hard to believe comes with the Charlie Brown territory. Like ending up with an empty goodie bag. Like having your high school art teacher accidentally put your batik in the black dye first.

Recently, I decided to make a significant investment in a pair of prescription sunglasses specifically designed for sports activities. After extensive research, I narrowed my options down to Oakley or Rudy Project.

According to Oakley, the nearest authorized dealer was Jimmy's Optical so I headed over there. I discovered prescription frames are no more expensive than regular frames. The hefty price tag is due to cost of the lenses. Oakley is known for their High Definition Optics®. I assumed this would mean Oakley lenses would cost more than other brands but this was not the case. Shatterproof lenses are not cheap. Regardless of whether I chose the Oakley's or the Rudy Project's, I would be paying roughly 3 times the cost of the frame for the lenses.

I also learned 'European Fit' and 'Asian Fit' are standard industry terms. According to Oakley, if sunglasses tend to sit too low on your face or slide down your nose, touch at your temples or cheeks, or feel narrow at the sides of your head' you just might require Asian fit. In case you were wondering, yes, the Asian Green Girl required Asian Fit.

I ultimately decided on the Oakley Half Jacket Asian Fit in Dark Grey with polarized XLJ lenses (see 'Before' in image below).

My sunglasses and I were able to spend a good 2 months together. They made me very happy until one day I noticed the sunglass tint appeared to be peeling off the bottom of the lens.

I immediately took them back to Jimmy's Optical where Jimmy's wife examined the lenses. She commented that she had never seen tint fading after only 2 months. Finally, she said there were only 2 explanations for this: they were defective or I just happened to be so acidic that my sweat was actually eating away at the tint. It was clear that it was a rhetorical statement.

That's when I broke the news to her that I was recently diagnosed with high acidity. She was clearly amazed by the power of my acidity.

Before I go any further, I must applaud the exemplary customer service at Jimmy's Optical. Jimmy's wife contacted Oakley and explained the situation to them. When Oakley responded by saying they could replace the lenses but they felt this would just keep happening, she convinced them to allow me to swap out the frames for a more suitable style.

I visited Jimmy's Optical this week. My Half Jacket's are going to be replaced with a pair of Flak Jacket's (see 'After' in image above). The Half Jacket frame slant downwards slightly in the middle whereas the Flak Jacket is straighter so there is more distance between the top of the frame and my cheeks. Instead of the angular XLJ lenses, I will also be getting the hopefully high acidity-friendly shorter regular lenses.

4 comments:

  1. Had an issue with one lens of a pair of polarized Oakley sunglasses several years ago, and they completely replaced the sunglasses after a brief conversation about the issue. Made me a customer for life. Wear a pair of Oakleys on all of my runs now (not sure which model, but look like the Half Jackets from your picture). Unfortunately my loyalty heavily outpaces my wallet :)
    Good luck with your new pair.

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  2. I'm pleased to hear you had a positive experience with Oakley.

    I really hope this new pair will do the trick and my acidic sweat will stay far away from the lenses.

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  3. So glad it worked out for the best, with a good experience, and rad glasses in the end!

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  4. That is so cool to hear about companies that treat their customers right! In today's day and age of maximizing profits, it's nice to know that some businesses have their priorities correct.

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