My eyesight has been getting worse every year. So far I've been able to skydive and I'm still looking for a pair of glasses that will fit under my Z-1. I figured I could see well enough to jump. So anyway a few weeks ago we broke off from a formation and started tracking off. Suddenly a canopy materialized out of no-where ahead of me. I'm convinced if I had on glasses or better eye sight it would not have happened. I would have seen this jumper before he pulled. The lesson I learned from all this is if you need glasses wear them when you jump. I know pilots in the military are screened for their sight abilities. There's probably a good reason for this. Steve1
I have some pretty small frames on my eye glasses and they still don't fit under my Z-1. So I wear contacts, and I have no problem, even when I open the visor after dumping and collapsing the slider. My siggestion would defintely be contacts! Then you can wear some cool shades walking around on the ground!
the Bonehead "HAVOK" is a new helmet on the market, i have much the same problem you do. this helmet accomadates every pair of prescription glasses i own, it's a full faced helmet. i had an oxgen i didn't like it at all, because of this very thing. check out the HAVOK.
I'm legally blind without my contacts in. I wouldn't know the peas from a lake. never had a problem in the air with them whether wearing a full face or normal goggles.
When I started skydiving, I wore glasses. I was able to fit mine underneath a Z1. The frames I had were small and made be Flexon (spring Titanium). Since then I actually broke my unbreakable frames and switched to contact do to the fact that they were cheaper than getting another pair of the Flexon frames. The frames cost about $300 by themselves. Blue skies Kirk
I have fairly small but not tiny frames and they fit under my Z1 easily. I have found that the size and shape of the face matters much more than the size and shape of the glasses. I've got pretty bad vision without glasses... like i cant see anything past about the tip of my nose. I couldn't imagine jumping (or even walking) without my glasses. I'd literally have to hold my altimeter about 4 inches from my face to be able to read it. I wonder if I have the DZ.com record for worst vision. I just love it when people tell me they're almost blind and then we find out my prescription is double the strength of theirs. C'mon lasik, catch up!
Hey Steve I don't know if you have the same problem I have. (old eyes) so my eyesight was getting worse every year. Of course I need the ugly old bi-focal so I didn't think contacts would help. Well I went to eye doc and I figured for a $60 buck it would be worth it to find out. Well the bi-focal contacts suck ( for me anyway) but he did fix my long vision with contacts. I found that I can still see my altimeter just fine and my long vision is great now. My correction is a -2.50. Now I wear contacts all day at the DZ with no problems. Also they're fairly cheap if you loose one. Like I said at $60 for the visit and first pair not a bad deal. I now buy my contacts from online and they're about $18 a box. Good luck with the eye's. Oh by the way I had RK the original eye correction surgery in 1981 and the thing is as you get older your eyes are still going to change and you'll find yourself needing reading glasses. My eyesight was 20-16 until I turned 45 and then down hill from there.
Cloud9, I wish I was 45 again. Being 52 is the shits. At any rate contacts sound good, but I don't think I'm tough enough to actually stick the little buggers in my eyes with my finger. My wife and daughters do it all the time, but I'm a wimp when it comes to that sort of thing. A friend of mine has had trouble finding glasses that would fit under his Z-1. He ordered a pair of (I think they are sport-x) goggles. They have stems like glasses do, and look just like an ugly pair of black glasses. I think I'll try them first and then go to contacts if I don't like them. Thanks for the advice. Steve1
SportRx (if this is the company you are referring to) did a wonderful job of customer service for me when I ordered my prescription goggles from them this month. They respond to e-mails the next day and are great on advice.
When my first prescription goggles got here, I tried them on and they didn't fit under my camera helmet. (I had chosen goggles off the web without their advice). I e-mailed them and they suggested sending me some sample sets of other models for me to try. Free of charge!! They did, I tried, and found one that worked great!
My new goggles are fantastic and are the most comfortable set of 'glasses' that I've ever worn in freefall. -Might- want to try contacting them?
2) The Z1 helmet. Their first model was smaller back to front and my glasses wouldn't fit under the lens either. Their newer model was redesigned and glasses fit under just great. (They had gotten feedback on this issue and did the remake).
Even my larger glasses fit under the newer Z1. I just like the feel of the wind on my face during freefall, so my own helmet isn't a full-face version. Hence the prescription goggles.
Lots of good suggestions already, but can I just say, once you get used to putting the contacts in, you will really love wearing them instead of glasses. And you WILL get used to it if you give it a chance. The truth is, outside of having the surgery (if your prescription is still changing, I don't think you are a good candidate), contacts give you the most natural vision. If you can wear the soft lenses, the disposable ones are thin and comfortable, affordable and very easy to take care of. Go see your eye doctor and see what options are available for you.
I got a pair of prescription Ray Ban shades at LensCrafters. $170 w/blue mirror polarized lenses. They're great for skydiving with the strap they sold me for $4 they don't budge and nearly seal to my face letting little if any air in. The perk being I can alos wear them in the car or even better on the boat. I considered they SportRX, but I get musch more bang for my buck with the shades.
I have fairly small but not tiny frames and they fit under my Z1 easily. I have found that the size and shape of the face matters much more than the size and shape of the glasses.
Before I toasted my eyes, I had to wear normal fat ass big frame glasses (hey they were free, not gonna spend a 100$ for new glasses and only use it for 2-3 weeks ) because I had to relax my eyes (had been using contacts for a lot of time) and when I tried the Z1 so I could jump I coulnd't closed the visor, the frame was huge so I had to use those big goggles. You might be right about the head shape too, I have a kinda big round head . All Z1 sizes fits kinda tight even the new XL one, Bone head is better.
Quote
I wonder if I have the DZ.com record for worst vision.
HAHAHA, I know I was the worst at my dz, correction was -6.25, if you saw my 2 week glasses you could of seen my eyes grow about 2 or 3 times bigger of normal size, kinda funny to look at, looked like the worm on the cartoons that uses glasses and his eyes look huge.
Quote
C'mon lasik, catch up!
glasses were nice, contacts were good, lasik is GREAT!
edit line: I only have 21 years old, its cool to stop wearing contacts after 7 years and before that it was 6 years wearing glasses, 14 years total. If you can burn your eyes, lasik is the way.
(This post was edited by drenaline on Aug 23, 2002, 12:48 AM)
I'm blind as a bat. I used contacts for a long time until both blew out on a head down. That was the most frightning landing ever. Now I use and swear by Rx goggles. I have 2 pair, one tinted and one pair clear. They are great.
I wonder if I have the DZ.com record for worst vision. I just love it when people tell me they're almost blind and then we find out my prescription is double the strength of theirs. C'mon lasik, catch up!
I doubt it.
Pre-LASIK, my correction was -13.50/-13.75 w/-1.50 sphere. to put that in terms of 20/20, it was approx. 20/1600.
I am now 2 1/2 years post-op, seeing 20/40 in my left eye and 20/15 in my right, combined is 20/20. don't even need reading glasses.
Wow. My eyes are in the -13 range with some astigmatism. My eye doctor gave me the impression that lasik wasn't a possibility for me... yet. Maybe I should be looking into it. I think my prescription hasn't changed in a couple years now.
Itdiver, I've heard nothing but good things about the Sports Rx Goggle company. The friend I mentioned earlier with the RX goggles ended up trying several pair of goggles with his prescription before he found a pair that would fit under his Z-1. He sent all the others back and only paid for the one pair. Sounds like good people to do business with. Steve1
Wow. My eyes are in the -13 range with some astigmatism. My eye doctor gave me the impression that lasik wasn't a possibility for me... yet. Maybe I should be looking into it. I think my prescription hasn't changed in a couple years now.
Dave
Dave,
You may or may not be a cndidate for LASIK, it depends onthe thickness of your cornea and how much will remain after scuplting by the laser.
What you also need is not just any surgeon, but someone who has handled severe myopes. My surgeon is actually doing a paper on treatment of cases such as ours. Be advised that you will NOT get the instant gratification that those in the commercials on TV get; you willhave an immediate marked improvement, but will probably need "band-aid" contacts for a while while your eyes adjust to being able to actually focus properly. You may most likely also need an "adjustment" once things settle down to fine-tune things.
For people like us there is a lot more work and followup needed to get the results we seek, but I swear it is worth it.
I just love it when people tell me they're almost blind and then we find out my prescription is double the strength of theirs. C'mon lasik, catch up! 
) because I had to relax my eyes (had been using contacts for a lot of time) and when I tried the Z1 so I could jump I coulnd't closed the visor, the frame was huge so I had to use those big goggles. You might be right about the head shape too, I have a kinda big round head 
. All Z1 sizes fits kinda tight even the new XL one, Bone head is better. 
