Engearment

Erin Trail

Smith Bobcat Sunglasses (ChromaPop Photochromic, $245)

Initial Impressions

Very lightweight and comfortable; a good fit for smaller faces. 

Detailed Review

I wore the Smith Bobcat Sunglasses on gravel and mountain bike rides, general “hanging out” time and a trailside yoga session.  Light conditions varied from golden-hour light conditions (6-7 PM) to full sun mid-day rides.  Lighting also varied from full exposure to shaded trees on singletrack and gravel roads.  I wore my Smith helmets (road and MTB) during my testing.

These sunglasses are comfortable and fashionable enough to be worn both on and off the bike.  The transition from light to dark was noticeable and fairly quick.  I have a narrow face and a high nose bridge.  The fit on these glasses was really good: they don’t move at all and the larger lens design keeps debris out of my eyes. The ventilation was good; I’d place these as “medium” ventilation. What impressed me on the fit was when I wore them during a morning stretch / yoga session at a recent MTB camp.  These glasses didn’t budge, even in downward facing dog.

The Smith Bobcats are a partial wrap-around design.  They curve around your face but the lens ends at the corner of your temple.  I found this design to be fine for wind and debris and that my peripheral vision was unobscured.  The Bobcats have a thin frame around the lens which is unobtrusive; once I was wearing them, I didn’t notice the frame at all.

The glasses fit well with both regular and MTB helmets, with no banging or moving.  I wore the glasses paired with over the ear bone conducting headphones and the glasses and headphones played well together.  They are lightweight and once you have them on, you really don’t notice them.  The frames are fairly stiff, so if you put the glasses on top of your head or on your hat (which is something I do often), the stiffness might not feel as comfortable as they do when they are on your face.

I specifically asked for these glasses to try out because the Bobcat is a smaller size lens compared to other Smith offerings, like the Wildcat.  I found the fit of the Bobcat glasses to be ~just right~ for my smaller face and didn’t really notice them while I was using them.

The Visible Light Transmission rating for these lenses ranges from 12 – 67%. I feel that this range is optimal for early or late bike rides or on rides where you’re in and out of trees or other shady things. In bright, open areas, I prefer a slightly darker lens. 

Overall Impression

The Smith Optics Bobcats are lightweight glasses that fit well on smaller faces. I think these are best suited for mixed to low-light conditions (dawn, pre-sunset, intermittent shade).  They fit great with my helmets and headphones, with no bounce or pressure points. I found them to be very comfortable and I barely noticed they were on my face while wearing them. These glasses will be in my regular rotation for my after work or shady gravel and MTB rides. 

Erin Trail