PWC Advice for Wearing Prescription Eyeglasses…
Do you know about wearing prescription eyeglasses on Sea-Doo Tours? About 75% of North Americans needing some kind of corrective lens to improve our eyesight. So it’s no surprise that this group includes many Sea Doo, jet ski or waverunner PWC riders.
Some can wear contact lens on their PWC adventures. But like me on my Sea Doo GTX 155, many experienced jet ski riders and PWC beginners have to wear prescription eyeglasses on their Sea Doo tours.
How to Wear Prescription Eyeglasses – Challenges
Wearing prescription eyeglasses presents several challenges for Sea Doo riders. One is keeping them on and not losing them in the drink. Most prescription eyewear doesn’t float (check out floating sun glasses). So I always secure mine with a floater strap that holds them snuggly in place. And keeps them from sinking if they do fall off.
Another challenge for Sea Doo riding is properly protecting your eyes from sun, wind and rain. While this is something that every Sea Doo rider needs to do, it’s specially challenging for eyeglass wearers. Why? Because our daily living eyewear typically is more designed for fashion than protection. And that means prescription sunglasses. Don’t expect those clip on shades to stay on while you’re PWC riding!
The best eye protection on a personal watercraft comes from dark lens goggles or wraparound sunglasses. But to my knowledge, neither of these configurations can be fitted with prescription lenses, primarily because of their curvature. But I’ve found that neither regular or slightly curved prescription sunglasses provide sufficient protection. From annoyances like glare off the water, side winds or raindrops on Sea Doo tours.
How to Wear Prescription Eyeglasses – Solutions
I’ve discovered two solutions for best eye protection while Sea Doo riding. One is that some eyeglass stores sell sunglass safety frames. They are specially designed to fit against your face to keep things out of 
your eyes and to take prescription lens. These work very well. Two, and less expensive, is to wear your regular prescription glasses under a pair of those wrap around sunglasses designed to fit over them. I bought mine at Costco and they work well for me. Just remember to attach floater straps to both frames.
One more challenge with wearing eyeglasses as a Sea Doo rider can be breaking a frame or losing a lens while riding. That’s why I always a spare pair on board. That way I can see my way home if something unforeseen happens to my primary pair.
Lastly, keep your various Sea Doo riding glasses in good protective cases when not in use. Also, keep them all together in one convenient place. This way, they are always with you for Sea Doo riding, not sitting on the kitchen counter at home. And after every Sea Doo ride, take a moment to clean the lenses and tighten frame screws. Now they are ready to go for your next adventure!
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The tips and advice in this article are the opinions of the author, may not work in every situation and are intended only for the convenience and interest of the reader, who has the personal responsibility to confirm the validity, accuracy and relevancy of this information prior to putting it to their own use.