70 / / June 2019
KIT ZONE
“However bigor small,look for
goggleswitha curved lensand
good peripheralvision”
an open-water swim. Choose
something smaller and closer to the
face and they will be less likely to get
knocked out of place (and on this –
always put your goggle strap under
your swim hat to keep it safe!).
What is important though, is the
visibility offered. However big or
small, look for goggles with a curved
lens and good peripheral vision to
make sighting easier. Jack Rex
Burnell, GB’s top marathon
swimmer, recently designed the
‘Burnell’ goggle with sponsors Huub
and these were key considerations
for him.
“I wanted my design to be
aerodynamic, but with an open-
water style visibility,” says Burnell.
“There’s a lot of big goggles in
triathlon – but I like smaller goggles
as they’re more aerodynamic.
Visibility when sighting was key, so
the top of the goggles need to be
angled correctly and not create a
blind spot. I like to look out of the
top of my goggles to sight so I don’t
need to lift my head as high. I also
wanted visibility to the sides, so you
can see your position in the pack
and whether you have other
swimmers around you – both so you
know where the competition is, but
also so you can draft efficiently.”FUTURE FITTING
There’s a little trial and error in
finding the correct fit, but with
many brands offering a range of fits
and sizes based on face shape, there
are plenty of options out there. Neil
McConnochie, CPO of Zoggs, tells
us: “Typically there are two key
considerations, firstly the shape of
your head and secondly the size.
Swimmers with narrower faces or
smaller heads are better suited to
smaller or profile-fit frames
compared to larger frames. The best
way to determine which goggles suit
your face is to try them on before
you buy. If you get a second of
suction and they’re comfortable
around the nose and eye socket then
they’re likely to be right for you.”
If you want a unique fit, though,
then new company The Magic 5 will
custom-make goggles to fit your
face (from £48.78). First you scan
your face using an app on your
mobile phone, then that is sent to
the lab where a pair of goggles are
custom-made just for you. Co-
founder Rasmus Barfred says: “Each
pair of The Magic 5 goggles is
unique, and produced specifically
for each customer. The maincomponent that is custom-made is
the gasket, which is produced to fit
the exact curvature of the face.
When that is controlled we control a
natural seal, hence you don’t have
that pressure or suction in your
goggles that you have with other
pairs. Through the scan and data
collection process we can accurately
select the optimal nose piece for
that customer’s goggles.”PICK THE RIGHT TINT
Once you’ve decided on the right fit
and size for you, lenses are next. You
need to think about what kind of
visibility there’ll be in the water, as
well as what kind of weather
conditions you’ll be facing when you
look up to sight.
Triathlon swims are often in the
early morning, meaning you can be
looking into low sunrises that canmake seeing your sighting points
difficult. Back to Neil McConnochie
from Zoggs: “For open water our
Polarized Ultra are the best choice,
as they cut glare and blue light,
which results in an enhanced visual
experience. The copper ultra lens
also provides the perfect balance
between bright and low light
conditions, which you’ll often get in
open water.”
If you’re not sure what kind of
conditions race day may bring, or
want to use your goggles in multiple
conditions, then a light smoked or
amber lens should do the job – just
don’t pick something too dark, as
the aim is to enhance visibility, not
reduce it! The other option is to go
for a set of photochromatic lenses,
such as Zoggs’ Predator Flex
Original Titanium Reactor (£60) or
Huub’s Aphotics (£44.99), which