Oakley Sutro glasses

Cycling-specific glasses have been getting bigger in recent years and the new Oakley Sutro is one of the biggest designs yet. They offer huge coverage and crystal clear clarity, but they might be too large for some tastes.

• Pros: Lens quality, huge coverage, comfort
• Cons: Price, huge frame design

The new Sutro glasses been designed for and inspired by cyclists and have a huge wrap shield design that is bigger than anything Oakley has produced before. They dwarf Radars and even look big compared to the current Jawbones.

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For sure they are a bold look, but slip them onto your head and they sit very comfortably. I've always found Oakley glasses to be a perfect fit, and these are no exception. Rubber nose-pieces lightly grip your nose and the thin arms nestle above your ears with just enough pressure to keep them planted without pinching your head.

The Prizm lens provides excellent clarity, with contrast boosted and glare reduced, which not only makes the world look a lovely place but arguably helps you to spot changes in road texture or pick out moving objects in changeable light conditions. I found them especially good at dealing with the extremes from low to bright light conditions. It also blocks out harmful UV rays.

The huge size provides startling coverage. There's no intrusion of the frame into your field of vision, it's all lens. For head-down speedy cycling this is a big benefit as you're not trying to peer around the top rim of the frame. This also impacts urban cycling positively as well, especially in the cut-and-thrust of fast-moving traffic and pedestrians suddenly stepping into the road.

The frames are made from what Oakley calls O Matter material, a plastic that keeps the weight low and, in my experience, durable enough to deal with being dropped or badly handled.

All the press suggests they are designed for urban cycling, as part of a bigger range including jackets, T-shirts, shorts, trousers, backpacks and caps, but if you've been watching any of the cycle racing this season you'll have spotted a few pros wearing them. They are after all very easy to spot. Greg van Avermaet is one.

The glasses on test are a Matte Vampirello frame with Prizm Ruby lens, but Oakley lists a choice of eight frame and lens colour combinations.

> Buyer's Guide: 22 of the best cycling sunglasses

As with all Oakley glasses, they ain't cheap, and £130 is top dollar. You do get great design, huge coverage and a pin-sharp lens, but you can certainly pay a lot less. They are still cheaper than Oakley's own Flight Jackets (£185) and the Speedcraft SL glasses from 100% (£180), but you can pick up the stylish Shimano Meteor glasses for a snip at £40, and Dave gave the £30 Tifosi Swicks a good review earlier this week.

Verdict

Huge coverage but bold styling and a high price