Why Revo’s High-Performance Sunglasses Are a Must-Have for Anybody On the Water

Of all the gear that we paddlers and water sports enthusiasts rely on regularly, sunglasses are among the most overlooked. For all the hours and days we spend researching kayaks, canoes and paddleboards, we hardly even give a second thought to what we’re wearing on our faces. That’s a big mistake; visibility counts for an awful lot when you’re on the water, yet open bodies of water have a tendency of wanting to reflect the sun’s rays right into your eyes, obscuring what’s beneath the surface and making it harder to see through the water.

Enter Revo sunglasses. Founded in 1985 by optical engineer Dr. Mitch Ruda, Revo’s “secret sauce” is its trademark Light Management System – a revolutionary lens design that features reliable, high-performance NASA-based technology at its core. Basically, behind the oil-repelling front lens coatings are three to six layers of lens material with a NASA tech-based mirror coating that separate out the individual colors comprising the image, treating each bandwidth separately. Behind that sit the more common polarizing film and tinted sun lens.

The net result of all this is a crystal-clear image with stunning contrast and vivid detail, each color of the spectrum optimized to provide you with awesome visual clarity. And just as important: Revo produces a range of different lens models tailored to specific use cases.

Revo’s best lenses for life on the water are Crystal Glass and Serilium+. Crystal Glass is Revo’s innovative update to its heritage glass lens and it is up to 20% lighter than traditional glass lenses. Revo boasts its Crystal Glass is ground and polished to the same standard as a camera lens and offers unsurpassed clarity without distortion. It also blocks 100% of UVA, UVB, and UVC light while safeguarding from blue light.

Serilium+ lenses are equally adept for watersports, but are made of impact-resistant polarized nylon. This makes them incredibly light while retaining stunning clarity. Serilium+ lenses also block UVA, UVB, and UVC light while safeguarding from blue light.

In the Crystal Glass family is the H2O Blue lens, which is available with a full range of 17 distinct, stylish frames. It offers a sharp-looking mirror blue coating, and it’s a match made in heaven for long days spent fishing on the lake. That’s because it’s optimized to deliver maximum glare protection, offering superb clarity and a nice, soothing tint without changing the coloration of the image. A hydrophobic coating on the rear-most lens coating helps repel water, so you don’t have to sweat getting a bit of sweat or spray on the lens.

Our go-to frame style for fishing with the H2O Blue lens is Revo’s “Jasper” frame – a sleek and sporty-looking large frame available in either matte black or clear, with a wrap-around design that works a treat blocking glare from all different directions. It’s a durable frame that’s built to last, and it’s compatible with the Revo retainer cord so you can keep them safely tethered around your neck. For fishing and spending time on the water, that’s practically an absolute must-have feature.

Another favorite is Revo’s “Harness G” frame, with a medium-small fit, it’s a more subtle wrap-around design with retainer cord compatibility. Or, there’s the medium-fit “Dexter,” with its more square aesthetic and comprehensive coverage with a wrap design with comfortable Elastomeric temple tips and brow padding.

A great option for anglers in the Serilium+ family is the Blue Water lens. This featherweight lens delivers excellent optical clarity on the water with a mirror blue coating and outstanding glare protection. The big difference between the Blue Water lens and the H20 Blue lens is that the Blue Water lens is made with nylon material, not glass, allowing Blue Water-equipped Revo sunglasses to be priced lower – albeit without quite the same level of scratch-resistance.

Among our favorite frame styles for the Blue Water lens is the “Coast” frame, born out of a collaboration between Revo and Jeep. It’s a handsome and lightweight plastic frame with grippy, comfy Elastomeric nose and temple pads, and a big, wide field-of-vision with glare protection from all angles. It’s also Revo retainer cord-compatible for peace-of-mind.

Another great option is the medium-fit Crawler, along with the extra-large Crawler XL. The Crawler is a sleek, modern, super-lightweight take on a classic, available in matte black or crystal clear with Revo’s superb Blue Water lens.

At the end of the day, whether you opt for a pair of Revo sunglasses fitted with the company’s impact-resistant Blue Water lenses, or you spring for H2O Blue glass lens, you get crisp visual acuity, sharp contrast, and glare protection with NASA tech-infused polarized lenses. That means you can stay on the water longer without your eyes getting fatigued, and if you’re out all day, that’s safety-critical.

If you’re ready to see the full range of sunglasses Revo has on offer, head on over to Revo.com.