Galibier GrandTour Optics Black - Red Contrast Plasma

The Galibier GrandTour Optics Black - Red Contrast Plasma sunglasses are very light and their excellent large lens has great clarity and a wide field of vision. They also look good, they're very comfortable – their weight means you barely notice you're wearing them – and they're sensibly priced.

> Buy now: Galibier GrandTour Optics Black - Red Contrast Plasma sunglasses for £56 from Galibier

Check out our best cycling sunglasses buyer's guide if you're in the market for new sunnies.

The first thing you'll notice about the GrandTour Optics is how light they are. At a featherweight 23g on my kitchen scales – and a gram heavier on the road.cc scales of truth – these are the lightest glasses I've ever worn.

Lens

The lens clarity is excellent, on a par with that of my usual Oakley Sutro glasses, which given their name are naturally much more expensive. They feature anti-fog and anti-scratch technology, and the lens is designed to highlight contrast, making them ideal for spotting potholes, which we're not exactly short of these days.

The single-piece lens has four vents above each eye to improve airflow and ventilation, which I found welcome during some full-gas efforts on warmer days. But fortunately this venting didn't cause any issues with my contact lenses, which has been the case with some sunnies in the past.

The large lens has an anti-fog finish, which stood up well to some challenging efforts, only struggling slightly on a wet, humid day when I was stopped at the top of a climb after a very hard effort.

Thanks to the lack of a solid frame, that large lens provides a pleasingly wide field of vision.

The lens has been treated with an anti-scratch technology that has proved effective, as even after wearing these regularly they still look as good as new. They weigh very little, and do feel a little fragile as a result, but they have stood up to everything I've thrown at them so far – even my clumsiness.

This lens has a 15.5% VLT (Visible Light Transmission) rating that is optimised for bright conditions. It performed well when testing in the bright autumnal sun and coped well when riding through tree coverage and dealing with changing light of the Wye Valley.

The glasses come with a hard case, a cloth bag and a lens cleaner.

Fit and integration

The fit and helmet integration was very good, and I found them comfortable on rides of all sorts of intensities and duration. They stayed in place well thanks to the Thermogrip rubber used for the temples and nose pad.

I never had any issues with them moving while sprinting (well, trying to) or during hard out-of-the-saddle efforts. And in addition to wearing them while riding, I also wore them on a few runs – where they worked equally well.

Looks

I like the look of these sunnies, though of course this is highly subjective. The lens is big enough to provide an excellent field of vision – but it's not the ski-goggle-size of some other recent designs. And I'd also wear these off the bike, which is rare for me when it comes to cycling sunglasses.

I was testing these at around the same time as a pair with a crystal frame and a photochromic lens for overcast days. They performed well in changeable conditions though their frame and lens combo made them look like something you'd find in a science lab.

Value

Galibier continues to offer high-quality products at very reasonable prices, with these coming in at just £56, or a tenner more for the model with the photochromic lens and crystal frame.

But there's still plenty of competition even at this sort of price point. Our sister site off.road.cc gave the Madison Crypto sunnies a rare 10/10 rating.

The  Magicshine Windbreaker Classic sunglasses also received an excellent review and come in at the same price as the Madisons.

And if you're happy to spend a chunk more, you could consider the 100% Slendale glasses that Suvi rated highly.

Overall

The Galibier GrandTour Optics are an excellent pair of glasses, with a very low weight, a large, high-quality lens with good optics – and I like the look of them too. Throw in an attractive price and these are well worth considering as the days get brighter.

Verdict

Low weight, an excellent large lens with good clarity and all at a very sensible price – I like the looks too

> Buy now: Galibier GrandTour Optics Black - Red Contrast Plasma sunglasses for £56 from Galibier