Price: $59.99 CAN
Colours: Black with Red and Grey, Black, Demi, Camo with Yellow
Lens Options: Polarized, antiFOG
Size: One size, interchangeable nose pads

A modern, toned down and highly affordable take on classic glacier glasses, the Tsuga features removable side shields and offer a utilitarian choice between full protection from sun and wind, or casual style and peripheral vision. Half business, half party if you will. The Tsugas also offer hydrophilic, anti-slip nose pads and temple tips for when the going gets rowdy.

Price: $89.99 CAN
Colours: Black with Red, Black with Green, Matte Black, Stripe Demi, Black with Orange
Lens Options: Standard, Polarized, antiFOG, Photochromic
Size: One size

An upgraded take on Ryders’ classic Hillroy, the Nelson brings high tech lens coatings and hydrophilic, anti-slip nose pads and temple tips and a little extra coverage to a stylish, do-anything frame.

We put the Ryders Tsuga and Nelson sunglasses through their paces for nearly four months this fall and early winter, wearing them on the bike, running, climbing and of course skiing. While the Tsuga’s side shields seemed a little out there for around town use, the Nelson blended right in after a day outdoors so we used them for that, too. Both glasses had a great fit for this tester, with the Tsuga just edging out the the Nelson due to its interchangeable, anti-slip nose pads. 

The antiFOG lenses proved their worth again and again, particularly in the cold. Despite my best efforts to fog them up, only on a few occasions was I successful. When I say best efforts I mean it, wild temperature swings, snow on the lenses, entire face in the snow (don’t ask) and straight up breathing into the glasses were just a few of the techniques I employed, either on purpose or by accident. The lenses shrugged my attempts off with ease. The coatings really do work, and even at minus 25 degrees, they cleared fog on both the inside and outside surprisingly quickly. Over the four months, we noticed no degradation of the coating’s performance - when it came to moisture management, the lenses killed it for the duration.

Speaking of lenses, my experience in the field with the two lenses I tried was mixed. The Tsuga’s grey lens worked perfectly on average to bright days and made a perfect pair of all around skiing and climbing glasses for all but the greyest and brightest conditions. 

The Yellow Flash Mirror lens on the Nelson, however, was a little more difficult to get along with. Its extremely yellow, yet fairly dark tint lent itself poorly to the lower light conditions a yellow lens generally excels in. It did increase contrast in situations with average brightness, however, I felt that my eyes never fully adjusted to the colour. 

Ultimately, for my personal preference, it didn’t hold up to the simple grey lens found on the Tsuga. However, I lent the glasses to friends on multiple occasions who loved the tint, particularly on cloudy mountain bike rides, which just goes to show that no two sets of eyes are the same. 

For a review of the Ryders Face GX, Thorn and Rockwork antiFOG Sunglasses click here.

Testing grounds for the Ryder antiFOG Tsuga Sunglasses.

Ultimately, both sets of glasses spent an extended amount of time on my face, and the Tsugas became my skiing shades of choice. The robust antiFOG coating, optional side shields and no frills lens tint make them a workhorse performer in nearly any conditions above treeline. Lower down, on the bike trails or in town, it’s tough to beat the classic styling and high contrast Yellow Flash Mirror lens on the Nelson. High quality optics, durable coatings and premium features set both of these offerings from Ryders a notch or two above others in the price bracket.