Motocross and skiing are two extreme sports where having the right gear is paramount in keeping you safe and protected. Unfortunately the price for this gear can get rather expensive, especially if you’re forking out money for both motocross and ski equipment. The gear needed for motocross and skiing are vastly different however one item that participants in both sports generally use is goggles to protect the eyes. Have you ever wondered if you could use ski goggles for motocross and vice versa? They look pretty similar after all but what’s the difference between ski goggles and motocross goggles?
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What’s The Difference Between Ski Goggles And Motocross Goggles?
All thought ski goggles and motocross goggles look similar they differ in many ways. The main difference between ski goggles and motocross goggles is the lens. Ski goggles are engineered with a ”double pained” lens which works as insulation to prevent fogging under cold conditions. Motocross goggles on the other hand only feature a single pained lens and are designed to be stronger to shield impact from incoming roost, dust and rocks that could be flung up by a dirt bike in front. In addition to this, more differences between ski goggles and motocross goggles include:
UV Protection
Skiing and snowboarding generally take place at higher altitudes where exposure to the sun is more prominent. Most ski goggles are designed with full UVA and UVB radiation protection as standard, this is to shield your eyes from the violent rays that reflect off the snow on a sunny day.
On the other hand, only a select few brands and types of motocross goggles provide a similar level of UV protection. This is because motocross and dirt bike riders aren’t typically exposed to UV for extended periods of time like skiers are. If you wore a pair of standard MX goggles that didn’t have proper UV protection up on the mountain on a sunny day you’d likely get burnt and potentially damage your eyes.
If you’re looking for a pair of motocross goggles that offer full UVA & UVB protection check out Fox Racing or SCOTT goggles as all of their goggles come with UV protection. Some other brands offer UV protection but not all so do be sure to double check when purchasing your next pair of goggles.
Ventilation
Both motocross and ski goggles feature exceptional ventilation to extract heat and condensation away from your face. However you’ll find that the ventilation found in motocross goggles is more tight to prevent dust getting into the compartment and irritating your eyes.
Since this isn’t much of an issue in the snow, ski goggles are more open and allow for airflow. Wearing a pair of ski goggles around a motocross track could leave you with a face full of dirt and potentially ruin the goggles.
Shape And Design
While ski goggles and motocross goggles do look similar they’re actually significantly different in the way that they’re constructed. Ski goggles are designed to be worn either with a ski helmet which only generally covers the top half of the head or without a helmet at all. Compared to motocross goggles that sit on the face inside of a full head covering helmet.
Ski goggles also feature a wider view to help them navigate around obstacles when gliding down a mountain whereas motocross goggles have less peripheral visibility and are designed to look forward for track riding. As a result of this design feature, ski goggles can end up being more bulky and may not properly fit into a motocross helmet.
Can You Use Ski Goggles For Motocross And Vice Versa?
Can you use your pair of trusty ski goggles for motocross and vice versa? It’s a fair question and makes sense because you would be saving money on purchasing two sets of goggles. But as you can see from the reasons provided above the two types of goggles are designed primarily for their respective sports and lack some vital requirements to render them practical and safe for the other sport.
Wearing Ski Goggles For Motocross
Using ski goggles for motocross could work however due to the fact that they’re more bulky they may not fit inside a regular motocross helmet and could lead to an improper fit. In addition to this the ventilation isn’t as tight as dedicated motocross goggles so wearing ski goggles may end up leaving you with a dusty face after a few laps around the track.
Ski goggles also aren’t designed for the battering of roost and other projectiles that riders can face. For these reasons it’s probably best to invest in a good quality pair of dedicated motocross goggles.
Wearing Motocross Goggles For Skiing Or Snowboarding
Unlike Ski goggles which are double pained, motocross goggles only feature a single pained lens. This means that using motocross goggles to go skiing could be very problematic as they’ll fog up quickly, so unless you want to stop every few minutes to wipe the fog off your goggles it’s probably best to grab some dedicated skiing goggles.
The other vital feature that some motocross goggles lack is full UV protection from the sun which you’re exposed to up on a mountain in the snow. The last thing you want is for a fun snow trip to turn into a painful experience after getting sunburnt or worse, damaging your eyes.
To Conclude
All though motocross and ski goggles do share some similar characteristics they both are designed primarily for their individual sports. Using motocross goggles for skiing isn’t very practical as it can result in sunburn as well as the inconvenience of the goggles becoming foggy every two minutes. Using ski goggles for motocross also may not be the best idea as an improper fit as well as open ventilation could lead to damage from dust and other debris.
For these reasons it’s important that you use the right gear for each sport in order to protect your eyes. After all, you only get one pair of eyes so it’s not worth taking the chance in order to save a few dollars. If you’re only going skiing or doing motocross occasionally it may make sense to look into hiring equipment instead of splurging a heap of money buying everything yourself.
Be sure to check out our other posts for more dirt bike content!