Speculating in the biking spectacle space means going up against big, established global brands with massive marketing and ambassador budgets, such as Oakley, Smith, and 100% – the kind of household names that feature in our rundown of the best mountain biking eyewear on sale. That didn’t deter ex-DH World Cup mechanic Andy Ward from pitching in with his own peeper protectors though, and the rapidly growing brand now has Greg Minnaar as the highest profile athlete using its optics. The Raptor glasses combo is Viris’ complete trail riding kit that runs alongside its DH goggle range, so what makes them worth a look?

Viris’ Raptor glasses offer plenty of protection and a host of interchangeable lenses.

The idea of a wraparound frame with a selection of different interchangeable lenses is nothing new. The lens selection with the Raptors is great for the UK, or anywhere else meteorologically ‘meh’ though. There’s only one mirror lens for really bright conditions, and then you’ve got a contrast-boosting rose tint, which is great for mixed conditions, a yellow for optimistic optics, and then a clear for dark and dirty situations. There’s no distortion in any of the lenses and clarity is great. The inclusion of an optical insert is also a big bonus for anyone needing to use prescription lenses. 

The lenses have remained scratch-free over 12 months of use.

The frame design removes the top bar to allow better venting, so they’ve never steamed up for me when riding, and there’s no interruption of upwards vision. However, with nothing to gutter it away, I did find that there was more chance of sweat dripping directly onto the lens. The way the frame peels off the lenses when switching them also made it hard not to leave fingermarks, but it’s a relatively simple and eventually secure process.  Considering how quickly I normally ruin lenses, the fact that all the Viris tints are still scratch-free is very impressive. The frames have been tough enough to survive my usual careless, crash-rich life choices too, and the screw-fixed arms haven’t even gone baggy in a full year of use. That’s helped by the fact they come in a generously sized, pre-cut foam-filled, zip-closed softbox carry case, complete with carry pouch and lens cleaning cloth.

Guy has had no issues with fit or interference with a range of different helmets.

The bendable nose rubber makes it easy to alter ride height, cheek/brow gap and snout security depending on your preferences and helmet choice. The inset rubber strips in the turned-in arm ends kept them snug on my skull, and I experienced very little creep, even on long, rough descents. I’ve had no fit conflicts with open-face helmets from several different brands either, and the slight hook of the arms helped them stay put if when slotting through helmet vents when not on my face. There are five different frame colours/designs to choose from as well.