Racers with astigmatism specifically, this one’s for you! Have you ever noticed that the amber lights on the tree may not look as crisp as you’d like? How about when the sun goes down and those amber look way less crisp than before? I know that I have that problem. I’ve also found that because of the intensity of the lights after sunset, my reaction times are less consistent and typically slower.
Here’s why. Astigmatism is a flaw or abnormality in the curvature of the lens of our eye resulting in light not passing through as cleanly resulting in glare or distortion. That’s what makes headlights at night kinda look like stars with lines or streaks leading from the light source. As an experiment, next time you’re in a place to just watch cars, put a polarized lens up, it will help the distortion immensely. Polarization also reduces 50% of the light through a lens, more on that in a minute.
Competitive target, skeet and trap shooters have found benefit in seeing the orange clay pigeons, targets and finding the sights on their guns against the blue sky using a polarized lens. It helps sharpen the shape of the clay pigeon making it much easier to put shots on target.
So how does that translate into reaction times? If you were to look at the tree with a polarized lens, you’ll find it looks less intense and much more crisp. Our brains react to stimulus and can easily be over-stimulated. Over-stimulus can change the way it reacts. The less than sharp light causes the brain to have more to process and make sense of it, making its response slower and less consistent. At dark, the light appears more intense and “shocks” the ocular nerve more and gives the brain more information to react to. Using a polarized lens after dark can really help sharpen up the amber lights and improve your consistency.
I use a polarized lens whenever I stage up and hit the tree, day and night. This can cause problems if the track is not well lit at night meaning it might be darker than you’d like down track. The solution is to potentially use a polarized lens or visor and remove the lens after you launch your car. There was a manufacturer of polarized helmet visors and they’ve gone out of business. I’ve used my prescription polarized sunglasses with success and I’ve typically been at tracks that have good lighting down track. I’ll swap back to my normal glasses in the shutdown area so that I can see in the pits better. I’ll also use a polarized lens while I use my practice tree.
Bottom line, if you have an astigmatism and you’d like to help your reaction times, try a polarized lens and see what you think. I knew right away that it was an improvement and I’ve stuck with it.
Here’s some links to stuff I like to use! These are affiliate links and I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
PWRCORE 12 Brushless 12V 3/8” Impact Wrench Kit
WavWatch – Use Discount Code ERIC100 for $100 off at checkout – https://www.wavwatch.com/.
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