Wondering if anyone does NOT wear glasses outdoors?
Wondering how risky this is.
I am super-sensitive to any kind of distortion and prefer full sunlight. Also would prefer to have one less thing to gather.
My eyes are fine in wind and cold and I see great. An occasional bug sucks but NBD
Wondering how much I’m putting myself at risk to a rock or debris flying up from a car or something like that.
Tyty
I get the same ‘danger imminent’ feeling I get when using a miter saw without safety glasses also when riding a bike without them, so I wear them 100% of the time these days. Perhaps higher-end transparent glasses would help your distortion issue?
I’ve done it by mistake (forgot my glasses) and didn’t really bother after the realisation (I think I was too much looking forward to the event to let it bother me) but ordinarily I feel naked without them.
I don’t wear glasses on my PM pub run, and sometimes on townie rides… But any time I’m kitting up or its really sunny I absolutely wear some sort of eye pro.
Also, I’m more sensitive to bright sunlight than some people, so I have a pretty good idea where my good sunglasses are at any moment.
I never did for years and ended up having to visit the hospital every couple of years to get grit etc. removed. Also regularly got conjunctivitis and had discoloured “bumps” on the whites of my eyes - during an eye test was told that was probably the wind in my eyes- a bit like callouses you might get on your hands.
Started wearing glasses a few years ago, no visits to the hospital, no conjunctivitis and the “bumps” have gone.
I sometimes ride without them on road, but almost never on trails. I’ve taken plenty branches to the face to know better. I have however taken bugs/rocks to glasses before and thanked my lucky stars. 
ymmv
They’re usually stowed away in my helmet unless I’m bombing downhill, or heading into direct sunlight. Always found them rather annoying otherwise…
Victor Campenaerts famously doesn’t wear glasses most of the time.
I only like large, frameless shield glasses so I can’t see any edges. Otherwise, when I’m on the rivet, frames feel claustrophobic, especially as they fill with sweat.
I always wear glasses when riding. Too many insects and getting one in the eye at 30-40 mph isn’t fun. Plus when I mountain bike there are other hazards on the trail.
I’m cheap so my go-to eyewear is S&W Magnum safety/shooting glasses. If there is any distortion I can’t see it, they are comfortable and under $10. If they get broken or scratched I grab another new pair from the drawer. I have both gray tinted sunglasses and untinted ones for cloudy days.
Never for mtb, sometimes on road. I sweat a lot, and here, it rains a lot, so have always found them of dubious value and rarely usable for an entire ride.
Never wear them. I sweat a lot and just the little bit of plastic block’s enough air to cause me to sweat. I also don’t like distortion. I still have both eyes. I’m in my 70’s and ride on chip sealed roads.
I wear them when the wind or sun starts to burn and sometimes at the end of the ride. I sweat too much and they contributes in directing the sweat into my eyes. After 3-4 hours out, I normally stop dripping.
Didn’t wear them on the road for years, mostly out of not wanting to shop for them. Finally got some, they definitely improve comfort.
I prefer not to, but often do for practical reasons. If it’s cold I wear them to keep wind off more of my face (and helps stop my eyes from watering). If it’s blindingly sunny and I’m on the open road, shades make it easier to see. For cross races, there’s often low branches to worry about, especially since I’m tall. For the local paved trail I often won’t wear glass, but I will caution I got smacked right in the eye ball by a falling twig/leaf this fall.
I don’t wear any now but that’s because it’s winter and there so there are no bugs, it rains often and it’s dark but when spring comes the glasses go back on
Only you can answer that. How often has that happened to you?
Lots of great advice and anecdotal information, but why stop there. Helmets and car seat belts are uncomfortable so skip those as well.
I consider them basic PPE and wear them whenever practical (‘better safe than sorry’ rather than ‘strictly necessary’ from my point of view). Even clear ones at night, given that I’m a contact lens wearer and they can dry out pretty fast in cold wind.
However, I find glasses almost unusable in consistent rain. If I’m expecting rain I always wear a casquette/cap under my helmet, and whenever my glasses are off I have the visor turned down - it’s just the right length/angle to keep the vast majority of wind and rain out of my eyes. Doesn’t always help with the s**t flung up from below from following another rider, but you can avoid all but the occasional splash by altering positioning slightly.
This is how I feel and would still wear them even if I didn’t need prescription lenses. I’ve had a bee fly into my helmet vent and sting me on my head, and another time one flew down my jersey and stung my chest 
One of those could have easily hit my eye 
I’ve scratched my cornea in the past and have no desire to go through that again.
Always 100% use them for road and MTB. I can’t be dealing with grit, bugs and muddy water in the eyes. I also went down face first on the MTB last year and smeared my face along the ground. Glasses were heavily scratched. I reckon it’d have blinded me if I didn’t have glasses.
Get yourself a good pair, like Jawbreakers and you’ll never regret the purchase.
