How to gear up to ride comfortably and safely in really hot weather?

[Yazz]

EXCELLENT post.
Note that too much salt in your water might make you throw up.......thus making matters worse.

Table salt is sodium. Nothing else. I agree, too much salt/sodium is not good for you.

Sea Salt has a long list of minerals that are good for your body. It comes from nature, nothing added, nothing taken out.

Depending on the heat, I usually put a pinch or two in a water bottle and drink it every time I stop.

[Bob Denman]

We'll often pick up those "Sports Drinks"
(After kicking through the list of what they put in them... )
The Missus has to be VERY careful about sodium (Kidney transplant)

[Zip]

Shouldn't it have been: "To whom, are you addressing that comment?"

At least you didn't have to press "1" for English

[Bob Denman]

At least you didn't have to press "1" for English

¿Qué?

[jcthorne]

Vents open or closed. Depends on how hot it is. At 96 degrees the outside temperature is still cooler than your body temperature so in that case vents open and or mesh jacket and a cooling vest is really great to have. This is what we use https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/...d-cooling-vest. I do find that it lasts longer if I don't wear the mesh jacket, but use my 4 season Jacket with vents open. Either way you can recharge them when you stop to get gas by soaking them again.

This summer we have done a lot of ryding in 105 to 106 degrees. Now science tell us that heat will always transfer from the hotter surface to the cooler surface. The laws of equilibrium tell us that if it is 106 outside and you are at 98.6, you want to keep that hot air out. This is where you would want to close vents (and yes even in your helmet) and keep the cooler 98.6 on the inside and the 106 on the outside. You will sweat, but that sweat will last longer and cool you longer if you can keep it from evaporating too quickly. You will still receive some benefit from the cooling vest in these conditions. A couple of reasons why the heat has a greater effect on your wife would be that she is probably smaller than you, so less surface area for the sweat to cool her, and her pores are smaller than yours and she just doesn't sweat as efficiently as you do. I have ryden in 106 for 4 hours completely closed up and kept pretty cool. Certainly I had no symptoms of heat sickness at all. Oh and drink at least a liter of water ( and only water ) for every hour on the road.

So key temperature is 99 degrees, below that temp open up ( but keep fully covered no tank tops, flip flops, cutoffs etc. Above 99 close up and lock in that cool 98.6. BTW if you are just taking a quick jaunt to the grocery store.........wear whatever you want!

This is completely wrong and dangerous mis-information.

You want your sweat to evaporate as quickly as possible. Its the evaporation that cools your body. 105 deg air at 30% relative humidity blowing over a wet surface that is 98.6 will drop the surface temp well below 80 deg. If you are hot, you want your skin covered from sun exposure but as much ventilation as is possible to evaporate your sweat (unless you get too cold).

[spyderyderjim]

Originally Posted by Pirate looks at --
Great post Ann. People don't understand the laws of Thermodynamics. Heat will always try to find a balance and transfer from the warmer surface to the cooler surface. If it is over 99 degrees outside, you want to keep your 98.6 inside and away from the 102 outside. You will remain cooler by zipping up all vents and even closing the vents on your helmet. Keep the 98.6 inside and you will be cooler. I tested this coming home from Valcourt. Drove 200 miles across South Dakota in 102 degrees. I closed up everything and remained cool throughout. Once you jump out there in your shorts you will dehydrate and go into heat sickness very fast. So if you are going to the grocery store you can wear what you want, but for me, I am going to remain covered like those cool, calm collected BMW ryders.....and the long, tall cool one....Ann Myers!



I'd sure like to pursue this topic a little more. My wife and I took a ride yesterday in 96 degree weather. She was wearing her First Gear Hypertex jacket and I was wearing my mid-weight Olympia jacket with the pocket vents open. We both have HJC IS MAX-II modular helmets with the vents open. I was pretty warm but not dangerously uncomfortable but Jane was miserably hot.

So, I'm looking into this again, because living in Utah, hot weather riding is a reality and for safety sake if nothing else it's important that we not get overheated when riding.

So, vents open or closed?
Dedicated hot-weather mesh jackets or not?
High tech evaporative vests with built-in water supply worth the money and bulk?

Thanks.

I use Tour Master Transition jacket but I have vents open to direct air flow to CoolVest.
I use CoolVest which keeps a cool core body temp for 2 1/2 hours, then put in back up CoolVest packets, (instead of using water soaked vest).
I have used CoolVest (like Military use overseas) with Tour Master Transition Jacket with vents open for many Hot summers in Arizona!!
https://www.glaciertek.com/sports/
(I use mesh jacket for short rydes around Tucson, Az).
LDComfort wickable long johns.
Everyone is different, this is what seems to work ok for me ryding F3S Spyder.
Jim

CoolVest IMG_3989.jpgCoolVest Tourmaster Transition jacket IMG_3992.jpgIMG_3994.jpg

[Easy Rider]

Shouldn't it have been: "To whom, are you addressing that comment?"

Yes probably.......without the comma.

Quote Bob, QUOTE.

[Easy Rider]

Table salt is sodium. Nothing else. I agree, too much salt/sodium is not good for you.

Actually salt is sodium chloride but you missed the point.

A sufficient concentration of salt in water WILL make you vomit.
Not that long ago, it was used as a treatment for some cases of poison ingestion.

And it still might be......if nothing else is readily available.

[Easy Rider]

You want your sweat to evaporate as quickly as possible.

Well it is possible for it to disappear TOO fast.
If the wind is SO strong that your skin dries out (sweat evaporates almost before it appears), that isn't good either.

[Arion]

My wife and I use full mesh jackets with armor in the key areas, and combine that with cooling vests, which are a quilted vest that is made to soak up a lot of water. We have ridden in 100+ degree weather for hours at a time and kept cool enough to keep riding. or last big ride of 2,600 miles in nine days found us in Hell's Canyon at 104 degrees and we managed alright. I don't enjoy riding in that kind of temperatures but with the cooling vest we can. They last about two hours until we need to re-soak them down.

What easysuper said - except for the Hell's Canyon bit (doesn't sound very pleasant at all).

[Arion]

¿Qué?

[Bob Denman]

Well it is possible for it to disappear TOO fast.
If the wind is SO strong that your skin dries out (sweat evaporates almost before it appears), that isn't good either.

You'd almost have to be in a sharknado...
You can always soak down a Tee-Shirt, and let the heat and airflow chew on that for a while.

[Lew L]

Can you post a picture of what you did to improve helmet ventilation? I might want to try that.

A small piece of foam in the winter keeps out the cold. Still easily fits in the frunk. Not pretty but not fugly either.

But the most effective thing for helmet ventilation behind a fully upright screen is a VENT.

Kaos

[Lew L]

Did you still want that picture you asked for??



See the above post.

[UtahPete]

Did you still want that picture you asked for?? See the above post.

Yes, got it thanks. I'll have to try that out.

[rtotten]

My wife and I bought the Veskimo Cooling Vest + 9 Qt Cooler = Complete Personal Cooling System, as we live in North Las Vegas. Lastweekend we tried them out by going to the Nevada State Park called Valley of Fire!!! It got up to 106 degrees. As long as we had ice, we were nice and cool. We highly recommend them!

http://www.veskimo.com/personal-cool...em-9quart.html

[jcthorne]

My wife and I bought the Veskimo Cooling Vest + 9 Qt Cooler = Complete Personal Cooling System, as we live in North Las Vegas. Lastweekend we tried them out by going to the Nevada State Park called Valley of Fire!!! It got up to 106 degrees. As long as we had ice, we were nice and cool. We highly recommend them!

http://www.veskimo.com/personal-cool...em-9quart.html

I have one to sell if anyone wants it. They do work well, I just decided it was too much trouble and stick with a simple cooling vest and lots of water.

Full kit including variable speed controller. $350 shipped.

[rtotten]

I'll take it it for my son.

[Fat Baxter]

I live in south central Alabama and can talk to riding in high temps and high humidity.

In hot weather, I used to wear a Draggin' Jeans Kevlar mesh shirt over a cotton t-shirt. I now have a Joe Rocket Phoenix 5.0 mesh jacket (not the Phoenix Ion that most shops now sell; those actually flow less air). I find that cotton t-shirts are more comfortable than polyester Under-Armor type shirts; the latter don't seem (to me) to absorb and hold perspiration, and at the end of a ride I feel kinda greasy. Not so with cotton. Admittedly, this is my personal opinion; others vote for the plastic stuff. If it's really hot, like close to 100, I wear a long-sleeved cotton t-shirt and forgo the mesh jacket protection. I figure it's a necessary trade-off against the heat.

I usually wear Kevlar-reinforced riding jeans because they transpire better than Cordura-type pants. Cotton transpires better.

Color is very important! Don't wear a dark-colored clothing. Dark colors absorb more radiation from the sun and you'll heat up. Ambient air temperature can be amplified by solar radiation. Gloves fall into this area too; I wear natural tan-colored deerskin gloves ($20-$30 at Tractor Supply) and they are noticeably cooler than black gloves. Big difference! Also, wear a white helmet; dark helmets will toast your noggin.

I've not found soakable cooling vests or neckwraps to work very well down here. I won a cooling vest at a rally and tried it, but it only cools for about 1/2 hour, after which I have to stop and soak it again. PITA if you're trying to cover distance. Neckwraps don't even last that long, once it warms up to ambient temperature, it feels like you're wearing a warm wet fish around your throat. No thanks.

How fast you're moving is a major factor. Open road, OK. But get into slower in-town traffic, and the reduced air flow is noticeable. Try to plan your ride around in-town rush hour traffic.

Interstates are MUCH hotter than two-lane roads. All that asphalt absorbs the sun's radiation and dumps it back on you. I've noticed on my bike's thermometer as much as five degrees difference on a hot day. Stick to back roads; the scenery's better. Use the Interstate only if you absolutely need to make time.

A previous poster said he was adequately cool, but his wife was miserable. That's probably because you're blocking airflow to her. Not sure what you can do about that.

Yeah, staying hydrated is important. I carry a water bottle and suck it dry quickly. In the afternoon, not only does the heat hit max, the food coma from your lunch gut-bomb will also start to kick in -- that compounds the tendency to zone out. If that starts happening, chug some water. Gatorade does work down here; I don't care about the sugar content, as I see it I could use the extra energy. One tidbit I stumbled on to: those little bottles of 5-Hour energy drink really work to counteract the tendency to zone out. You will still get thirsty (dry mouth), but the food coma is averted. Good for the afternoon portion of a day-long ride. If I plan to be home by 5 PM, I'll take it around noon. Really, REALLY works! (someone with a medical background will probably flame me for that suggestion, but it works for me.)

What I'd really like to find is a Camelback bite piece that will slip under a full-face helmet (my Arai helmet is pretty snug). Then I could sip as I go. Other than moving to a 3/4 helmet (Shoei J-Cruise or Arai CTX), anyone have any suggestions here?

[UtahPete]

A previous poster said he was adequately cool, but his wife was miserable. That's probably because you're blocking airflow to her. Not sure what you can do about that.

My wife was riding her own Spyder, not behind me as a passenger.

[Fat Baxter]

My wife was riding her own Spyder, not behind me as a passenger.

Sorry, missed that.

[Easy Rider]

Use the Interstate only if you absolutely need to make time.

OR.....when going through major cities.

I like US 41 from Illinois to Florida.....BUT I learned on my first trip to jump on the Interstate when going through Nashville and Chattanooga.
I was having a lovely trip through the countryside and then........almost DIED going from stop light to stop light in the city.

Excellent post.

[UtahPete]

Sorry, missed that.

No problem. I thought the rest of your post was pretty much on the mark.

[Rogue Hawk]

I have heard riding in places like Arizona in the summer is like this. Personally, I prefer riding in the cold because I have more control over what I wear for temperature control.

[ABQSpyder]

I have heard riding in places like Arizona in the summer is like this. Personally, I prefer riding in the cold because I have more control over what I wear for temperature control.

Yes it's a dry heat in that it will dry you completely out in no time at all. Ride early and be home by noon! You break down out here in the Desert you could be in big trouble waiting for help.