Staying Cool in summer heat

[Sky King]

Hi Everyone,
Was reading a post on travelingtwo.com yesterday about staying cool when riding in the heat. Thought I'd throw this out and see what everyone does. They tend to soak their Jersey or Shirt with water. Realize not everyone wants to ride dripping wet. I always carry a bandana and will soak that and tie it around my neck. I do own one of the bandanas with the gel inside that will swell up and stay cool but it is heavy when wet so I save that for backpacking.

If I am riding hills and a creek or lake are nearby I have no qualms about dunking my head in the water. If I am riding from my house, I will get my head wet before I put on my helmet. I don't carry a camel back and tend to keep my water bottles for drinking so won't soak with them unless I know I can refresh the bottle.

What do you do?

[OakLeaf]

I haven't had good luck with the bandannas. They're too thick and actually insulate my neck. But I recently read that even when they do "work" - when they cool the neck - they trick the body into thinking it's cooler than it really is, which seems to me it could be dangerous.

I make sure I have one bottle of plain water that I can pour over myself - back and thighs seem to make the most difference. I will wear a hydration pack if I know I'm going to be a long way between water stops (this usually only happens on organized rides), but generally don't.

I have an evaporative cooling vest that has literally saved my life more than once on the moto, but haven't tried it at bici speeds yet. I don't want to be stuck carrying the thing if it doesn't work or makes things worse the way the bandannas do for me. I'll probably try it out at zero speed (gardening) in the next few days.


...

not everyone wants to ride dripping wet

I'm dripping wet ANYWAY. Pouring water over myself means I'm dripping with air temperature (or slightly cooler) water rather than body/sun temperature sweat.

Some people freeze their water bottles. I don't bother, since by the time I've been out long enough to want the chill, they're air temperature anyway. I don't use insulated bottles because I don't want to have to clean them. Running in the heat I do put a lot of ice in my pack.

[Sky King]

I probably should have prefaced this with a note that we have basically zero humidity in the high desert of Idaho ~ I will have to research you vest, that sounds interesting. I have been ditching the bike jersey and riding in my L/S sun shirt. Mine is cotton (gasp) but I find it super comfortable and I can get it wet and it still is lightweight and not sticky

[maillotpois]

Ice in the sports bra, shorts, wherever you can put it.

[OakLeaf]

I will have to research you vest, that sounds interesting.

I have a unisex TechNiche vest. Since I got mine, they now have them in women's sizes and even in styles for bicyclists and runners, with hi-viz accents and side ventilation panels.

Unisex ones, in a variety of brands, are widely available now at moto shops and industrial supply houses. You might still have to order one of the other ones (or even better, talk your LBS into stocking them).


ETA - TechNiche sponsors Team Saxobank Sungard

[Veronica]

I don't use insulated bottles because I don't want to have to clean them.

Dishwasher? I don't care what the manufacturer says - mine go through the dishwasher.

I freeze my insulated bottles and they will stay cold for quite awhile. I have some that I put nothing but water in and some that are for my drink of the week - Gu Brew or Heed.

Camelbak has the Podium Ice Bottle which is the bottle I take back and forth to work. If it is fully frozen in the morning, I still have cold water at the end of the work day.

I have started fully covering my upper body when I ride or run. DeSoto's arm coolers and bike jersey really do seem to keep you cooler when you are moving. I have to resist the urge to pull off the sleeves when I stop.

For running I've been wearing some long sleeve tops that I got from Athleta. I did an afternoon run while in Glacier, about 85 degrees and humidity so low my mouth was completely dry after 1/2 a mile. The top worked great! Okay, so I practically lived in them for the last two weeks, hiking at Glacier and whitewater rafting Hell's Canyon.

Veronica

[OakLeaf]

Dishwasher?

You must have a better dishwasher than I do!

If it is fully frozen in the morning, I still have cold water at the end of the work day.

But at school, it's not in the hot sun the way it would be on the bike, right?

[Veronica]

No, the classroom temp is kept at 78. It keeps it cold longer in the classroom than the Polars do though. I'm waiting for my Polars to die so I can justify buying more. I have a whole cupboard full of Polars though.

I haven't tested it on the bike, so can't give numbers there. It's the bottle I leave in the car cooler so I have cold water AFTER the ride.

Veronica

[GLC1968]

My Polar bottles would keep water cool for about 2-3 hours on the bike in the NC summer heat. I fill the bottle 1/2 full, tip it partially on its side in the freezer (with no top on since the spout would freeze) overnight. The next day, I would fill it the remainder of the way with cold tap water (or fridge water) and that would keep cool for about 3 hours. It's almost too cold to drink for the first 30 minutes or so, so I'd usually only do this with one bottle and use the other one with just ice water.

I have also heard that the Podium bottles insulate better but I haven't tried them yet. Living where I do now, if it's ever too hot to ride, I just wait a day and it cools off.

I also like the DeSoto arm coolers (I have the Coolwings) here in Oregon quite a bit. I actually wear them in the garden as well because the white fabric is cooler than my brown arms without trapping heat like regular long sleeves can do. They did NOT work for me at all when I lived in NC though. I think it was because it was so fricken humid that the cooling effect was unnoticeable.

[Owlie]

I find soaking the sleeves and shoulders of my jersey to help enormously.

[nscrbug]

No, the classroom temp is kept at 78. It keeps it cold longer in the classroom than the Polars do though. I'm waiting for my Polars to die so I can justify buying more. I have a whole cupboard full of Polars though.

I haven't tested it on the bike, so can't give numbers there. It's the bottle I leave in the car cooler so I have cold water AFTER the ride.

Veronica

Well...I have a Podium Ice bottle and HAVE tested it on the bike in 90+ degree temps...guess what? It doesn't work. No big surprise there. I had it filled to the rim with ice and then topped it off with plain water. Within 30 minutes, the ice was completely melted and within 1 hour, the water was unrefreshingly warm. But it's the best of all the bottles I own, so I'll continue to use it until something better comes along. I've also tried freezing it overnight. This worked only slightly better, but the temps weren't in the 90's when I tried it that way. I'll freeze it for my Saturday morning ride and see how long it lasts.

[GLC1968]

I'll freeze it for my Saturday morning ride and see how long it lasts.

Yeah, I'll be curious to see if this works for you. Solid ice keeps frozen longer than cubes (less surface area), so it should help. I also just remembered that when I got the best results, I had a half frozen solid mass in there WITH ice cubes to the top and then filled in with fridge-cold water. Kind of a PITA, but better than drinking hot water.

[Veronica]

I usually freeze mine filled nearly to the top - maybe with an inch or less free to add water from the frig.

Veronica

[jlnc]

Veronica, the Hopkinton Athleta top you mentioned is so cute! Would you describe the fit as slim fitting? (I don't like my tops too snug.) Is the white see through?

[Sky King]

[/quote]I have started fully covering my upper body when I ride or run. DeSoto's arm coolers and bike jersey really do seem to keep you cooler when you are moving. I have to resist the urge to pull off the sleeves when I stop.

For running I've been wearing some long sleeve tops that I got from Athleta. I did an afternoon run while in Glacier, about 85 degrees and humidity so low my mouth was completely dry after 1/2 a mile. The top worked great! Okay, so I practically lived in them for the last two weeks, hiking at Glacier and whitewater rafting Hell's Canyon.

Veronica[/QUOTE]
oh man, that is a dangerous website, I think I want one of everything!