 |
|
|
|
|
|
Not a member? Join Today to see why so many say they are Proud to be a Venturer!
|
|
| Hot Weather Riding Tips |
|
Author: Safety Coordinator Views: 6503 Votes: 3 |
|
Something on the timely side, for everyone, but especially for those hardly souls riding across the prairie to the Colorado Ride-In. Curt Venturer Safety Coordinator The following is a compilation of information from various sources (web, print, and personal experience). These are tips (things that have worked for other riders and for myself), and therefore I’m not responsible if these tips don’t work for you, or for any medical conditions that may arise by following or not following these tips. HOT WEATHER RIDING 1. The Rider/Co-Rider – clothing and keeping cool a. It’s better to “dress up” than “dress down” in hot weather. Why? i. Prevent serious sunburn ii. Reduce water loss through evaporation iii. Create a cooling area around your body b. The new style mesh riding jackets (and in some cases, trousers) are great in hot weather riding. They provide “get off’ protection (most have body armor), and provide the opportunity for body cooling. One thing they don’t do is provide complete protection from the sun – you still should wear sunscreen where there’s no liner between the skin and the mesh. How do these jackets (and trousers) provide the opportunity for body cooling? i. While protecting body, the mesh lets air pass through ii. If you soak your riding shirt in water and then put the jacket on over the wet shirt, you have an “air conditioner” – air passing through the mesh and then through the wet shirt will be cool on your skin. iii. If you don’t want to do the wet shirt, the mesh jacket allows you to place ice packs between the jacket and your clothing. The ice packs as they melt provide cool air around them, air passing through the mesh and through to your body will also be cooled. c. Full body riding suits (i.e., Aerostich) while not mesh, do let air pass though and will work in much the same manner as the mesh jacket. d. If you don’t want to invest in a mesh jacket or full body riding suit, there are alternatives to stay cool. i. Wear light color long sleeve cotton shirts. The long sleeves provide more surface to cool your body and also protect more of your body from sunburn. You’ll actually stay cooler in a long sleeve shirt than in a short sleeve shirt. You can also soak the shirt in water just before you ride and it will act as a natural air conditioner – when it dries out it’s time to stop and soak it in water again. ii. Wear light color trousers iii. Wear light color helmet (I really like my black Shoei full-face, but even though it’s a ¾ helmet I stay cooler wearing my silver Nolan N-40). If you prefer a full-face helmet over a ¾ or ½ helmet, chances are you’ll actually stay cooler riding with the visor closed (and vents open) than with just your sunglasses and face exposed to the air. iv. Wear a helmet liner (e.g., Sliks). Not only will the helmet liner help with “helmet itch”, but you can soak the helmet liner in cold water and provide a natural air conditioner for your noggin’. Just remember to have the vents open on your helmet. v. Wear a light color bandana around your neck. The bandana will provide protection from the sun and also provide another opportunity for natural air conditioning – simply soak the bandana in cold water and tie it around your neck. If it gets really hot, or windy and dusty you can also pull the bandana up over your face for protection (this also works if you’re running short on cash). vi. Wear gloves that both protect and allow for cooling of your hands. I’ve found over the years if my hands get hot, the rest of me is miserable, but I’d rather have gloves on than no gloves at all. I wear leather summer riding gloves from Olympia, but other gloves that work well are mountain biking gloves (your local sports store, Wally World, etc) or the lightweight mechanic’s gloves from Mechanix. vii. Running/walking shoes are comfortable, and may be cooler when stopped, but they don’t protect your ankles. Wear footwear that will protect your ankles and provide some cooling (on the RSV this isn’t always an easy thing in the summer). Personally I like my summer jump boots (sometimes known as SWAT or assault boots) that have leather around the foot and a close weave mesh from the ankle up – great protection, but still provide some cooling. viii. Put a light color towel on your seat to provide some “breathing” space between your seat and your backside. Also when you have the bike parked (and in the sun), leave the towel in place to help keep the seat cool. 2. The Rider/Co-Rider – Dehydration, or better yet, staying hydrated a. Dehydration. Dehydration is very serious, but it can be prevented. What are the signs of dehydration? i. Less frequent urination. Urine passed will be less in volume and darker in color. ii. Fatigue iii. Headache iv. Dizziness v. Cramps b. Hydration – DRINK LOTS OF FLUIDS! This is probably, no it is, the most important thing you can do to protect yourself in hot weather. Good ol’ water is the best, but sport drinks (e.g., Gatorade) are good too. i. Start your ride well-hydrated. Drink at least a quart of water or sports drink before starting your ride. Might be hard to believe, but drinking more in hot weather doesn’t mean you’ll have to stop more often. Fluid loss can top a gallon an hour in extremely hot weather; take in at least a quart of fluids every hour. If you’re taking in lots of fluids but don’t have to urinate every hour, there’s a pretty good chance you’re getting dehydrated – besides taking a break and getting something to drink, the best thing to do is increase the amount of fluids you’re taking in. ii. Carry a good supply of water or sports drinks with you for yourself and your Co-Rider. Drink the water often – don’t wait until you stop for another drink, drink it on the move if at all possible. Keep your empty bottles and fill them up at your next stop. iii. Consider a personal hydration system (e.g., Platypus); you can pick these up at most sporting goods stores or bicycle shops. They’re available in numerous sizes from one quart up to a gallon. Most (the water bag) can be placed on your handlebars, tank, or luggage rack, and typically have a hose long enough that both you and your Co-Rider could use it. A tip I found on another website suggests wrapping the water bag in a water soak towel and placing in a spot on the bike where air will pass over the towel and provide cooling to the water bag and its contents. Something that I found useful as an additional cooling tool is to simply squeeze the end of hose and let the water spray on my neck, face, or arms – instant cooling. iv. Remember you lose salt through perspiration and it may be necessary to replenish the salt in your body. A couple of things work well 1. Sport drinks (my personal favorite--I drink enough GatorAde or PowerAde in the summertime I should have stock in Pepsi and Coke) 2. Salt tablets 3. Or the old standby, salt dissolved in water. v. STAY AWAY FROM CAFFEINE & ALCOHOL! Both will suck the fluids right out of you. A cup of coffee in the morning with breakfast is okay, but try to keep it one. If you can, switch to decaf while on a road trip. Also stay away from other sources of caffeine such as soft drinks, and I’m sorry folks, chocolate. If you need sugar, find something without caffeine. Save these treats (soft drinks, chocolate, alcohol) for the evening after the riding is done. 3. The Rider/Co-Rider – other tips. a. Know the signs of heat exhaustion (profuse sweating, dizziness, flushed face, weakness, cramps) and heat stroke (no sweating, pale face, shallow respiration, collapse). Riders and co-riders should watch themselves and others for these signs. At the first signs, find a cool place and cool the rider/co-rider down as quickly as possible. If it’s heat stroke, seek emergency medical help. b. Prevent sunburn. The best protection is to have your skin covered, but that’s not always possible. So, where skin is exposed (and in some cases not exposed—you can still burn even though some fabrics) put on the highest SPF (Sun Protection Factor) sunscreen you can get your hands on. Pay special attention to the danger areas – between the sleeve and gloves, the back of your neck, your throat, the “V” if you jacket is undone, and your face, especially your nose. NOTE: Even if you’re wearing a full-face helmet, I highly recommend you still apply sunscreen to your face. c. Prevent fatigue. Stop frequently to rest, stretch, move around, drink water/sports drinks, and cool down. It’s better to take a bunch of breaks and arrive, than to press on through and maybe not arrive it at all. d. Pick your riding times. Try to be up early and on the road to ride when it’s coolest. The hottest time of day is actually mid to late afternoon. If you can get your mileage in before the hottest time of the day do it, otherwise try to split your day up and take a break, and then ride again in the evening when its cooled down a little. NOTE: If riding early morning or late evening, watch out for critters – these are the times they like to move about. e. Anytime of year it’s always good to get out from behind any vehicle you can’t see through (tractor-trailer, van, etc), but in hot weather it’s even more important. When you’re behind these types of vehicles there’s not much air flow – no air flow means HOT! Either back off and get yourself back where you’re in the air flow, or pass the vehicle and get into the “open” air. Also with this, the fairing and windscreen on your bike are great for keeping the bugs off and keeping the buffeting down so you don’t tire from that, but they also create a pocket of air that can and will get hot – occasionally lean out to the side or lift yourself up to get a little additional air flow to help keep you cool. 4. The motorcycle. Hot weather puts a strain on your motorcycle too. A couple of things to think about for hot weather riding. a. Cooling system. Is it topped off to where it should before you start the days ride? Coolant should be to at least the “Cold” line in your overflow tank. b. Oil. Even on a water cooled motorcycle the oil still does a portion of the engine cooling. To thin of oil in hot weather can lead to engine failure. Best bet is to go with the manufacturer’s recommended oil weight. When in doubt, my personal recommendation, run 20W50 in hot weather. c. Tires. I still recommend going with the tire manufacturer’s recommended pressures for your motorcycle and checking when the tire is cool, however there is something additional to remember with hot weather riding and tires – the air pressures build up quicker in hot weather than they do otherwise, which in turn elevates the chances for excessive tire wire. On a long trip, especially when carrying a co-rider and extra “stuff” and in some cases pulling a trailer, your tires are working pretty hard – much more than just rolling down the road. Just like your body, give your tires a little break and chance to cool. NOTE: If pulling a trailer, don’t forget your trailer tires! 5. The road. Most riders don’t even think about this one, but hot weather effects the roads you ride on as well. a. Be careful of the infamous “tar snake”. These lines of tar to seal cracks in the road surface can be as slippery as wet pavement and ice. If you hit one and you feel the bike move, don’t panic and don’t overcorrect the bike -- the tire will quit sliding as soon as it hits pavement again (which is almost instantaneous). After the first “slip,” slow yourself down. b. Blacktop road surfaces may “rut” (if not already from truck traffic) in hot weather. You have some choices – ride on top of the rut, ride in the rut, or move to the outside of the lane. If you’re pulling a trailer this might be a difficult choice to make, but I try to move (if in the right lane) to the right side of the lane near the shoulder. If the shoulder is paved you have someplace for the right trailer tire to ride, just watch for debris. c. Road surfaces will also come apart in hot weather due to the heat and heavy traffic. Be watchful for chunks of concrete or asphalt that may have come loose. d. Truck tire debris. Remember where earlier I said that your motorcycle tires work a little harder in hot weather, well so do truck tires. You’re going to see more truck debris in hot weather, so be careful of this debris as well.
Last update: 10:07 PM Sunday, July 31, 2005 |
| Related Articles: |
| All material on webpages under the domain venturers.org, is the property of The Venturers, Inc. These materials are protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. You may not reproduce or retransmit the materials, in whole or in part, in any manner, without the prior written consent of The Venturers, Inc. The free information contained herein is offered in the spirit of helping others and any action or advice taken from these pages is the sole responsibility of the receiver. |
