Working or playing in the heat....how do you?

[icemann427]

A lot of water...And keep ahead of the curve. I live in the desert and am used to the heat but without enough water I will tire fairly quickly.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by John Rogers

When I was road racing the heat never bothered me either. I guess it was the engine room heat. I remember coming out of the "hole" and going to the Chief's mess with my foul weather jacket on because it was 70 degrees in there. When I was racing very few people wore helmets and if they did they were the leather ones. Then our club got sponsored by a helmet named "Skid-Lid" which was to protect the temple and sides of your head. Then the foam and hard shell came along and I always drilled some holes in the top to pour water in!

Now I enjoy those heated blankets you get when in the hospital.........

I remember Skidlid. I started riding seriously back in 1983, Some guys were wearing Hairnets but they were on their way out. Helmets were a USCF requirement when I started racing a year after that.

I think your body gets used to the heat after sometime. I suffered a little when I started riding again. It took a couple months for my body to adjust to the heat and kept going because I have the experience of doing it in those conditions and remember it and know how to deal with it whereas new riders who's done none of the major suffering in those conditions normally don't do so well when they start this sport at an older age.

I remember spending a couple of months in Asia in my younger days bumming around some of those countries goofing off. The first week or two, it was Africa hot and humid. It was difficult to be comfortable no matter how many shower I took. After three weeks, I felt fine and would hop on and off the city buses, go places where the normal tourists do not frequent and no longer feel the heat and the humidity.

[Craig T]

I love the heat and would take activity in the heat over cold any day. Tuesday, at 107, I played 27 holes of golf at Moorpark Country Club and the course was deserted. Finished 18 in less than 3 hours. Yesterday, at 105, I trimmed a bunch of avocado trees. I'm just better suited for the heat. I HATE being cold.

This pic was in the shade at my house Tuesday in Ventura Co. It broke the previous record by 12 degrees.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by sc_rufctr

"We" stay out of the sun and hide inside during the hottest part of the day.
Surfing/Swimming? I only do that either early mornings or late in the afternoon.

The sun is truly brutal down here. You can get burnt in as little as 15 minutes at the height of Summer.

Same here in Los Angeles. The sun is very powerful and the difference between being in the sun or shade is huge on a hot day. I am fair-skinned and just can't take much sun anymore.

Searching for and managing shade is a large part of my outdoor life these days. It's funny because if you are in a cold, cloudy place, you crave the sun. Here, it's almost always sunny and the sun needs to be respected. It can hurt you.

[Arizona_928]

Drink a **** ton of water. Cover the ole skin with loose long sleeve, and a nice long rice patty hat.
Well maybe not the rice patty hat.


Know the signs of heat stroke/exhaustion. Ie. Watch out for sudden stop of sweating. You'll die. Have a buddy know how to ice sheet you just in case.

[red-beard]

I sweat

In Houston, the issue is Humidity. Bicycling year-round, my body became used to sweating. Fabrics that wick and cool.

Lycra and Dri-fit clothing.

[T77911S]

I use to race bicycles done here in the south. did one race at night and it was 95degress.
I pretty much road everyday no matter how hot it was. I might do 80 miles on a Saturday morning then come home and cut the grass with a push mower,
you get use to it.
we did one ride, in the morning, and after I was talking to a friend and his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he passed out. scared me to death.

now? at 50 and no more biking I HATE it.
now If I work outside I go out in the mid morning, sweat like a pig, come in and shower and eat lunch. then maybe a nap or I will go back to work, come in and shower again.

[red-beard]

And hydrate hydrate hydrate. Drink BEFORE you are thirsty! And mix in "Lite Salt".

[Baz]

Most here know that I am a landscape and irrigation contractor and as such, most of my work is done outdoors.

Like many here.....when I was younger (and more bulletproof) I could handle extreme temps, including heat, so much better than in my golden years (I'm 63 now).

But the positive side of this is as one gets older...one gets wiser....and one develops strategies.....which is the point of this thread, obviously.

My strategies in handling heat (and humidity - a huge factor here in Florida) is to always bring liquids with you, wear a large straw hat, do work in moderation - taking breaks whenever the need arises, and lastly....scheduling work to take the most advantage of sun positioning and ambient temps.

My philosophy is to forget about using a conventional 8 hour day....aka start at 7 and finish at 3, etc.....we start whenever it suits survival the most and work at whatever pace and hours makes the most sense. Sometimes I will schedule work around where the shade is going to be along side a structure. Work on the west side in the morning....the east side in the afternoon. I also like to scout out where the shady areas are (if any) on a job site and use those for where I park my vehicle and where I keep my tools and equipment.

And another strategy I use is to take breaks when the need arises inside my truck with ac on.....just to get my head temp back down a little. And (Fast Fred would be proud of me) as much as possible I go home for lunch and use that time to get body temp back down - take a shower - change clothes - re-group as necessary.

I've also learned that anytime you can use a piece of equipment to save hand labor - whatever the cost is - it's worth every penny. Especially if you price the job right - it's really the way to go.

And lastly....I'm more reluctant to take on a heavy workload during our warm season. As owner of the business....I can pick and choose which jobs i take. Fortunately I have very low overhead, which allows for much flexibility. It's been quite a learning curve adopting the philosophy of regulating work load - I think I turned down more work this past year than ever before - but looking back on it - it really helped make life more enjoyable - especially given the extremes we face here in Florida in the warm season.

My favourite saying....which covers pretty much everything....."I'm in survival mode!"

[Tobra]

I do pretty well in the heat. Plenty of water and a big straw hat if I have to be outside. Typically avoid being out at mid day. For outdoor work, start at first light and knock off when it hits 95-100, which can be pretty early some days. As James says, it is not the heat so much as the humidity.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by Tobra

For outdoor work, start at first light and knock off when it hits 95-100, which can be pretty early some days.

That can be 10AM around here. These days, I have more issues with sun than heat. I wear a Halo headband with a neck cover.

The Halo has a little rubber dam in the front, to keep sweat out of your eyes. And the "Solar" has the neck cover. This is really good for the follicle-challenged...

[KFC911]

I'm sure you guys in TX know what I'm talkin' about, not sure Baz does, living at the beach....west of the ICW is a different beast...humidity . I'm talkin' open the front door at 6am, take your breath away crap....
It's just not fair for visiting teams to play in "the swamp" during Sept. . I remember the hottest day I've personally experienced...107 in Kansas....refreshing after the dawg daze of summer in the south. Now that schit I see on the news in southwest....no thanks...my oven is a dry heat too

[red-beard]

Nothing quite like a 77F dew-point in the morning...

[onewhippedpuppy]

Love it, it's the winters that I hate. My favorite leisure activity is boating, which obviously requires heat. I also am fairly unfazed when it comes to working outside in the summer.

BTW, you west coast guys complaining about heat....you don't know heat. I was in Phoenix last week, it was 97 and felt like 80 does here in KS. Heat plus humidity is when things really get miserable.

[74-911]

Originally Posted by red-beard

Nothing quite like a 77F dew-point in the morning...

True dat....

In my 70+ years in the great state of TX I've lived in the panhandle (Lubbock), central TX (Abilene area), hill country (San Antonio), coastal bend (Rockport, Port A) and now in the Houston area.... and I agree with Red, Houston is hands down the worst heat wise. The humidity here is unbelievable at times (way to much of the time).

Only caveat is the last few years the heat/humidity definitely bothers me more than it used to - could be due to the ageing process?

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by 74-911

True dat...

Only caveat is the last few years the heat/humidity definitely bothers me more than it used to - could be due to the ageing process?

Probably both . I lived outside for decades, working, playing, fishing, etc. wearing nothing but shorts and shades....seeking out the sun.
I now work in the shade, but humidity don't care . It works both ways too...cold + humidity = COLD.