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

Yesterday I had my monthly Range Safety Officer duty day and the temp was about 104 degrees give or take a degree. We had a good wind blowing which helped some and I was really surprised as we had 6 to 8 shooters all the time! I am not sure who was crazier, them or us RSO's? When I was in the Navy there were times when the engine rooms would get to 100 degrees but that was rare. Once I retired and did bike races or runs if the temps were over 90 degrees I would usually pass.

What kind of temps do you guys see and how to handle it?

Summer highs can hit low to mid 90s with about the same percentage humidity... LOTS of water, do things early in the morning or late in the afternoon/early evening.

I reserve getting up into my attic for any reason (usually running phone/network/cable lines) until the few truly cold (20-25F) winter days we get...

Since my SCI my body no longer perspires normally if at all so over heating is a constant concern. In summer I can do an hour or maaaaybe 1.5 in the sun then I'm done. Even if I wear an evap vest but I hate that sucker. I'll soak my cap and get evap that way. But if it's over 90 then I just grab a book and sit under the brolly. In the shade I can go longer but it's not a good idea.

Did my time working on parapeted roofs and attics in summer as an HVAC installer (+100 degrees in the summer.)

If it is over 90 I just don't flipping go outdoors.

I dressed like a British colonial overseer. Long khaki pants, long sleeve khaki shirt. Wide brimmed hat.

If you get the right brand the breeze goes right through it.




But eventually I got the hell out of California.

I can hack it for a while. It gets HOT here in the summer. July and August often have 100+ days. The yard has to be mowed, and the Bermuda grass LOVES hot weather more than anything. If it is stupid hot I wet down a cool towel and throw that over my shoulders. And drink LOTS of water, 5 or 6 bottles of water in an hour is easy. I stop and wet down my head and face and suck down some water and get back out in it.

Back in 2011 I was at Roebling Road track for a track day in August. To say it was hot is a major understatement. It was 98 degrees and 90+ humidity. I was sucking down water like crazy, and sweating buckets but all it did was make me wet. I was real happy to have a rear engine car on track. At least that heat was not blowing on me. Sitting in the car with a helmet on waiting for the signal to roll out for the session was brutal. I can't imagine how real race drivers do it in a real race car.

It was almost surreal at Laguna Secca. In the middle of the track day I was in a garage and got cold and had to go stand in the sun. A track day where the high for the day is 68 was just not right, but I was happy to adjust. :cool:

My sweat glands get flushed out real thoroughly when it is hot. I don't just sweat, I spew sweat.

After I get a shower and cool off for a few minutes I am fine.

We had our house re-roofed a few years back. The company hired a team of Mexicans and they were hustling. It was a 100 degree day and they were on the roof. They showed up just after dawn and worked until it was DARK. I had all the outside lights on so they could see to put the stuff away. They finished up the next morning. They worked like machines and they earned their paycheck for sure. No way could I ever kept up with that level of work in that heat for a full day.

1984 Formula 1 Dallas Grand Prix on July 8 of that year was the hottest. Goodyear says track temperatures in excess of 154F are the highest they had ever recorded. We almost burned up.


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Southern born and bred, I think it might be in my DNA...up to a point :). It's all about acclimation, even for me....and I don't push it like I did 30 years ago. Then I could play b-ball in FL, outside on blacktop, in the hottest part of the day, or beach volleyball on sand so hot it could blister yer feet if you weren't careful. A couple of years ago, I had some storm damage to clear....running chainsaws in 90+ temps and humidity....worked my way up to it though. Water...it's a given....I sweat in 20 degrees if I'm doing physical stuff....oh well :)

Fresno, California is typically over 100 for much of the summer. It seems to tease us with 80's up to 90, which seems miserable and then it drops to 85 and that seems great. Then up to 95, which seems miserable and then drops to 90 and that seems great. Eventually it's over 100 and we are pretty much used to it and the humidity will have finally dropped to 30% or so.

When it gets the hottest, 105-112, it's miserable but everyone here has air conditioning and so it's easy to stay comfortable (except the utility bills).

Our nights are the best! You can cruise around at midnight, with all the windows down and it will be 75 degrees and very comfortable. Great convertable weather but I would not recommend the top down on a hot summer day - just nights.

My personal experience is that I'm usually at work during the hottest part of the day and wishing I had a jacket in my office to combat the A/C.

i grew up in El Paso..did yard work..and manual labor growing up to pay for beer.

i remember heat so intense it would make me shiver..seriously. i acclimated. Now? i keep it in mind as well..start off slow. once i'm used to the heat, i am like a day-laborer. i can go and go. just need to pour lots of water into me. some of my current jobs puts me in oppressive heat. we had a rebar guy pass out a few months ago. caused a work stoppage, and mandatory safety meeting. the guy went to the doctor.

some of my early season bow hunts are brutal. now i dont go often, since meat spoilage is the real issue.

In my 20's and 30's I thrived in hot weather. As a road cyclist I came alive when others were dropping like stones from the heat (100+F). Now in my 50's I fatigue quickly once it's over 95F. During the hottest months here (Aug-Oct) I work more from the corporate office for the free AC.

I have never gotten along with cold weather. Below 50F and I'm miserable all the time.

Air conditioning. :). It's not that bad around here but we routinely have 90F+ temps and dew points in the mid 70s. For me, it's all about the dew point. If it's ~65F or less, it doesn't really matter the temp - it's comfortable. Anything 72F or higher and it doesn't matter what the temp is - it's uncomfortable.

Same here.. I HATE cold weather. But my heat tolerance depends on the humidity.. I was in Chico, Ca. yesterday and had a jacket on at 74 degrees last night. Almost no humidity and it was chilly! In the south, it's a much different feel, but either way, I will take 90 over 50 any day!!

Tidybuoy(Vern), I mostly lived in Fresno from the mid '50s to the mid '60s. I remember those wonderful, spectacularly balmy Fresno nights to this day. One of the best things about that town. I also remember specifically in 1959 a period of a week straight it didn't drop below 105 during the day. As a younger person I thrived in the heat too. At younger ages, hot weather felt warn & toasty. At an older age hot weather feels hot & burning. At times when I'm working outside in temps above 90, I've gotten shortness of breath and blood pressure dropping as low as 70/50. The doctor says it's from dehydration, but I always make sure to hydrate. Strange situation that happens infrequently. Now days I dial it back on hot days.

"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.

"Slip Slop Slap"

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We live in the desert, so it's hot....very hot. We hit 126 this past July with a low of 101.

A/C ran 24 hours for 4 months and the electric bill was 500+ every month.

The workers, roofers, landscapers etc never stop and they wear long sleeve hooded sweatshirts and huge straw hats.

Can't wait to move away from here!

I enjoy bike rides in 90+ degree weather. did a charity ride two years ago and the heat index was over 100. I manage it by staying very well hydrated and keeping heart rate at or under about 155.

I don't.

Hate the heat.

Love the cold, it's invigorating, makes me feel alive.

I am like Dave, as a road cyclist, I like the heat. We used to go out in 100 degrees during those so cal summer months and put in 60-70 miles of head riding. About 10 years ago,, I started riding again and discovered the heat doesn't really bother me until its over 105. As long as I get going, then I am ok. I like foul weather riding because I know the other guys are hurting just as much or more. Now, if I had to stand under that hot sun in 95 degree heat without a hat (still have a full head of hair, thank goodness) I will be hating life. My body has gotten used to riding in the heat, but anything else, I am fooked under those temps.

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.........

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.

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.

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. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1509078084.jpg

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. :cool:

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.

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.

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.

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

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!"

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.

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...

http://store.haloheadband.com/v/vspf...otos/SOL-2.jpg

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 :)

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

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.

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? :confused:

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.