How to ride in HIGH HEAT!

jsirabella

Should one do more spinning in really low gears or slower spinning in higher gears?

All advice about the high heat we are having here in the USA would be helpful!

-john sirabella

jhuskey

You will need to pace yourself at a slower rate. I have tried in the past to exceed my limit and hit the wall in high heat and fell on my a**.
Slow down and hydrate as much as possible. Nobody can ride fast in the high temps.
You can ride the distance at a slower rate or ride at a higher rate at a shorter distance.You decide, and it also depends on your geography.
Climbing is hell in high heat.

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jsirabella

Thanks ... got a ride coming up from NY to Baltimore and they tell me the heat index next week can reach past 100 degrees!!! Slower rate it will be ... I have to cover more miles at night...got to finish in less than 2 full days...

-john sirabella

SaintAndrew

fill up a camelback with as much ice as you can. the colder the water you drink, the better.

buckybux

I actually go out intentionally during the hotest part of the day to get acclimated to the heat. I drink more, and I can not ride as fast. I also take more rests in the shade than normal.

Best to go in the morning if the objective is to put on the miles.

Eastway82

Wrong. Too cold and you can give yourself stomach cramps... Doesn't matter what temperature it is, just make sure there's lots of it (and concentrate on fully hydrating yourself over the previous couple of days before an event – few people actually drink enough water on a daily basis). Also, when you sweat you use a lot of salts and minerals - think about using a recovery/energy drink instead of plain water.

bladegeek

Where I ride it gets to be 100-105 without the heat index. I have to go slower and drink a lot of water and sports drinks. What I really notice is that is not that much harder to ride in the heat but the recovery takes my much longer. After a ride in the head I feel beat down much worse then on a cool day. After ride in the head I am done for the day.

jhodder

Good callout! Focus on the salt.... everything you consume should have sodium. Gels, bars, drinks, everything.

Two weeks ago I rode in 115+ temperatures (117 on my computer on Collier Canyon in the east Bay). My salt rings on my shorts and jersey merged and bacame a solid dusting of salt. I kept consuming sodium, and got back fine. Two others with me were drinking mostly water and had to phone their wives to come get them.

snaps10

we regularly get over 110 here, ride early this actually helps alot. wear sunscreen (lots of people forget this) no ice in your drink, room temp is best. minimum of 1 bottle per hour if its over 90. eat, at least once an hour, otherwise 2-3 gels an hour (if your stomach can handle gels in the heat.)

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hkcyclist

I live in Hong Kong and climb a 1.03 mile switchback at a 10.3 percent grade most of the way, with a few nasty patches of 11 maybe 12 percent. Climbing in the heat is awful -- I used to ride in South Florida, where heat was comparable, but the speeds always cooled you down. No such relief climbing at 5, 6 miles an hour. I'm doubly cursed cause I sweat a lot. Today I shed eight lbs. of fluid from a 2 and a half hour ride in the sun. Actually I prefer riding in the rain in summer here.

Anyway, to the point: I read on cyclingnews Q&A that one way to combat the heat is to acclimate properly. E.g., say the week before the trip, go without AC and get used to carrying a light sweat. No AC at night (I break this rule, but because I can't sleep without it). Apparently your body adapts, becoming more efficient at sweating. I believe it, after watching my body adjust when I moved to Florida.

Lonnie Utah

Sorry, but Andrew is right. The human body absorbs water through the body and into the system the best when it's a about 40-45 degs F. Not only that, the colder water also helps to lower your core tempature which also help preformance on warm days.



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jsirabella

I leaned the hard way and wish I posted a couple days earlier to get this info before the ride....the first day I did 110 miles from Rahway to past Wilmington Delaware...the heat was just unreal!! In Philly it must have been about 115...as each car passed the heat would just hit us in the face over and over again...I was drinking alot of water but I did not drink enough liquids with salt. I just kept drinking water and for some reason I had a coke since I never do and just could not get enough of it. On my most recent ride to Boston I wanted to drink less as I felt I always over drink and feel heavy in my stomach as it is just sitting there and slows me down...I screwed up bad because my rides last year I was drinking gatorade after gatorade but not for salt but for aminos. I had brought amino pills so though I could go mostly water...I forgot the salt. I never heard of salt rings and checked my hat and shorts and damn!! There are white streaks and when I taste it, salty as hell!! Damn me!!

My friend was getting the cramps during the ride...I was leading most of the way since we had a nasty headwind. We got to hotel, thinking all was ok. Stopped, started to change my cloths and my calves felt like spiders were crawling inside of them. The small cramps just would not stop. I would stretch and stretch and they would feel better but once I went to bed...it started all over again and I was worried about getting a bad charlie horse so did not get one stitch of sleep. I had to let mt friend down and tell him I am heading back...he took on the hills of Cecil County which are insane. Hill after Hill!! But he made it...I needed a ride back to NY!!

I will not forget this experience and not forget about salt, salt, salt. He even told me the night before to eat a few packets of salt...I was dumb!

-js