I will be doing my second track weekend @ Barber in July, my first was March, where it was cooler. My leathers are full perf, and I wear underarmor to help under them. Does anyone have any tips to keep cool? I will drink plenty of water, but just wondering if the veterans have any other tips to help in the nasty humidity July will surely bring!
Eat a banana in the morning for Potassium (orange juice is good also). Drink water when you get there in the morning you can only matabolize it so fast and once behind you are done. A fan is good if you have a generator. Something for shade (EZup). I realize if you are just getting going you might not have a lot of this but I hope it helps some.
OK, thanks. I have a FirstUp canopy already. I plan on getting power for the weekend, I thought I saw it is $50 for the weekend, is that correct? I plan on bringing multiple fans to plug in.
Soak back/chest protector - also if you have one a skull cap - in ice water right before you gearup for your session, wrap a soaked/cold towel around your neck cools the blood as it flow to your brain.
+1 to the washcloth/towel around the neck. I tend to leave mine in the icewater in my cooler while I'm out riding, then squeeze some of the water out over my head and down my back, drape it over my head or around my neck, stretch out in the reclining chair under the ezup with a high velocity fan blowing in my direction.
SUN SCREEN. I know it won't keep you cool, but there is nothign worse than getting burnt at lunch and then trying to put your leathers back on after... NOTHING. and just keep drinking. whether you feel like it or not. doesn't need to be cold water to be water. also, putting a cold beverage up against any major artery cools you down. I was holding frozen "rockstar" between my wrists on saturday. That was way smarter than drinking caffiene in the sun
actually if you can drink regular temperature water your body can absorb it much quicker then if it were cold.
Energy drink jitters So I thought I would get some energy and vitamins so I drank an energy drink...oops. My first 3 sessions I was so shaky I couldnt concentrate on my riding at ALL. A friend of mine drank gatorade all day and ended up very "unbalanced", I did the same thing but it was with water!! I think a balance is key. I am also going to start snacking between session. It will be difficult in the heat but I think it will keep my body normalized. OK, maybe this wasnt about keeping cool but thought you should know.
Close enough. Plenty of water, morning banana, dried fruit 'tropical medley", and a little gatorade kept the leg cramps away this time which is progress. The heat still sapped me though.
Try the gel packs for added electrolytes. They don't fill you up and are a good add to plain water. Sit down between sessions, take your leather top off or down, and the cool rag is awesome. Extra fan is good as well. One for you and one for the bike.
I just recently learned about submerging your forearms in cool water for about 20 minutes (stick 'em in the cooler!). This apparently works better than the cool towel around the next because of the greater surface area in contact with the cool water. I'll be testing the theory this Sunday in Homestead. I'm a big wuss when it comes to the heat, so I'll make a good guinea pig. I'll give you an update once the testing is done
If you can get your hands on one get an EMT cooling vest (I may be wrong on the item name). It looks like a normal body armor vest, but it has gel (sometimes water) packs in it. You can put it in the freezer, frige or cooler. I got one a while back and use it, when I remember to bring it, and it is SIGNIFICANTLY better than any other option. It covers the core and reduces your temp alot faster.