Miserable ride in heat

[mellofelow]

As much as I love commuting with the FZ to and from work, but this freakish heat wave today in 90+ was absolutely miserable. Mind you I'm in full mesh gear over business casual and a backpack with Laptop. On freeway may not be so bad but 18 miles in local traffic felt like a hot potato.

Oh yeah... I had the shield up to get some air but caught a bug in the eye going 50 mph... YUCK!!!

Sorry for the rant.

 

[nimzotech]

Aww don't feel bad. Consider yourself lucky it was not a bee.

 

[motodude]

As much as I love commuting with the FZ to and from work, but this freakish heat wave today in 90+ was absolutely miserable. Mind you I'm in full mesh gear over business casual and a backpack with Laptop. On freeway may not be so bad but 18 miles in local traffic felt like a hot potato.

Oh yeah... I had the shield up to get some air but caught a bug in the eye going 50 mph... YUCK!!!

Sorry for the rant.

Do me a favor and push some of that heat my way. Thanks

 

[greenthumb]

i was working in the snow a few days ago if that makes you feel better.

 

[aceman1741]

It was 110 today in woodland hills, CA how do you like them apples?

 

[Nick J]

95 in Sacramento.:Sport:

 

[inkrediboy]

Believe us west coast guys with regards to miserable heat. You could ride naked doing 90MPH out here (haven't tried that yet - and I'm sure my fellow citizens are thanking me for such ha ha) and still be sweating your balls off to the point of dehydration and heatstroke. I got hit like that coming down from Big Bear during a heat wave a month ago - and called in sick the next day completely shot. The humid hot airflow blasting your body like a furnace is oven like.

Riding in cold weather - granted I have never done alaskan winters on a bike - is still bearable with the right gear. Cold you can adjust for with layering proper attire, engine warmth, and grip warmers - with heat, there is no escape, and yes, it sucks.. LA traffic is horrendous, and gets worse every year (used to work in downtown LA) and the fine art of white lining on the freeway becomes a daily task in 100 degree + weather.. It's not all peaches and cream out here in southern Cally. Yes there is great roads out here - but California is geographically a desert.

I had to admit this, but I'm doing a tribal dance right now so it could rain just once around here.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Sorry guys, but you guys are a bunch of wimps if you think 95 is hot. Why don't you come visit Vegas in July next year when the temperture gets into the the teens, that triple digits I'm talking about. The sun gets so scorching hot, that you can feel your face burn sitting at a red light so a dark or tinted mirror visor is a requirement for a rider in these type of conditions. I'm also wearing full gear, jacket, gloves, boots and riding pants no matter how hot it is. Plus, the humidity isn't all that bad out west. Try riding in triple digit heat in the south with all that humidity, that's probably even worse than riding in 115 degree heat in Vegas. I understand that the riding conditions pretty much becomes unbearable when traffic becomes at a standstill, but you guys can split lanes so you can at least legally keep moving. Believe it or not, this was my second summer that I rode my bike here in this town, and you do get use to it. Don't ask me how, but you do.

 

[Tailgate]

I'm behind Vegas on this one. I like the 90-100+ degree farenheit weather and ride in it all the time. I wear a mesh jacket and, once going, the air flows right through it. When the warm/hot weather first sets in, say, in April or May, then, yeah, it takes a few times to get acclimated. And, yeah, splitting lanes helps alleviate the stand-still heat buildup. Coming home from Lake Tahoe/Reno (big bike rally, "Street Vibrations," last weekend) there was a lengthy backup on a freeway because of traffic lights through one town. It probably would've been 15 minutes or so at a snail crawl in 90+ degree farenheit heat if I ...didn't filter through the mess all the way to the front. Now, that would've been hot if I had to just sit through 10-20 light changes. But, even still, it's dry heat. Heck, by September or October, I'm well conditioned to the heat.

 

[jamesfz6]

Sorry guys, but you guys are a bunch of wimps if you think 95 is hot. Why don't you come visit Vegas in July next year when the temperture gets into the the teens, that triple digits I'm talking about. The sun gets so scorching hot, that you can feel your face burn sitting at a red light so a dark or tinted mirror visor is a requirement for a rider in these type of conditions. I'm also wearing full gear, jacket, gloves, boots and riding pants no matter how hot it is. Plus, the humidity isn't all that bad out west. Try riding in triple digit heat in the south with all that humidity, that's probably even worse than riding in 115 degree heat in Vegas. I understand that the riding conditions pretty much becomes unbearable when traffic becomes at a standstill, but you guys can split lanes so you can at least legally keep moving. Believe it or not, this was my second summer that I rode my bike here in this town, and you do get use to it. Don't ask me how, but you do.

I know all about the humidity. Look up santa fe texas on google earth, we are right by the water and it gets 100 degrees in the summer time with a heat index of 110 to 115......horrible





Good thing winter is almost here and we will get 2 months of low 60s at night and mid 80s in the day. I cant wait.

 

[Rocky529]

I ride with my shield up quite a bit but always wear sunglasses.

 

[jwhelan]

Sorry, no pitty here for you guys! I am getting ready to winterize my bike. Won't be driving it until April or May

 

[tag1963]

Dude,
I hear ya. I'm just south of you in San Diego and my commute home on the 5 North was hell. I also have a mesh jacket and I could feel the heat rushing past my body. When I got home and took off my helment, my head was just soaked. On my ride home I kept my eye on my temp gauge.

 

[SergeantG1]

It's 50 here right now. Not supposed to get over 60 all week.

Wish I was complaining about how warm it is outside. My fiance wants to turn the furnace on already.

 

[Hellgate]

I'm sorry but you Cali dudes gotta, MAN UP!!!! 90??? WTF??? Us Southeast riders ain't feeling it for you at all. 90 is a cool day around here. As others have said try 100+. MadMan and the other Florida riders probably have it the worst, that tropical sun is blazing.

 

[Tailgate]

I'm sorry but you Cali dudes gotta, MAN UP!!!! 90??? WTF??? Us Southeast riders ain't feeling it for you at all. 90 is a cool day around here. As others have said try 100+. MadMan and the other Florida riders probably have it the worst, that tropical sun is blazing.

Hellgate---world of difference between SoCal and NorCal. SoCal: everybody's looking/gazing around to make sure there's not a celebrity next to them. When they're not star gazing, they're slurping up Colorado River or NorCal water. And those of them who aren't doing that are all in rehab. Of course, they're still known for sending the jury that let off you-know-whom and for the Rodney King fiasco. Now, let's see if the Vegas jury buys into a load of B.S. as well (I doubt it).

 

[billm]

I'll have to agree & disagree w/Vegasrider a little.
He did a great job of describing the sun & it's heat, but didn't mention that the air is so ridiculously hot it's like riding in an oven & having a hairdryer blowing on you at the same time! Yuk!
Also, since I originally came from Florida I do miss the humidity some. Sure once you're stopped sweat is immediate, but after you get going it's a cooler effect. I'm not talking Miami, cause I did live there, but grew up in Daytona & still go back to visit family. That's much nicer weather! IMO :cheer:

 

[jsteinb95]

As much as I love commuting with the FZ to and from work, but this freakish heat wave today in 90+ was absolutely miserable. Mind you I'm in full mesh gear over business casual and a backpack with Laptop. On freeway may not be so bad but 18 miles in local traffic felt like a hot potato.

Oh yeah... I had the shield up to get some air but caught a bug in the eye going 50 mph... YUCK!!!

Sorry for the rant.

How about 120+ degrees & humidity? That's sportrider's 50 mile (oneway) commute.

 

[mellofelow]

Well, it's another day in triple digits! I chicken'ed out and drove to work. Perhaps I'm just a fair weather rider and couple more of summer seasons riding I can adjust to tolerate it. Even so however, temperature like this can introduce some level of risks. Case and point:

1. Reduce riding armor/gear - first thought comes to anyone's mind is to dress accordingly. It's just too easy to say "F@%& it, not gonna wear that in this heat." How many riders do you see in barely T shirt and shorts in mid summer?
2. Speed to breeze - gotta get up to near 40mph at least to start cooling a bit. Even then it's still hot behind the radiator… so let's do 50, 60… etc.
3. Splitting lanes - there's just a tendency to move between cars in higher speed than usual.
4. Tailgating - by 2 and 3 above, inevitably I end up on someone’s tail… much closer than I usually would.
5. Running through yellow lights – of course… gotta keep moving.
6. Engine temperature – constantly running in 200+ degrees cannot be to kind on the engine
7. Impatient – in miserable state of mind, I can lose my focus sometimes.

I just think all the above takes all the enjoyment out of riding… not to mention it’s a bit dangerous.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

I'll have to agree & disagree w/Vegasrider a little.
He did a great job of describing the sun & it's heat, but didn't mention that the air is so ridiculously hot it's like riding in an oven & having a hairdryer blowing on you at the same time! Yuk!

That's a very accurate describtion on what it's like to ride in the summer around here, probably more like riding in a Sauna. but you get use to it, at least I do. And if you aren't use to that type of heat, it's going to be unbearable for most riders. I just make sure I take a swig of gatorade before my ride, and drink whatever fluids I can get my hands on when I reach my destination. Avoiding dehydration is a must regardless what area of the world you're riding in during the summer.