Hot Weather Riding

Being that I live on an island in the middle of the North Atlantic I don't often have a need to talk about the heat, but this summer has to be the hottest I've ever ridden in. The temps have been in the high 20's (Celcius) for the past month and hit 30 yesterday with the same forecast for today. Humidity here is very high as well which makes it feel even higher, humidex is in the low 30's for today.

Just have to say I don't know how you guys in the the hotter climates can stand to ride in it. We're down to one car for the past couple of months so I have no option but to take the bike and have to say some days are brutal. Takes less than 10 minutes to get to work and I'm done in that amount of time. I don't even bother to go on any casual rides since its not enjoyable.

With that said, I'm not complaining about the heat. After the winter we had this is more than welcome

an under armor shirt with cotton long sleeve shirt over that and a cool vest all wetted down under a mesh jacket
full bohn armor down below with dragginn jeans or heavy bdu's the key is to keep wet,then it is quite cool even chilly feeling sometimes in 100 degree heat ......longer rides i gotta stop and re-wet myself hahahaha
i see alot of idiots riding in shorts and t shirts in the heat they actually probably think it is cooler that way :

My riding jacket (leather) has a ton of vents in it so as long as I am moving I am comfortable. I am usually a little sweaty when I get off of the bike though. It routinely gets up into the high 90s (37°) here in the summer.

xb33bsa said:

an under armor shirt with cotton long sleeve shirt over that and a cool vest all wetted down under a mesh jacket
full bohn armor down below with dragginn jeans or heavy bdu's the key is to keep wet,then it is quite cool even chilly feeling sometimes in 100 degree heat ......longer rides i gotta stop and re-wet myself hahahaha
i see alot of idiots riding in shorts and t shirts in the heat they actually probably think it is cooler that way :

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This is the best way because you won't dehydrate by sweating your own fluids to cool yourself. I have a Joe rocket mesh and do the same on hot days. Drink a bunch of water, wet shirt under jacket and ride, when you start to feel the heat, you are likely dry, stop, wet shirt again, ride on. We have been getting the same super hot, super humid days here and it is like riding through an oven, the hot air feels gross and even at freeway speeds you do not get cool without wetting down.

HA!
30 C is only 86 F.
I spent all day sunday riding in 97 degrees and it routinely gets hotter than that.
Sometimes it just feels like riding in an oven with the convection fan turned on.

I find it not terrible with a jacket and pants as long as I am moving.
Although on sunday I went swimming in a waterfall and said fuck it and rode back with a tshirt breaking my ATGATT rule but damn it was so much nicer than with the jacket.

I don't see how you guys ride in the cold.
Once it dips below 60 my hands start freezing and I no longer enjoy it. (raynaud's disease)
I need heated grips.

No joke Sonic! We're normally WELL into the 100's F this time of year in Texas, and yes, it's HUMID. July and August are usually absolutely brutal to ride in. A little weather system has us cooled down to the 80's this week, almost feels tropical!

coyote13 said:

No joke Sonic! We're normally WELL into the 100's F this time of year in Texas, and yes, it's HUMID. July and August are usually absolutely brutal to ride in. A little weather system has us cooled down to the 80's this week, almost feels tropical!

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Yep,
Same one has us almost COLD.
It's been mid to low 70's all week.
It's lunacy.

I really don't know how you can stand those temps. Maybe I'm just not accustomed to it, these temps are an anomaly around here. I'd much rather ride on a cold day than in this. I like anything below 18*C or so and I don't mind cold at all, much nicer to ride in that this.

Just went home for lunch to do some work on the CB and almost died and its only 6 kms. Ride back to work was even worse and now I get to sit in front of a computer in an non-airconditioned old building all afternoon, yippee

Well I'll sympathize with my northern latitudes brother instead of lambasting him and comparing temps.

Yes, we can have a thread from me and the OP in a few months where the southern folk bitch about a cold weather ride and how 52f or 11c is fucking cold and we can cry pussy or wimp as well.

Bottom line is you have to be flexible with your gear. I have a regular walk around non motorcycke jacket, a vented leather firstgear jacket, an alpinestars Gunner WP jacket and three helmets of varying venting, visibility and comfort. I can experience +90f or +30c during the day and be faced with 55f or 12c on the ride home at night. I live on a large Canadian island on the pacific. It gets not and cold here.

I've spoken to hundreds over the years about bike budgets. "I have 5000 to spend." Ok spend 3500 on the bike and then get a non $500 race replica helmet like a KBC or HJC, get two jackets, gloves, boots, neck warmer, visor or glasses that work for sun, etc. etc. etc.

Yeah, we don't like to admit it but we are a bit of a fashion whore. It has to not look like a oily old '90s textile Belstaff found at a swap meet for $30. So get creative, like they say, wet your layers down, keep your helmet in the fridge, ride earlier in the day, etc.

Bottom line is your gear isn't working for you right now. Suck it up and get used to some heat or change it up.

LOL I ride from 0C all the way to 40 C. I have the same thing as Cosworth. Early morning late evening I have multiple layers and they start coming off as the day warms then start going back on as the day cools. I can leave home with frost on the ground in spring or fall and have it hit 35C by noon and drop back to 5C at night. So I have a mixed bag of gear layers, neck warmers thin gloves, thick gloves and even mitts. my arnoured pants have a thermal lining and I can put a pair of fleece pants inside as well. My rocket has the wind liner and then I can put thermal vest etc inside it. I don't have heated grips yet but put KLR hand guards on my bike to keep the cold off and I have a screen I use for trips and or when it is cold. Joke here is if you don't like the weather, wait 5 mins it will change. Then you get the huge changes from the coast and elevation changes as well. All that being said, riding in a convection oven still sucks. It is easier to add a layer to get warmer as you can't ride nek'd very safely.

Nobody called anybody a pussy Cosworth, just comparing notes and putting things in perspective. I can't imagine living in the north during the winter, I would go stir-fucking-crazy. Very fortunate that we're able to throw on a little extra gear and go for a January cruise most of the time. As far as summer goes, I do have a tendency towards wearing more gear than less, but when it gets to the point where you risk heat exhaustion, I've been known to go down to a t-shirt and shorts with helmet and boots. Just gotta keep moving and get that airflow on you!

coyote13 said:

Nobody called anybody a pussy Cosworth, just comparing notes and putting things in perspective. I can't imagine living in the north during the winter, I would go stir-fucking-crazy. Very fortunate that we're able to throw on a little extra gear and go for a January cruise most of the time. As far as summer goes, I do have a tendency towards wearing more gear than less, but when it gets to the point where you risk heat exhaustion, I've been known to go down to a t-shirt and shorts with helmet and boots. Just gotta keep moving and get that airflow on you!

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god help you when you go down on hot pavement,bro :'(
when it is really hot it is easier to keep quite cool with the proper gear/method as opposed to a t-shirt
of course where i live it is not humid i know that makes a big diff as well

I know it bud, but to be fair I don't ride too much when it's THAT hot. Fair weather fan maybe, but sometimes I just can't do it.

I know, but no one offered any advice other than "It's hotter here." lol

I'll take anyone on a backroad rip with frost in the dark turns and around 35f/3c in the winter. Good roads here.

To be honest, I wasn't really looking for advice, I just wanted to chat about the heat since it is a very rare day that I can have this kind of problem here Especially since I know that even though its 30*C here today, it gets much hotter than this in other places. Its all relative I guess and what you are used to.

I don't know if age has anything to do with it, but I'm finding as I get older I'm less able to tolerate the heat. I used to love it up until a few years ago.

Honestly I have felt hotter with just a t shirt than with a jacket sometimes. My jacket really helps channel air

xb33bsa said:

god help you when you go down on hot pavement,bro :'(

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I have a softball sized third degree burn on my left shoulder from going down in a textile jacket on a misty cold night in February when it was about 5c out. Just above freezing. Jacket was trashed, but no hole.

ER nurse thought it was road rash. I demanded to be treated for a burn but it was met with deaf ears.

Gear, no matter the temp can provide only so much protection.

HerrDeacon said:

To be honest, I wasn't really looking for advice, I just wanted to chat about the heat since it is a very rare day that I can have this kind of problem here Especially since I know that even though its 30*C here today, it gets much hotter than this in other places. Its all relative I guess and what you are used to.

I don't know if age has anything to do with it, but I'm finding as I get older I'm less able to tolerate the heat. I used to love it up until a few years ago.

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Texas was stupid hot but you get used to it - a lot of folks ride around in t-shirts but I'd rather sweat than have skin grafts. In Virginia it's a lot nicer but the humidity does ramp up in the summer - Basically, I agree with what's been said here - gear is key - but most people can't afford the high-end gear and different gear for different temps, I just ride with my jack 1/2 open and when it's in the 90's I put a freezer pack, one of those ones you use for a cooler, in my jacket pocket - also try putting your helmet in the freezer for 30 mins before you ride - now that is awesome!

I keep my helmet and jacket here when refueling and grabbing a bite on long rides:

xb33bsa said:

god help you when you go down on hot pavement,bro :'(
when it is really hot it is easier to keep quite cool with the proper gear/method as opposed to a t-shirt
of course where i live it is not humid i know that makes a big diff as well

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Yeah with the humidity it's tough.
There comes a point for me where it's just too hot and I'm willing to take the risk in order to enjoy my riding. There's no point in being on a motorcycle if it's miserable, might as well just get in the car and turn the AC on.