FiftySix

Same here. I'll give a cursory look at the weather reports or the thermometer that sits in the shade in my back yard. If I give too much thought to what the temperature is reading, I'll psych myself right into sitting on the couch in the AC instead of getting things done.

However, I do ride in the mornings or evenings here near the Gulf Coast to avoid traffic, so a side benefit is I'm not out in the heat of the day on a bicycle.

I am out in the heat of the day doing other things. Sweating so much I need to wring out my clothes when I go back into the AC.

Gresp15C

I think people are spooked by the heat index. It used to be, they reported the temperature, and you had to guess the conditions based on humidity, which was mainly a function of your local climate and weather conditions. You also took your own fitness and activity into account.

Now people are looking directly at the heat index. So, what used to be a 95 degree day, is now a 115 degree day. Same weather, different terms for describing it. What's more, there appears to be greater variability in the readings, since some of the weather sites are using data from amateur weather stations.

Someone asked me: "How can you ride your bike when it's 115 degrees out?" The hardest part of answering, was convincing them that it wasn't really 115 degrees out: "It says so right here on my phone."

JasonD67

No max for me here, either. But as the air temp reaches body temp (98F/37C) I definitely shorten my rides and don't ride as intense. Around this part of the country, dew points are often well above 70F/21C this time of year and that is the important number as far as I'm concerned. This weekend the air temp is supposed to be 100F with dew points pushing 80 -- brutal but I'm riding.

One thing that I've found really helps me is taking a salt supplement during the ride. A lick of salt followed by Gatorade every 2-3 miles goes down nice and I feel much better at the end of the ride.

wphamilton

It's never been too hot for me to ride, since I've lived here in Georgia. It's very seldom hotter than high 90's. As long as I keep moving and have enough water I'm generally OK.

indyfabz

Forecast for today, Saturday and Sunday is 99, 100 and 100, respectively, with possible heat indexes Saturday and Sunday of 110-113. Overnight lows are supposed to be in the 80s. I don't want to go outside when it's like that, much less ride a bike. Been there. Done that. For weeks. While crossing the country. I have nothing to prove. Can't ride anyway as I recently had some surgery on my thigh. No exercise for at least another week.

I already told by bar tender/friend that if she expects me at happy hour on Saturday she'll have to get me an Uber.

Skipjacks

Where you live is critically important.

You live in Georgia. So you are used to Georgia heat and humidity. It's normal to your body. But someone from Siberia would die in 95 degree heat with sweltering humidity.

What's interesting is that anyone can acclimate to just about any condition.

I spent 3 months in Southern California once. When I got there it was like a dream! After 3 months I came home to the mid atlantic heat and humidity and couldn't breath. I had become so used to 72 degrees and no humidity that upon returning to where I was from my body had forgotten how to cope. After a while I got used to the mid atlantic again.

Other times I've been out of place were a visit to Portland, Maine and Miami, Florida.

Being from the mid atlantic I found Portland to be a bit chilly with highs in the low 50's in April. But there were French Candians who had come south for the beach!!! So I'm freezing. The locals are comfortable. And the Canadians are melting in the heat!

A couple of times I have been in Miami in February and I was thrilled that there were lows in the mid 60's. I'm walking around in shorts and a t shirt at night while the locals are wearing jackets and gloves looking at me like I'm nuts.

Where you're from and what your body is used to makes all the difference in the world.

zarbog

I am 69 and about 15 pounds overweight. Yesterday's fast 35 km ride with the humidity making the temp feel like 94, was fine, drank one litre of water in small sips. Lost 1.4 pounds upon weighing myself after the ride, all through sweat. You don't notice the sweat when riding with modern moisture wicking materials.

Today it's hotter, tomorrow more so again. Just cut the grass with my gas push mower. I am one big pool of sweat and I would not ride today or tomorrow. Not going to cause a potential body break down for the sake of a ride.

Skipjacks

The combination of how much I'll sweat and why I want to ride is a big factor as well.

I didn't ride to work today because I didn't feel like being a sloppy bag of wetness when I got to my office. And even though I change when I get here my riding clothes would have been soaked, and they would not dry sitting in my chilly office all day. So I'd have to put on cold wet riding clothes to ride home. No thanks. I'm good.

But I might go for a joy ride to get breakfast tomorrow morning in the same conditions where I don't care how sloppy I get because I can take a shower as soon as I get home and can throw my stuff right in the washing machine with the rest of my laundry I need to do.

burnthesheep

Cycling is different than running stuff in that you're moving a solid volume of air over your body to exchange your body heat despite it being really hot.

Running, even a fast runner is only going 10mph.

Now, if it's really hot I turn the intensity knob down and just do tempo. I move to electrolyte mix in the bottles and take an extra sandwich bag with a scoop in that also to refill. I also add some salt/sodium to the mix when it is really hot.

I also tend to take a shadier route like a gravel ride, then utilize the bike wash station to wash myself each lap!

indyfabz

That was my life in the summer for several years. Putting on those wet, cold clothes for the return trip home was the worst.

Hondo Gravel

I know nothing about hot weather.

John_V 

Did a 60 mile ride yesterday in 103º (heat index). Didn't have any problem with the heat during the ride but was pretty wiped out after I got home. In temps like that, I don't even worry about speed, just making sure that I'm properly hydrated. If you live in Florida and are concerned about the heat, you'll probably never get a ride in.

86az135i

105

Rides4Beer

No limit for me. I have no heat limit for running either, and that's harder in the heat than cycling, just make sure I stay hydrated and I'm good. But I'm also weird and handle the heat better than most people I know.

mr_bill

NYC Triathlon Cancelled

-mr. bill

Skipjacks

Usually I'll get a little sweaty in the morning but not soaking. My clothes will dry in my office when there are just a few damp spots.

But when they are soaked and dripping....nope. They will still be fully wet when it's closing time.

Now on the ride home I get drenched nearly every day in the summer. But again...I don't care. I come home, go inside, stop at the washing machine on the way in, and go shower and put on dry clothes.

TimothyH

@Skipjacks is 100% correct.

There are multiple heat related threads right now.

Northerners - Montreal, NYC, Ohio, Wisconsin - are complaining about nausea, not being able to complete rides, asking about temperature limits and so forth. Southerners - Florida, South Carolina, Texas - are responding that it is always hot so just ride, it isn't a big deal, just stay hydrated and you will be OK, etc.

Northerners are just not acclimated to the heat, that's all. Not an insult or bragging. Just an observation.


-Tim-

CyclingFever

Ride faster and let the wind keep me cool.

beach_cycle

How hot is too much to ride? Reflecting back to the 1970's, I had a paper route in the lower desert (Palm Desert near Palm Springs). Summer heat hit 130 F back then, but papers had to be delivered every day regardless of weather. So every day I peddled. Today I live on the shore of the Pacific (Huntington Beach - Greater Los Angeles). Climate is cool all year, but we do get periodic heat waves in the triple digits. I still keep to schedule, and live car free. So when need be somewhere, I ride. Wind is more of an issue, but just ride and keep water stock within reach.

LawSchweiin

Hi, I find humidity and dew point have just as much effect as temperature. I'm on the east coast of the US this week / weekend, and I will not be riding. High 90s and high humidity are too much to handle and I find regardless of water, I cannot cool off adequately. At some point the environment is too hot for your body to shed heat.

CyclingFever

How hot is too hot to ride? If your wheels are melting and sticking to the road. Otherwise get out there!

MattTheHat 

I've lived in North Texas all my life, so I'm *supposed* to be used to the heat. But I'm not. I won't ride if it's much hotter than 95. I refuse to ride if it's over 100.

-Matt

road292

Am I the only one who drinks plain water even in high heat (I'm in a suburb of NYC, so 95F+ this weekend)? I've found that the electrolyte drinks taste fine for the first few miles and then make my stomach hurt.

DrIsotope

You're probably not the only one, but I am certainly NOT a water only guy. After a few hours, the water is for pouring into my helmet, the Gatorade is for trying to keep my electrolyte balance sorta normalized. I don't take in anything but water for usually the first 90 minutes, generally no need. Once it's up into the 90s, the sweat is constant, and I need to try to stay on top of it. The ride with a peak at 111º only had about 40oz of Gatorade, and it should have been more. I likely lost 12-15lbs of sweat that day. Drank over 2 gallons, ate 3 full meals, went bed lighter than when I woke up.

Koyote

It's not a contest. But if it were, anything involving a ride of only 25 miles would get you a participation ribbon, at best.