Any tips for this kind of cycling?
Hi Matt!
I've cycled a lot in the dry heat of the desert, and in 2014 my tour took me though the almost-always very humid terrain around the length of the Danube. During Serbia's two heat waves, ambient temps hit 44.4°C-45.5°C/112°-114° by 08:30 so...hot and humid.
In either case, I've found the following which might prove helpful to you...
• Proper hydration is like a bank account with one difference: It is not something you can fill right away and it is easy to become overdrawn. The secret to beating this is to remain hydrated by drinking pretty constantly and certainly before you feel any thirst. If you feel thirst, you're already past the ideal.
• It is important to replenish electrolytes. Your sports-drink sachets are good, as are commercial sports drinks...except most are too full of sugar to be ideal. Excess sugar slows water absorption in the stomach. For me, I find diluting Gatorade and similar products by 50% is about the ideal. I usually go 1-2l of plain water followed by 1l of electrolyte replenishment. If I don't go by the whole liter, then I usually follow a 1-in-3 mix. The real key for me is cramping in my quads. If there's even a hint of that, it means I'm getting too much water and not enough electrolytes to maintain a good balance for me.
• If you run out of electrolyte sachets, remember the natural sources...bananas are the ideal source. Also, beer in moderation. I don't/can't drink (past head trauma causes even a slight amount of beer to make me very nauseous), so I either cut my beer 50% with sparkling lemon (beer shandy or "radler beer" in Germany) or mix non-alcoholic beer half-and-half with sparkling lemon. I did this on the advice of a Bavarian cycling friend and it worked well for me in reducing or stopping the cramps that come with electrolyte depletion.
• Try and start the day early. While on-tour in summer, I get up at or just before first light. From May to mid-July in the Northern Hemisphere, that usually means about 04:50. I try to get in 32km/20mi before breakfast so the morning food prep doesn't delay my departure. The goal is to get as much distance in as I can prior to 08:00 and certainly before 10:00 when the heat really hits.
• Try to minimize exertion in the heat of the day. I *never* walk the hills, but I sure did in Serbia. Though it meant longer exposure (not really...there was little if any available treeshade at the time...), it also meant reduced effort in the greatest heat. It did help. Lay up if you can, and remember the hours between 14:00 and 16:00 can often be the hottest outright with the greatest sunload.
• If you have UVA/UVB filtering sunscreen, use it. It does result in a reduced heating according to several studies and my own experience.
• Wear sun-protective clothing and consider wetting it in key places for a cooling effect from the breezes caused by riding in even still air. Do beware not to get it sodden, however, as the water can run down and wet your cycling shorts causing problems. Also, if clothing is wet enough to run, the water droplets can form little lenses on your skin and so raise painful blisters. I could go on at length on preventing sunburns, but that doesn't seem to be as big a problem as heat for you at present.
• Rig shade when you can. Silly as it may sound, see if you can buy an unbrella along the way. They are invaluable when stopping for breaks where there is no shade, and small folding examples take little room and don't weigh much. They do require one hand to hold, which is why I always take my folding Korean Fisherman's hat...it is basically an umbrella with a hatband that sits on my head. Mine is made of aluminized nylon with a navy underside to reduce glare, has a chinstrap and toggle, and a vented canopy. The lot folds into a compact bundle stored under my tent straps atop the rear rack and is employed whenever I stop for awhile, typically at lunch breaks.
If stopped when it is really hot, choose your sitting places wisely. Steel guardrails can scald. Tarred or asphalt paving often melts in such temperatures and can stick to bare skin, causing the skin to burn and come away in bloody clumps when the cooled tar is removed. It can melt lycra cycling shorts, too. For this reason, I used to sit on a small piece of closed-cell high-temp aluminized foam intended as a lightweight heat isolator for cookpots. The last several years I've used a very small folding chair (the Alite Monarch Butterfly...it has two legs to not only accommodate uneven ground, but to facilitate rocking, as my legs/feet form the third leg of the tripod...
https://www.amazon.com/Alite-Designs-01-01E-JOR5-P-Monarch-Chair/dp/B009UW2TV2 ). I love it.
• If you've had to curtail cycling during the hottest parts of the day, then consider resuming your journey in the evening while there is still plenty of light. Riding from 19:00-20:00...that single hour can accomplish a lot of forward progress before making camp. Do be aware, however, this is a time when many wild animals are also active and many feed in the evening. Watch for animals likely to cross your path. In your case, this could also mean a greater likelihood of meeting Big Game.
While it is possible to cycle through the night -- I have done it a number of times on 400km days -- I don't recommend it. You miss lots of what you came on tour to see, and there is a greater likelihood of hitting animals or road hazards even with good lighting.
• Look out for the signs of heat exhaustion and the less common heat stroke. If you start to chill or your skin is clammy and cool/cold to the touch and you have stopped sweating, be sure to get out of the sun and start aggressive cooling and rehydration immediately. Cycling in high temperatures is serious, serious business and the consequences can be really Bad if symptoms are ignored. Remember, it will always be hotter on the road than ambient temperatures indicate. Anyone who follows Formula One racing will have noticed the vast difference between "Track Temperatures" and "Air Temperature". The same holds true for riding, as the darker surface absorbs more heat and then holds it. When it comes time to make camp at night, move as far off the road as possible for this reason; the pavement is a giant heat sink and you can feel the difference between it and soil through most of the night.
• Daytime/nighttime temperature contrasts can be severe. For me here in the deserts of America's Great Basin, the difference can be as much as 80°F between daytime high and nighttime low. Before going to sleep, rig your sleeping bag so you can grab it or zip it up if needed...the coldest time of night is typically around 04:00. If the skies are clear, I typically start the night with my tent rigged as a "bug tent" -- just the mesh inner -- and fall asleep with minimal clothing (i.e. dry jersey and casual shorts) in my silk bag liner. The bag is spread unzipped between me and the tent wall. After awhile, I draw the bag over me, and as the night and (relative) cold deepen, I pull the bag under me as well and zip it, deploying the hood if needed. This strategy has worked well and minimizes sleep loss.
Hope this helps. Take care, and know good wishes go with you.
All the best,
Dan.
