Actually I don't like to wear sunscreen when riding at all, even when I lived in the Mojave Desert area of California and rode into the mountains! Why? Am I insane? Perhaps, but I found that sunscreen made me hotter! HOWEVER, if your have a very light complexion wear sunscreen, the protection is worth the extra heat. I have a darker complexion so the sun never damaged my skin. But I do wear sunscreen when I'm going to be near or on water. When I lived along the coast of S Cal I wore sunscreen because first off it was cooler there, and second the coastal haze allows the sun to fry your skin fast, and third I would find myself riding along the beach at some point during the ride; so the added effect of the haze and light reflecting off the water would compound the suns effect on your skin.
By the way the Readers Digest report is accurate but I think it also says that too much of a good thing can be bad, that's why they only talk about 15-20 minutes, anything over that you could be at risk for skin cancer. When I rode my bike in Calif I rode with shorts and a short sleeve jersey on so only my legs, arms, and face got exposed. Keep in mind when your riding a bike your constantly turning in different directions exposing different areas of your body all the time, so the sun never sets on you in one spot like it would if you were lying on a beach. And the helmet and glasses offer some shade relief as well. And when your back is to the sun you get very little sun on skin surfaces when riding.
Last edited by froze; 09-12-06 at 08:48 AM.