Commuting - Very Long Commute Club: Week 15 - 2007

Sorry folks but I completely forgot to start a thread last week. I hope we all kept riding without a support thread ;)

I'm starting this one a little late, but better late than never! No real topic for this week, but I thought as we enter the dog days of summer we could share hot weather riding tips. Around here temps should be pushing 100 through much of the week with humidity to match. My only tips are to ride a little easier and drink lots of water.

Agreed. Just slowing down a little bit, adding maybe 2-3 minutes onto your ride, can make a world of difference.

Hello guys, last week i did pretty good. I got 4 days in and one day my leg was cramping up so i had to take the bus the rest of the way...lesson learned was to stay hydrated. One of the problems i'm facing is a numb finger that has persisted, even today its a little numb. I didnt get to ride today since my akita decided that my tire would make a good snack.

As far as the heat goes, i usually pull out the heart rate monitor and hydrate when my heart rate goes up too high. Dont forget the sunscreen guys!

I am still a wimp when it comes to rain.......My wife drove me (and my bike) to work today because it was raining pretty hard......It's supposed to clear up this afternoon, though.....so my 27.5 mile route home should be a "breeze"... :)

Still not back on the bike yet. But I'm going to be soon I hope.

See I knew something was wrong. I drove last friday all because there was no thread ;)
Had to taxi home and ride my bicycle back to jump start my wifes prius (which I had to drive to drop her off at the airport) but that is a long rambing from another post.

Definately +1 on the sunblock it isn't just the burning and potential skin cancer but it keeps me alot cooler when I make sure to wear it.
When I ride later at night or early in the am I really need to keep my mouth closed or else I get a large diet of gnats and other nasty fliers that apparantly LOVE my bar mounted headlight. Even with my mouth closed I constantly get whacked with them on my face and glasses ewww. I'm really close to getting one of those filter masks so I can breath through my mouth at night.

Being only my 7th week of my 30mi RT commute, I realized today that I really like Mondays. While everyone else is dragging rump and grumbling, I was thinking, man...my commute was easier than ever before today. Fresh legs from a weekend off and the fact that my legs have now accepted their fate and decided to quit being sore all the time helped greatly.

Regarding liquids, when the weather gets hot I add a hydration additive to my water for the trip home. It has some sodium and potassium and it seems to make a difference. I didn't want to go with a sport drink because I didn't want all the calories (although when it got over 100 for a few days recently I went with the sport drink), but between 80 to 100 degrees I've been using the hydration stuff and had good results. It's 5 calories a shot and available in regular grocery stores by the Tang and Crystal Light.

30 mile RT commute today. Nice cool morning here in "the OC", the 1 hour ride to work felt pretty good. I've been lucky so far, the summer has been real mild. Only a couple of days where it's been above 90 on the ride home after 5 pm. This afternoon's ride home was in the low 80s with a little breeze from the ocean kicking in as I got close to home. Doesn't get much better.

Don't need a thread to keep up with the bike commute, I've been in the same routine here for the past 7+ years while at my current job. However, it's interesting to read how others handle the challenges that often pop up when using the bike as a means of daily transportation in contrast to weekend workout type rides.

I left a 9am and 85F this morning. I was dripping wet after my commute - and consumed a quart of water.

I commuted all 5 work days last week! Tomorrow will hit the high 90's and I won't ride - but for a good reason. I'm picking up two road bikes for $40 - a Technium and a Dawes. I'll also take the opportunity to stock up some more work clothes (at least shirts on hangers).

Nice ride in this morning.

A little secret to beat the heat.
1. Take a long tube sock and fill it with ice.
2. Tie the open end of the tube sock.
3. Drape the tube sock over your neck.
4. Tuck the ends into your shirt.

This will help keep you brain steml cooler and will help to minimize the impact of hot temperatures on your brain.

The only problem is that you can get some cold water running down your back and into your shorts.

Barndoor -- what is this thing you call rain? Until Sunday night's light sprinkle I've been riding in dust for weeks.

Evblazer -- sorry to screw up you commute. It just goes to show you how we're all just a link in a never ending chain. We'll try to keep these threads going so you don't have to go back to driving.

Cigtech -- sorry to hear you are still off the bike. You must be jonesing for some seat time by now!

Robtown -- congrats on the new bikes, it sounds like quite a deal.

Tibike -- the ice idea sounds like a good one. I may consider it later this afternoon or tomorrow if the temps really do hit 100. I am a little disappointed, though in such a low tech solution. Here I was certain you would have a special jersey with fine tubes that constantly recirculated coolant around your body. And of course the whole thing would work off of a hub generator so you would be self contained.

This morning was like riding through a rainforest in places with mist hanging in the trees due to the ridiculous humidity. If it hits 100 today or tomorrow, then 2007 will go down as the most extreme year yet in my commute. Back in February I rode in one morning when it was 7 degrees so if I ride home in something close to 100 degrees that should set new records for both the hottest and coldest commute.

Congrats to all of you who are still sticking with it in the heat!! I, too, made it all 5 days last week - a first for me! I ended the week with 296 mi/476 km, 250 mi/402 km of which was commuting and 1014 mi/1632 km for the past 30 days so I am really feeling it compared to doing about half of that up intil the last couple of months. This is my 38th day of at least one ride per day.

In regards to the heat, I think pre- and post-ride hydration is critical. Yesterday I drank about 60 oz or nearly 2 liters on the way home (Yes, I had to stop). I am also using Camelback's Elixir electrolyte tabs. They don't have any carbs, just electrolytes, but the taste is better than anything I have ever put in my bottle. Other than hydrating I guess my only advice is to wear lightweight cycling specific clothing, suck it up and go :)

If it hits 100 today or tomorrow, then 2007 will go down as the most extreme year yet in my commute. Back in February I rode in one morning when it was 7 degrees so if I ride home in something close to 100 degrees that should set new records for both the hottest and coldest commute.

You Rock! It only only got down to 27F/-3C here in the ATL. I was actually kind of disappointed it didn't get really cold at least once.

[QUOTE=Marylandnewbie;5017417]Barndoor -- what is this thing you call rain? Until Sunday night's light sprinkle I've been riding in dust for weeks.

LoL! The wife and I were wondering the same thing.... We go weeks without anything and then 3/4" in one evening.....go figure.

I lay awake most of Sunday night while listening to the pounding rain hitting my roof.....I was anguishing over whether I'd be able to commute Monday morning......I slept maybe 3-4 hours total. I did get to ride home that evening, though and it was a hot mofo(96)! I didn't really feel the effects of the heat.....I mean it was HOT but not overbearing hot...I drank water and Gatorade all day Monday and then took a couple 24oz bottles of G-aide with me on the ride home and it was fine.....I even had a backpack with 12 red-haven peaches in it that my wife HAD to have :)...along with my cell phones and other stuff. The b/p weighed in around 6-7lbs , I suppose.....it's all good.

The ride in this morning was much better without the backpack :D

I find that by this time of the season I do not feel real significant affects from the heat. My body has pretty much acclimated by now. I do subscribe to the use of recovery drinks though if I feel that I pushed myself particularly hard on any certain day.

Very nice cruise into work this morning. Had to leave a half hour earlier than usual, so I had to put on my lights, is summer really almost gone, sigh.......

Hi guys,

Guess I missed the beginning of the VLCC threads. I have a 41m RT commute. Don't know if that qualifies for the VLCC.

I've been taking it easy the last month after some *really* bad saddle sores. I'm up to 3 days a week now.

I have to admit I cheat sometimes. I generally like to ride my uberlight racing bike, but I usually over-do it and take the electric bike the next day. I don't really feel guilty, though, until I take the motorcycle or worse, the car.

+1 to the taking it easy. When I sprint for the lights, it only gains me 5 minutes, but I'm wiped out for the ride home. :(

Keraba -- welcome aboard. Sounds like you have a seriously long commute. When you get a chance you might want to give us a little description of your ride. We all like to live vicariously.

Last night riding home it was a balmy 98.6 deg F (according to the bike computer) for the first 2-3 miles of my ride. As I got out of the concrete it cooled off about 3 degrees. We officially set a new record of 102 deg, so it was a lovely ride all around. Worst of all I decided to take a side trip to pick up an anniversary present for my wife and got to the store after it was closed. So an extra 2 miles for nothing but the joy of riding.

It was noticably cooler and less humid this AM. I had a nice ride in except for the commuter bus that tried to exfoliate my left arm. Its my first close brush with one of them, usually they give cyclists enough room. Oh well it gets the blood pressure up to flush out the pipes. It should be a little easier riding today as the temps will not be as hot.

The local mass transit buses are some of the worst vehicles on the road that I have to deal with. They get really close to me sometimes. I need to break down and get a mirror so I can take the lane when I see one coming. As it is, their big old wide selves are up along side me before I know what they are. And it bugs me when they pass me only to brake hard to stop at the next bus stop. :mad:

I got dumped on by a thunderstorm on the way home yesterday. At least it was a bit of a break from the heat.

The wife had a early meeting, so I had to wait for the nanny = no ride for me today. :( I could have ridden and gotten to work pretty late, but I need to leave early today. Oh well, I guess it is a recovery day.

This has been a great commute week here in southern cal, doesn't get much better. Perfect temps all week, low-mid 60s in am and upper 70s-low 80s in afternoon for the ride home. So far this week I rode 44 miles Sunday on a leisure ride, and 30 mile RTs on Monday thru Thursday. Tomorrow (Friday) I'll top off the week with a 30 mile RT and take a rest day Saturday. I changed my morning inbound route this week too, found a slightly different route that reduces the number of intersections and stop signals I have to hit for the second half of my morning ride. I like it better, so I'll stick with it!

Sorry to hear about your close call, Marylandnewbie. Happy Anniversary! I agree with what hubcap had to say about them being stealthy - I think it's because the engine is in the rear. You get maybe 1/2-second of warning before they come swooshing by. I run parallel with a bus on about 1/2-mile section that first drops about 70' in elevation and then climbs about 100' so the leap-frogging is pretty bad. This particular driver usually gives me about 2' or so, which I can handle mentally and emotionally :)

We got up to 102 in Atlanta yesterday, also. I went through two large and one and a half small bottles - about 70 ounces in all. This morning's commute was nice, but humid. I covered my 25.1 mile route in 1:25. I averaged 18.4 with a 70% average heart rate. Anybody else ride with a HRM? Do you ever watch your average HR? My fastest commute time ever was 24.7 miles in 1:14 averaging 79%. It's no time trial with an average of about 20 stops and heavy traffic, but that's very close to how long it takes in a car when school is in.

A HEAT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING... GENERALLY SOUTH OF A LINE FROM DALTON TO DAWSONVILLE TO CLEVELAND. DESPITE THE LOWER HUMIDITIES...HEAT INDEX VALUES FROM 105 TO 110 ARE STILL EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. PLEASE TAKE PROPER SAFETY PRECAUTIONS DURING THE HEAT ADVISORY.

A HEAT ADVISORY MEANS THAT A PERIOD OF DANGEROUS HEAT IS EXPECTED. THE COMBINATION OF HOT TEMPERATURES AND HIGH HUMIDITY WILL CREATE HEAT INDEX READINGS OF AT LEAST 105 DEGREES AND VERY WARM OVERNIGHT TEMPERATURES. DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS...STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM...STAY OUT OF DIRECT SUNSHINE...AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS. PROTECT PETS FROM THE HEAT...AS WELL.

Bring it on :)

The heat kind of got to me this week... I only commuted three days (40-miles each day, round trip). I did a 70-mile ride on our tandem on Saturday, then a double-century on Sunday, and just couldn't stand to ride my bike in the heat again on Monday.

I was getting back into the swing of the daily commute until Wednesday evening - and I had an accident while still about 15-miles from home. I heard an ambulance behind me, and pulled off to the right. I was trying to pull up into someone's driveway, and didn't see the lip where the pavement of the driveway met the pavement of the road... my tires tracked along that lip for a moment, and then I went down hard at about 20-mph. I scraped some holes in my jersey and my bibs, and scraped up my knee, hip, and arm. My beloved Surly Long Haul Trucker suffered a small dent on the top tube from where the handlebars twisted around and banged against the frame, but the dent is barely noticeable. It still bothers me… I also scraped the brake levers up a little bit, shredded the bar tape, and scratched up the rear derailleur and broke the barrel adjuster on the back of the derailleur. It was 97-degrees outside and the rest of the ride home was slow, hot, and painful.

I took Thursday off and am commuting again today. Temps are supposed to reach the low 90s… the weather is finally cooling off a bit. The commute in this morning was really nice. It was in the upper 80s, with a tailwind.

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