made in the shade

Lately I’ve been almost forgetting my helmet, again. With all this heat it would be nice to go without. The thing that usually catches me before I ride off is the feeling of intense sun on my forehead. Even a helmet without a visor provides a lot of shade. So I guess I’ll keep wearing it.

At this time of year one of the worst moments on a ride is waiting at an intersection. That’s when I get blasted in the worst way. Direct sunlight plus reflected light off the pavement and radiated heat off the pavement and sudden loss of wind cooling (as you’re stopped) and those cars next to you put out a lot of heat too.

There is usually a nice mini pocket of shade to hide in though. Even the shade from a lamppost (or similar) can make a big difference especially on longer rides (exposure adds up). It seems obvious to hide in the shade on a hot day but I don’t see other people doing it much. I’ll stop fifty feet before an intersection if it means the difference between stopping under a shade tree or not. It seems to confuse the cars but whatever – like I said, it should be obvious.

Same-same with running. Which brings me to the next topic related to heat. I’ve been noticing a lot of runners out lately in the heat of the day, running in bright sun. I kept asking myself What are they doing? How can they do that to themselves? Then I realized that they’re probably not going very far. Still though, unless you’re training for Badwater or something, it’s probably a good idea to run in the cooler part of the day or at least in a shady area. You’ll be more likely to come back for more. You’re not going to lose that 15 pounds (if that’s your goal) all in one run anyway. A little bit at a time…