What to wear..

[Drew]

I'm riding from OK to NC, mid to end of July, so saying it'll be hot is an understatement. I wear a Cortech GX Air Series mesh jacket and Olympia Airglide II mesh pants, gloves and boots. I had planned on a pair of LD shorts underneath the pants and something that wicks moisture for under the jacket, short sleeved and as light as possible. As I'll be on some very warm slabs, any input on whether this is a good idea to wear the shorts or will the heat be too much coming through the mesh pants? This is my first distance trip of any kind.

Thanks.

 

[rushes]

I like the wicking underarmor type shorts an shirt.

An coat the boys with this stuff...

Good for cooling, and prevention of irritation.

Get 2 or 3 cans....

BTW..

I've made better time to Chattanooga on 64 or 72 over I-40 after Memphis....

 

[CAJW]

One of these Cooling Vest is worth it's weight in gold. A bandana or one of these Cool wrap helps as well.

 

[Drew]

I've made better time to Chattanooga on 64 or 72 over I-40 after Memphis....

In most cases or just once or twice? If I can get off I-40 and make good time, I'm all for it.

 

[fljab]

I think you've got the right setup as is. Living in the humid southeast I find the mesh jackets/pants work well with wicking shorts/shirt underneath is the ticket.

I have a cooling vest that you soak, but my personal opinion/experience is they don't work all that well - maybe in a dry climate, dunno - but I don't even break mine out anymore.

I'd worry more about hydration on the trip, either with a homemade setup or a camelback, that will help alot on a run like that.

As always, YMMV, IMHO, etc.....................

 

[rushes]

I've made better time to Chattanooga on 64 or 72 over I-40 after Memphis....

In most cases or just once or twice? If I can get off I-40 and make good time, I'm all for it.

Every time.

You go through some towns an hit some lights, but still faster.

In between towns you're almost by yourself.

edit..

That's only if you're heading for twisties.

If your going north, like Winston Salem, take a deep breath an stay on the slab...

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

I'm riding from OK to NC, mid to end of July, so saying it'll be hot is an understatement.This is my first distance trip of any kind.

Thanks.

Wear light colors/white with lots of ventilation -- including helmet ventilation (make sure you can breathe plenty of fresh air).

Don't use much of a windshield. Hydrate often -- stop, get off and walk around often -- rest when you need to.

I've made better time to Chattanooga on 64 or 72 over I-40 after Memphis....

In most cases or just once or twice? If I can get off I-40 and make good time, I'm all for it.

Every time.

You go through some towns an hit some lights, but still faster.

In between towns you're almost by yourself.

edit..

That's only if you're heading for twisties.

If your going north, like Winston Salem, take a deep breath an stay on the slab...

+ 1 -- U.S. 64 (Tenn.). One of my favorites.

Some Interstates can be hell -- some make sense (when other options just don't add-up...).

 

[Drew]

Awesome sh*t guys, good input here. I plan on buying a Rapid Recon tank bag with a bladder for hydration. I had read that the cooling vests aren't as effective in humidity and we'll be riding right through that type of heat.

We're planning on twisties on our last travel day, going across the Cherohala Skyway into NC, so US64 wouldn't be sending us out of the way.

 

[TWILKIN650]

Awesome sh*t guys, good input here. I plan on buying a Rapid Recon tank bag with a bladder for hydration. I had read that the cooling vests aren't as effective in humidity and we'll be riding right through that type of heat.

We're planning on twisties on our last travel day, going across the Cherohala Skyway into NC, so US64 wouldn't be sending us out of the way.

Suggest a cooling vest with mesh jacket even in high humidity. Of course works better at low humidity. For a little over 20 bucks, it's a cheap fix if you find you need it. Packs up small if you don't.

LD Comfort Shorts as mentioned above are great.

Your Gen II isn't a potbellied stove like my GEN I and has all the heat issues solved right?

https://www.tuffrhino.com/MiraCool_Poncho_Vest_p/hs1054.htm

 

[JamesK]

Believe it or not the LDComfort tights and long-sleeve shirt will be a lot more comfortable than the shorts and the short-sleeve shirt. Not only do the sleeves and tights help to wick away sweat from everywhere but they also help in keeping your gear from sticking to you and irritating your skin. They also help in extreme heat if you splash some water on your sleeves and legs doing a similar job to what the cooling vest does for your torso. Trust me once you try the tights and long-sleeve setup you'll never go back to the short/short-sleeve combo, I've tried both while exiled in South Flori-duh for 3 years.

 

[blkredlinedrvr]

Just don't roll out there in a t-shirt and regular pants. You'll dehydrate much faster with nothing to keep the sweat on your skin for at least a short time.

You don't have to spend big money on the Under Armor stuff. I can't speak for the LDComfort stuff as I don't have it. I suggest a trip to Wal-Mart and purchase some Starter synthetic underwear and shirts. I own Under Armor and Starter and honestly other than a lighter wallet when buying Underarmor stuff I can't tell a difference between the two performance wise. They both beat the hell out of cotton stuff that's for sure

 

[FJRMGM]

get a couple of pair of LD Comfort undershorts to wear. With two pair you can rinse/dry a pair at night so you always a a clean pair the next day.

get one of these Miracool Poncho cooling vests and wear it - way better than any motorcycle specific ones and will stay wet for three days.

Miracool

Get a Camelbak fanny pack so you can keep hydrated - which is the key to not being tired from dehydrated on a long ride in hot weather. With the fanny pack you don't have the weight on your back and it has more than enough capacity to keep you hydrated between stops.

Camelbak

 

[mferriter]

You can go to a camping/hiking website to get good quality wicking underwear, t-shirts to wear under your mesh. REI is good and expensive, www.campmor.com is good and cheap, but mail order so no guarantees on stuff fitting the first try.

Tha basic rule for hiking is to avoid cotton clothing at all costs. It gets wet and stays wet (from perspiration, rain, etc.).

As long as you keep moving, you'll be fine. It's been broiling hot down here in NC lately, but at least the humidity is high.

Your perspective changes after a while. I've been down here for 15 years, and now it only seems really hot when it's over 95 degrees. On the other hand, 40 degrees feels like 10.

 

[Burnspot]

+1 on the LDComfort tights and long sleeve; they do a pretty awesome job for me, all things considered. Under my Fieldsheer mesh pants and jacket, they are superb with the wicking/evaporative action, allowing for fairly comfortable riding in 90+ heat with high humidity (eastern NC). When I wear my Stich, they are less effective with the evaporative action, but are super at keeping my skin relatively comfortable by keeping it away from the Stich's liner. It seems counterintuitive to wear "long johns" and long sleeves in the heat, but it does work out pretty good. When stopped, all bets are off...although if there's a breeze blowing, the long sleeve top can get very cold.

Hydration is key...I wear a Camelbak and constantly draw on it during hot weather riding. My next project will be a proper hydration system to get the Camelbak off my back.

 

[mferriter]

I like the Camelback mouthpiece and tube idea, but a larger reservoir would be nice (maybe mounted in one of the sidecases). Can you freeze the camelback water pouch?

 

[blkredlinedrvr]

I like the Camelback mouthpiece and tube idea, but a larger reservoir would be nice (maybe mounted in one of the sidecases). Can you freeze the camelback water pouch?

I wouldn't. If you want to keep it cold fill it all the way up with ice and then add water till full. The ambient heat will melt the ice faster than you can drink the water out of it. It'll last for a few hours long enough to get between fuel stops unless you are running the full range of your stock tank along with an aux tank.

 

[Burnspot]

I recall someone here getting the Aerostich Tank Panniers and putting them over the pillion seat so that the bags are supported by the pillion pegs. Then a gallon water cooler goes in one of the bags with a drink tube drilled into the side. It looked like a pretty tidy solution.

Camelbak tip: After taking a drink, blow back into the line to push the water back into the bag...prevents solar heating of the water in the tube.

 

[Drew]

I went for a short test ride on Sunday, 100-102 degrees, a little country road and a little interstate and also stopped and filled up, about 35-45 minutes total on the bike. Full gear with Under Armor mesh underwear and a short sleeve compression top underneath. Very warm overall, not getting much air anywhere really as far as ventilation goes, windshield fully retracted. My shins got pretty warm also. When I stopped for gas, the 25 mph wind cooled me off pretty good, but there was a lot of sweat to cool off with. I have some tights and a long sleeved compression top I got from Eastbay a while back, I'll give that set-up a try and see how it feels. Regardless, I would agree, it's better than a cotton tee and jeans underneath.

Thanks for the ideas.

Burnspot - What Fieldsheer pants do you have? My Olympia's have gotten a bit big for me, especially with nothing underneath, and I'm looking at the Titanium Airflow 4's, but they are out of stock everywhere I've looked.

 

[Fred W]

Thinking outside the box here:

You could ride the hot slab sections at night.