Heat Index - When Do You Bail?

[Eagle7]

So here I am trying to decide whether to bail out on racing this weekend. Predicted heat index values in the upper 90's. My primary concern is not comfort, but medical/safety. I'm 61 years young, no medical issues, but not really in shape. I don't tolerate heat well and have had a couple incidents in my past that I'd like to not repeat. In a typical sprint race in 75* weather I'll come in soaking wet. I've got a cold-pack cool vest being shipped to me today and have a paddock canopy. I just don't know where the line is - how much heat is too much? Any wisdom out there?

[Greg Amy]

Marty, I think that's a personal decision. But I always keep in mind that "if I'm not having fun, then I'm not having fun". It's a hobby, not a chore... - GA

[erlrich]

Agree with Greg completely (which, in my case, also applies to racing in the rain, but that's another discussion). I'm only 52, and in relatively good condition, but doing anything outdoors when it's 90+ just saps all the energy out of me. As with so many other things now, I can do it, but I'll pay for it later. I decided a couple of years ago that July & August (I'm in VA) are non-racing months for me from now on, unless I decide to travel far to the north where temps are more reasonable.

[JeffYoung]

I can't emphasize enough how much a cool suit changed this for me (and an air conditioned trailer). Lugging tires around in the heat still sucks, but 90+ degree sprint races with the cool suit and I'm still looking forward to another lap.

[TStiles]

I feel your pain , in Houston the conditions are tough for 4-5 months.

Our last race @ TWS , we were group 6 and it was near 100 degrees. I decided I was going to sit in the shade , and not touch the car other than adding gas and checking tire pressures.

After making several mistakes late in the race , I decided to give the cool suit a second thought

After doing a little research , I decided that @ 54 , racing in Houston in the summer requires another piece of safety equipment ... A cool suit

[Matt93SE]

I ran the TWS race with Trey above, and it was hot but I was still fine at the end of the race. BUT.. I'm 'only' 33 and spend quite a bit of time working in the heat so I'm much more tolerant of it than some of the other folk I was racing with. I asked my crew to have a bottle of cold water and gatorade ready at impound when I came off track, but I would have been OK without it had they not shown up.
The track also had a worker stationed at impound to hand out cold water to all coming off the track, so that was a big help as well.

My driver's school last year was also 4+hrs per day in car with 100+ heat. I was definitely worn out by the end of the day, but I didn't notice myself really making any more mistakes than earlier in the runs.

I do have to make a conscious effort every lap for a personal discussion.. "How are you, body? everything good? still alert? too hot? need to back down 5% and just cruise, or are you still OK to chase this guy down?"

But yeah.. it's different for every person. I don't run a cool suit and am fine in 100 deg heat. I see others that would pass out just walking outside in these temps.

[CRallo]

If you are smart about it, it can be done and that includes some effort with conditioning if you are serious. Hydrating starts the day before and you need more than just water. Slow and steady with the fluids. A cool suit helps amazingly and being a tough guy is no good if you wreck or pass out!


For anyone who is serious about being in shape, strength, endurance and being conditioned for the heat, Bikram Yoga is a must!



Yea, we get it, you're a tough guy! :p


I ran the TWS race with Trey above, and it was hot but I was still fine at the end of the race. BUT.. I'm 'only' 33 and spend quite a bit of time working in the heat so I'm much more tolerant of it than some of the other folk I was racing with. I asked my crew to have a bottle of cold water and gatorade ready at impound when I came off track, but I would have been OK without it had they not shown up.
The track also had a worker stationed at impound to hand out cold water to all coming off the track, so that was a big help as well.

My driver's school last year was also 4+hrs per day in car with 100+ heat. I was definitely worn out by the end of the day, but I didn't notice myself really making any more mistakes than earlier in the runs.

I do have to make a conscious effort every lap for a personal discussion.. "How are you, body? everything good? still alert? too hot? need to back down 5% and just cruise, or are you still OK to chase this guy down?"

But yeah.. it's different for every person. I don't run a cool suit and am fine in 100 deg heat. I see others that would pass out just walking outside in these temps.

[Lael Cleland]

If you race a VW or are crew for a bunch of guys who do, a cool suit is a must, cars break more in the heat, so I have to fix them.... A cool suit & refuge with A/C has allot to do with the enjoyment to be had at a race..

Also I have a 3 beer max at july & august races.. maybe 4-5 if there low cal light beers...:)

Their are inexpensive ways to keep cool, our coolers are from Orthopedic cold therapy units, I think there is a class action law suit due to a few peoples joint became to cold..So usually $20-$40 used.. We have found 6 of them just by asking around. The coolers I have seen run on either 12vdc or 7vdc, all have a hardwired 110vac transformer, cut off the transformer, connect it to your car..or leave it and use an inverter. The 7 volt ones I think you use a 300 ohm resistor, I used a rheostat.. Also they only work with "Cool Shirt" not Faast systems.. different connectors..

I am 38 going on 23.. The brain some times forgets your body has limits..

[gran racing]

I bought a cool vest and while walking around in false grid, actually looked forward to getting in the car. Regardless, the head gets soaked while on grid and that part of my body is not comfortable. A few weeks ago at Summit Point, I got out of the car. Damn it was hot out. While I took my driving suit off, I did not take the vest off for a while.

Marty, stay home if in doubt. It's not worth it. There's the fun aspect and the safety aspect. There are more races this year you can attend.

Dave - whose staying home because doing everything that still needs to be done to attend the event is too stressful and a burden versus fun. Instead there's another Glen event not so long from now that I'll attend.

[DavidM]

I just built a cool system for right around $200. $130 of which was for the shirt. So if money is keeping you from buying a $600 system then think about making your own. I'm actually ok in the heat, but the cool system does work and it will keep you cooler. I needed the weight more than anything. :)

David

[Gary L]

But yeah.. it's different for every person. I don't run a cool suit and am fine in 100 deg heat. I see others that would pass out just walking outside in these temps.

I agree, it really is different for every person. I'm 67 with no cool suit and had no real issues at Topeka this past weekend with temp in the high 90's and heat index well over 100. But at least two guys in our race, one of them less than 1/3 my age, needed attention in impound for dizziness, etc.

[Lael Cleland]

I needed the weight more than anything. :)

David

About that, Is it ok to mount it in the trunk? Or passenger side floor only with the ballast? I put mine in the trunk, easier to dump & Fill (better weight distribution also)

[jhooten]

The May race at TWS is mild compared to the August race at MSR Houston. I don't have to make the choice for the Houston race this year because the car is still not put back together from the November "incident".

I have a small window AC unit I mount in the passenger window of the tow truck so I have some place cool to get as soon as I get out of the car. It helps. One of the upgrades to the car during the rebuild is to mount the cool suit box.

Remember what Dirty Harry said, "a man's got to know his limitations". In the end only you know if you should.

If you do drink plenty. If you aren't going pee at least every hour you are not drinking enough.

[lateapex911]

[soapbox on]

One issue I see ALL the time with SCCA is guys who are, frankly, risks. As in out of shape, overweight, and the race ...all 20 minutes of it, kills them.

We all hear how outsiders bash our sport because 'It's not athletic" and we get all ornery, and insist we ARE athletes. But the numbers of us who work out...and actually act the least bit athletic.... are few and far between..

So, start acclimating to the heat. Go out in it. Mow the lawn. Push yourself ....a bit at a time. Work out. Do cardio. Run, walk, do stadiums, swim, lift. Even yoga, lol.
We all get lazy.....don't.
You'll act like you're 50 when you're 70 if you are active. Or you can act like you're 70 when you're 60....or 50....
[/soapbox OFF]

Greg made a good point. Don't go if you're not having fun.
But I make a good point too. Be in condition so you're not ruled by a little heat.

[gran racing]

There's also a difference from people doing this as a side hobby compared to drivers who are in the car often and do it "for a living". Kinda like the analogy of pro baseball players to week night beer drinking softball players.

Yes, getting in shape and acclimating to heat is a great thing. Some people however react to heat differently than others.

[dj10]

Marty I'm about the same age as you, a little younger, ;~) but I have a fishing vest where I put cold packs in if' it's unbearably hot and a towel around my neck with ice in it. These are only sprint races so maybe 30 to 45 mins? I would do a cool suit if I was going over an hour in high heat and humidity. I also would recommend keeping hydrated and stay out of the sun as much as possible, and last but not least as GA said, if you're not have fun don't do it. What did drivers do before there were cool suits? :~)

[Greg Amy]

What did drivers do before there were cool suits? :~)
Turned on the A/C (my SSA car still had it installed and working...after all, I was driving it to and from the track!)

[dj10]

Turned on the A/C (my SSA car still had it installed and working...after all, I was driving it to and from the track!)

Or we raced and got hot!:)

[gran racing]

What did drivers do before there were cool suits?

Ice in a zip lock bag attached to shirt right where the heart is. Several years ago I was still seeing some NASCAR drivers do this.

[tom91ita]

one nice thing about the heat is that an ice cold beer tastes "beerier" after the race....

[chuck baader]

At age 67 I can identify with the heat, now. I worked in a dry cleaners for 28 years and the first two years after retirement I had no problems in the car. Seems this year I have become acclimated to the air conditioning and really suffered at Road Atlanta in May. Hence, a new cool shirt with a leftover medical cooler. Much less sweating, comfortable in the car for the complete 45 minute ProIt, and no leg cramps after the race. 100% endorsement for the cool shirt. Chuck

[Jeremy Billiel]

This is an interesting thread.

As my dad calls me... I am a corporate cup cake that gets little to no *real*cardio or physical exercise. No doubt this weekend is going to be brutal and I am running Pro-IT and the regional. If it gets that bad, then I may choose to hold out a session or start from the back. I will be hydrating starting tomorrow and taking it easy. If I feel dizzy and/or bad be smart and pull out of the way, pits, etc...

No need to be a hero. Its suppose to be fun!

Greg - When are we adding weight back to the car for a cool suit?

[Greg Amy]

Greg - When are we adding weight back to the car for a cool suit?
When you buy all the nifty bits we need to be 25 pounds below minimum weight...only 125 pounds left to go! Get motivated!

[mossaidis]

Why not use cold packs for those that don't have the $1K for the cool shirt setup?

[lateapex911]

Jeremy you better get in shape! What are you, 30?? Gregs not putting extra weight in that car for your comfort thats for sure!! ;)

[Jeremy Billiel]

Jeremy you better get in shape! What are you, 30?? Gregs not putting extra weight in that car for your comfort thats for sure!! ;)

LOL... Thats what makes it soo funny. He is taking off like 5 gram bolts to save weight. I should pack some lead in the rear somewhere to piss him off :D

[ulfelder]

Cool shirt, cool shirt, cool shirt. Changes your life. Puts spring in your step. Makes you look forward to climbing in the car - indeed, to strapping in, because when the harness compresses everything, that's when the ice-cold bennies truly kick in. Of all the dumb-ass things we spend money on, the cool shirt is my fave.

[JLawton]

I used a 1 gallon zip lock with ice and put it on my chest. The belts hold it in place. Then a sandwhich bag with ice on the back of the neck.

[gsbaker]

From the objective side, Dr. Terry Trammel presented a paper on the subject ("Heat Stress in Motorsports - Lessening the Effect on the Wearer by Selection of Fire Suit Materials and Construction", see http://papers.sae.org/2006-01-3658) testing volunteers exercising in a 140 degree environment while wearing driving suits. While the study was designed to test suits, it is clear that ugly things happen under extreme conditions -- and 140 is not unusual for tin tops in warm weather.

From the subjective side, I was at Daytona when the temp was 97 with a heat index of 107. I will not do that again.

[rsx858]

+1 for cool suit. Im 25, in great shape, run a lot, but heat is just a killer for me.. especially with that 13b turning my car into an oven. I came off of thunderbolt a year or two back dizzy and disoriented and realized just how serious of a safety issue this can be.. Picked up the cool suit and could not be happier.

Next step for me is to rig up some kind of drink system.. i have tried camel backs but have trouble with getting the mouth piece in the helmet. Ideally i think a smaller diameter tube through the front of the helmet would be ideal.. i picked up a mini bilge pump to see if i could rig up some kind of push button drink system that integrates with my helmet. My other option would be to have a water bottle with a long straw but i dont like the idea of trying to fiddle with a straw at speed.. any suggestions?

[billf]

Having not seen anything offered from the medical community members, I thought I'd chime in here.

As mentioned in the abstract of "Heat Stress in Motorsports...", the sentence is: "The Body's primary thermoregulatory pathway is sudation (the process of sweating and evaporative heat loss)." We tend to forget that saturated clothing (driver's suits) will not evaporate fluid from the skin surface, since the skin is not exposed to air. Only the wet suit is. Point being that we forget to get out of the suit when coming off the track, and put it out to dry...don't wear it. Better still, find a dry suit to wear the next time on track.

Cool suits will help to remove heat, no argument here. Staying out of the sun, AC, fountains, swiming pools, etc, will also. These periods at the track are when a crew (person) is valuable to your health...doing the work between sessions to enable the driver to cool off.

Hydration should begin at least two days before the event, and continue thru the event, with at least two days after the event to help replenish the body. Don't forget glucose, sodium and chloride with the water replacement. That salty taste to your skin means you are losing them also when you sweat.

Sorry to have to mention this, but, try to eliminate alcohol and caffine from the diet during the hydration schedule, as they are diuretics...they will help the body to eliminate water (going in the wrong direction here).

Combinations of methods will work also...cool suit, prolonged hydration schedules, cooling devices directly to the body, proper evaporation and cooling after the event. Above all, be alert to the symptoms of Heat Stroke (life threatening), and Heat exhaustion (performance degradation), and be ready to act accordingly when the symptoms occur.

Guys, it's just like racing in the rain (a different type of racing), where you have to have different equipment, and follow a few different rules. It's surviveable.

[G-Man]

Thank you for all the wisdom being shared here. This is a great example of how this forum is so valuable.

[mustanghammer]

Why not use cold packs for those that don't have the $1K for the cool shirt setup?

A cool shirt doesn't have to be expensive. Buy the shirt and the hose fittings from a dealer. Everything else can be purchased at a Walmart and a hardware store. I think I have a little over $200 in my setup and that includes the shirt, fittings, two different size coolers and spare fittings.

[rhygin]

Great thread...

1) Search on Miata.net as there is a thread from abotu 5 years ago that i used to build my own cool suit cooler/pump set up. I bought the shirt... but the pump set ended up at about $40 total, not including a few odds and ends around the garage. I know of at least 4 people that have loosely copied what I made and I am totally cool taking pics or showing at a race. Piece of cake and a testament to low budget racing and 20 min of thinking at the local hardware store. Definitely helps to keep sharp at the end of a race. If you have not used one... you cannot image the joy of feelign the cold water come through the shirt. Awesome... there are analogies... but not for this setting.

2) Strangely... I am kinda into the heat and while it makes me super frustrated on grid, i have taken some strong measures to make sure that the driver (me) is getting at least the prep of the car. I have been working out a lot more this year and am muuuuuch more comfortable with the heat and the stress that comes with it. For me, given a chosen lack of tire budget, I want it hot, humid, sunny, and hotter... my only advantage.

Regarding my second point... I do spend a lot of time taking care of myself... lots of water and electorlytes followed by lots of water. Very key if double dipping!

Come check out the cool suit set up at NHMS in a few weeks

BB

[lateapex911]

........ i have taken some strong measures to make sure that the driver (me) is getting at least the prep of the car. I have been working out a lot more this year and am muuuuuch more comfortable with the heat and the stress that comes with it...

BB

This. Typically, were racers and we bolt shit to the car to solve our problems. Ultimately it's US that needs more performance.

[gran racing]

BUT he also has a cool suit. Both are idea.

[JohnW8]

The first time using a cool shirt distracted me so much from my driving I shut it off. The race was a sprint and was over in 20-30 minutes. At my last race in Nashville I opted to not have the cool shirt in the car and I had no ill effects. Now if it was more than 30 minutes I definitely would have it hooked up. I'm not trying to be an arse but if our bodies cannot handle 30 minutes in a racecar without a cool shirt we all had better rethink racing as a hobby. Over 30 minutes is a different thing altogether.

Just my .02¢

[Streetwise guy]

I figure hot weather is an advantage for me, when I watch all the A/C type people dribbling onto the ground after a race as I pedal my bile around with my fire suit zipped up.

But I sleep in A/C that my wife controls (so its not that cold) and the rest of the summer is spent sweating outdoors or in the shop.

A/C is for the weak!:rolleyes:

[tdw6974]

I was cleaning out my back office(ok the junk room) and I have an extra medical cooler just add the cool shirt tie power into car plug cool shirt in and your good to go. I'll bring to Watkins Glen (Garage 2 B) $75.00 ?

[Greg Amy]

I was cleaning out my back office(ok the junk room) and I have an extra medical cooler just add the cool shirt tie power into car plug cool shirt in and your good to go. I'll bring to Watkins Glen (Garage 2 B) $75.00 ?
I'll call dibs if no one else has. I'll come by and check it out (and introduce myself...)

[chuck baader]

My medical cooler had a 7v input...I suspect the motor will be very pissed off on 13.5v. I found a DC to DC voltage regulator via Google that steps the voltage down to 7v....works like magic!!! Chuck

[mc-integra111]

My other option would be to have a water bottle with a long straw but i dont like the idea of trying to fiddle with a straw at speed.. any suggestions?

This is what I have. Nalgene water bottle in a zippered cooler right behind my seat with a straw. Obviously I can't mess with this over the vast majority of the track, but there is enough straightaway space that I have never had a problem.

[TStiles]

After racing for 24 years without a cool suit , I had my 1st encounter with one this weekend @ TWS in ChumpCar.

I started the race @ 4:00 PM , I don't even want to know how hot it was.

As I was strapping in for my 2 hour stint , I'm thinking " I hope this cool suit works " , just about then I began to feel the cool water flow .... Oh baby , that feels great !

After 1.5 hrs I felt great , the cool suit really did make a difference

Then it happened , we had a mechanical issue that left me stranded on course , the truck came to get me , hooked up , then quickly unhooked to attend to a car on fire report , that left me stranded on course for over 30 minutes in full gear in the car ... I'm not sure how that would have turned out without the cool suit.

[spawpoet]

After racing for 24 years without a cool suit , I had my 1st encounter with one this weekend @ TWS in ChumpCar.

I started the race @ 4:00 PM , I don't even want to know how hot it was.

As I was strapping in for my 2 hour stint , I'm thinking " I hope this cool suit works " , just about then I began to feel the cool water flow .... Oh baby , that feels great !

After 1.5 hrs I felt great , the cool suit really did make a difference

Then it happened , we had a mechanical issue that left me stranded on course , the truck came to get me , hooked up , then quickly unhooked to attend to a car on fire report , that left me stranded on course for over 30 minutes in full gear in the car ... I'm not sure how that would have turned out without the cool suit.


I was stranded for around 30 min at my drivers school last summer without a cool suit, and thusfar it's the only time I could say I've been uncomfortable in the car. Without the airflow (even hot), being in the car flat sucked. Grid of course isn't much better, but you only need to sit in the car for up to 10 min at a time.

[jrx13]

For those interested in building your own cool shirt cooler. See my recent post here:

http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=962966

[StephF]

Most of the time the heat doesn't bother me. I can remember running LRP a few years back when temps were in triple digits. That bowl gets HOT when the air isn't moving. When you notice sweat tracking across your ribcage and into your eyes when you're going through Big Bend, you know it's hot.
We ran a helmet blower for a few years. It helped, although not as much as a cool suit would. I think now it would be more a matter of picking my spots rather than investing that much in a cool suit, especially since we both have to buy HANS's this winter. Heat like we just had, I would probably just sit it out. We saw 101 here last Friday, on an open, usually cool area. I can only imagine what LRP would have been like!