Modern Vespa

I was contemplating a ride to Palm Springs, CA tomorrow to visit a sick relative until I found out the forecast high temperature is 121F/49C! I have decided against this course of action.

I've heard a lot lately about the Heat Index or, as they say in Medialand, the "Feels Like Temperature". It's a number derived from an equation that purports to take humidity and temperature into account to determine what it "feels like" when the weather gets hot. It's the sweaty sibling of the "Wind Chill Factor". But does it actually make sense? And how does it come into play while riding?

I started Googling around with some current readings and found out that according to the National Weather Service it was, at one point today, 125F in in Death Valley, California, but that it "felt like" 111F. I also learned that at one point today in Corpus Christi, Texas it was 96F, but it "felt like" 111F. And I've got to say, I'm not buying it.

I've been in both of those weather scenarios, or pretty close to it, and 125F feels way hotter to me. The heat and dryness makes my face feel like its about to fall off, my eyes hurt, my skin hurts, my brain hurts, the sun frightens me and I become a dangerous person to be around. In the Corpus Christi-style setting, I am deeply, profoundly annoyed at the sweaty pointlessness of it, but it doesn't feel as bad as the other thing. Which is what I don't like about this whole "feels like" concept? Who's doing the feeling?

I also looked up the highest "feels like" temperature ever recorded and that would be 178F/81.1C in Dharan, Saudi Arabia in 2003. Really?

But anyway, has anyone ridden in these different scenarios? What are the differences and which do you prefer? I would've been much more likely to go for a ride today in East Texas than Death Valley, but that's just because of what it "feels like" to me. But I probably wouldn't have gone anywhere in either place.

Back in 2003 (I think I remember correctly) and it was in July, I rode my GL1800 into Vegas. As we left, the street sign showed it was 117°F.
My pillion had stopped me earlier as she was getting dizzy from the heat. Stopped and visited a Dr for her and said she was on the border of a heat stroke. Cooled her down in AC room and got a neck scarf that held ice. Got a spray bottle with water in it to spray her every 15 minutes and the water evaporated fast making her feel cool. It never bothered me though.
The high for that day was over 120....again, if I remember correctly. That was a long time ago. She was from NJ and not used to the heat.

Ever been in a hot dry and in a hot and steamy sauna? Did it feel any different?

Does being in the shade in a humid climate feel different from that in a dry area?

Is evaporation and the resulting cooling effect dependent on the relative humidity, or not?

Oh, and does "relative humidity even mean anything? 😊

Come to Phoenix in August or early Sept. That's hot.

this was Wednesday afternoon, the outside of the west wall of the shop.

the roll up door was mid 90's on the inside.

it's been hot here...

How about when it's 78 deg. f. You go outside to work on your bike and sweat is pouring off you just standing there looking at it.

The warmest temperature I've ever ridden in was around 1980 while returning to Minnesota from a trip out to San Francisco on my '76 Suzuki GS750.

It was 114 degrees Fahrenheit in the early afternoon as we were passing through Needles, California, where we (my then girlfriend, Paula and I) had to stop and seek an air-conditioned hotel room to hideout in and recover from the days heat.

It was so hot that I had to keep my jacket on, and the face shield down on my Bell Star helmet because riding down the interstate felt like a giant blow-dryer was trying to cook us and we were dehydrating to the point of sickness.

I don't know how that air-cooled Suzuki engine didn't melt itself to destruction that day.

I live near Nashville, TN and the average daily relative humidity in the summer is > 70%. It's not uncommon for the heat index to be > 120°. I only ride before noon most of the summer due to the heat. I've never visited anywhere drier than here, so I don't know how the other half lives/.

I guess if it comes down to 125F and 96F feeling the same, you just have to decide if you're the sauna type or the steam room type. I don't want either one but if forced to make a choice, I'd take a steam bath.

living in AZ with the temps easily over 100 and lately closer to 120, I am just not riding now

To answer the question, I have ridden mainly in South Florida, but up the east coast too and for a couple of months in the Phoenix area during the summer months. I remember that when I was in Arizona on a day that was 113*, it did not feel as hot as Florida at 85*. Of course the humidity was around 13% whereas SE FL runs between 80 to 100%. The daily afternoon rain contributes to this. It is quite a difference stepping into the shade in the two places.

The heat index factor is not mentioned on the news in FL much as I think they do not want to scare away the tourists. But 126* heat index is a common day from May until mid October. You just learn to deal with it.

The heat index, like the wind chill, is simply a way to make the weather seem more extreme than it really is.

The weather people like it.

I prefer that they just give the actual temperature.

Bill

For the most part, I agree with you. But the heat index and wind chill are a real thing. Until I spent time in Colorado and Arizona, I never really thought that the lack of humidity could make such a change. In Arizona, when you can get shade, it makes a difference. In Florida, the heat follows you into the shade because the heat is in the moisture in the air. The first 31 years of my Plastering life was in Florida where most jobs consisted of stuccoing the outside, then we inside to plaster. Most of this was on large homes of 20,000 feet and above. The gist of it was, on the outside you were broiled, on the inside you got baked. The AC would be put in place months after we finished, of course.

If you ride a PTW at below freezing temperatures, these are the effects of the wind-chill factor. It's real. Ignoring this will result in a really uncomfortable ride - at best.

I read many years ago of a study that explained most of the effects of windchill occurred up to 45 mph. Above that, it it tapered off. Something to do with the compression of molecules in the air. But yeah it's real. The thing about all these explanations of heat (and cold) effects on the human body is that when you are in one place long enough, like I was in south Florida, is that you just knew 93 degrees just felt quite a bit hotter than, say 89. I would have 2 gallons of water for every man on the crew, including me during the long summer and worked in the shade when ever possible. In Phoenix, at first, it was a bit confusing because the perspiration would evaporate versus being soaking wet in FL. It lulled me into a false sense of being ok and not keeping up with hydration. Almost went into heat stroke the first day out riding in the desert. I learned my lesson quick.

I've had personal experiences with the bad effects of the wind chill factor while riding so I'm a believer. It took me over an hour to stop shivering one time after riding underdressed for about 75 miles in conditions close to but not even below freezing. That both the wind chill factor and the heat index are used for effect by media people doesn't mean they don't exist.

Getting back to my original example, I would certainly prefer to be sitting in the shade in Death Valley at 96 degrees than to be doing the same in Corpus Christi at 96 degrees; it's just that for me 96 degrees in C.C. does not feel the same as 125 degrees in D.V.

Plus, and this is only partially a joke, there is no shade in Death Valley.

You need to stay wet in the desert, not with sweat but with water. Cooling vests, chill towels, and cold drinks are essential. If you're able to filter and avoid sitting in traffic, all the better.