what part of the Bay Area do you ride in? FWIW I see a handful of gains - performance, perceived glycogen sparing (can’t measure it but sure seems like it), and practice fueling/hydration. Doing 2 hours at say 50% ftp, in 95-105F temps, here in Sacramento. When the temps are right, like now in July and August, I often do a couple of those a week. Plus riding in more temperate 85-95F.
Speaking of Sacramento I wonder if riding in that dry heat vs here in a humid part of Texas makes a difference as to how a body tolerates intake of liquid.
Haven’t ridden in real humidity in years, but I definitely felt worse a couple months ago doing outside work on my mom’s house, in the humidity of Fort Worth.
For me, dry heat is good, humidity is bad.
Almost certainly…maybe not in a direct fashion, but how your body responds to humidity can vary vs. dry climates, which can then impact your ability to fuel properly.
Houston here. Humidity SUCKS.
But does it contribute to diminishing appitite or is it more a matter of heat index?
I have no science behind this, but I can say that when I’m somewhere like Colorado or Moab it can be 100 degrees and I never feel like barfing from the heat. Places like Houston with really high humidity are a totally different feeling.
Interestingly, cold also feels colder to me here. 35 degrees in Houston is brutally cold. 35 in Moab and you can ride in shorts.
This summer has been brutal. 105F almost everyday for a month and 80F at night.
I got up at 4am the other day to ride and it was 79 degrees.
Sounds like heat index/body’s ability to shed the excess heat. Humidity makes that much harder.
Did 1:30 of easy spinning outside after work and avg temp was 102F. It actually didn’t feel that bad with a decent breeze and lower humidity here in North Texas.
Yup….lack of humidity and higher altitude makes colder temps much more tolerable, especially if you are in the sun. When I lived in CO, 32* meant walking around in a fleece vest if the sun was out….32* in Chicago us bundled up, even if the sun is out.
Are you still in the Bay Area? Remaining events in the (relatively dry) west?
Last event for me is first weekend of October in Southeastern Minnesota. Grey Duck Grit. Got hypothermia at it last year.
Yes, lol, I went to school “on the arctic tundra” in northern MI and we always got first snow no later than October 15th.
FWIW here in Sactown I’m riding with cat1 road racers putting out 330-360W for 25-40 minutes in 95-100F temps, after acclimatization. Dudes are completely drenched in sweat at the regroup. For years I’ve seen some crazy power numbers on hot Tue/Wed/Thur night worlds.
Just finished RAGBRAI and had a few very brutal days.
What worked was fake food.
Gels and I really like the high carb mix from Skratch.
I also have to be a low of 40 but often 60 oz per hour to stay hydrated.
The real food I ate felt like lead in my stomach.