Misery in Phoenix

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It’s that time of year again in Phoenix. I was going to start a thread, and realized that I started this one over a decade ago! All the above applies here now. We have our first heat wave of the summer starting this weekend. I don’t want to hear anything from anybody in the country or elsewhere (with the possible exception of central Australia) about it’s a dry heat, blah, blah, blah. It truly is deadly, just like northern Minnesota January. Only different.

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Summers in Northern Michigan are indeed Paradise! The riding is a mystical experience. :)
 
Ish ! I prefer the cold - you can put enough clothes on to stay warm, but you can't take enough off to stay cool. Your post begs the question, were you up there in Jan ? Working ? International Falls ? Boundary Waters ? Fishing, XC skiing, camping, snowmobiling ? Any experience there in Jan is a real challenge. In the 70's your car wouldn't start. -40 F + any MPH will test your helmet and gloves.
You can put on clothes to stay warm....true enough. However, as someone from both extremes, let me tell you....it is far easier and faster to recover from heat exhaustion and sunburn that it is from hypothermia and frost bite. 1994, I had both hypothermia and frost bite. Took nearly 7 months to recover. Had heat exhaustion and sunburn plenty of times. Heat exhaustion, cleared up in a day, sunburn, less than a week. Thats why I live in the American southwest as well. I can take the heat alot better than the cold. And no humidity is alot better on my joints.
 
I lived in Phoenix (Cave Creek and Anthem actually) coming up on 18 years ago now...I remember a day when I was supposed to fly out on a trip for work and they shut the airport down because it was so hot, both generally and specifically coming off the tarmac, that the planes couldn't get enough lift to take off.

Driving home at 10:30 at night and it's still 100+ degrees out...not for me anymore.

Denver's starting to get the point it's getting too hot so Alaska (Anchorage-area) is the next destination. The weather and the population 'density', there are 800,000 people total in a state twice the size of Texas, makes it sound pretty attractive to me.
 
I don't care if it's in the Florida 90's, I won't ride w/o a mesh armored jacket. I even have a pair of pants the same way, but I don't use them all that-much. I never ride w/o a full-face helmet and gloves.
+1
Always put on full face helmet, leather jacket + trousers, gloves and sandals.

Don't fancy medics pulling tarmac out of my arms or legs or want to mess around with skin grafts. I'm too old to heal quickly.

Generally heat isn't an issue over here as long as you keep moving. ;)

Many years ago another motorcyclist said never buy one piece leathers (unless racing) as you can't easily remove the jacket when it's hot.
 
Another plus to wearing gear in extreme heat is that when (if) you DO go down, the pavement temperature can exceed 180F. I wouldn't want to be laying on that in a t-shirt. (I've actually heard a guy who DID do that screaming in agony - not from the broken bones, but from the asphalt searing into his flesh...)
 
(I've actually heard a guy who DID do that screaming in agony - not from the broken bones, but from the asphalt searing into his flesh...)

I imagine that to be like the scene from terminator 2 where the bad terminator is writhing in the pot of molten steel (unless I remembered it wrong)

BTW there is no law here nor I believe in US specifying riding gear (only compulsory helmet here) but I wonder if them t shirt (almost inevitably the ones with sides cut out) * and shorts dudes play amercan football or ice hockey without the padding?

* apologies in advance if you are one of them dudes.
 
I remember running into a Dust or Sandnado when I was there as well..I guess those are still around.
 
I remember running into a Dust or Sandnado when I was there as well..I guess those are still around.

Not sure if you're referring to "dust devils", or the more ominous "dust storms" which, more recently, we've begun to call by the Arabic name "haboob".

(They're still around. Most often occur in July and August).
 
I've told of this wreck before, but the story is worth the telling, again.

'Dragon Bob' was a local character who worked in a local restaurant or two, in the kitchen, not cooking. He always seemed to-have some motorcycle or another, there were times where I would see him around the community only on his motorcycle, I suppose those were times when he may only have had that instead of four-wheels. He also rode a bicycle.

'Dragon Bob' had a sense of style for his modes of transportation. Each would have a carefully attached set of monsters, mostly dragons, affixed to the bodywork. Oh, they were colorful! Vibrant, bright colors, lime green, chartreuse, magenta, searing yellow, blue like the Caribbean Sea's white-sandy bottom, through fathoms of saltwater, orange like a solar flare, and grey like I'd imagine a hungry velociraptor. The most-impressive one was like a double-Ghidorah, the three-headed nemesis of Godzilla: seven heads, one body, and each arching neck and head was a different color. Of-course, it was the center-of-the-hood piece on his Jeep Cherokee.

Bob's bikes seemed to be Japanese cruisers of older vintage, though for quite-awhile he had a 4-cyl Gold Wing. Yes, each motorcycle I saw him on had its own dragons affixed to it. It made for a sight, sitting there next to you while waiting for a light and being stared-at, by teeth-baring dragons, claws poised to rip you apart. I would roll-up my window, hoping for a modicum of protection from the hungry carnivores.

We were at the fire department, and my rescue unit got toned-out for a motor vehicle accident on US-1, the main drag running N-S in the middle of the community, halfway between A1A at the Atlantic Ocean, and I-95 several miles inland. When we arrived who was lying on the pavement, but 'Dragon Bob!' A car had T-bned him. His Gold Wing was lying not-far away, on its side, and from the point of impact to where it lay, was a charnel house of dead monsters, horribly-disfigured: decapitated, missing limbs, worse than any Godzilla thriller for the carnage. My friend, the driver-engineer on the responding fire engine, radioed to dispatch that he was standing-by with rescue, in-case Godzilla woke-up. That 'woke-up' the dispatcher, who wanted to know, "what did you say is happening-there?"

We packaged-up the shattered leg of 'Dragon Bob,' and got him to the hospital. The last thing I saw before my co-worker steered the ambulance away from the scene, was my friend the engine company driver-engineer sweeping-up the severed limbs, heads, and bodies and using a deep square-nose shovel to throw the dragon parts into a 5 gallon bucket. That accident took 'Dragon Bob' off the road awhile, on a motorcycle. Awhile later, I did see him on a much-newer used car than the ones he seemed to afford, so I guess the pain was worth-it. Yes, the dragons were on the new vehicles.
 
On a positive note, living in Hawaii on the Island of Oahu equates to year round riding and no animals jumping across the road trying to kill you. Although yesterday we had no trade winds so it was hot and muggy. But the ride, well, it was total bliss. Sorry, had to rub it in. My bad.
 
I feel your pain I live in Las Vegas where heat is just a way of life. I am acclimated to the weather these days but it can be miserable but I ride all year round. My Custom bike I built powered by a Honda motor hates the heat but my Vmax has no problem in high temps. Las t summer I rode nearly every day. It was reaching 119 degrees a few of those days. It is 104 right now here in LV and I just got back from a 30 mile ride.
 
For those of you who want some safety sandals, try these:

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And in a desperate attempt to tie this into the misery thread, leave those out in the sun for an hour and then put them on.

Anything metal left in the sun around here this time of the year will instantly burn flesh if you try to pick it up.
 
And while we’re on the subject of helmets and riding motorcycles in the heat, of all the protective gear, a helmet is truly the most miserable when it’s hot. Without a doubt, a full helmet is the worst. I will confess to employing the use of a quality half helmet when it is really hot and I ride - which happens less and less these days. (Must be getting soft.)
 
And while we’re on the subject of helmets and riding motorcycles in the heat, of all the protective gear, a helmet is truly the most miserable when it’s hot. Without a doubt, a full helmet is the worst. I will confess to employing the use of a quality half helmet when it is really hot and I ride - which happens less and less these days. (Must be getting soft.)
I suggest one of these instead of a half-helmet: Shark EVO One 2 Helmets - RevZilla There is also the older version, which is substantially-discounted, if you can find one. You may have to search online for that one, the Evoline 3 ST. The chinbar on the Shark Evoline swings to the back of the helmet, and you can ride with it like that. It is rated for use in the open-position. Every other modular helmet, the 'open' position is very uncomfortable if ridden with it open, and is probably not-intended to be used like that. I've had the Schuberth (BMW) and the Shoei modular helmets, and the Shark Evoline is the one I like the most.
 
I suggest one of these instead of a half-helmet: Shark EVO One 2 Helmets - RevZilla There is also the older version, which is substantially-discounted, if you can find one. You may have to search online for that one, the Evoline 3 ST. The chinbar on the Shark Evoline swings to the back of the helmet, and you can ride with it like that.
My wife and I both use the Shark helmets where the Full Face swings up and back, turning the helmet into a Pudding Bowl style, there is also a feature of the helmet where you can slide down a half tinted visor. Its certainly a very comfy and smart looking piece of kit. I bought these helmets about 5 years ago and we have not complained once about them.
At the time of purchase I installed an intercom and that was comfy in the helmet also, althoughI admit to removing it later as I could not concentrate on driving whilst listening to someone talking so much. But great helmet at low and high speeds, also last year I drove 460 miles almost non-stop one day and never got discomfort at any time. Great buy in my opinion.
 

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One thing to remember in any helmet purchase, the color is very-important in your attempts to embrace conspicuity. That would be the intent to be seen, easily in any environment, as a motorcyclist. Frankly, dark helmets do-not provide the "I can easily see you as a motorcyclist" factor, so-important to safe transit on the roadways. The Shark Evoline helmets offered reflective and luminescent paint, when I bought mine. It makes a big difference in visibility. Even a simple white helmet is much-better than a matte finish, the white helmet being visible from much further-away than is a matte-black helmet. However, just adding some reflective trim to your matte-black (or whatever dark color you may-have) helmet can make you more-easily seen by other motorists. See for yourself: on an overcast day how far-away can you easily-see a motorcyclist with a dark-color helmet? Then notice how much-easier it is to track a white-helmeted rider. You can see their white helmet, even as their (probably) dark-colored clothing tends to blend into the background. With increasing distance, you can still see the white helmet, for far-longer a distance/time than you can the dark helmeted rider.

When I first began riding and had my first bike, I bought a white open-face helmet, and I added striping in red reflective tape to simulate the pattern which my favorite F1 driver Graham Hill wore, though his was deep dark blue and white vertical bars spaced equally around the helmet, pointed on-top. I believe he had a pattern of his college rowing club. While I have had dark colors, I usually buy white helmets. Another thing in their favor, that's usually the most-inexpensive color. Tart it-up, with some Di-Noc tape, and if it's reflective, you're the one who will benefit from increased visibility.

3M_-DI-NOC_-Sample-Book-2018-2020-1.pdf (americansignproducts.com)
The solid colors (p. 47) are probably the best-looking for helmets.

Graham Hill F1 champion.jpg
 
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I have several modular helmets, Shoei, Schuberth and it is not too bad.

When I ride, I wear normally a skull cap. I soak it in water before I take it on and it keeps my head cool for a while, depending on the airflow going through the helmet. I also use a balaclava, soaked in water.
I would also recommend some long underwear OR put the pants into the boots.... when it is 115, the heat from the street and engine makes it a little bit uncomfortable, but, well, I never need to shave my legs again *lol*.
@desert_max I was in carefree last weekend, at this coffee place where we met first. I forgot to put a towel on my seat.. I have a gel insert in my seat, so it was a very funny ride home. I did not realize when I left the spot and I had not enough water on me to soak my pants. :D
 

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