Bkreutz Posted June 12, 2016 Share Posted June 12, 2016 I use the Mission cooling towel that you soak in cold water, the snap it to reactivate the cooling effect when it warms up. Lifesaver at Rockcastle in August. Get them at Lowes. I used one of these for the first time in Idaho during the 2015 Area 1 match, what a deal!, of course living in Seattle I don't have lots of opportunity to learn "dealing with heat" tricks. But "staying dry in the rain" is another story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutycalls75 Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I'm in Michigan so we have hot humid weather too. I've found that the biggest mistake people make is not drinking enough water and wearing cotton. On a hot day you should drink water even if your not thirsty. If you wait till your thirsty your all ready behind the eight ball. Cotton plus sweat= uncomfortable. Modern moisture wicking fabrics help let sweat evaporate out of your clothing, which lets you continue to sweat and allow that bodily function to serve its purpose of keeping you cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flat4boxer Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 I've been using Columbia fishing gear shirts and sun sleeves that help a great deal. Recently bought a UA heat gear shirt that works pretty well as wel. I'm in my late 40's, white and the sun is just not my friend. I also use a frog tog towel that I keep wet and cold by resoaking in my cooler water. These all seem to keep the sun off of me and as cool as can be here in the summer months in the south. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TennJeep1618 Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 I used some of the ideas mentioned in this thread at the Texas Open last weekend, and here are my thoughts. First, I started hydrating Friday night, then I averaged just under 1 bottle of water per stage (8 waters, 9 stages), plus 2 bottles of coconut water and 1.5 Gatorades. I had to visit the facilities at least 5 times, but I'd much rather do that than become dehydrated. Second, I wore a lightweight running visor instead of my normal ball cap. MUCH cooler than a cap, just make sure to use sunscreen on your head if you're not used to getting sun on it. Third, I bought a couple of those Mission cooling towels from Lowes and kept rotating them out. I wrapped them around my head, draped them over my shoulders, etc. They provided additional shade for my face as well as cooling my exposed skin. I also tried to stay in the shade and sit down on my stool as much as possible, while still helping to paste and reset. The heat was intense and I walked over 22K steps on Saturday. While I was drained by the end of the day, my mind was still sharp, I wasn't dehydrated, and was ready to finish the last 3 stages on Sunday. I highly recommend these methods (in addition to any others you use) to stay cool on a hot match day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stony Lane Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Who has tried any of these products? Which options and how did they work? Arm bands, shirts, sleeves, ... www.qoreperformance.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCTaylor Posted June 30, 2016 Share Posted June 30, 2016 Kid at the Texas Open had the sleeves. He spoke highly of them, I'm thinking about getting a pair. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxer1 Posted July 5, 2016 Share Posted July 5, 2016 I have tried the towels before and they work well if I rotate them out. I will have to try the coconut water and visor good ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertTortoise Posted July 5, 2016 Share Posted July 5, 2016 (edited) I wear long sleeve, light weight shirt and pants from Columbia. Loose, wicking clothing that covers the body is better than exposing skin. hydrate the days before. drink at least a gallon of water / Gatorade during the day (about 1 liter per hour) If you use sports drinks, drink twice as much plain water as Gatorade. If your urine is anything other than clear, you are already getting dehydrated! Maybe invest in one of those pop up canopies for shade. In south Carolina there is often one in a squad who brings one. They just pick it up and carry it from bay to bay. Edited July 6, 2016 by DesertTortoise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMechanic Posted July 5, 2016 Share Posted July 5, 2016 (edited) I have found that the better shape I am in, the better I can handle long days in the heat. I also try to train in the shittiest conditions I can. If it is freakishly hot and humid out, you can bet I'll be training (whether it is physical, dry fire, or live fire) outside in it that day.What Jake said. Memphis means 90+ degrees most of the summer with humidity I was astonished to encounter when moving here from Chicago. I'm a heavy equipment mechanic in a shop that isn't air conditioned. I easily drink a gallon a day...But even that daily exposure still had me dragging last month at our local match. Since then, I've run 6-7 miles a week during the hottest portion of the day, usually around 4 pm. The difference between my July 3rd match performance and June's match was night and day. Edited July 5, 2016 by MemphisMechanic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just4FunLP Posted July 6, 2016 Author Share Posted July 6, 2016 (edited) On the advice of chbrow10 among others, I purchased some of the Underarmor Heat Gear t-shirts and boxers to go along with my Columbia pants (can't wear shorts). It really makes a difference. I wore my blue UA T during a match on Saturday, and my white one during a very long practice session on Monday. As you can imagine the white shirt is definitely cooler. The boxers also help. I rigged up an umbrella in my truck and parked it so I could do most of my shooting in the shade. The temperature and humidity was extremely high, but this along with reloading mags and tending my gun from the comfort of my air conditioned cab made it quite enjoyable. For matches I have a beach umbrella I attach to my green Home Depot gardening cart using 1" conduit hangers. I think I'll add a pole section from another umbrella to make it tall enough to stand under. Eventually I'll get this figured out. Edited July 6, 2016 by Just4FunLP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertTortoise Posted July 6, 2016 Share Posted July 6, 2016 For matches I have a beach umbrella I attach to my green Home Depot gardening cart using 1" conduit hangers. I think I'll add a pole section from another umbrella to make it tall enough to stand under. Eventually I'll get this figured out. I would have laughed at the umbrella before shooting in SC during the summer. Now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just4FunLP Posted July 6, 2016 Author Share Posted July 6, 2016 Wow, that's perfect! I know someone with something similar, but yours doesn't take up the storage space. I know what Ill be doing this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Mitch Posted July 6, 2016 Share Posted July 6, 2016 Tons of water + http://www.missionathletecare.com/products/cooling-towel?variant=10374223301 Those towels are the bomb dot com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neomet Posted July 6, 2016 Share Posted July 6, 2016 (edited) I do use the Hyperkewl evaporative vest when we start getting over 115. It is the bomb with one big caveat. It works much better in low humidity than high. This normally isn't a problem as our humidity normally drops into single digets when our temps go up. I bring a cooler with ice water in it and resoak as needed. edited to add Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate or none of these other tips will mean a thing. Edited July 6, 2016 by Neomet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcbutler Posted July 6, 2016 Share Posted July 6, 2016 Added the sleeves to my UA shorts and shirt. Made a world of difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarilynMonbro Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 Do those sun slevees work well? I feel like the tight sleeves would be worse in the heat, but I guess I will give them a shot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TennJeep1618 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 Do those sun slevees work well? I feel like the tight sleeves would be worse in the heat, but I guess I will give them a shot I bought a pair of generic cooling sleeves from Amazon last week and tried them at a match yesterday. I'll say that they seem to work, especially if there is any sort of breeze. While I believe a large part of their effectiveness is simply keeping the sun off of your skin, they wick the sweat away and feel really nice whenever the wind blows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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