The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → Race temp/comfort in Reno?
So it was hot in Reno, yes?
How were the driving comforts with the firesuit & helmet? Were you uncomfortable? Was it unbearable? Did you sweat out tens of gallons?
Trying to find a cooling method for the NO race and even deciding if it's necessary..
Reno was warm (not hot), and dry. After 45 mins in the car, I was soaking wet (and I'm not a particularly sweaty guy).
Since New Orleans will likely be hot (not warm) and humid, some kind of cooling setup is an excellent idea.
On our Fiero we used a "camelback" hiking water bag zip tied to the roll cage with a lump of ice from the beer cooler added just before the driver change. We kept the suction tubes next to the shifter and drank during yellow flags...I drank a whole bag at every stint and felt O.K......next time I'll rig up one with an interchangeable tube or tubes so we won't have to swap out bags with each driver.....and for Sunday we duct taped an old intake elbow to the A-pillar and directed the air flow onto the seat area...pretty effective,
Jim "Endo" Anderton
Team Pontihack @ Reno-Fernley 09
It was only mid-80's --- but the 13% humidity was a killer. Chapped lips, drier than sandpaper nostrils, dusty-dry air. NOAA said they were looking for 50% humidity (which would have helped a lot)... what do they know!
Ahhhh... Buttonwillow in August! Mild 110 degree temps and a balmy 23% humidity... what better conditions to have a race?
John
I actually was expecting much worse. I was able to pull off a 2.5 hour stint in the middle of Saturday afternoon. We also used a camelback harnessed in the passenger seat with mostly-cold water.
Buttonwillow is going to bite... REALLY bite
John, how's that A/C in your motorhome... our 1976 Caveman $0 camper does a great job of creating the "greenhouse" effect.
The camel back is essential. We also rigged up a cold air duct out of cups and tape to funnel air into the driver's face. I'd highly recommend both.
Buttonwillow is going to bite... REALLY bite
Indeed. To the point were a cool suit will be pretty much mandatory and probably still won't be enough to fight off heat exhaustion. That and cars will be overheating all over the place. What other tricks did Altamont veterans use to keep their car and themselves from overheating??? Truck radiators?
Hey Matt -
Again, congrats on the award and great finish.
I agree that the actual air temp was pleasant and easy for a 2-3 hour stint. It was the dry air that drove my nose and throat nutz! I only turned the AC in the "home" on from 3-5pm on Friday for my dog (er, ah... Crew Chief... Charley -- he hates it when I call him a dog). Friday was the warmest. The wind kept the motorhome well ventilated. I've learned that the AC will only reduce the inside temp by 15-20 degrees or so -- it's still just a large aluminum box that radiates heat. If the outside temp is 100, it can be 80 inside -- which is okay. However, if it's 115 outside, it's 100 inside. For BW, I've already grabbed a few hotel rooms for my team. I'm not going to even think of camping...
John
Well we spent last night making some VERY rough coolsuits... but they work!
It was only mid-80's --- but the 13% humidity was a killer. Chapped lips, drier than sandpaper nostrils, dusty-dry air. NOAA said they were looking for 50% humidity (which would have helped a lot)... what do they know!
Yeah, it was dry. My hands were cracked and bleeding by the end of the weekend...
We were going to tie wrap our camelbak to the rollcage, but ended up just putting the bladder in the front of our suit so we didn't have to swap it out at the driver change (or, that's what we were doing by the END of the race). Since the bladder was ice cold it also helped cool us off. Worked great! Use a bladder with a right angle bite valve.
I religiously took a sip of water on the back straight every time I went down it...
Maybe we need a "best home-engineered coolsuit" award for Buttonwillow.
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → Race temp/comfort in Reno?