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How Hot is Too Hot
July 5th, 2006 by RL Policar 
In recent weeks Southern California have reached temperatures over 90 degrees, and in some areas over 100. On the days that it was too hot (90+ degrees) for me to ride, I decided to drive to work.
So what temperature do you throw in the towel and drive to work?
July 5th, 2006 at 10:55 am
I don’t see the shame in letting the weather dictate your commute. I don’t look at the afternoon forecast anymore, just the “current conditions” in the morning. If it’s under 75 in the morning, I’ll bike in, but if it’s over 75, the evening will be too hot to tolerate. I will drive to work if it’s raining in the morning, too.
Fortunately, I haven’t had to make this choice yet this summer. Our hottest days were this weekend, but I had to drive to work on Friday and was off on Monday and Tuesday.
July 5th, 2006 at 11:21 am
I try to ride regardless of the temperature or the weather. I rather enjoy the challenge of riding on the 100 days in the same way I enjoy riding in the rain
July 5th, 2006 at 12:29 pm
Well the hotest I have commuted in so far this year is 104 degrees (yes it gets this hot in Canada during the summer, it is not that unusual). The coldest I will commute in is -4 degrees fahrenheit (but for fun I have ridden in -35 degrees fahrenheit for a race on a frozen lake!). Temperature doesn’t slow me down but a smog alert on the hottest days might.
July 5th, 2006 at 12:47 pm
Lately we’ve had severe thunderstorm warnings that prevented me from riding. Hopefully that would clear up within the next couple of days. But the heat doesn’t really bother me too much. It’s the humidity that gets to me.
Varroa, you are one tough Mama!
July 5th, 2006 at 2:26 pm
“Varroa, you are one tough Mama!”
LOL, not sure if that is a compliment or not! I am a guy after all, ROFL.
July 5th, 2006 at 3:53 pm
Tough Dude!
July 5th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
I live in the mountains- we rarely hit 90. But the summer monsoons can be a challenge:)
July 5th, 2006 at 4:02 pm
Dang Varroa….104 and -4….I think what Randy meant to say was…”One tough Mama-Jamma”
Ok ok…just seeing what people are willing to ride in, I best be getting back on the bike…no more of this wimping out and driving my leatherized, AC cooled luxury Huyndai vehicle….
July 5th, 2006 at 6:02 pm
It’s been way too hot for me to ride. I can’t handle the heat. It’s just very uncomfortable and unenjoyable to ride in the Inland Empire.
July 5th, 2006 at 7:36 pm
I’m with Carl, but it rarely reaches 100 degrees here in New York. We get some killer humidity here, though. What’s so bad about the heat? Sweating is good for you - just think of it as Bikram biking! Of course, I don’t have AC at home or at work, so maybe the heat isn’t as extreme for me as it is for those of you shuttling between air-conditioned bubbles.
I really do prefer biking to work all the time, so I never find myself making excuses not to.
July 5th, 2006 at 11:24 pm
I try really hard to not let the weather determine when I ride or dont. That being said I don’t have A/C in my house so even on the hotest days it feels cooler out rolling than sitting in side.
Winter is a whole different story. I last as long as I can before I throw in the towel. But usually summer or winter if I am driving to work I try to hit the trails for a little MTB action or in winter spin on the rollers (can you say boring?)
July 8th, 2006 at 12:16 pm
It’s rare to have a morning above 80 in Indiana, so I’ll ride to work on a hot day. For the ride home, sweat is no longer a problem - so I grab some water and take the long way home!
However, if it’s too cold, rainy, or snowy, I’m in the car in a minute.