I love my R1200RT, but the heat almost got to me today and I was tempted to ditch some of my gear for comfort. I didn't yield to the temptation, given my allergy to asphalt. Does anyone have any tricks or know of any aftermarket farkles that would bring more air behind the fairing? My R100RS ritual is to take off the lowers in hot weather, not an option on the 1200.
It's not a Second Childhood, if you've never left the First One!
My Roadcrafter is good up to about 85 degrees. My Venting Machine is OK up to almost 100. Above that it will take a cooling vest to stay cool.
Best thing I've found to keep cool is the cool vest. It is soaked in water and worn under the jacket or whaterer. They are made by several makers. I got mine from Whitehorse. Great investment.Originally Posted by mtnbmw
Easy
This is my summer wind screen. It works great. I have a Cee Bailey sport screen that I use in the summer. My bike is # 20 on pictures.
CW
When it hits above 90 degrees and I am riding the motorcycle (which is almost always) I always carry a spray bottle of water in my gas tank bag. It works great at stop signs and traffic lights, spray water as much as you can and off you go.
It is a dry heat here in Canon City, Colorado.
gpodzo
R1200RT
R1150GS
XR650L
If you don't ride in the rain, you don't ride.
Wet your shirt before donning your jacket. When you ride and air flows through the vents, you'll be surprised how cool it feels. If you want, you can squirt more water down your neck from a water bottle kept in your tankbag.
Fred
Where do you live? How about filling out your profile? AZ heat is different than SC heat.
Dave Swider
Marin County, CA
Some bikes. Some with motors, some without.
A cooling vest under my riding jacket works well. I use a Silver Eagle vest. Need to add a little more water to the vest every 2-3 hours. It really works.
Once the temp gets up over 99, I think less air is better. I know it sounds strange, but consider...
Convection ovens work by circulating hot air--they heat food faster than purely radiant ovens. If you are in the air stream of 100 degree heat, you are in a convection oven, albeit not a very hot one. Try sticking your hand out into the airstream on a 100 degree day, it feels hotter!
Keep your skin covered from the sun (think 'heat lamp'--like they have at the burger joint to keep your fries warm). Look at people who live in deserts: they tend to stay covered up. Just make sure your protection breathes.
At high temps, say over 98.6, you only cool through evaporation. So drink lots of fluids.
That's just my 2...err...6 cents.
-- Jack
-- Jack
My first post here after joining MOA earlier today (my last BMW moto owned was an '81 R100RS purchased new for delivery in Munich, then rode the Alps for 3 weeks!).
To the subject, speaking of "lowers", I find that keeping your personal lower sections cooler goes a long ways towards hot weather comfort (to use that term loosely). A barrier between skin an non-breathable vinyl seat creates for me unbearable hot spots. Bicycle shorts definitely help, but even more is the product below which works well in hot climes as well as cold.
I bought the product pictured four years ago for the Yammie. It's called a solo "universal" pad, but wouldn't you agree it looks tailor made for the RT? Quite a bit more comfortable than vinyl too!
Jeff
http://www.sheepyhollow.com/
Last edited by Effjay; 08-14-2007 at 02:32 AM. Reason: Pictures not added as a new poster...
Oday ouyay eakspay igpay atinlay?
2007 R1200RT - full zoot
I use a cooling vest (feels like air conditioning), and when temps are over 85 I replace my 1-piece Stitch with Brosh Kevlar jacket and pants. This Israeli company makes fantastic hot-weather riding gear.
Hey MTNBMW -
Biggest heat loss comes from the head area. Same goes with immediate relief when cooling. The effect is a function of the amount of blood being circulated close to the skin. That's why head wounds bleed so much.
Consequently, suggest wetting down a couple of bandanas and wearing one around the neck, and the other drapped under your helmet.
It works for me.
J.K.
+1 on bandanas
Bandanas work well for me too. and I find that in extreme hot weather the ATGAT actually limits the amount of evaporation. (It is still hot).
cheers
Denis R1200RT
I use golf / Dish towels on the back of the neck and drink plenty of fluids.
I've been wetting down the towels putting them in a ziplock and freezing them.
They keep my drinks cool in a small cooler and then go on the back of my neck later in the day.
I've found it helps to wipe down once in awhile and on really hot days Ill change shirts ect
Ill have to try the wet tshirt trick sounds like a good idea.
Also on a hot day if you hand someone an Ice cold towel youll make some friends LOL
Mjuskiw
Akron, Ohio
When it's really hot I put crushed ice in the front pockets of my Roadcrafter. It'll cool me off for about an hour or so.
Dug
I've found the answer depends on relative humidity. In dry climates an evaporative vest works fine up to around 100 degrees (in traffic, you're dead, though). I live in a humid climate, though and rarely pull the evap vest out. Instead i use a phase change cool vest (lots of places to get them, just google the phrase), which works quite well. I will often forgo the actual vest, which is just cloth with pockets for the frozen inserts, and stick the inserts under my jacket.
The phase change inserts work longer if you have an impermeable-to-air jacket, rather than a mesh jacket. I usually wear my liner under the mesh. The Evap vest requires a mesh jacket to work best.
The evap vests won't get you wet, by the way. Some sort of magic material. They double in winter, dry, as an extra layer, if you need one.
The phase change, in my climate, using a lined jacket, will stay cold for up to two hours, then I'm ready for a break anyway. When using the vest, I carry a soft cooler, and talk the C-store guy out of a little bit of ice and water from the soda fountain, toss the inserts in, take a little break, and they're frozen again, ready for another couple of hours. Dunno where you live, but it's September 24 tomorrow, high expected to be in the 90s, my wife and I will both have our vests on towards noon.
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