The Weather and Forest Fires

Riders are very concerned with the weather....or at least we are.

Truth, you will be too hot or too cold at some point- possibly in the same day.

I try and dress for the majority of the day, which in August in the U.S., is hot. So I wear long underwear bottoms and top (special stuff called Heat Out), mesh over pants, mesh jacket and mesh gloves. This is a fantastic option when it's 20C or over, otherwise the jacket is a bit breezy. 

As we climb up into the mountains, the weather can drop by 10 degrees, which means I'll be cold for a while. Sometimes that's nice, sometimes not. I have a thermometer read out on my dashboard and I watch the temperature climb and fall.

Interestingly 2C change can be noticeable. Also there are air pockets like the warm water pockets at the swimming pool, all of a sudden you can feel the temp change even though the thermometer isn't registering it.

In mesh, on the highway, 23-27C is the perfect riding temp. However, in the traffic, 20-23 is great.

We hit 36C yesterday afternoon with a dry wind. My lips were stuck together. I left them that way, because it kept the spit still in my mouth. Today we are riding through the Oregon dessert, because it is less hot than riding through the Nevada dessert. Weather forecasts are no rain and a high of 31, so it might be ok...

The other thing we watch is where the forest fires are and where the smoke is blowing. So far so good this trip but parts of California look bad and might alter where we go.

Here we are, just about to enter the Idaho part of the Lolo forest. Fantastic riding!