SOME LIKE IT HOT

Cyclists don’t need Greta Thunberg to tell them that the world is getting hotter. The British summer of 2018 was the joint hottest since records began in 1929. In July 2019 Cambridge recorded the UK’s highest ever temperature of 38.7°C. Spring 2020 saw a record 626.2 hours of sunshine (following the wettest February on record). The length of warm spells has more than doubled in recent decades, from 5.3 to 13 days. And climate change is making Britain’s recent heatwaves 30 times more likely.

Ignoring that this might presage the imminent end of the world, most cyclists have been quietly enjoying these strangely un-British, sun-soaked summers. But because UK riders are unaccustomed to such heat, isn’t it time we took hot-weather preparation seriously?

“Hot weather increases physiological strain so exercise feels much harder than it would in a temperate environment,” explains Dr Jessica Mee, a lecturer in sport and exercise science at the University of Worcester. “This definitely reduces our exercise capability so we’re not able to perform as well. And that comes with the potential for getting some form of exertional heat illness.” These range from heat cramps (muscle spasms) and heat syncope (dizziness) to heat exhaustion (nausea, headaches and excessive sweating) and heat stroke, which is when your core temperature passes 40°C, risking brain damage, organ