Contemplating the heat of the desert , I opted to, at VIVID1's recommendation, investigate cooling vests.
They come in 2 forms.. one you put cold packs into, and another style that you soak in cold water. I opted for the 2nd style, as it made better sense to me to be able to refresh it anywhere there was water.
After looking around, I decide to give this one a try:
http://store.mm411.com/catalog/index.cfm?f...ntId=175&id=848
I was impressed with the delivery time... took them 2 days and it was at my door. Only thing about the vest that's bizzare is the zipper is backwards.. you latch it on the opposite side.
Today I soaked it in the sink wrung out the excess water, threw it on (no shirt under it, just the vest) and put on my aerostich and went for a ride. Weather conditions were in the upper 80's, high humidity. When the sun was out, the signs at the bank said between 94 and 98.
The entire 2 hour ride, I was cool, albeit a tad damp. By the time I got home, the sun was on the way down and the temperature was dropping a ttouch, but I wasn't hot at all. Even better, when I was out on the twisties, I was able to enjoy the benefits of warmer pavement (sticky tires) without being hot and dehydrated. Usually when it's that hot I have to stop part of the way through and get something to drink, but not today.
The only 2 real issues were:
1) It rubbed a bit in the arms, although I'm not sure whether that was the effect of a damp aerostich or the vest, I think it could easily have been addressed had I worn a shirt under the vest.
2) My shorts got a bit damp from the vest. That's not so bad, though, because it kept everything else cool, too.
All in all.. great product. Get one!