Anonymous wrote:We put up canopies at the timer end of the pool for all of our home meets, and that’s a huge help. The pool we were at for the A meet this Saturday did not, and it was brutal baking in the sun while timing with zero shade. (And I’ve been doing this for over 10 years; Saturday was particularly bad with the heat.)

God bless the teams that provide shade for the timers, and teams that bring cold water to timers often (or keep buckets of cold water in ice near the timers to grab as needed.)

We put up canopies at the timer end of the pool for all of our home meets, and that’s a huge help. The pool we were at for the A meet this Saturday did not, and it was brutal baking in the sun while timing with zero shade. (And I’ve been doing this for over 10 years; Saturday was particularly bad with the heat.)

I do think it gets harder with age. When my kids were 8 and unders we would go to the meet and then stay at the pool through dinner - now we are wiped after a meet and come home and nap! Part of it is that when they were younger my kids were asleep by 8 so we could be too, so that started the early Saturday off much better. With teens we are now up until 11 or so (just their natural rhythm even though we have tried to change it) so we start Saturday morning off more tired than we used to!

Anonymous wrote:Threads like this are so eye opening for me as the heat is really not a concern for me at all that I have no need for all these cooling strategies at swim meets and I’ve been volunteering at them for years. The only time I’ve ever not been able to handle the heat was when I was pregnant during a heat wave with 100+ heat index.

I am multi racial, with Caribbean and African ancestry and some European, and I wonder if many of the folks who can’t take the heat are of mostly Northern European ancestry. I am not trying to be a troll or pot stir. I am truly curious. If you do struggle with the heat and are otherwise healthy, what is your ancestry?

I also find that I cannot take the cold at all and have all kinds of strategies for keeping warm in the winter and at winter sporting events that include heated mittens and heated seat cushions while others seem to manage it just fine.

I’ve been volunteering for about 15 years, mostly as a timer, and I haven’t had nearly the difficulty that others are mentioning here. I wear a hat, drink water, and wear sunscreen. Spouse also volunteers officiating and was a team rep for a few years. After meets we go out to lunch and then possibly the pool later or other normal weekend routines.

Mostly Northern European ancestry as far as I know.

Anonymous wrote:Your child’s actually swimming is over in minutes. Stay in the shade until his/her event.

Hard to do if you are volunteering.... as you should be.

Anonymous wrote:Threads like this are so eye opening for me as the heat is really not a concern for me at all that I have no need for all these cooling strategies at swim meets and I’ve been volunteering at them for years. The only time I’ve ever not been able to handle the heat was when I was pregnant during a heat wave with 100+ heat index.

I am multi racial, with Caribbean and African ancestry and some European, and I wonder if many of the folks who can’t take the heat are of mostly Northern European ancestry. I am not trying to be a troll or pot stir. I am truly curious. If you do struggle with the heat and are otherwise healthy, what is your ancestry?

I also find that I cannot take the cold at all and have all kinds of strategies for keeping warm in the winter and at winter sporting events that include heated mittens and heated seat cushions while others seem to manage it just fine.

I have both Caribbean and European ancestry. I think I would be fine with the heat if I didn’t sweat so much. I know from going to high intensity workouts at the gym that I sweat more than the average person. I am fine while out in the heat I am just depleted afterward because I can’t make up for the loss of water and electrolytes quickly enough. I much prefer being hot to being cold and would not mind living somewhere that is warm all the time. My spouse has only European ancestry and hates being hot. I am always cold in our house in the summer because they crank up the AC. I definitely get cold more easily than them.

I do think there are some genetic or individual differences regarding tolerance for heat and cold. I am always amazed at the beginning of the summer with how some kids seem totally unaffected by the freezing cold water. My kids’ lips turn blue and they are practically in tears by the end of those first couple of practices. If they get out early, I don’t push them to continue. Other kids don’t even seem like they’re shivering. My kids are naturally very thin so maybe they just don’t have enough insulation. But some of the other kids I see unaffected by cold are pretty skinny too. So I think there is more to it than that.

what everyone else says (minus the jumping in--that seems like kind of crossing a line, unless it's your home pool), plus splash some water on yourself whenever you're able to (from the baby pool if that's the only place available). I spend the rest of Saturday after a meet on the couch.

Threads like this are so eye opening for me as the heat is really not a concern for me at all that I have no need for all these cooling strategies at swim meets and I’ve been volunteering at them for years. The only time I’ve ever not been able to handle the heat was when I was pregnant during a heat wave with 100+ heat index.

I am multi racial, with Caribbean and African ancestry and some European, and I wonder if many of the folks who can’t take the heat are of mostly Northern European ancestry. I am not trying to be a troll or pot stir. I am truly curious. If you do struggle with the heat and are otherwise healthy, what is your ancestry?

I also find that I cannot take the cold at all and have all kinds of strategies for keeping warm in the winter and at winter sporting events that include heated mittens and heated seat cushions while others seem to manage it just fine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I bring my suit to every meet and jump in at the end. When we are home, this is easy. When we are away, I usually tell a friend and they ok it. (Been doing this a while and have a bizarre number of swim friends) If you're at a B meet, this is going to be harder. Maybe a cool shower will have to suffice.

What? This is so weird.

+1

Today I learned that in Japan construction workers wear jackets with integrated fans. You'll look like the Michelin man but maybe you'll start a trend! https://a.co/d/9KcNK3K

I think the early morning combined with the heat is the killer for me. I am fine the day after a B meet, but I can barely move the afternoon after an A meet. In both cases I am usually working and standing the whole time. This weekend we had an early meet both days and I definitely have a headache today. I tried to drink a lot of water but I sweat a lot. I hope next Saturday isn’t too hot I have a kid is every stroke including IM.

Anonymous wrote:I am basically catatonic the rest of the day after these super hot Sat morning swim meets. On Tuesdays I can barely get out of bed. How are other parents not only surviving this heat but it seems like you really enjoy the meets?! I can’t believe some parents do this for like 15 years if you have multiple kids. Are there tricks to surviving the heat or maybe I’m just a wuss.

Stay hydrated, drink lots of water, wear a hat, wear sunscreen, and stay in the shade. Our team provides all timers free water and we typically go through 48-64 bottles of waters for the timers, so 2-3 bottles per timer. I generally volunteer at every meet and stay on my feet the whole time. I would go insane sitting around for 3-4 hours . I then generally go home and mow the lawn because I'm already a sweaty mess. Just embrace being sweaty

We are at the 10y mark. I do think it is becoming more difficult the older I get (used to stand out an time in it all the time.) When the kids were young, we'd go home, shower, eat, and then carry on with our day. As the kids got into HS, we find ourselves showering, eating, napping. It might kill a few Saturdays (I am fine after that), but swim is worth it (for our family.)

Anonymous wrote:I am basically catatonic the rest of the day after these super hot Sat morning swim meets. On Tuesdays I can barely get out of bed. How are other parents not only surviving this heat but it seems like you really enjoy the meets?! I can’t believe some parents do this for like 15 years if you have multiple kids. Are there tricks to surviving the heat or maybe I’m just a wuss.

Yeah, we are about at the 13 year mark of this. Basically, the afternoon is shot after Team lunch where we down lots of refills of icy cold beverages. Then we go home and decompress/nap/chill out in AC. We rally again in the evening. We're almost at the end of it all and grateful for the experiences even if you lose a lot of Saturdays.

Alternate meets with spouse if possible, or spouse who is more heat sensitive takes “cooler” meets (more early season meets) and 2nd spouse takes hotter meets. Carefully choose volunteer positions to avoid direct sun. Hydrate. Hit up the bathroom to cool off with cold water. Get a cooling neck towel. If child is older, drop off and don’t stay the whole time. Find a shady spot to sit even if it doesn’t have a view and walk over to see your child’s events.