Bonneville Spectator Advice

[lsrjunkie]

bub, I have to agree with you on the shades. I bought some last year that look like the ones my grandfather wears, but d@mn they work good. The only thing I can add is BRING WATER. As the old saying goes, "If you're thirst, you're already dehydrated." We always have a big water jug in the truck and just use it to fill our water bottles. Trust me, the headache the next morning from being dehydrated all day will make you wish you had a hangover.

My only experience with any other protection from the sun is to be comfortable and bring some good sun block. A good friend of mine was covered head to toe last year. Long sleeves, long pants, and a wide brimmed hat. He looked a bit like Daktari, but he didn't get burned. Myself, on the other hand, wore shorts, white t-shirts, and a ball cap. Plenty of sun block and I was good to go.

Did I mention, bringing plenty of water...

[Seldom Seen Slim]

"If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated."  A bunch of years ago the chief M/C inspector would visit each of us in the line and ask "When's the last time you went to pee?"  If the answer he got was anything more than a couple of hours -- he'd hand us bottles of water and have us drink them right then and there.  It's a good thing to drink lots of water out there, and that's one way to gauge if you've had enough.

Nancy and I take a 2 1/2 gallon cooler jug with us each day.  I fill it about half way with ice and the top it off with Gatorade.  We buy the G-ade in the bulk powder cans (it costs less than half as much than bought liquid) and mix our own.  I make it extra strong to make up for the dilution by the melting ice.  I also enjoy making it from powder because I can play chemistry experiment and mix the colors a bit.  if you ever come to our pit and see me drinking from a bottle full of what looks like diabetic pee -- well, that's part of the fun of mixing it ourselves.  I can give you the recipe for mud-colored drinks, too.

[edinlr]

Slim, with regard to when did you pee last, just go over to the rookie line on the short course, all of us had to pee before the run.  It was the only place that had a line at the porta potties.

I took water and bought more twice on the trip, never guessed we would drink so much.

[mtkawboy]

I wear my prescription sun glasses and a pair I bought on the salt on top of them. Wear as much white as you can, even shoes. You might think grey is close enough but it isn't. Anything not white is like wearing a portable heater around, black shoes especially. Some of the Harley bike racers wear all black I guess as a testament to their toughness, Im not that tough any more

[tauruck]

bub, I have to agree with you on the shades. I bought some last year that look like the ones my grandfather wears, but d@mn they work good. The only thing I can add is BRING WATER. As the old saying goes, "If you're thirst, you're already dehydrated." We always have a big water jug in the truck and just use it to fill our water bottles. Trust me, the headache the next morning from being dehydrated all day will make you wish you had a hangover.

My only experience with any other protection from the sun is to be comfortable and bring some good sun block. A good friend of mine was covered head to toe last year. Long sleeves, long pants, and a wide brimmed hat. He looked a bit like Daktari, but he didn't get burned. Myself, on the other hand, wore shorts, white t-shirts, and a ball cap. Plenty of sun block and I was good to go.

Did I mention, bringing plenty of water...

Joe, what happens if you drank the night before?. Is the headache even worse, like a double dose???.

[Sumner]

...I took water and bought more twice on the trip, never guessed we would drink so much.

It isn't just the heat that makes you drink so much, it is the low humidity also.  In this area our humidity is normally well below 20%.  Lately we have been averaging about 7%-9% mid day.  You are breathing dry air and besides what you are sweating you are loosing moisture on every breath. 

Also you might not feel you are sweating much there compared say to home if you come from back east, but you are, it is just going immediately into the air.  So if you come from someplace that is more humid you will be loosing a lot more water per hour than there,

Sum

[Seldom Seen Slim]

I've described the sweating out there like this:  You sweat heavily while you're outside, and when you go into an air conditioned place - building or vehicle - it takes a few minutes for your body to cool enough that you don't sweat so profusely.  Until that happens you'll look and feel like a character in a cartoon -- with water all but squirting out of you in every direction.  All too true.

[Texican]

Slim, with regard to when did you pee last, just go over to the rookie line on the short course, all of us had to pee before the run.

  It must just come with the territory when doing a big, exciting event.

Eddie Sachs was asked prior to the '64 Indy 500; "What do you do before you strap in?"

Answer: "Try to relax, make small talk, walk around and pee a lot."

He was a great guy.

[Seldom Seen Slim]

Yup - bodily comfort is important to  a racer - no  matter what kind of racing.  I know that I visit the green room before runs, and so does Nancy, and so do one heck of a lot of the other racers.

But - relief is now at hand (if you'll pardon the pun).  for the last couple of years we've not only been putting a potty out around the 6 1/2 mile for the course watchers to use, but also on around the 5 or so for racers that are in need of a relief whether 'cause they forgot at the start line -- or the had such a run that they're almost peeing their pants.

[manta22]

... or you could just install a "relief tube". 

Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

[debgeo]

Are any of them wheelchair accessable?

[Seldom Seen Slim]

Yes.  We get a few "ADA" units and put one somewhere near registration, one at the line, one somewhere down the pits - about half way - and also one near the impound/vendor area.

[lsrjunkie]

I almost forgot!!!

The most important thing to do on the salt, is go to the Red Flame Grille and get a breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee.

Best way start the day!

Every year about this time I start to crave those darn things.

[Texican]

  Another neat trick with water is buy a few gallon jugs of spring water at Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, etc.
Drink a little out to make some space; then freeze it solid.

Use this in your cooler instead of store ice.
Melts slower than other types and then you have ice water to drink as it melts.

Also less of a mess when the sandwich slips to the bottom of the cooler.

I noticed some block ice available the other day at "Fresh Market".
Same may be true for Dan's as they are now both owned by the same outfit.

The special cool clothes now being advertised on TV really work well.

  Jim

[mstrdinan]

Yes.  We get a few "ADA" units and put one somewhere near registration, one at the line, one somewhere down the pits - about half way - and also one near the impound/vendor area.

                     hey Slim.......is Honeybuckets still the vendor??