Cooling vests..........experience?

[Mhanis]

Has anybody actually tried one of these cooling vests? I have read up on them a little bit but everything I have read so far is written by the folks SELLING the vests.

I just got a Cycle Gear catalog and they have one for $30. Is this one of Theseus deals where you get what you pay for or are they all pretty similar?

My other question was if they work where it is relatively humid (read Dallas).

Begin discussion:


Mark

[bikepilot]

I haven't used them, but when riding across various deserts in the summer I've soaked a t-shirt under my jacket which does the same thing - just not for as long.  They work by the water evaporating and the quicker it evaporates the cooler you'll be.  It won't evap as quickly in humid weather, but will still evaporate pretty well provided your jacket is well vented and you are moving at a decent clip.  If your jacket doesn't flow a bunch of air or you are stopped a lot they probably won't help much.

[Mhanis]

I get how they are SUPPOSED to work; the questions is........DO THEY?


Mark

[thought]

webbikeworld reviews:

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r4/koolin-klothz/

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r4/moisture-wicking-ice-pack-shirt/

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/silver-eagle/cooling-vest.htm

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/joe-rocket/sahara-vest/

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r3/cooling-neck-wraps/

[Triple J]

They work. I've used one once.

[CDawg]

High humidity will make it a lot less efficient.
Might as well as go mesh.

[triangleforge]

They work. I've used one once.

I've got the same data set; one use, it worked well -- though I borrowed one here in Arizona where, you know, it's a dry heat. Comparing that with  riding when I lived in humid DC, I would think they'd be a whole lot less effective -- some summer days I'd start with a dry T-shirt under mesh, which would be dripping wet by the end of the ride. Seems pretty clear I wasn't getting a lot of evaporative cooling when the humidity was high.

Another thing worth noting -- I ride a lot with a guy here in AZ who swears by his cooling vest from Joe Rocket. One time we stopped for lunch in full summer heat & he tossed the soaked vest in a plastic bag inside his saddlebag. When we came back out, the thing was VERY hot and it took five or ten minutes at speed to get cooled down to the point where he said it finally felt cooler than his body temperature.  Lesson learned: if it's hot enough to use the vest, take it inside with you when you stop.

[Mhanis]

Thanks for the input guys. They are not that expensive so I think I am going to pick one up at Cycle Gear this evening. I'll post my thoughts..............because I know how all of you value MY opinion!!!!! 


Mark

[swampduc]

I used one in the Texas hill country 2 yrs ago. It definitely helped, but in the dry air, it was dried out within an hour or two. Also, I couldn't fit both the vest an my back protector under my leathers. It still works in humid air because there's air moving over wet material either way. It just doesn't work as well.

[thought]

btw, have you tried wearing some wicking gear like underarmour or the like yet?  makes a huge diff for me when i'm riding... and from the reviews, it sounds like anything over 2 hrs kills the effect of the cooling vests... which is about how long the effect of soaking a long sleeve wicking shirt lasts for me.  and everytime i sweat with the wicking stuff on, i can feel a cooling effect on the wet part.

a side point to note is that if you want it to work, you need to have it pretty close to the skin... for longer trips i'll wear the compression fit stuff which has the best cooling effect.  and i'll get a size smaller in their loose fitting gear in order to have it fit correctly for the wicking.  having it too loose just kills the whole effect and works more like insulator than something that will cool you down.

[Mhanis]

Well I bought one from Cycle Gear for $30 and used it yesterday. If works ok! For $30 I am happy.


Mark

[txmulti]

we swear by them & wear them religiously...have for 2 years now...they are LIFESAVERS !!