Avoiding heat Stroke at Faire

[DonaCatalina]

Closing weekend at Scarborough was officially 99 degrees, but my car said it was 101.
We nearly drank the pickle man dry because the bilge water (gatorade) ran out.
Most people don't realize that for a $2 tip he will fill your cup with luscious pickle juice which you can dilute with 1/2 water and share with a friend.

[Merlin the Elder]

I thought it felt a tad warm that weekend, Dona. Nimue and I spent a lot of time at the FoF pavilions or just sitting in the shade somewhere.

[Sir Kentaslas]

Even though this isn't ren-related, I feel I need to say thank you to everyone who posted on this thread, it saved my life today.

I live in Texas, were the only thing higher than the temp is the humidity percentage. I'm from around Houston so it gets pretty bad here during the summer.

Hey, fellow Texan! Alright! *high-five*

Yeah, I can sympathize. I'm from Corpus Christi. Summers are like 105 degrees with 100% humidity. Pretty dismal.

[Rowan MacD]

    Hot temps and humidity this year in the Midwest have been brutal.   My A/C crapped out and I have to wait 2 days for a repairman.  There are so many systems going out.   
  Right now, static temps are in the 90's and the heat indices (feels like temps) haven't dropped out of the 100's in a month. It's so bad that I fear that more than a few cases of HS will be inevitable this season at faire.
   Please, please dress as lightly as possible, and everybody make sure we know where the first aid tent is and watch each other for signs of illness.

[Becky10]

Talking to the doctor and what not and she said that chocolate milk is actually very good for dehydration and heat stroke. Who woulda thunk?
Heres an article that kind of mentions it.
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/healthy-eating/superfoods/chocolate-milk-after-workout/

[Sir Dougie Zerts]

There's always the Drench a Wnch dunk tank!

[Merlin the Elder]

Just thought I'd let everyone know... There's little chance of heat stroke this week at faire for two reasons: 1) It's 26 degrees out, and 2) I don't think there are any faires being held this time of year.  I just wanted everyone to have a nice relaxing Sunday evening...

[Dinobabe]

I believe you can still get heat stroke when it's cold out.  If you exert yourself too much and don't cool down properly.  There is also something else that can happen when you get really hot when it's cold outside but I can't remember what it's called.  So do be careful!

[NoBill Lurker]

I believe you can still get heat stroke when it's cold out.  If you exert yourself too much and don't cool down properly.  There is also something else that can happen when you get really hot when it's cold outside but I can't remember what it's called.  So do be careful!

Hypothermia I think...

[dfloyd888]

Hypothermia is one, pneumonia is another.  This is why, cold is one thing, wet is another... but combine the two, and one needs to be VERY careful and stay warm.

[Scotty Hunter]

I completely ruined a day at faire when I had heat stroke hit me at about 11:00 (My fault did not eat or drink anything that morning and we do live in Florida). I ended up having the first aid guys (which were at least cute) lay me out on a blanket under a tree giving me water and one of the vendors brought me some fresh fruit. I was there for a good hour until my friend was able to pack me up in the car and take me home. On the funny side I was a fairy that year and of course had to remove my wings and they were laying next to me. You would hear people joking telling kids I was having medical attention because some one tore my wings off, or "this is what happens to the mischievous faeries!"

I know the above quote is a bit old, but I was just now reading over this very informative thread and the above really made me laugh!! Poor injured fairy had her wings tore off!


I've never been one to drink alot of water, but this year I have been working on changing that very bad habit of mine. I usually grab a soda instead of a bottle of water.  It's just been a bad habit I've been doing for years and has gotten to the point of a real addiction where if I don't drink, say, 5-6 cans of soda a day I have horrid headaches. I don't smoke, don't do drugs and only drink socially, so my addiction has been soda. Almost as damaging as drugs can be, I swear!

I plan on hitting some Faires this summer as a plain-clothes observer, and having lived through several months in Las Vegas Nevada with no air conditioning and no electricity for fans, I do know the importance of staying hydrated and fed after that experience, which I don't care to repeat.  My mother almost passed out at one point, which scared us both into taking the heat a little more seriously, and to force ourselves to always ignore the sugary sodas and go for a bottle of water instead.

This is an extremely helpful, informative and very important thread!

[MrHyde]

Don't forget how heat can effect diabetics as well.  Heat stroke is still an issue for them but the increased sweat can also cause your sugar levels to fall extremely quickly.  Diabetic coma in the back of a faire is not fun.

[daggrim]

Wow, a long running topic here.  When I was in the military, on training exercises in the central valley of CA, we soaked shop rags in water and tied them around our necks.  Every couple hours, they just needed a resoaking.  It must cool the blood going through your neck, but it made a noticeable difference. 
Doug 

[Merlin the Elder]

Wet towels around the areas of major arteries is a big help. Ice (or cold pack) on the inside of your wrist, on your neck (jugular), or if you're in a private space, on your femoral artery. The concept here is that these are where the highest volume of blood pass near the top of the skin layer... The top of the head is a super spot to place a cold washcloth. In general, keeping your head covered is important.

This has been a horrendous year for the heat. I'm ready for the next Ice Age...

[Captain Teague]

It's likely already been mentioned a million times, but the Cool Dannas work fairly well too. Neck or head wraps with gel inserts that activate by placing in cool water. I see another place has played off that type and call them cool downz instead. They have a very wide variety of designs, which I am sure will help to blend in with a lot of garb.

http://www.healthandbodystore.com/coolingaids.html?gclid=CM2aiY7oqaoCFQoJ2godb0NYUw