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As some of you already know, I ended up going to the hospital today after the event due to a mild heat stroke. After they pumped 4 bags of IV juice into me, I was good to go and on my way......but it could have been much worse. I just wanted to share my experience with you all so that it doesn't happen to anyone else.

When I finished my last run, I was actually out of breath....something that had never happened to me from just driving. About an hour later, I went to help my brother change his tires and I just couldn't stay in the heat any longer so I went inside the building and found a spot in front of the fan. I sat there for about 45 minutes thinking I was going to feel better. I started going down hill quickly. Within 15-20 minutes, I started feeling sick to my stomach and I was losing my vision. People started noticing and quickly started icing me down. I started feeling better until I tried to stand up. When I tried to get in the car, this resulted in me getting cramps in most every muscle in my body. My legs felt like I was getting one Charlie Horse after another. At this point....I decided I better get to the hospital quick. The doctor said I didn't have much fluid left in me and I could have done some permanent damage to my muscles and kidneys had I waited any longer.

Over the course of the day, I probably had 8-9 20oz bottles of water and another bottle of Gatorade (roughly a gallon and a half of liquid). I thought I was drinking enough fluids. The doctor told me that for the lenth of time I was outside in the heat we had, I should have had at least 4 gallons.

I just tell you guys this so you will be careful when you are out there on days like today. Even if you aren't thursty, just keep on drinking. I hope my experience can help everyone else avoid doing the same.

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Stephen Westerfield
2009 Infiniti M35 | 2007 Honda Fit Sport | 2005 Ford Mustang GT |2000 GMC Sierra |1992 Acura Integra LS | Super Westerfield Bros Acura Integra

Wow.. thats amazing! Glad to hear you're alright. I never would have thought I'd need to drink 4 GALLONS in one afternoon.. definitely good to know!

Sorry to hear that you had to visit the hospital, but glad to hear that you came out of it alright.

I'm glad you're ok! I remember you telling us that you were out of breath after that one run but didn't know it was that bad.

I had to make an early departure after the near impossible task of changing wheels.

Another heat related issue that I've been wondering about is heat related headaches. If possible, I'd like to take preventitive measures rather than popping tylenol all day. Does anybody know what causes them (other than being hot)?

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“I feel safer on a racetrack than I do on Houston's freeways.” - A.J. Foyt

Kevin Butler
Mobetta Autosport Spec E30 #612
2003 C5 Z06 Corvette
AFR Miata, SM2 61, '93 w/200 SC'd RWHP - soon to be resurrected
Waaaay too many other projects....

I had a splitting headache by the end of the day in Danville. No issues in Greenville (hotter). I also drank a whole lot more in Greenville and spent w whole lot more time seeking shade. I'll go out on a limb and say that the headaches are due to dehydration and the solution is to drink more.

It's also important not ot just drink water when you are sweating that much, I don't care for all the sugar in Gatoraide, but you *need* to put the electrolytes back into the body.

Scott

Start your hydration the day before. Load up on water and Smart Water (no sugar but has electrolytes..I find it at Harris Teeter) before/during/after the event. Tylenol helps too, but I just take one tablet in the am.

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Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

FWIW, on the subject of hydration...Tim Aro was ABD with his PhD in Biomechanics, was a world-class cross-country skier in 50K (though he won't admit it), and finished like 20th in the Olympic Trials in 1988. He then went to France to work with the Winter Olympic Team that year. We've talked a ton about hydration/dehydration since we both competed in endurance events, but more importantly its importance with autocross driving performance during really hot days, and the fact that Tim easily got dehydrated. On multiple occasions he'd get leg cramps while driving when he got behind in his hydration, one time was pretty bad a Laurinburg. I'm not an expert on the topic, but would share some basic tips from Tim.

Tim said this multiple times and I've read it in other locations. Your body will *absorb* liquid faster if it's something closer to a 50/50 mix of Gatorade and water. You can also get similiar benefits if you alternate drinks (i.e., drink a Gatorade and then a water, or something similiar). The answer was yes. I remember asking that question because I like the taste of water and Gatorade, but really don't like watered down Gatorade. So, when it's really hot I tend to alternative beverages. Plus, as Scott mentioned, you get to replace the electrolytes lost from the Gatorade or drink other than water.

The other rules we tried to follow when we knew it would be hot were 1) to hydrate the day/night before (within reason b/c you can't sleep if you're going to the bathroom all night long) - that means no alcohol the night before and 2) start drinking in the morning until you felt full and didn't want any more liquid - that one is critical! In essence, this meant we were ahead of the hydration curve at the beginning of the day, then just kept drinking fluids all day. Once you get behind and start feeling bad, it's really hard to catch up. It's hard enough to navigate an autocross course in a swift and precise manner when you're feeling good, but when your cognitive skills diminish due to dehydration it kind of defeat ths points of spending all the time and money to compete in the first place. We've put these basic rules to the test during some very long and brutal autox days and they have worked pretty well.

One other thing folks may want to consider is trying some of the new fabric technology as opposed to wearing a 100% cotton T-shirt. I started wearing the Coolmax, Under Armour, and other similiar "breathable" & moisture wicking shirts last year and it makes a significant difference in helping to keep you cool!!!

This is probably stuff that everyone knew, so sorry if I'm being Mr. Obvous, but thought it may be worth mentioning. I'm certainly glad Stepehen and everyone else is OK. I know the weather, heat index, and standing on pavement all day must have made the event like standing in a furnace all day.

Eric

I know it's weird, but I hate the taste (or lack thereof) of water. So I drank a ton of Gatorade all day long. I started feeling a little weary after my first two runs and quickly got into the shade and in front of a fan. I sat down, drank even more, ate, then rested until my afternoon runs. Had I not recognized it when I did I could have been in the same boat as Stephen.

I think all of Ron's preaching about hydration at the HPDE events has sunken in with me. I now drink even when I'm not thirsty even during the cool months at VIR.

BTW, I thought of this when I got home yesterday. I drank a TON of Gatorade, but I NEVER had to use the bathroom ALL DAY yesterday. All of that fluid must have been used by my body for something it needed!

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Vincent Keene
'06 Ford Mustang GT (track rat)
'15 Dodge Charger R/T (yeah, it's got a HEMI!)
'07 Ford Fusion SE (205,000 miles and counting)
'98 Chevy Z-24 (retired)
'93 Acura Integra (Team SWB 24HOL Car)

Yes, you are starting to suffer from dehyration and it is a warning sign of possible heat stoke.

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Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

I think that's a key. If you didn't make at least a couple of trips to the bathroom yesterday (other than for the A/C), you weren't drinking enough. I always force myself to drink until I feel full as Eric said which results in a few trips to the little boy's room throughout the day.

Another drink to try is Propel fitness water. It is made by the same people as Gatorade but doesn't have nearly as much sugar (2g's per bottle IIRC). As somebody who can't drink a diet drink if it was forced down my throat, I find the Propel to taste pretty good. It comes in a bunch of flavors and it is fairly cheap at the big warehouse clubs.

Heck, with a name like Propel, it's gotta make you faster...

I'm glad everybody is feeling better today and hopefully we are done with the barn burners this year.

Jim

I wore an Under Armour heat top under my t-shirt yesterday. It did make a big difference. I wish they had that stuff when I played Rugby. Yea, we played in this heat....no one ever said Rugby players are smart.

One thing to remember, it does not have to be 101 degrees to suffer heat stroke. I think it was 3-4 years ago at Laurinburg we had a guy suffer exactly what Stephen experienced. But this was in April! Mike W drove him over to my truck and we lifted him into the truck. Then waited 60 minutes for the EMS to arrive.

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Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

Thanks for the suggestion Jim. I'll give the Propel a try this weekend at the Rally-X.

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Vincent Keene
'06 Ford Mustang GT (track rat)
'15 Dodge Charger R/T (yeah, it's got a HEMI!)
'07 Ford Fusion SE (205,000 miles and counting)
'98 Chevy Z-24 (retired)
'93 Acura Integra (Team SWB 24HOL Car)

Was that the guy that drove the Neon? I remember that day. As bad as Stephen looked yesterday that guy looked even worse.

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Vincent Keene
'06 Ford Mustang GT (track rat)
'15 Dodge Charger R/T (yeah, it's got a HEMI!)
'07 Ford Fusion SE (205,000 miles and counting)
'98 Chevy Z-24 (retired)
'93 Acura Integra (Team SWB 24HOL Car)

I recently started doing this, and it makes a world of difference. Yesterday, I didn't wear any cotton at all, except for my baseball cap (sorry for the mind picture). I can't count how many people that I saw that had soaking wet t-shirts out there; in the 80+% humidity, it won't evaporate enough to promote cooling, especially if one is wearing 2 shirts at the same time. This instead acts as insulation will never cool down the body core.

I went through 23 out of the case of 24 20 oz bottles at Saturday's event through the end of Sunday. Learned from the Scouts, the rule of thumb is that if you don't feel like you have to pee all of the time, you aren't drinking enough water. And my hamstrings still feel tight today.

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Has no responsibility whatsoever.