Heat starts to hit Qatar, May is the month where the air temperature will raise over 30 degrees easily every day, and in the same time sea water temperature will increase.
If it’s your 1st summer in the Middle East region or if you are just starting kitesurfing, I want to give you few tips in order to be able to spend some nice time outdoor during summer time in Qatar.
1/ Hydrate yourself:
A good hydration makes all the difference once you want to spend more than 30 minutes outside being active.
If you drink only a lot of water, you won’t be able to replenish the amount of minerals you’ve lost by sweating. That’s why drinking water is important (you can carry a Camelbak full of cold water while kitesurfing), but it’s not enough.
You should also drink specific rehydration drinks; they’ll give you the mineral ions you need in order to keep their level stable in your body, and not getting to the sunstroke. In Qatar we can find easily Gatorade, Pocari Sweat, and natural coconut water.
2/Cover yourself
Coming at the beach for a kitesurfing session you’ll be happy to wear a cotton T-shirt instead of a regular Lycra rash guard, the cotton will take longer to dry, and it will keep you cooler, longer.
Cover your head with a hat, and keep the hat damp.
Cover your neck with a damp neck gaiter.
3/Choose the right time
As days are getting longer closer to end of June, the best is to go to the beach after 3.00pm.
June is usually very windy and avoids the water temperature to rise to fast (about 30 degrees).
In July it will be still ok to enjoy some afternoon at the beach if you are well prepared, and if wind has been keeping reasonable sea water temperature (below 34 degrees).
Over this temperature it will be good to avoid going kitesurfing alone. You’ll have to go very close to sunset time if you can’t wait for cooler time. FKS also recommends to keep your sessions short (max 45min) with some 15min breaks in a cooled area between each session.
Enjoy your summer!
