Thanks for all the responses and the Blue Lizard recommendation. I may also schedule a derm appointment. It's been 20+ years since I was in a derm office.

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The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design.

I've had close friends and athletes have stuff carved out of them as well as a sunbathing momma from the 70s have stuff carved out too. I had my moments of "enh, i'll be fine" for a couple years while racing professionally, but now i'm terrified to go out without screened up. Looking at friends that have continued to go without they have aged sooooooo fast in just a few years from the sun damage. While i'm not pale by any means i much prefer pale to tan nowadays.

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36 kona qualifiers 2006-'23 - 3 Kona Podiums - 4 OA IM AG wins - 5 IM AG wins - 18 70.3 AG wins
I ka nana no a 'ike -- by observing, one learns | Kulia i ka nu'u -- strive for excellence
Garmin Glycogen Use App | Garmin Fat Use App

When I was younger, I did not take the skin cancer threat seriously at all. However, I am now 6 years removed from surgery to remove melanoma from my left calf and I take it very seriously. I apply sunblock before training and re-apply on longer training days. I have also been very happy with the DeSoto skin cooler arm sleeves and leg sleeves. Combined with sunblock they offer good sun protection and they really do work to keep you cooler on hot days, especially if you wet them.

OMG that is THE COOLEST site on the interwebs! Thank you!!!

at the bottom there is information and advice for teh numbers. LOVE IT! (although I just got out of the water, prime time...)

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

What about if you train after 5pm? Would you still put on sunscreen? Someone had told me since the sun is not as strong 5pm on up he doesn't bother (here in Montreal). I kind of just went with that as well. The season is starting again so I might have to reevaluate.

From time to time I'll run at lunch (45 minute run) but since I'm at work and have to get changed back into work clothes I don't put sunscreen. :(

i had SO MUCH fun with that website! :) i tried a few towns in eastern Brazil, western Peru, Ecuador, Oz, Singapore, Manila (PH), and found the biggest bang of continuous extreme temperature is in neastern and ncentral honduras. i got 4 bars of extreme (hitting 14 to 15). So much fun! :) thanks again.

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

The problem is that while UVB exposure peaks around the middle of the day it is now understood that UVA exposure it pretty much constant throughout the day. Actually, UVA exposure can be worse early/late because as the sun is near the horizon it's like standing in front of a flood light. However, early/late in the day you get more shade so it depends on the activity and your local conditions. Think of sun exposure as cumulative over a lifetime. Those 45 minute runs at lunch w/o sunscreen will add up. The only time I don't wear sunscreen is if the sun is below the horizon when I head out (in the PM, I'm not a morning person.)

*SIGH* Thanks. I kind of knew that was the answer. So if I train in the evening 5pm on up or even if I take my kids to the park after work I'll put sunscreen...

from that super fun website referenced above (have you looked at it yet? the question of when would be covered there as it differs daily)

"UVA[/url]
At the surface of the Earth roughly 95% of solar UV radiation is comprised of UVA, which has a wavelength of 315-400 nm. UVA penetrates deeper into the skin than UVB, and exposure to high doses of UVA can cause indirect DNA damage, age your skin, cause skin cancer and damages your eyes. UVA does not cause sunburn, and since SPF only indicates a level of protection against sunburn, it is important to use broad spectrum sun lotions, which will offer protection against both UVA and UVB.
Sunbeds give off mainly UVA radiation, and have been classified as carcinogenic in some countries, with minors being banned from using them.
UVB[/url]
UVB radiation does not enter as deeply into the skin as UVA, and is mostly absorbed by the outermost layer of the skin (the epidermis). UVB is more likely to cause sunburns and is primarily responsible for causing skin cancer. UVB is associated with the development of malignant melanoma, which can be fatal if left undiagnosed and untreated.
Approximately 90% of UVB radiation is absorbed by ozone, water vapor, oxygen and carbon dioxide. However, as ozone is the main absorber of UVB radiation, the UVB intensity at the Earths surface depends strongly on the total amount of ozone in the atmosphere, and thus on the thickness of the ozone layer. UVB has a wavelength between 280-315 nm.
UVC[/url]
UVC is the most damaging of all three types of UV radiation but is removed by the ozone layer, so it does not reach the Earth's surface. However, continued damage to the ozone layer by CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) and halon gases may allow UVC radiation to reach the Earths surface.
This is a a potential problem in Australia as the Ozone layer there can be relatively thin. UVC has a wavelength between 100-280 nm."


and... from http://www.uvawareness.com/...ngth.php#uv_strength

and more...http://www.skincancer.org/...standing-uva-and-uvb

you may notice teh chart at teh bottom of the last link - zinc oxide blocks all 3 and is the primary ingredient in diaper rash cream (likely you all in teh US and Canada can get it as just zinc cream) but super cheap and one of the most effective UV blocks.

http://www.smartskincare.com/...lock_zinc-oxide.html

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

^^^^This.

Since it's lifetime exposure that matters, skin cancer is much more about what you do in training. Race day is more about avoiding a nasty burn.

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ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Living in the cancer capital globally (Queensland Australia), its factor 30 on all rides over an hour...
it also features in the number of cancer related charity events i get involved in..

you take it even more seriously when your best mate gets lymphatic and renal cancer... all from melanoma

so in short... seriously....

??Really??...I'm 47 and cautious -for the most part- but I have never heard it recommended by health experts that one needs to wear sunscreen before 9am or after 5pm during the summer up here in the North?


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You likely won't get a sunburn (which comes from UVB) but you can get plenty of UVA exposure as long as you are in direct sunlight even if the sun is low on the horizon. I don't think a dermatologist would give somebody the green light to skip sunscreen if they're exercising outside unless it's shaded. Dermatologists want us wearing sunscreen just for daily incidental exposure (walking to/from your car, the train etc.) Also, those times are overly general. In Michigan it doesn't get dark until 9pm in June/July.

Here in NZ, skin cancer without consistent use of sunscreen is not quite a cast iron guarantee, but it's not far off it....and often even with consistent use. I haven't been as careful this year as I should have been, but I've got arm screens ready for next summer. Outdoor swimming might well also be done in a tri suit from now on too. A guy I ride with sometimes has had so many things chopped out he rides covered top to toe year round, long fingered gloves in summer included. We're paranoid about it here and rightly so.

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Very seriously. Just scheduled my 4th MOH's surgery. I am 51. Others on face and lips, and this one on neck. Nothing to mess around with, but knock on wood, all basal and squamous, but no melanoma yet, thank goodness. Go to dermatologist every 4 months for full body scan for cancers.

Was searching for sun blocking creams/clothing when I came across this old thread. I wasn't a believer in the melanoma scare and never wore sunscreen. Well, I'm a believer now. Hope these pictures help others become one without having to be diagnosed. The small spot on my calf was about the size of a pencil eraser. The first pic is the biopsy and the second is the excision. Fortunately for me it was only a Stage 1. This thread should be a sticky for all to see and read.

Personally, I take skin cancer very seriously. If I'm outside for more than 15 min, I put on sunscreen and wear a hat. I'm a redhead, with a family history of cancer (not just skin cancer), and a three year survivor (hodgkin's lymphoma). I'm probably at the extreme end of the spectrum though. Everything wants to kill me apparently :(

Pretty seriously. I apply once The temp gets over 50, and reapply every two hours. Before and after a race. I'm not one to burn but I figure we spend a lot of time outside so it's cumulative over time.

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I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I've always found it kind of peculiar that cyclists use tan-lines as a badge of honor of some sort.

If I'm out and it is daytime, I'm putting sunscreen on. When I was still running I usually planned my runs early morning or late evening to minimize exposure. Now that I'm just cycling I'm really only outside on the weekends and sunscreen is an auto-include for any of my rides.

edit:

This describes me as well.

Had a spot removed from my nose. I take it very serious now. Always keep sunscreen in my race bag. Cancer killed both of my parents, hate the f&$:ing disease. Take it all serious, even basal.

Interesting place to get cancer from the sun. I usually think of it being more prevalent on the head and upper body. For me it's not a case of if I'll get it it's a case of when I get it. I have the same skin type as my grandparents and they had so much removed that they kept the dermatologist really busy. Lucky for them it was always Basal or Squamous cell.

I always slather on the sunblock as soon as it's warm enough to do so.

I like this sunscreen made by two pro triathletes:

http://www.enduranceshield.com/sunscreen

It is expensive, but not full of junk, feels good, smells good, and works well.

At 53 and with skin so fair that it will burn under a full moon :-), I had my first precancerous spot treated on my head last summer with liquid nitrogen. I've been taking it serious for a while, but I am still not totally consistent in protecting at all times. Training I am fairly consistent. Where I am not consistent is stepping outside to do yard work with the thought that I will just be there for a moment.

This is the kind of zombie thread I approve of!

I'm half Polish, and the rest is a mix of Scottish, Irish and English, so I'm fairly doomed to get skin cancer at some point during my life. For short stuff I slather up in Blue Lizzard (and have had great results), for longer rides/full IM stuff I'll do my best to coat myself head-to-toe in anything with a decent UPF.

As a current cancer patient (not skin cancer, plasma myeloma), take any type of cancer threat seriously. Really. Really. Seriously. The treatment is not fun, at all. Chemo sucks, end of line.

My particular brand of cancer, along with my fitness level (I ran 100 miles the month before my diagnosis), gives me a better than 90% chance of long term survival after chemo/stem cell replacement treatments, but that journey is not for the faint of heart. I was hoping to be able to keep up some activities like swimming and biking when I was diagnosed, but so far the best I can hope for is very light activities (walking, short rides), during the breaks and early chemo cycle periods, but after a week of chemo everything goes downhill quickly and just walking up stairs can be a challenge.

Take this disease seriously or it will hand you your sit on the couch in pain card when you would rather be out training. The only thing worse than being out on a long slogging run is to see someone else on that run when you are not physically able to get out of your car without moaning in pain.