Rick Whelan takes a spin on his Sea-Doo on the South Saskatchewan River on Tuesday. (CHAT News photo).

By Alex McCuaig

Cool choices

Keeping cool in the Hat with heat warning continuing

Aug 18, 2020 | 4:38 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The sun has been beating down on Medicine Hat for much of the last month, smothering the city in an embrace which has seen two heat warnings issued for the region since the end of July.

That’s OK for Rick Whelan, who was flying down the South Saskatchewan River on his Sea-Doo on Tuesday with his hair flying in the wind and his feet skimming the water.

“You get blasting down there, you get spray on you. You are instantly cooled down,” said Whelan. “You’re boogieing 60 miles an hour so the wind cools you right down. It’s the ultimate.”

For mother of two Charity Lemire, keeping cool – and your wits – is about making your own cooldown fun when it comes to dealing with the heat and young children.

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“You can paint ice cubes, you can wash cars – do a little car wash with toy cars. You definitely have to get creative but anything to keep them cool right now,” said Lemire.

It was much the same for mother of three Melissa Fabbro, who says pools are key to maintaining a cool, calm household.

And despite only one of the city’s three outdoor pools running this summer and COVID-19 regulations requiring pre-bookings of pool times, the process is pretty easy.

“Just added our family names online, log in, sign up. I’m not very tech-savvy but it’s easy for me to do,” said Fabbro.

But for Rosie Selinger, it’s not about beating the heat but embracing it, something the prolific walker says is a good thing to do no matter what the season.

“Just enjoy it. Take your time. You don’t have to race around or anything like that,” said Selinger. “Just be relaxed. Walking is one of the healthiest things a person can do.”

Daytime high temperatures aren’t expected to dip below 28 C in the next seven days with heat warnings across Alberta and Saskatchewan anticipated to persist through much of this week.