Sideline cooling fans are one option for helping athletes stay cool at outside sports like football, soccer, lacrosse, and more. However, they have limited effectiveness. On any day where the heat climbs above 90° F, the only cooling method that is effective is sweating. Sideline cooling fans can make sweating more effective, but it’s still limited, especially for big athletes who have a hard time lowering their core temperature. Plus, sweating comes at a cost: dehydration.
Athletes who are constantly sweating need to drink a lot of water to avoid dehydration. They also need to make sure they’re replacing electrolytes or else they might develop complications like hyponatremia (salt shortage). The more time spent at high temperatures, the harder it gets to strike this balance.
That’s why we’ve seen numerous sports programs adopt Portacool portable evaporative coolers, like the University of North Texas. UNT sees their portable evaporative coolers as a way to help their players recover, get a competitive edge, and stay safe. Portable evaporative coolers are a much more effective solution for cooling players down than a sideline cooling fan.
Sidelines are often filled with twice as many supporters as players: bring value to your mascot, emergency responders, team staff, photographers, officiants, team managers, and coaches by including them in the cool.