Does AZ heat really feel that bad?

[Hassayampa Slim]

Weather, like politics, is a matter of personal choice and how it feels to each individual. It is true that Arizona is a "dry heat" most of the time, and although when you first experience it may feel somewhat moderate, when your body adjusts it may not feel that agreeable. Also, there is a big difference between the heat in mega-metropolis Phoenix or Tucson, and the few smaller communities in the state. In Phoenix, for the last few years we've had the better part of half of the year in 100+ temps, with well over 30 days of 110+. The 7 inches that used to be our average rainfall has now dropped to around 5 1/2, and the summer monsoons have become mostly wind and dust.
The lack of snow and all the driving to work problems it brings can be a joy for those who fight that every year, but if your retired loosing the four seasons may not be a good trade off for you. Getting in a car that has been parked at the Mall in mid-summer can be a memorable, if not painful, experience.
If you can afford to live in small towns like Prescott, Payson, or Flagstaff, you can have the best of both worlds, but it comes at a price most of us can no longer afford (especially if retired.)
If your young and can probably change locale again later in life, this might be a good place for you. If your in a position where a move will probably have to be final and permanent, think long and hard on it.

[steve22]

Moderator cut: orphaned post

This is a pointless debate anyway. Generally, I've found that any critical discussion about Phoenix eventually devolves into an argument over the weather, usually between those who think 100+ degree temps "aren't that bad", so long as you don't have to deal with snow in the winter, versus those who think the summers are godawful and the winters aren't enough to make up for it. Personally, I know where I stand on it.

To me, the idea of living with the sometimes unpredictable, but generally sunny and much more pleasant weather in CO than I experienced in the midwest where I came from - plus having the mountains nearby and being able to enjoy the great city that Denver is- trumps living in Phoenix, where you get very predictable, constantly unpleasant weather for an entire half of the year. I'm not an indoor person. And my threshold for tolerance of extreme heat doesn't go much beyond 95 degrees, especially when I'm exerting myself physically. Plus, even when the weather's nice, well, you still have to live in Phoenix. Which, as I've stated before, I really feel leaves much to be desired as a city-for many reasons I've already gone into, no need to rehash them.

100 degree temps, to me, are wholly unpleasant. And that's what you get in Phoenix beginning in about May, straight through to October. And no, it doesn't cool down at night much - from about June through September, nighttime lows are routinely 80 degrees or more, sometimes over 90. Sure, you can drive up to Flag and escape the heat- but I found that's pretty tough to do on the weekends, when there's only one two-lane interstate connecting that part of the state with Phoenix (AND Tucson), and it seems EVERY ONE of the 6 million or so people living in those two cities has the same idea on the weekends in the summer. 2 hours on a Friday afternoon or Sat. morning in the summer to get to Flag or Prescott? Yeah, maybe if you've got a helicopter. In my experience, you can plan on the 17 being a parking lot in the summer during prime travel times. 4-5 hours is a little more like it.

Also, as a skiing and mountain sports aficionado, sorry, but the AZ mountains don't compare to those in CO. I don't need to debate this. Sorry, they just don't.

There are other reasons on top of those I've already mentioned that made me choose to leave Phoenix. For one, personally, as a medical professional, the health care environment in AZ stinks; malpractice premiums there are sky-high, and rising all the time. And as a father of 2 young kids, I would NEVER attempt to raise children in PHX, given the choice. Between the terrible quality of the public schools, the crime, drugs, illegals, dangerous heat and constant sun exposure, etc., I really think it's one of the worst cities in America in which to raise kids. Actually, a few years back in Child magazine, Phoenix was rated the third-worst city in America in which to raise kids, behind only Detroit and Cleveland. Thanks, but no thanks.

[kdog]

Originally Posted by Hassayampa Slim

If you can afford to live in small towns like Prescott, Payson, or Flagstaff, you can have the best of both worlds, but it comes at a price most of us can no longer afford (especially if retired.)

You picked the most expensive suburbs in Arizona to make your point. There are many small towns across Arizona that are much more affordable, have clean air, no traffic, and a great climate. Kingman is one such place.

[cowcat]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Lets see... Denver is just as cold (sometimes colder), gets more snow, is windier and has longer snow periods. How is Denver's winter more mild again? Oh yeah, more sunshine right?

Yep, Denver and Cleveland have the dubious distinction of being the two US cities to record below freezing temperatures in June. Minneapolis, Green Bay, and even ANCHORAGE have never recorded freezing temperatures in June.

[xwideopenskyx]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Gee, that looks almost as much fun as driving into this:
http://pictopia.com/perl/get_image?provider_id=38&size=550x550_mb&ptp_photo _id=13030 (broken link)

Photo credit: Google Image Result for http://pictopia.com/perl/get_image?provider_id=38&size=550x550_mb&ptp_photo _id=13030 (broken link)

The level of excitement would be the same, I would imagine. That's all I can do is imagine because since I moved to AZ over a year and a half ago I have not seen a haboob yet. On the other hand, I've driven through many, many blizzards in the snowbelt of Ohio.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by xwideopenskyx

The level of excitement would be the same, I would imagine. That's all I can do is imagine because since I moved to AZ over a year and a half ago I have not seen a haboob yet. On the other hand, I've driven through many, many blizzards in the snowbelt of Ohio.

I was in a small duststorm up near Winslow about 6 years ago, and that sucked. Ive never been in one of the monster dust storms you see on TV though. In a dust storm you dont slide or anything, but you have to drive slow, put the lights on, and grit your teeth as the wind whips dirt/sand/tumbleweed/etc all over your paint job. The one I was in lasted only 2-3 minutes, but it was pretty bad. You couldnt see 30ft in front of the car, I had to pull over and put my hazards on. A gigantic tumbleweed actually hit our car pretty hard, didnt do any damage though. But once we were underway again and the thick dust had cleared, there were a million dust devils in the distance which were really cool, and every other semi that passed us had tumbleweeds stuck in their grilles. lol

[Greatday]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

You couldnt see 30ft in front of the car, I had to pull over and put my hazards on.

The "rule" is, during a dust storm, if you do pull over, pull as far off the shoulder as you safely can, AND DO NOT TURN YOUR EMERGENCY FLASHERS ON

There are many, documented, fatal, accidents caused during dust storms where drivers "follow" the blinking lights and rear end the stopped vehicle.

There was a "infamous" accident some years ago caused by hazards being on - as I recall, it was 25 to 30 vehicles with multiple fatalities and multiple injuries - I-10 southbound near Toltec

[sablebaby]

I think this topic has been discussed enough.