After last week's cooler weather, out-of-towners should feel right at home as the College World Series heads toward its conclusion.
Omaha's weather has taken on all the heat and humidity of Baton Rouge, home of Louisiana State, and Austin, home of the University of Texas.
But ask Baton Rouge resident Carol Revel about coping with oppressive heat and humidity, and you get an answer you'd never hear from a Nebraskan: “We don't think about it, we don't talk about it. We accept it. It's a way of life.”
Heck, in Nebraska, the weather often rivals Husker football as topic No. 1 in conversations.
Monday's high temperature in Omaha was 94, while Baton Rouge saw a high of 96 and Austin hit 100. Throw in Omaha's humidity, and the metro area fared worse than the deep South, with a heat index of 107, compared with 102 and 101.
The heat advisory in effect Monday continues today, with highs forecast near 100 and a heat index expected to be somewhere between 105 and 112 degrees, according to the National Weather Service office at Valley.
With Monday's first championship series game still six hours away, Texas and LSU fans were settling in around Rosenblatt Stadium — shopping, drinking, tailgating and putting up with the weather.
Asked for some informed suggestions on beating this kind of heat, the Southerners offered proven best bets: wear a hat and sunglasses, drink plenty of water, lather on the sunscreen and, if possible, air out the feet with some sandals.
Die-hard Texas fan Ken Campbell of Austin was hanging out in the shade of a building across from Rosenblatt Stadium.
His secret to keeping cool? Drink plenty of water and don't start on the alcohol until an hour before game time. “I'll go into the game, ‘just right,'” he said.
At age 56, he says he can't keep up with the nearby college kids, already sipping beer and Sailor Jerry's rum.
Andrew Hartwig, 22, of Austin was among them. He said the sun has been the worst.
“I got tanned and burned in 10 minutes. It's worse than spring break in Florida,” he said. “And your mosquitoes are awful.”
Boots Oliphint, 66, of Baton Rouge said she has found the perfect antidote to the heat: Omahans.
Omaha friends stake out a shady spot under some trees for a tailgating tent. They've brought food every day and even set up a wading pool.
“We've made good friends in Omaha, and they make the heat bearable,” she said. “I've never seen so many nice people.”
Contact the writer:
444-1102, nancy.gaarder@owh.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
