Austin, TX
5 ways to keep your cool in the scorching Texas heat at Austin City Limits Fest weekend 2
Texas heat feels like death, no doubt about it. Nevertheless, us die-hard music aficionados bear the sun’s burden to celebrate our favorite performers at Austin City Limits Music Festival. To avoid a dreaded visit to the medical tent, here are five helpful tips to stay cool during your conquest of the outdoor music communion.
1. A good ole’ fashion reusable water bottle to refill at water stations
It’s imperative to stay hydrated lest you pass out after baking in the sun. Come to the festival with a reusable water bottle. You can’t bring liquids inside, so we recommend chugging your bottle while you wait in line. Once you make it past the gates, head for the water stations around the park to fill your bottle with ample water and refill between sets when trekking to your next stage. A good ole’ fashion water bottle is indispensable at times like this.
2. Stay vibey with Liquid IV or other hydration packets
Thank god for technological innovation. The automobile. The cotton gin. Magic hydration powders choc full of electrolytes and vitamins. While powders like Liquid IV are essential to ease hardcore hangovers, that doesn’t mean you can’t pregame these Kool-Aid counterparts as well. Downing this supplement before you go out drinking and throughout the day will give your body an extra boost of hydration to curb looming alcohol withdrawal and prevent a bad dehydration headache. Even if you don’t plan to drink alcohol the packets are helpful for rapid hydration. Single use sealed hydration packets are allowed in the park.
3. Be a savvy fan with a handheld fan
Standing in the heat is brutal, but having a fan of some kind is essential for long wait times. Luckily, ACL plants huge industrial fans in front of their stages for fans camping out at the barricade, but for those farther back in the crowd a personal paper or electric fan is clutch to keep cool. An accordion paper fan can shade your face from the sun, while electric fans are easy to hold near you face for a steady airstream. Just be mindful of how close you hold it so the blades don’t get tangled in your hair. It’s happened to me!
4. Don’t go bananas, bring some water-soaked bandanas
Bandanas are a must have to survive Zilker’s dusty conditions, but soaking one in some water and slapping it on the back of your neck offers instant relief to skin that’s getting a beating from the sun. Placing a cool bandana on your pressure points (i.e. neck, inner elbows, back of knees) will quickly lower your body temp in a pinch. At some midday sets, the ACL staff will even hand out water-soaked bandanas to folks standing at the barricade wilting in the heat. When you go refill your water bottle, douse your bandana too for that extra boost of cool relief.
5. Skip stage view, opt for shady vantage points
We all want to get front and center for our favorite performer, but sometimes we need to weigh our options: get borderline heat stroke waiting for hours to score a plush spot for a headliner, or watch from a shady grove with some handy binoculars. In the afternoon, when the sun is at its peak, I would opt for the latter. Of course, you won’t get the detailed videos of your onstage fave, but you will definitely be thankful when that cool breeze hits under the shady tree that has turned Tartarus into a bearable garden oasis.
The Texas Longhorns are less than two months away from starting their regular season slate of the 2026 schedule.
Just like last season, the Longhorns have been given unrealistic expectations by some, but will look to avoid the slow start that had everyone counting them out in September. On paper, the Longhorns should be a lot better than they were last season.
A national championship run should be on the table for head coach Steve Sarkisian and his team. One of the reasons that is a possibility is due to the Longhorns have something in common with previous national championship winners.
Legacy Year
Last season, the college football world was enamored by the Indiana Hoosiers. A program that no one saw ever winning the national championship, was hoisting the trophy at the end of the season.
Now, the Hoosiers had a talented roster from top to bottom. But the play of starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza was the leading factor in this team reaching the mountaintop.
Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning has the chance to make that same impression this season. After his first full season as the starting quarterback in Austin last year, there is a growing confidence that Manning is going to be on another level in 2026.
Last season, Manning threw for 3,163 yards and 26 touchdown passes. If you were to compare those numbers to Mendoza’s last season, the Hoosiers quarterback threw for 3,535 yards and an impressive 41 touchdown passes.
Those numbers make it clear that Manning will have to elevate his performance this season. With a revamped offensive line, the Longhorns quarterback may have the time to rival the numbers of Mendoza from this past season.
But another key piece to the Longhorns’ 2026 roster is a massive wide receiver addition.
It’s going to take the whole village, and Coach Sarkisian went out and got one of the most talented wide receivers in the transfer portal with Cam Coleman.
Coleman had two solid years with the Auburn Tigers and now will look to be the deep field threat for Manning and the Longhorns. The junior receiver’s addition to the roster could take this offensive unit to being one of the top units in the country.
All championship teams have a quarterback who could lead them to victory. Manning could very well be the next elite quarterback to hold a national championship trophy.
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Join several Austin labor unions and community members to honor Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s life and the countless immigrants who have been impacted by ICE.
The community vigil will take place at the Wildflower Church on Saturday, July 11th starting at 6 PM. All are welcome to bring flowers and candles as we honor the loss of life and grieve the separation of families.
Community Vigil Details
🗓️ July 11, 2026 | 6:00 – 8:00 PM
🗺️ 1314 E Oltorf St, Austin, TX 78704
🚗 Public transit and rideshare encouraged! Limited parking available and overflow parking may be available at Travis High School.
Please consider donating to the family’s GoFundMe if you are able: https://bit.ly/atx4lorenzo
AUSTIN (KXAN) — A report released by the think tank Texas 2036 claims that ten state laws implemented between 2019 and 2025 led to “one of the nation’s most comprehensive strategies for connecting education to careers.”
The report is titled “The Next Generation of the Texas Miracle.” It can be read below.
Mary Lynn Pruneda, Texas 2036’s director of education and workforce policy, said in an announcement accompanying the report that the reforms have been steps in the right direction.
“Texas has a bright economic future ahead of it, but we have to make sure that Texas students are equipped to share in this prosperity,” she said. “Texas needs to double down on improving and investing in high-quality career pathways so that all Texas students can take part in the Texas Miracle. Thankfully, due to the Legislature’s great work over the past four sessions, we are on our way to that critical goal.”
The report gives several data points, such as a 532% increase in high schoolers earning “post-secondary credentials” since 2018, or that community colleges awarded 140,000 “credentials of value” in 2024.
It paints a rosy picture of the future Texas economy, but doesn’t source its data or explain how it reached these conclusions. It’s apparent that the think tank wants further laws related to Texas’ workforce and education.
“Texas 2036 is actively engaged in that process, pushing for data modernization and interoperability reforms that would allow the state to track whether credentials are meeting real employer needs in communities across the state,” said the think tank in its announcement.
Grace Atkins, policy advisor of postsecondary education for Texas 2036, called the think tank’s report “encouraging.”
“The early results are encouraging: more students are earning credentials that can help them move into good jobs, and that is real progress,” she said. “For students and families, these pathways can be the difference between getting by and getting ahead. The next step is making sure more Texans can earn credentials that lead to strong wages, real career options and greater economic mobility.”
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