ALL IN A RAY’S WORK
It only takes 20 minutes for skin to burn, so how do New Yorkers who work outside cope? Here, locals talk about how they protect themselves — or don’t — from sun exposure.
1. Veronica Benton, 27, poolside server
“I try to eat a lot of [antioxidant-rich] fruit, which helps with skin health,” says Benton, who applies SPF 30 before each 8-hour shift at the Dream Downtown hotel rooftop pool.
Her uniform is a skin-baring tennis skirt and racerback top, so she makes sure her neck, shoulders and calves are protected.
2. Daniel Levin, 29, mural painter
This muralist might spend up to 14 hours outside, and at least half of that time in direct sunlight. Though he wears a hat and sunscreen, sunglasses can interfere with color blending. The job can also make reapplication challenging.
“Once you put the paint up, there’s a [short] amount of time to work with it,” says Levin. “It’s only between sections that we have a moment to reapply [sunscreen].”
3. Michael Reinhardt, 28, surf instructor
“I’m outside literally all day,” says the co-founder of Locals Surf School in the Rockaways, who uses body sunscreen and a zinc oxide lotion called Zinka on his nose and lips.
“I rehydrate with moisturizers and serums, which may even have a light SPF, too,” he says.
4. Karimah Nichols, 31, dog walker
“Most walks are during peak sun exposure — between 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.,” says Nichols, a pet sitter and dog walker for Rover.com who uses SPF 50 and reapplies when she has backto-back clients in the heat of the afternoon.
“I [also] remind myself to always walk [in] the shadows,” she says, “and be thankful I’m not stuck in a fur coat.”
5. The Naked Cowboy, 47, street performer
Robert Burck, the Times Square performer known as the Naked Cowboy, spends a majority of his waking hours in nothing but a cowboy hat and tighty-whities.
“In 20 years of doing this, I’ve never worn sunscreen,” claims Burck, who says that exposure to the elements “makes me strong and vigorous.” But this also makes him highly susceptible to skin cancer: According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, daily use of broad spectrum SPF 15 or higher would reduce his risk of developing melanoma by 50 percent.
6. Felipe Lavalle, 33, bike-tour guide
Lavalle, the founder of Get Up and Ride, spends five or six hours a day outside and applies plenty of sport sunscreen.
He even wears a baseball cap underneath his helmet. “I look like the biggest dad ever,” says Lavalle, who provides sunscreen to his tour groups and keeps them cool by making plenty of stops for water and riding through the occasional spewing fire hydrant.