Saddle Sores.

[Dirt]

It is saddle sore season! Aren’t you excited??? I had two friends ask me about them this week. It is a topic that some are hesitant to talk about. People often think that saddle sores are a sign of bad cleaning habits. They can happen to anyone. I’m fastidious about hygiene “down there” and I still get saddle sores from time to time.

Not only are we riding more, but it is also getting rather warm and friction and skin irritation thrive in such conditions. If you’ve never had them before, you’re fortunate. Lots of things contribute to their formation, I’ve even heard that diet has an impact, but shorts, saddles and friction are usually the biggest cause. Sometimes just the way hair follicles react to being sat upon for hours causes issues.

Avoiding them: Do I have to mention common sense things like keeping your person and shorts clean? Never start a ride with damp shorts… even if they’re clean.

Chamois cream is a very good idea. There are many on the market. DZ Nutz is my current fave. They make one formula for men and another for women. Assos and Chamois Buttr are two other brands that I’ve used with great success. I use it for any ride over 1 hour in length. I spread a healthy amount on the chamois (I really rub it into the chamois pad) and a little on myself too. There’s an art to putting on your shorts when they’ve got chamois cream on them. It is really easy to slime chamois cream all over. Figuring out how to do it is almost a right of passage in cycling. When I was a tracky, I got the knack of starting with the shorts inside-out and was able to wiggle into them without getting gooey. It is also possible to get them on starting with them right-side-out. Practice makes perfect.

What happens when I get a saddle sore? Naturally keeping clean is important. If you can take a day or two off the bike, that is good. Sometimes that isn’t possible. There is a magic product that helps A LOT! Bag Balm (http://www.bagbalm.com/) was originally designed as a cow udder cream. There really isn’t anything magic in it, but DANG does the stuff work. A little dab on and around a saddle sore before bed and another in the morning after your shower will show significant improvement in an amazing amount of time.

My local CVS sells Bag Balm in the skin care section.

I also use Bag Balm as a preventative treatment. If you get back from a ride and have an uncomfortable spot on your bottom from worn out shorts or bad saddle position or just too many miles in the saddle, a bit of bag balm on it after showering helps heal and prevent further problems.

One other use for Bag Balm. There are times when you’re going on a cold, rainy ride where having tights or leg warmers only holds the rain and gunk to your legs, making you colder. On those days I wear knickers and use Bag Balm as an embrocation from just below my knees to my ankles. The lanolin repels water and lets the natural blood flow in my legs keep me warm.

I also use Bag Balm to help heal road rash later in the healing process. Once the healing process has really started and you need to keep the wound moist… That is another topic for another day.

Word of Caution: Bag Balm comes in a tin, rather than a tube. When you buy it, buy a small container and toss it out periodically. Don’t ever “double dip”. Reaching gooey fingers into the tin will contaminate it and reduce its effectiveness. I actually keep 2 tins… I use one for saddle sores and I keep a big tin for embrocation on rain rides.

Also: if you have skin allergies, read the ingredients to make sure there’s nothing in there that will cause problems. If you are an allergy sufferer, you know that routine well.

Hopefully this kinda helps. Let me know what works for you.

Pete

Topic

[Tim Kelley]

Great post Pete!

For those of you without kids, I’d like to add that a low cost and surprisingly effective chamois cream is A&D Diaper Rash Cream.

This was recommended to me by a legendary 24-Hour Solo mountain bike racer who said he applied and re-applied the stuff liberally during long races.

[Tim Kelley]

Great post Pete!

For those of you without kids, I’d like to add that a low cost and surprisingly effective chamois cream is A&D Diaper Rash Cream.

This was recommended to me by a legendary 24-Hour Solo mountain bike racer who said he applied and re-applied the stuff liberally during long races.

[CCrew]

I’ll add another. Bike shorts with chamois work great, and Dirt is spot on with his dissertation. One thing he missed though that I’ve found out.
1: you don’t wear anything underneath them
and 2: wear once then wash

[CCrew]

I’ll add another. Bike shorts with chamois work great, and Dirt is spot on with his dissertation. One thing he missed though that I’ve found out.
1: you don’t wear anything underneath them
and 2: wear once then wash

[Dirt]

@CCrew 4454 wrote:

I’ll add another. Bike shorts with chamois work great, and Dirt is spot on with his dissertation. One thing he missed though that I’ve found out.
1: you don’t wear anything underneath them
and 2: wear once then wash

Amen, sir. I once wore a feather duster between me and my shorts. It was fun for the first 2 hours, but after that it lost its novelty.

But seriously… You are very right about both. Clean = good.

[Dirt]

@CCrew 4454 wrote:

I’ll add another. Bike shorts with chamois work great, and Dirt is spot on with his dissertation. One thing he missed though that I’ve found out.
1: you don’t wear anything underneath them
and 2: wear once then wash

Amen, sir. I once wore a feather duster between me and my shorts. It was fun for the first 2 hours, but after that it lost its novelty.

But seriously… You are very right about both. Clean = good.

[Mark Blacknell]

Pay attention to all of this, folks. Good stuff.

[Mark Blacknell]

Pay attention to all of this, folks. Good stuff.

[CCrew]

I’ll add a little more kind of on and off subject.

I’ve been bicycle commuting year round now going into the 4th year. I put down a *lot* of miles, so I spend a lot of time on the bike. I’m a middle aged bald white guy, so I’m far from the fashion bearer here.

When I started out I scoffed at cycling clothes. You couldn’t have paid me to wear lycra. Well, let me tell you.. there’s a reason for the stuff. It hugs your skin, which both insulates in winter and cools in summer . It doesn’t catch or bunch up. It slides where it needs to slide and stays where it needs to stay. A good chamois is a godsend after miles in the saddle. Only drawback I’ve found is that it’s harder to fool the full kitted once a week racer weenies when they can’t understand why they can’t easily pass you :p Sooo much easier in MTB shorts and a t-shirt.. That’s where they come in.

Further you get from the bike in full kit the weirder you look though!

Cotton is ok, but sweat and it sticks to you and doesn’t dry well. Wicking stuff… C2 from Target comes to mind is great. If it starts to stink which poly’s do sometimes wash with a cup of vinegar in the washing machine.

And bibs are better than shorts any day of the week.

[CCrew]

I’ll add a little more kind of on and off subject.

I’ve been bicycle commuting year round now going into the 4th year. I put down a *lot* of miles, so I spend a lot of time on the bike. I’m a middle aged bald white guy, so I’m far from the fashion bearer here.

When I started out I scoffed at cycling clothes. You couldn’t have paid me to wear lycra. Well, let me tell you.. there’s a reason for the stuff. It hugs your skin, which both insulates in winter and cools in summer . It doesn’t catch or bunch up. It slides where it needs to slide and stays where it needs to stay. A good chamois is a godsend after miles in the saddle. Only drawback I’ve found is that it’s harder to fool the full kitted once a week racer weenies when they can’t understand why they can’t easily pass you :p Sooo much easier in MTB shorts and a t-shirt.. That’s where they come in.

Further you get from the bike in full kit the weirder you look though!

Cotton is ok, but sweat and it sticks to you and doesn’t dry well. Wicking stuff… C2 from Target comes to mind is great. If it starts to stink which poly’s do sometimes wash with a cup of vinegar in the washing machine.

And bibs are better than shorts any day of the week.

[OneEighth]

Bibs. Absolutely.
Aquaphor is very versatile.
Snug, purpose-built clothing is generally a good idea.
Wool socks year-round. Trust me.
Final fragmented thought—kit can be subtle.

[OneEighth]

Bibs. Absolutely.
Aquaphor is very versatile.
Snug, purpose-built clothing is generally a good idea.
Wool socks year-round. Trust me.
Final fragmented thought—kit can be subtle.

[CCrew]

@OneEighth 4472 wrote:

Final fragmented thought—kit can be subtle.

White or light gray is bad :p

[CCrew]

@OneEighth 4472 wrote:

Final fragmented thought—kit can be subtle.

White or light gray is bad :p

[OneEighth]

Sometimes…

[Author]

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