ruining my arse!

crispy1980

hi all, i have a gt aggressor with the standard seat supplied with it. im finding that after even fairly short rides ( especially with lots of on road ) my arse aches for days after ( oh err ) .i dont really want the expense of changing the seat so was looking at some padded shorts? do these provide much extra comfort? or should i just man up andget used to it?

cooldad

Decent saddle will make a difference. Charge Spoon on Wiggle for about £20 at the moment. I also wear padded shorts.
Your butt will also toughen up.

andy46

I always wear padded shorts, I'd get some of these first. They should help.

crispy1980

cheers guys,think i will try some shorts first. are they all much the same? or like everything else you get what you pay for?

angry_bird

You need to toughen your arse up.

You need one of these.

whyamihere

Padded shorts are pretty pointless if the saddle's wrong for your posterior. Get a saddle which is comfortable (this may take a bit of trial and error), and then consider padded shorts for longer rides. You should be fine for a couple of hours with no padding on a decent saddle.

angry_bird

Firstly a saddle that fits you bum well is important.

crispy1980 wrote:

cheers guys,think i will try some shorts first. are they all much the same? or like everything else you get what you pay for?

I've got a few pairs and the most expensive pair I have (incidently also the oldest, they've lasted a long time) is the comfiest pair I have, but then again that could come down to how well the padding actually fits me I suppose, or could just be coincidence, shorts that fit well is probably more important just like a good fitting saddle.

cooldad

The purpose of a bike pad is to wick moisture and to prevent chafing. It is not designed to be a "cushion".

Chunkers1980

cooldad wrote:

The purpose of a pad is to wick moisture and to prevent chafing when I get caught short

Briggo

cooldad wrote:

The purpose of a bike pad is to wick moisture and to prevent chafing. It is not designed to be a "cushion".

Might not be designed for it, but it certainly acts as a cushion.

butcher of bakersfield

A couple of years ago I was getting back into riding, and I remember having a really hard time in the saddle...

By the end of a ride I would be in pain. I'm sure everyone's experienced it at some point: where you refuse to sit down for the last 5 miles! And so I took the approach that I would ease myself into it slowly. Very slowly.

This went on for months.

Eventually I thought sod it. I'm just gonna man up and deal with it. Spent a few consecutive days on the bike. Sitting down (quite important!). Felt the pain and just ignored it. And it's never really bothered me since...

Of course some saddles are better than others, and I think it's important to get the saddle position right (otherwise you're not distributing your weight evenly on it), and padded shorts help a little too......but there's also an element of just getting used it.

MountainMonster

Change your seat, that will make 100% difference if you get a seat that fits well, whereas padded shorts will make about a 4% difference. Also as far as padded shorts go, do NOT buy the cheapest you can. Around the 50 pound mark is where I would start look.

stubs

I have an On-One Big nose saddle which cost me £10 in a sale and wear Endura padded mesh shorts £16 from Chain reaction and my delicate bum is very comfy.

Dont go for one of those big cushiony comfort saddles they feel great in the shop but are agony after a couple of hours the squidgy padding seems to get everywhere and make you walk like John Wayne or Graham Norton.

SDG Bel Air or Charge Spoon saddles seem to be the favourites round my way both not too expensive if you shop around or go to a Specialized store they have a saddle fitting service not cheap but worked for a mate.

Briggo

MountainMonster wrote:

Change your seat, that will make 100% difference if you get a seat that fits well, whereas padded shorts will make about a 4% difference. Also as far as padded shorts go, do NOT buy the cheapest you can. Around the 50 pound mark is where I would start look.

You have statistical figures to backup those percentage claims I gather. :roll:

With the same seat (charge spoon on the Whyte or the specialised one on the Stumpy) I can feel a hell of a lot of difference between the standard Endura liner shorts that came with my Humvees versus the Altura pro gel shorts I bought, the pro gel are so much comfier.

DCR00

+1 for Charge Spoon

I used to have a Spesh Toupe, which i had on the Scale, and that was great, when commuting on flat trail, but was useless for Trail Centre

crispy1980

perhaps i should look at getting both a new saddle and some padded trousers then. IF i can get fit enough in time there are a few of us hoping to do the trans pennine ride in the summer to raise some money for charity so i could do with getting comfy by then or it will be a LONG few days!

Mental Mickey

Out of retirement just to say...this-> http://www.rutlandcycling.com/22618/SDG-Bel-Air-RT-Cromo-Rail-Saddle.html?referrer=froogle1%3futm_source%3dgoogle&utm_medium=froogle&utm_campaign=pid22618

Northwind

The trick about the Spoon isn't that it's the comfiest saddle ever- if it fits it's good, but it doesn't fit some people and they hate it. But, it's cheap, and you can sell it for pretty much what you paid for it, so it's a safe bet.

MountainMonster

Briggo wrote:

MountainMonster wrote:

Change your seat, that will make 100% difference if you get a seat that fits well, whereas padded shorts will make about a 4% difference. Also as far as padded shorts go, do NOT buy the cheapest you can. Around the 50 pound mark is where I would start look.

You have statistical figures to backup those percentage claims I gather. :roll:

With the same seat (charge spoon on the Whyte or the specialised one on the Stumpy) I can feel a hell of a lot of difference between the standard Endura liner shorts that came with my Humvees versus the Altura pro gel shorts I bought, the pro gel are so much comfier.

You sure that has nothing to do with the fact the Alturas are skin tight, and the humvees are baggy? The statistics were a bit of a joke, but wearing proper bibs with decent pads will beat a pair of baggies with a great pad any day in terms of comfort. There's a reason roadies only wear lycra bibs......

diddyfunk

would definitely get yourself some Assos Chamois cream when you get some padded shorts - dont get on my bike without it!

Check it out on wiggle - 669 people think the same thing!

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/assos-chamois-cream/

Briggo

MountainMonster wrote:

Briggo wrote:

MountainMonster wrote:

Change your seat, that will make 100% difference if you get a seat that fits well, whereas padded shorts will make about a 4% difference. Also as far as padded shorts go, do NOT buy the cheapest you can. Around the 50 pound mark is where I would start look.

You have statistical figures to backup those percentage claims I gather. :roll:

With the same seat (charge spoon on the Whyte or the specialised one on the Stumpy) I can feel a hell of a lot of difference between the standard Endura liner shorts that came with my Humvees versus the Altura pro gel shorts I bought, the pro gel are so much comfier.

You sure that has nothing to do with the fact the Alturas are skin tight, and the humvees are baggy? The statistics were a bit of a joke, but wearing proper bibs with decent pads will beat a pair of baggies with a great pad any day in terms of comfort. There's a reason roadies only wear lycra bibs......

No mate, I said the endura linings from the humvees. (So the endura lycra undershorts that come with it)

MountainMonster

Briggo wrote:

MountainMonster wrote:

Briggo wrote:

MountainMonster wrote:

Change your seat, that will make 100% difference if you get a seat that fits well, whereas padded shorts will make about a 4% difference. Also as far as padded shorts go, do NOT buy the cheapest you can. Around the 50 pound mark is where I would start look.

You have statistical figures to backup those percentage claims I gather. :roll:

With the same seat (charge spoon on the Whyte or the specialised one on the Stumpy) I can feel a hell of a lot of difference between the standard Endura liner shorts that came with my Humvees versus the Altura pro gel shorts I bought, the pro gel are so much comfier.

You sure that has nothing to do with the fact the Alturas are skin tight, and the humvees are baggy? The statistics were a bit of a joke, but wearing proper bibs with decent pads will beat a pair of baggies with a great pad any day in terms of comfort. There's a reason roadies only wear lycra bibs......

No mate, I said the endura linings from the humvees. (So the endura lycra undershorts that come with it)

Hmmm, either way, much more important is a seat that fits properly and doesn't put unneeded pressure in places, rather than just a pad.

dry664

Just from my own experience.......I don't think padded shorts do much, its 90% about the saddle. Best thing is to measure your sitbones. Do an internet search, there are loads of ways to do it.
My sitbones are about 130mm apart and a Charge Spoon and SDG Bell-air are too narrow. I use a Specialized Toupe 155mm which is a firm saddle but much more comfortable for me that the other two.
The Spoon is wider but more curved, the Bel-air flatter and more cushioned. Both are great saddles and worth a try if you are around 110-120mm.

cycle monster

To muddy the waters further, I had a sore behind with my first bike. My LBS sold me padded shorts which made a substantial difference. They then sold me a better saddle that made another substantial difference. Once I finished faffing about with microscopic adjustments to my saddle angle/height all was well. However, by that time I had a wooden backside. I have recently invested in a Charge Spoon and it fits my vast rear end a treat. From my experience the answer is a mixture of padding, saddle, position and hard miles. Anyone would think we were all different.

Briggo

cycle monster wrote:

To muddy the waters further, I had a sore behind with my first bike. My LBS sold me padded shorts which made a substantial difference. They then sold me a better saddle that made another substantial difference. Once I finished faffing about with microscopic adjustments to my saddle angle/height all was well. However, by that time I had a wooden backside. I have recently invested in a Charge Spoon and it fits my vast rear end a treat. From my experience the answer is a mixture of padding, saddle, position and hard miles. Anyone would think we were all different.

I totally agree, to say its only the saddle is silly they can all (saddle & undershorts etc) play a part in providing comfort.

MountainMonster

Briggo wrote:

cycle monster wrote:

To muddy the waters further, I had a sore behind with my first bike. My LBS sold me padded shorts which made a substantial difference. They then sold me a better saddle that made another substantial difference. Once I finished faffing about with microscopic adjustments to my saddle angle/height all was well. However, by that time I had a wooden backside. I have recently invested in a Charge Spoon and it fits my vast rear end a treat. From my experience the answer is a mixture of padding, saddle, position and hard miles. Anyone would think we were all different.

I totally agree, to say its only the saddle is silly they can all (saddle & undershorts etc) play a part in providing comfort.

I didn't say only a saddle makes a difference. I said that makes much more of a difference than any padded shorts will make. Get a good saddle that fits properly, then start experimenting with different padded shorts until you find the perfect combination.