I want to do a 100 mile ride, but. . .

holiver

I have the aforementioned Lusso bibs. They were my first bib shorts and I have since supplemented them with some Howies bib tights.

The Lusso pad is thicker, but I wouldn't say it is more comfortable than the Howies pad in my subjective opinion. Of course everyone is different...

Like others in this thread I would suggest there seems to be some more fundamental issue.

Sutton_Rider

Thanks holiver. I accept there other issues to be tided up, but there's no point laying on the handlebars if its uncomfortable. I''ll need to work up to that. If I can fix as much as possible in the short term and hope the rest comes good in the future.

sparklehedgehog

My suggestion is getting a Specialised Toupe Comp Gel saddle in a 130mm width.

Convinced this will help

fudgey

Done 63 miles today, 2500ft of climbing in 4h20mins. The longest ride i have done for a good few months.
Was ok upto about 40, and after that my shoulders were aching a lot, and my arse was uncomfortable. Had to stand quite often from then, but my legs were also done.. Struggled a bit to get home!

Sutton_Rider

I think you just need time in the saddle Fudley, you should be good in the spring.
I have a question.
We are told the saddle should be dead flat, why?
I'm told I'm too upright, too much weight on the sit bones, but I'm not comfortable in a more aggressive position. Taking the possible numbness problem out of the equation if I tip the nose up I get that more aggressive position relative to the saddle, but at the same time remain upright.
Or am I talking boll*cks?

fudgey

I am no expert but i believe that with the nose up, when you lean forward ie on the drops etc then you will put more pressure on the perineal nerve.
And with the nose down i find that i slide forwards on the saddle so have to keep pushing myself backwards.

That is my take on it anyway. But of course everyone is different so slight up down may make it more comfortable.

HTH

KevChallis

Sutton Rider wrote:

As requested.

http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r52 ... -2015i.jpg

I'm going to try a lumpy ride in June: That's the 100

not the Lincoln sportive on the 27th? about 4000 feet of climbing this year, I am doing it, and, well, I hate climbing HAHA

Sutton_Rider

No not that one. The Sandringham one on the 14th June.

Update:
New gel pad shorts arrived today, just need the weather to test them.
Longer stem on its way.
Going to try tipping saddle nose up a tad, if required after the above.

Update to the Update
Tried the gel shorts, did about an hours ride, about the same as all the other non gel shorts.
Fitted the longer stem (up from 60 to 80mm) need to test it out. Maybe Saturday.
Tipped the saddle nose up one notch, again test it out Saturday.

rick_chasey

Apologies if this has been covered already - you do wear your shorts without underwear right?

Sutton_Rider

Rick Chasey wrote:

Apologies if this has been covered already - you do wear your shorts without underwear right?

No underwear, but have tried it with and it makes no difference.

Sutton_Rider

olake92 wrote:

Personally, I would try (providing your saddle height is correct) to level off and lower your saddle a bit and move it back so it is more like 5-10cm behind the BB.

For me, the no. 1 culprit looks like the fore/aft position of your saddle along with the reach; the saddle seems very far forward and the handlebars are not further forward to accommodate this. I think moving the saddle back would encourage you to tilt your pelvis more. Perhaps a bit of stretching of the hamstrings, glutes and back would facilitate this as well.

That's just my take on it.

The saddle is long at 295mm, 20mm longer than most. I've checked the position of the nose relative to the crank and it's 25mm back. Its in the middle of its range of travel. If I put it back further the front of my knees will be behind the peddle spindle. If anything I think the saddle could go up according to the 7 different on-line saddle height calculators. I know they are not accurate, just a starting point, but all are saying higher.

gregwari

I know you said you've had bike fits, where did you have them? I had the same issue as you, I went to see a guy called Mike at Velomotion in Milton Keynes and he did a 4 hr session on me (on the back of a previous bike fit, he managed to change my position significantly). He wasn't cheap but he did sort out my knee issues and saddle issue. As others have said, if you've been through loads of saddles (ones I had reccommended for comfort were Specialized Toupe, Bontrager RL, Fizik Aliante) then it's more likely to be a positioning issue. Picking up on a point above, as part of the fit I was told the Aliante I had should have a 7 degree dip on it vs the flat position I put the saddle in.....

Failing all of that, look at either Fizik or Prologo who both offer a test / hire option or Bontrager who offer a 30 day return policy on their saddles.

Sutton_Rider

I'd rather not say where the bike fit was done on the forum. I have however raised the saddle 20mm which is quite a lot. I've also fitted the 80mm stem in place of the 60mm. I've yet to give it a good go, but a quick ride round the block gave me reassuring feedback. I taken some photos of the before and after and I'm now in a much better position on the saddle. The bike looks better as well. I might get out Thursday to give it a longer test. If that works I've got another couple of ideas to still improve matters.
Thanks for the saddle info. I'll keep a note of those for when I run out of the free adjustments.

UPDATE
I got out on Thursday just did an hour and a half. I had to stop after 45 mins the pain around the sit bones was too much. I adjusted the saddle so it was level (I had it nose up just a little) I rode for another 45 mins with no issues. Once home I flipped the stem so it now points down and went for a further 30 mins - No issues . I need to do 30 to 40 miles, then I'll know, but looking good so far.

dj58

SuttonRider, I know you have had a bike fit, but you may find this helpful.
http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/knowle ... XT,BKAG7,1

Sutton_Rider

That's a good article DJ thanks, they seem to have forgotten setting the fore and aft position of the saddle, but it's more or less what I've ended up with after I'd redone my fit myself (I did take a note of all the measurements, just in case). I'm hoping to do a 35 mile ride tomorrow which should prove if I've got it right or not :roll:

UPDATE
Did the 35 - No difference, still sore sit bones after about 1:30. I'm out of ideas now - Is there a market for a secondhand Defy 1?

Moonbiker

http://www.sq-lab.com/en/sqlab-products ... QBMKOGaWDk

fudgey

I think my problem was sittung too far forward on the seat. From the pictures i have looked at on most you see an inch or two of the nose of the saddle poking out, i however noticed that there was very little when i rode the bike.
So now i make an effort to make sure my arse is far enough back byt i have not done a big ride for a while due to a slight off...

Sutton_Rider

Hey Moonbiker what can I say, looks better than my arm chair!
Fudgey can you get a side on photo of you on the bike. I've got a great book on Bike Fit might be able to point the finger.
I did a 63 miler yesterday and the adjustments I'm making are paying off, however I've numb thumbs now, but tipping the bars down may help that, we'll see on Saturday.

fudgey

Numb thumbs is probably diwn to how you hold the hoods etc. i have never had hand issues *touches wood*
Not sure how to explain in but i kind of ride with my hands verticle. Say like you have your hand in a karate chop position so the weight is on the edge of my hand.

Sutton_Rider

I thought I was getting somewhere with saddle comfort, but it seems I was just having a good day. I'm getting close to giving it all up, I'm not enjoying it anymore. I now have a leg injury, pulled tendons or something like that.

dj58

Before you throw in the towel, maybe consider a final bike fit with the likes of,
viewtopic.php?f=40013&t=13013905

Sutton_Rider

Thanks for that DJ, I've had a look at both on-line I've also spoken to similar 'high end' bike fitters, unfortunately as I don't work the cost is out of the question, particularly as there's no guarantee it will fix the problem.

holiver

This is a difficult one. As far as I understand it you are in your 60s, 5'7", 12st, and only started cycling last year. How physically fit and strong are you? How much muscle do you have on your arse? Could it be that after a relatively sedentary life the muscle mass isn't there to support the large physical effort you are putting yourself through and aiming for at this time in your life?

A sports physiotherapist might be able to give you better answers than random strangers on the Internet and bike 'fitters'.

I guess being in Spalding means that you spend a lot of time cycling in the saddle on the flat.

Sutton_Rider

You're correct with the numbers holiver. My fitness has improved over the last 8 months, I can obtain 30mph on the flat for 30 seconds ish, have a max HR of 175 and resting of 60 and I can ride for 60 or so miles, I have good mussel tone although I have less meat on my bum than I did 20 years ago. Not sure if that answers the fit and strong question. I can't ride into wind though, it totally zapps me. The nearest thing to a hill here are speed bumps, so yes, in the saddle a lot, but I make a point of standing every so often.

holiver

How is your upper body/core strength? Can you do many press ups with good form and stability through the length of your body? As others have said I think the only thing that is going to take weight from your sit bones is having a greater reach by using a longer stem, which you have not gotten on well with previously. Having the aforementioned may help with that?

I think that is the limit of my suggestions.

Do you often go west to get to some hills and add variety to your riding?

Sutton_Rider

Upper body core strength is not as good as it once was. I could do maybe 10 press ups. One thing I have done, but have not been able to test yet is to put the saddle back as far as it will go (the only position I've not tried so far). I still have a reasonable KOPS I did go a 100 yard up the road, I feel more balanced, little weight on the hoods. If it shows signs of working on a longer ride I can fine tune it and maybe increase the length of the stem again. In the mean time I could work on a little core strength.

Never been further east than King's Lynn - Yet!!

Thanks for all your inputs guys.

Sutton_Rider

Latest
Did an hour and a half, felt much more balanced on the bike, but when I got home the sit bone were painful again!!! so I tried another pair of old padded shorts on top of the bib, when for a ride and it was OK, did another 6 miles, no pain. Does anyone else wear 2 pairs of shorts? I've lowered the saddle accordingly, now I need to do a longer ride to prove it, maybe over the weekend.

t4tomo

Sutton Rider wrote:

Latest. Does anyone else wear 2 pairs of shorts?

As Tom Jones says, it's not unusual.

If it works for you go for it