Ride Easy Sports Products

Information sheet prepared by GregWarwick, First Aide Officer for long distance cycle tours across Australia:

There is an old saying amongst professional cyclists.  ‘The bum gives out before the legs do’.

A saddle sore is debilitating.  It is one of the most painful conditions one can encounter on a bicycles.

There are several things you can do to minimise the advent of a saddle sore:

1. Develop saddle ‘hardness’.  This can only be gained by riding, or sitting on your saddle whilst pedaling.  Either on the road or on a trainer.  Riding an exercise bike is not good enough, as they are usually fitted with a wide saddle that does not resemble the saddle you will be using on your extended ride.  A minimum of two hours each day ‘in the saddle’ for the four weeks prior to the ride is desirable.  This process will toughen up your nether regions to a level that will minimise your chances of a saddle sore.
2. Select a good saddle.  There are now saddles available that reduce pressure on sensitive spots.  Grooved saddles are good, and grooved saddles with a ventilation hole are better.  The hole keeps cooling air flowing through the sensitive area and helps minimise bacteria build up.  If you select a new saddle, ride it every day for at least a month before the ride.
3. During the ride.  Cleanliness is essential.  Shower at least once a day paying attention to the nether regions.  If you can’t shower, a flannel wash with mild soapy water is the next best thing.  Wear a clean pair of knicks every day.  Do NOT double up with knicks as bacteria in a chafed area is the beginning of a saddle sore.
4. Use an application of an antiseptic gel or chamois cream in your crotch each morning with another application if you start to feel sore.  I can recommend Chamois Butt’r for crotch lubrication and protection.  Antiseptic creams are OK but do not last as long and become diluted by moisture in the area.
5. What to do if you start to develop a saddle sore?  They usually start as a small pimple that is painful to touch.  Do NOT let it go more than a day without treatment.  Treatment is usually difficult to do yourself but is possible.  Talk to me if this is the path you choose.  Otherwise you will need the help of a partner, or the medical profession who are not always available on the route your ride will take.  They will need to open the pimple and remove the contents immediately.

Failure to do so will enable the boil or saddle sore to develop unrestrained.

If you do not treat the beginnings of a saddle sore, the results will keep you off the bike for up to a week or longer.  I am sure nobody wants to sit in the bus when everyone else is having fun on their bikes.  Even sitting in the bus will be painful.

Remember, preparation with saddle ‘hardening’ is the best protection, followed by daily attention to your personal hygiene, and application of a suitable protection mechanism.

The following is an excerpt from Serious Cycling, Second Edition, by Edmund R. Burke, PhD – ISBN 0-7360-4129-X, pg. 89

Saddle Soreness

“During one of his Tour de France rides, Greg LeMond was forced to adjust his riding style (and not enter any races after the Tour) because of saddle sores.  What is a saddle sore?  It’s a crotch infection that usually starts as a small pimple.  In most cases, a saddle sore’s life span is just a few days, but during this time it may become hard, red, inflamed, and painful.  In some cases, the infection doesn’t disappear; it creates larger sores, boils, or cysts that affect more tissue and may even require surgery.  It can happen to the best of cyclists.

To prevent saddle sores, you need to keep the part of your anatomy that everything in cycling “hinges on” – the groin area – clean and as free from friction as possible.  Saddle sores usually occur from irritation or chafing of the hair follicles.  The predominant bacterial infection,staphylococcus, is forced into the skin by pressure or irritation from the saddle, and a saddle sore is born.

Because chafing and sweating are major causes of saddle sores, every effort should be made to minimize them.  First, dress right.  To control chafing and cushion your posterior, wear chamois-or synthetic-lined cycling shorts.  Keep the chamois material soft by rubbing in a washable lubricant such as A&D Ointment or Chamois Butt’r® before every ride.  Wash the shorts often.  In fact, buy two or more pairs so that you always have a fresh pair.”