Originally Posted by
yannisg
Thanks for responding.
I can raise by handlebar about 3cm just by moving the spacers on the stem so that's easy to do on before long or back to back brevets.
You can try raising the handlebars by 3.5 cm, but you might need them higher. A good rule of thumb is that while riding on you preferred position (usually the hoods), you should be able to take your hands off the handlebar for several seconds and feel completely balanced. If your upper body shifts forward, you're not balanced and will be putting pressure on your hands on long rides. Slightly increasing the nose of the saddle helps in achieving this balance -- as long as this doesn't make you more prone for blisters or saddle sores.
If you think you need a different stem to raise the handlebar even further, I use this
online stem calculator to study what I need before purchasing one. As stems tend to be pricey, try Ebay first.
Also during this back to back brevet I rode on-off the saddle a lot to save my butt from blisters which might have put extra pressure on my hands during the off the saddle periods.
It sounds that given your severe saddle issues, you are finding relief by shifting your saddle weight onto your arms and mainly your hands. You will definitely need to look into a better saddle and/or shorts for your long brevets. Something down there is creating a lot of friction that eventually develops into blisters or saddle sores. Chamois cream also helps some people to reduce friction. And in case you do, do not shave in your nether area. For long rides, I mix my own formula --
Dr. Smith's diaper cream along with a little bit of Vick's. YMMV. Do you use a leather or synthetic saddle?
Furthermore, there were some sections with very rough asphalt which may have contributed also to the problem even though I was using 700X25 tires at moderate pressure. As I mentioned in my post the same thing happened after a 1000k brevet two years ago where the recovery was slow, but w/o any physio. I'm concerned that eventually I'll do permanent damage to my nerves.
YannisG
Yes, permanent damage is the main concern. As Machka mentions, try double wrapping your handlebars. Could you make your bike more compliant by installing wider 28mm tires? Let's not forget that a brevet is not a race. The goal is to finish within the time limit and without any major injuries to your body.
To summarize, IMHO, you will need to tackle the problem from several angles - handlebar height, saddle fit/shorts/chamois cream to reduce friction and making the bike more compliant with double tape and wider tires.