New to cycling, my taint hurts
 

Okay, not sure if you call this saddle sore, as there is in fact no visible sore, but my crotch (taint) is what has prevented me from riding further, not my strength. After riding 5 miles my first time out, and 8 my second time out, I feel like if I was asked to ride today I would cry. :)

Seriously, it aches pretty bad. Hurt once when I peed last night.

I was just using normal shorts, no bike shorts, etc.
My bike is a road bike (Gary Fisher ARC Pro) and has a very hard seat.

I need help here. I have the will to ride today, but my taint says I ain't.

I know I should probably get the bike 'fit' to me at the dealer to at least make sure my position and all are correct.

Here is what I was told:

1) It's your first 20 miles, it will take time til you aren't sore there if your bike is adjusted correctly to fit.

2) Buy bike shorts with the pad in the crotch (could easily cost $60+ for a good pair)

3) Buy a different seat. (could cost a lot to get a good seat that doesn't leave me sore)

I just friggin paid $1,400 for the bike, I hate to have to put more money into it at this point as I have the fear that I will be the typical person that does it for a month or two then stops altogether.

The seat is rock hard, but looks badass...but I hate it after a few miles.

Am I just being a wuss at this point, or do you guys have some advice to help me out to avoid that level of pain?

I only have about one more month of riding weather before I have to put it away til March or April (though I thought about getting a trainer to use during the winter in my basement), so I would like to get this figured out as easily and cheaply as possible.

Help! My crotch thanks you.

You're not being a wuss. Even though I have not ridden a diamond frame bike for over 7 years, I ride a recumbent now, I still remember what it was like to dial everything in perfectly so my crotch didn't hurt. The problem was though my crotch did nto hurt too often the rest of me did regardless of how well I adjusted or changed things.

It will take time to adjust everything and may involve a better saddle. Let's start with are you male or female. I am guessing by the way you describe your discomfort you're a guy. My second question is did you bike shop do a fit kit with you to make sure the bike is best matched to you. Did you just simply take this bike for a spin around the block outside the shop and liked it so you purchased it?

If you would please answer these questions and then I think it will be easier to proceed from there.

Work on getting the saddle in the proper position...height/fore-aft/tilt..making adjustments in tiny increments and giving each one a fair amount of riding time to determine if your tweak is better or worse. During that time you will also toughen up your butt. If after a reasonable amount of time you still have problems, look into a fit session and possibly a new saddle.

You really don't need bike shorts...but flat seams and wicking fabrics like polyester or wool will help, as will a tighter fit to keep the boys in place. If your shorts got them big sewn seams, they might ruin your day.

Anything worth doing involves a little pain at first...the folks that work through it have decades of enjoyment, those that don't have decades of regrets and excuses.

Yes, that's good advice. Or you could get padded underwear.

I'm a guy.

No fit kit. Didn't even adjust the seat for me. I went home and did it myself.
We did figure out that the 55 is the size for me, 5'9 30" inseam. I adjusted the seat so that my leg was close to straight at the downstroke, but it is a road bike and the seat weighs nothing, so no padding or anything.

My seat is a Bontrager Race, but being a newcomer I don't know what that even means, except that Bontrager seems to be a popular company outfitting these bikes (my wheels, fork, tires and stem are all Bontrager). It is hard as a rock, but I imagine they make those for some reason. They must be comfortable to some.
http://www.fisherbikes.com/bike/archivemodel/506

Oh yeah, it doesn't help that I am probably 45+ lbs overweight. And due to my body type I have a straight line from my shoulders to my heels, no ass whatsoever.
Went to another shop later in the day and talked at length with a guy that was willing to help me get it dialed in, but he charges for it. $60/ hr.

1) True


2) Get some padded bike shorts. Here's a link to some good shorts (sizes are true to fit) and they're much less than $60.
http://www.velowear.com/category.asp...OMS-MENS-SHORT


3) I've been riding on the model in the link below since 2003. I'm on my third one. I have this on both of my bikes. :thumb:
http://www.terrybicycles.com/saddles...ly-cromoly-gel

I recommend dialing it in as suggested in tiny incriments. If that does not work then I'd pay the $60 an hr to have a guy at the shop help you.

Bontrager, while a good saddle, may likely not be the best option for you. They are used as a standard saddle on a lot of mid priced bikes like yours. Not a bad thing as it helps keep the cost of the bike down for consumers. As an example you might find that a saddle like the men's Terry would be a better option. In addition to adjusting the saddle don't forget to adjsut teh saddle height as well. When you move the saddle on teh rails and tip forward or back you'l likely need to adjsut the seat post height. After this you may find you need to adjust the handle bars a little bit too. As advised make tiny little incrimental changes.

Even after you get everything dialed in, saddle changed to a better one, etc. you still might find you still have some pain and discomfort. For this I recommend something like Chamois Butter. There are many varieties available. It helps reduce friction.

It sounds to me as though it is part normal and part saddle.

It is going to hurt for a while when you start out and you are correct, the extra weight doesn't help. Start with shorter rides until your butt gets used to it.

Make sure the saddle is the correct width for your sit bones.

It also sounds like the nose of the saddle may be a little high. Try tipping it down it 1/8-1/4 inch.

Nothing you do will bring immediate relief, your body has to get used to the new form of abuse! :)

I second, third and fourth the idea to buy bike shorts. I felt a lot like you do when I started. Someone (possibly Donheff) here made that recommendation to me.

Depending on your undergarments of choice and pants, your bottom end could be, being chaffed by the seams in your clothing and the seat.

The remedy is to go out and a good pair of cycling shorts/pants with the good chamois, you'll know which ones by how the seams are recessed in the padding. They are not cheap but you posterior will thank you.

You could try angling the nose of your seat down just a touch too. BTW I swapped out my seat when I bought my bike...maybe your seat geometry isn't good for your sensitive areas.

If I don't ride for a while I get that pain. Just have to gut it out. Usually takes a couple of weeks. Shorts will help. If that doesn't do it try a new seat.

You are riding too far too soon. Ride by time, not distance. Start with maybe a 10minute ride and extend by about 5 mins each time. Don't ride too hard, you need to become conditioned to riding before you use it for fitness. Take a week or two just to settle into the bike.
I reckon on a newbie taking about 3 weeks to feel at ease on a bike and about 3 months to become fully conditioned to the point where you can ride all day without discomfort. This has little to do with strength or fitness or riding fast, that is another thing altogether and Im not qualified to comment.

Depending on your climate, you can ride quite a way through the winter. Ice and snow are tricky but plain old rain and wet roads shouldn't stop you as long as you are prepared. You have to dress for the weather so see the stickies in Winter riding forum.

It's a Gary Fisher. Same geometry as Lemond which means long top tube/relaxed geometry. You're the same size as me and I ride a 53.

55 in GF is like 56 + in most other brands. I'd try to get fit, I'm willing to bet you're a bit stretched out and you'll be shortening the cockpit. I sold my 55 Lemond because I could never get it quite right.

FYI, that padding in bike shorts isn't padding...it is a chamois, designed to displace moisture and prevent chaffing...not to pad your tushie from the big mean hard saddle as some think. The main advantage of bike shorts, besides displacing moisture and preventing chaffing, is compression of the muscles and keeping the boys from flopping around.

If it's been asked, I didn't see it, but is the discomfort from chafing or pressure?
If it's chafing, in addition to the bike sprecific sorts mentioned, boxer briefs work pretty good also. I think the main consideration is flat seams, and no seams in the immediate area.

If it's pressure adjust the saddle, a lot of discomfort is just because you're not used to it. If that doesn't help try a new one. A saddle is not something that's one size fits all, and not something to purchase on looks, reviews, or because it's a best seller. I for one can't ride for any distance on a 'flat' saddle, it has to have some curve (when viewed from behind). Currently my most comfortable saddle is about the ugliest one you'll ever see. (25+ yr old stained blue ragged suede with lumpy padding) The most uncomfortable ojne I own is the most expensive and nicest looking too. Did 80 miles on that one two weekends ago, and my sit bones were sore for the next three days. (in the summer I do anywhere from 1300 to 1500 miles a month, so it wasn't just distance)
The most comfortable distance saddle I ever owned was one of the old hard plastic BMX saddles, so try out different saddle types and styles.

Ken.

i needed an anatomical bicycle seat (has a cut out in it) to relieve the pain. My friend has one with a little depression and no pain; today was my first ride on one and it appears to be superior to those flat kind of seats that tend to beat me up.

Another friend rides a recumbent bicycle and no pain. Never tried one, but maybe some day.

I tried getting into bicycling several times before I finally decided to deal with the discomfort issues. It's only normal to feel muscle aches and pains along with a sore tush starting out. However, if your soft tissue is affected, that's something that needs to be dealt with immediately. Some forum members recommended the Selle An Antomica for numbness issues. I don't know if that has affected you. The SA is a cutout saddle resembling a Brooks but there is no break-in time since you make the tension adjustments. The SA made a big difference right away, although I still had to deal with other aches and pains for several months before they went away. I'm thinking that you're at a pivotal point now as to whether you will want to continue if you can't find the answers you need. Try some saddles, get a proper fitting and know that some of these other pains will go away after several months of steady riding.

Well, the wife looked and their is a red kinda irritated line straight down the middle...one side where it is most sore has a red dot and an irritated line, the other side was a red irritated line which was more minimal.

So MAYBE the red dot is a saddle sore (irritated hair?), and maybe the lines are from pressure?

Of course all the DF racer wanna bes will have a hissy fit, but maybe you should look into a recument. There is simply no problem in that area with one.

I think I might look into one of those when I am older, but man, the only people in my area riding those are gray-haired old men. Kinda like how I respect Corvettes, but I wouldn't want one at this age...too many old guys driving them. My thinning hairline at 34 already makes me look old enough. ;):lol:

+1

In addition to the comments about fit, this one is key. While you are adjusting to the bike, and adjusting it to you, you need to limit your riding time to that which you can accomplish with most of the load on your legs, not "sitting" on the saddle, so much as "perching" These days i only have sore ass syndrome when very tired and slump on the saddle like a sack of spuds. If you can borrow to try any cheap ass saddle that is wider than what you already have, that might help too, not more padding, just wider at the sit bones.

Sounds like problem i had with too narrow a seat for me.Sit bones are different widths on different folks.Sit bones gotta be on top of saddle not slideing off edges because of too narrow.All the pressure is right up the middle with too narrow a saddle especially if sitting fairly upright.Try someones wider saddle to start.See if that relieves things and then decide what you want to purchase.Most cyclists got a box of saddles that are trials that didnt work.No point i think at this time to tell you any brand preferences till you find your right width.Besides what i like may not be what works for you.

If you don’t try anything else first try lowering the saddle nose a bit. If you lower it too much you will start getting some wrist pressure and hand numbness so you will know if you have gone too far. But you are describing perineum pressure and that can most often be cured with a lower saddle nose and if that doesn’t work a saddle with relief cut in or molded in for the perineum. Terry, Specialized and several others make saddles designed just for the problem you are describing. But you can get relief from lowering the nose of the saddle but be aware if you go too far you will have to slowly move it back up till you are comfortable in other areas. However if you are not having problems with your sit bones lowering the saddle nose should help with the one problem you are talking about.

Still as it has been said you might just need a fitting. JMHO

Your bike is made by Trek which owns Bontrager and Gary Fisher that's why your bike has so much Bontrager stuff on it. I will say that Trek (Fisher) puts low end Bontrager seats on the bikes so you might want to invest in a better seat.

Such a shame, it is a gorgeous seat...looks really cool.

I'll try adjusting the nose down first after getting fitted and look at seats next. Good shorts are up next.

Seem like a good plan everyone?

My experience was the same and still not 100% completely solved. It helped actually to get the saddle really level instead of pointing it a tad downward. I did that with my toupe, terry flight and Selle Italie max gel and some. I now ride on an SMP stratos; For months I rode the SMP pointed slightly downwards, which made it "do-able to ride for 2 hours. Than at a certain moment I levelled my saddle because I thought what the heck - perfectly level - Still feel a tiny bit of pressure in the perineum area but only the day after and while seating in my car..! In fact I am willing to keep it that way - had terrible pressure issues in the taint area that's almost gone. May try another saddle though next season or try the Selle Italie again - level that is...