I used to ride quite a bit (no real touring but a few centuries and the like) and am now getting back into it. My butt, of course, is a teensy bit tender.

Which made me wonder: back in the day I rode an ancient Schwinn mountain bike with the stock seat and had few problems even on really long rides.

That seat may have luckily been the 'right' seat for my butt but I'm wondering how much of comfort is the right seat, and how much is your butt toughening up? This is probably intangible but what do you think?

Ah, some seats fit a person better than others....but a lot of it really is getting your butt toughened up.

Try a Terry saddle, or a Brooks-- and keep riding. you get used to it.

proper adjustment is key for me

Truthful words spoken above. I have toured and yes, your butt will get broken in. However, I myself am trying to find the saddle of my butt's dreams. I've tried 2 different Brooks with not much luck. Currently I ride an Avocet Touring II and it works great. It's also about worn out. I plan to try another Brooks. Maybe a different style. Good luck in your search!

Maybe your butt (and most of the rest of you) isn't as tough as it was XX years ago, thus making activities more challenging...

Try several saddles, shorts too. Remember small adjustments can really affect perceived comfort. And before someone insists it's the one great solution, no, it doesn't have to be a brooks saddle, on a surly lht with schwable tires.

Some folks cannot get comfortable on a bike, or have relentless saddle sores, etc - you may be one of these unfortunate people. I myself am considering a recumbent, so i can redistribute some load to a larger area.

Oh man,
I do remember. I had a 1970 Schwinn Varsity I rode everywhere. Never
touched a thing on it except to change a tire. Now... I went through a zillion seats
over the last several years trying to get comfy.

Anyway, you will prob start trying saddles soon. I like Brooks, but they weren't
quite right for me. They work, and well, for most. I use a Selle AnAtomica Titanico. The link takes you to a video showing how they work.

https://www.mcmwin.com/commercial%20portal.htm

I recently discovered that I own an Avocet Touring saddle. It was original equipment on my 83 schwinn le tour, that was loaned to my brother-in-law for the past 15 years (rescued from his attic at xmas). I think its the only component on the bike thats not junk. Its in good shape, and best of all, free!

I've been meaning to give it a try, but havent got to it yet. Read good things about them, thanks for reminding me.

Late, I have to tell you that is one of the strangest videos I've seen! Hahahahahaha! Funnier than that, after watching the video, i'm going to try one. The concept looks like what I need!

I do have a question for anyone who has tried several saddles: How do you try them without buying them? A used Brooks is a little less pricey, but then you have someone elses anatomy already planted on it! Any ideas would be great. Thanks,

I think the key is well padded clothes, a good seat, proper adjustment.

For the seat I use a brooks, that I hand hammer in the sit bones area so I don't have to break it in.

I have fiberpile sewn into my torusers or shorts. It's pretty light stuff about 100 - 200. It's probably about the weight they make baby sweaters out of. The first time I was worried a seam would be in the wrong place, so I covered that with a second wider layer. This pair is super comfortable, and not only it is noticeably different in padding, but also as regards the adjustment of the seat height.

Seat position is really important, but for me it's less a flesh thing. I feel it in the nerves, or knees, and it's usually the kind of warning that can't be ignored. A nerve pressure in the crotch area is torture, think of the stocks, the rail and various forms of creative rocking of the victim, and needs immediate adjustment, and the knees can't be ignored either. Carry tools on your break-in rides to insure you have the right adjustment for all you needed layers.

A physician friend recommended that I use Preparation H or a similar product on the areas where my rear end contacts the seat for several weeks before heading out on our tour. He explained that PrepH is a skin toughener and creates a thin callous.

I did not give it a try and fortunately did not have problems.

THAT'S the saddle I had - now that you mention it my neurons starting firing. IIRC it had a slick surface which I think was beneficial.

Damn, I should have never sold that bike - heaven only knows what I was thinking.

Oh well, time to get out and toughen up my tush...

And BTW, thanks for all the responses.

Another factor to keep in mind is our weight difference between "then" when we were comfortable on a cheap saddle for hours on end and "now" when our posteriors get tender. That 20-30 extra pounds around the middle is not exempt from gravity.

The above comment on Newton's Law is very appropo, and one of the most overlooked factors in our discussions of how it was "back then".

I went thru seven or eight saddles before settling - no pun - on Brooks. Still, it's the small adjustments that will make or break a good fit, almost as much as the material that the saddle is made from. Now, when you get out there about 50 miles or more, the superior attributes of leather becomes apparent over synthetics, setup notwithstanding.

All brooks saddles are not for all people: I use two different types, B17's and B67's - about as divergent a couple as you can find. Yet, both work for my long rides, including centuries.