[*rt*]

i know this was covered ad nausem on the board in its previous format but when i run a search all i come up with is everything ever posted by Saddle Sore!! and as much as i would just love to read everything he/she has ever posted i'm a lot more interested in getting rid of this painful little bump on my nether-regions!

i've never had a saddle sore before (riding for 5 years now) and all in one weekend i crash AND get a saddle sore. ow! ow! ow!

i've been putting A&D Ointment on it but it doesn't seem to be helping one iota. any other suggestions???

thanks!!

rt

 

[bill105]

chamois cream at just about any bike shop. itttsssss nnnniiccceeeee. but be careful, its addictive.

 

[Spirito]

stay off the bike

there is no faster way - keep it clean, use some form of astringment, keep the area dry and use fresh dressing regularly & wait till it heals comletely.

riding on it means it will take longer to heal.

ciao

 

[Mariowannabe]

Hydrocortisone Cream

1% is the way to go.

 

[K-Zero]

I can't believe it's not butt'r...

I know nothing about getting rid of the pain (never had 'em), but when it does go away I suggest your start using Chamois Butt'r -- I use it occasionally on my long rides and I never had a problem with my tush.

K-Zero

 

[funknuggets]

Im no dermatologist... but

Ok, here is my take on the issue. These are much more prevalent as you suddenly ramp up on your mileage, and after slight position changes.

I have not found any type of crotch butter to work. I find that the better quality short that you get, the better off you are. Wear clean shorts and take the shorts off as soon as you can after your rides.

I think there are different types of saddle sores, chafing sores.. .and the bumps you have indicated. The bumps can be many things, but most often if you treat them right, they will go away on their own, but I have found that you will have a tendency to get them back in that same place. I treat mine a bit differently. I make sure to wash that area well, and sleep with boxers or nothing on. This sounds gross, but I either pop the lump like a pimple, or have my wife... who is a nurse lance it. This will release the fluid that is causing the pressure. I will immediately put some drying type agent on it... like some kind of astringent ... like something with salycitic acid, and then dry the area, then put an antibacterial agent on it... like neosporin for a few days until it clears up. With the neosporin, I am always able to train through the issue.

Take care of this as soon as possible... and try and address the positioning if that is the cause.... and try and identify whether it is a specific pair of shorts that is causing the issue. Cause if you dont nip it in the butt, it will continue to haunt you... and the surgery to remove it if it turns into a cyst is ugly. I had a fellow racer have that surgery this year to remove a recurring and painful saddle sore, not pretty.

Best of luck.

 

[*rt*]

thanks...

Ok, here is my take on the issue. These are much more prevalent as you suddenly ramp up on your mileage, and after slight position changes.

I have not found any type of crotch butter to work. I find that the better quality short that you get, the better off you are. Wear clean shorts and take the shorts off as soon as you can after your rides.

I think there are different types of saddle sores, chafing sores.. .and the bumps you have indicated. The bumps can be many things, but most often if you treat them right, they will go away on their own, but I have found that you will have a tendency to get them back in that same place. I treat mine a bit differently. I make sure to wash that area well, and sleep with boxers or nothing on. This sounds gross, but I either pop the lump like a pimple, or have my wife... who is a nurse lance it. This will release the fluid that is causing the pressure. I will immediately put some drying type agent on it... like some kind of astringent ... like something with salycitic acid, and then dry the area, then put an antibacterial agent on it... like neosporin for a few days until it clears up. With the neosporin, I am always able to train through the issue.

Take care of this as soon as possible... and try and address the positioning if that is the cause.... and try and identify whether it is a specific pair of shorts that is causing the issue. Cause if you dont nip it in the butt, it will continue to haunt you... and the surgery to remove it if it turns into a cyst is ugly. I had a fellow racer have that surgery this year to remove a recurring and painful saddle sore, not pretty.

Best of luck.

well, i definately ramped up the mileage recently and i guess crashing could be considered a slight change in position!

i always get out of my shorts immediately after a ride (there's nothing more uncomfortable than sitting around in a sweaty chamois!) and i always wash my shorts inside out to be sure that the chamois is getting as clean as possible. (even if turning them inside out isn't helping, i think it is so i keep doing it!).

it might be time for me to buy some new shorts and i've been using the voler shorts because i really like the chamois (and they come in XS that fits).

i've been washing the area with, well basically acne soap and i've been sleeping in boxers for ages now. (I've even considered wearing them to work but as a girl they tend not to wear comfortably under my clothes!)

i'll try the astringent and an antibacterial agent (i'm allergic to neosporin but bacitracin should work).

thanks for the info.

rt

 

[Asiago]

Desitin - Desitin - Desitin!!!

The stuff for babies' diaper rash! This stuff is excellent, excellent, excellent for saddle sores. Hydrocortisone cream doesn't hold a candle to Desitin. It really is the miracle cream for saddle sores.

From a father who was fortunate to have a plentiful supply of desitin in the house...

 

[innergel]

Try some Bag Balm

I'm just getting over my first saddle sore of the season and this stuff worked wonders. I used Triple Antibiotic Ointment for a day or two, and then Bag Balm for the last 4 days. It's totally gone now. Less than 1 week from inception to totally gone. I also skipped a day or two on the bike this week. Thanks goodness it's early in the season.

Any decent pharmacy will have this stuff. It comes in a square, green can and looks like dark yellow vaseline. Kind of nasty looking, but it's great. And cheap.

J.

 

[Dave Hickey]

I'm just getting over my first saddle sore of the season and this stuff worked wonders. I used Triple Antibiotic Ointment for a day or two, and then Bag Balm for the last 4 days. It's totally gone now. Less than 1 week from inception to totally gone. I also skipped a day or two on the bike this week. Thanks goodness it's early in the season.

Any decent pharmacy will have this stuff. It comes in a square, green can and looks like dark yellow vaseline. Kind of nasty looking, but it's great. And cheap.

J.

If the pharmacy doens't have it go to a country feed store. It's designed for cow utters. I've used it too and it works great..........

 

[c_dale]

another trick that i've found works, especially if you're staying off the bike for a while, is hot compresses. i've only used them on sores that have come to a head and not popped, but it increases the circulation there and seems to help them drain.

i just basically wet the corner of a folded washcloth in water as hot as i can stand and then apply it for for about 15-20 minutes (resoaking to keep warm when necessary). besides that, i just use neosporin and stay off the bike. if you catch them before they get too big, this usally gets them mostly away and back on the bike in a couple of days at the most.

good luck and have a speedy recovery!

 

[spookyload]

You also might look at getting a new saddle. I had a bad year of saddle sores in 2002. It seemed like as soon as one cleared up, another would replace it. I switched to a Sella Italia SLR for 2003 and didn't have a single problem. Nothing else changed, just the saddle. I put in six centuries and one double century last year too.

 

[JetSpeed]

I got this idea from someone on this forum a while back and it seems to work for me.
Go to Target and buy their store brand baby wipes (appx. $1.19).
Before each ride wipe your butt and the area most prone to sores throughly.
I've been doing this since September and no sores at all !!
This even worked on my indoor trainer sitting on my butt for 1- 1-1/2 hours sweating.
Also, do what the others have said, i.e., clean shorts everytime, get them off etc. . . .

 

[Howard2]

If You Have To Ride With It

I'm in the tropics and the heat and humidity seem to make them more common (at least for me, I rarely get them when I'm in New Mexico). If I have to ride with one until it clears I do the following:

1. All the things mentioned in other posts about cleanliness, washing shorts, etc.
2. Shave the area around the sore.
3. Cut a 1/2 x 3/4 inch piece of "moleskin" - stuff sold under the Dr. Scholles trademark to cover blisters on your feet.
4. Clean area with alcohol, let dry.
5. Place a small spot of neosporin right on the center of the sore.
6. Put the moleskin patch centered over the sore.

The neosporin may help heal the sore, but its main purpose is to keep the moleskin from sticking to the sore - makes it easier to remove.

7. Remove the moleskin in the shower after the ride, use medicated talc to dry the area after the ride & before going to bed.

Sounds complicated, but its really pretty simple. I've been able to ride through all sores over the last two years and they heal within 3 days to a week (mostly related to how soon I started taking care of them).

Howard

 

[crankset]

One more thing

The cleaning of the area is a good idea and putting some kind of ointment. Something not usually suggested is shaving the area. If you read on the subject you will see that hair is blamed a lot for saddle sores. The movement pulls on the hair, lets bacteria in and it can lead to saddle sores.

Add shaving to the equation. I have tried it and it helps. Too bad you are allergic to Neosporin, it works real well for this.

 

[Ken2]

One more idea...

This may help prevent saddle sores: put your shorts, chamois side out, in bright sunlight for a couple of hours, twice a year. This will kill bacteria that cold water washing won't kill.

 

[Spinfinity]

You also might look at getting a new saddle.

My wife, health care professional and full-time crusader against bacteria, claims that there are colonies of bad stuff living in your bicycle shorts and seat. When she gets a saddle sore she washes her shorts in really hot water and some other stuff designed to kill anything that drinks it or swims in it. The one time this practice failed to stem the tide of invasive microbes causing a repeat saddle sore in the same spot, she bought a new seat. It worked, proving to her that the old seat had been colonized.

Me? I use Body-Glide to prevent chafing, get out of my shorts quickly and get very few saddle sores. When I do get one, I clean it up as soon as I find it with hydrogen peroxide and it goes away in a couple of days if I stay off the bike.

 

[RemingtonShowdown]

That part of your body is the most sensitive and most important area to keep well, proper. It's imperative that you use chammy cream, body butter or something equivalent while riding. And while it may sound icky you ough to look into going hairless as this will significantly reduce the friction, temperature and bacteria within this area. It takes some balls (ha no pun intended) and regular maintenance but smoove is the shiznit. And besides, your wife/girl may just like it!!

 

[*rt*]

thanks for all the responses...

FWIW, i do shave (and have since before i started cycling...competitive swimming will do that for you - nothing worse than a furry bikini line!!), i always change out of my shorts immediately, and i always wash my shorts inside out (however, the hot water idea is a good one since i usually wash in cold to protect the lycra).

i've been riding the same saddle for the last 5 years and have never had any problems with it before so i'm hesitant to start fooling around with new saddles 2 weeks before the start of my race season. on the other hand, it is possible that when i overhauled my bike recently, i put my saddle back on at a slightly different height or angle (eventhough i marked the seatpost) which may have irritated things.

i've been using astringent and a combo of desitin & bacitracin for the last 3 days and things seemed to be clearing up until i spent nearly 7 hours on the bike over the weekend (4 hrs sat & 3 on sun). now i think i'm back where i started from. unfortunately taking a big chunk of time off the bike is really not an option right now with my first race coming up on the 14th of this month. (perhaps the moleskin idea will be put into play!) on the other hand, i have to go out of town for buisness from wed-fri this week and will be off the bike the whole time. hopefully this will give it time to finally heal.

thanks again!

rt

 

[MR_GRUMPY]

Very strange that you would have problems with Voler shorts. You do have the shorts with the blue pad, don't you? If you have raw skin, the only thing you can do, is to take a few days off. Make sure that it doesn't get infected, or you will be in big trouble.