March 14, 2012 – I finally had enough money to go buy my first road bike. And of course, I skipped over the usual “entry-level” ride and purchased my cycling pride and joy, a Felt ZW5. A carbon and jade-colored dream, I dubbed her Electric Dream Machine (or EDM for short). I was at the shop for something like an hour with a completely ridiculous smile on my face. I went the whole nine yards and got cycling shoes and pedals too (SPDs).
I took her out for a 50 mile ride within a week or so of taking delivery and was still relatively new to clipless pedals. I managed to fall. You can read about it in my archives. But I also remember mentioning to my fellow Sturdy Girls that my seat was starting to hurt my sit-bones. After a short round of Q&A, we determined I probably just needed to break in my seat. If it still hurt after a few months, I should think about a new saddle.
Well, we’re almost a year later and I think I’ve put in enough suffering to decide I need a new saddle. Once I get beyond about 30 or 40 miles (sometimes as little as 25) I can tell that my sit bones are on the outside edge of the seat. On my first century last fall, the last 7 miles or so were agony as soft-tissue swelling started to make itself apparent. Not as bad as the time I rode 53 miles on a men’s race saddle (that was four days of swelling and pain), but really there’s no reason for this kind of pain on a bike.
As a cyclist who has managed to keep my base miles around 40-50 this winter, that’s a lot of sore butt.
Stay tuned for more on this riveting topic – keeping your butt happy on the road. And please – if you have a suggestion or wisdom to impart, please comment below!
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In other news, I am pleased to announce the newest addition to my bicycle family! She’s a 1988 Peugeot Versailles 12-speed I have dubbed Lady Rainicorn. She’s going in for an overhaul, chrome fenders, a rack and lights next week.
(I’m really sorry to everyone who follows me on Facebook and Instagram and Twitter … recycling this news for the masses. )
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