Postby foxyrider » 12 Jan 2019, 6:29pm
TBH this subject is a complete bucket of worms! Saddles, shorts, position, duration - they can all be singly or partly to blame for discomfort in this region.
My initial thing, given you are already wearing padded shorts, would be to look at position. A lot of cyclists have bony bums, regular and continuing discomfort is often related to having too much weight on the sit bones (sat too upright), one potential issue with riding sat up for any distance - your 20 miles points directly to this IME. There are several ways of addressing this and plenty of threads on here re bike fit.
But simply the options are, move saddle/bars to give a longer reach, drop the bar position (which will rotate you forward), raise the saddle slightly. It might also be worth checking your body symmetry, things may be affected by different leg length, twisted spine or just a tendency to slouch to one side.
Along with this, an upright position encourages use of over padded saddles - they offer short term relief but not longer distance comfort. Worst of all they allow you to 'bounce' when riding which can cause deep, bone bruising. It can take weeks for such bone bruising to recover so if you go out each week it never gets a chance to recover. The results from anything like a different saddle are therefore skewed and you may dismiss the solution as you are still nursing the original injury.
As a general rule a stiffer, lightly padded saddle is more comfortable for distance and sitting with the pelvis tilted forward is more comfortable for longer distances as it distributes the pressure better.
If you get the saddle and position right you should be more comfortable for the duration of your rides. Not to say you won't get a sore bum but it'll be muscle soreness rather than deep bruising.
I ride a lot but I still get a tired posteria when i'm out for four or five hours in the saddle. (much as you would in a bus/car/plane after being sat in one position for a long time)
Sorry I can't offer a one stop solution, I hope that you can find something here that helps.
Convention? what's that then?
Airnimal Chameleon touring, Orbit Pro hack, Orbit Photon audax, Focus Mares AX tour, Peugeot Carbon sportive, Owen Blower vintage race - all running Tulio's finest!