100 mile TT comfort

[nik]

I ride long distance TTs.
My bike is set up properly and I have a saddle that has no issues over shorter distances and normal rides when I’m not pushing hard. My husband is a bike fitter.
The issue I have is pressure not chaffing.
After about 70 miles I feel bruised and then feel sore and bruised for days after.
I tried a pair of Endura padded boxers under my skinsuit which helped a bit but not perfect.
Anyone got any ideas?
(Please don’t suggest saddle or bike fit, they’re not the issues, it’s time and pushing hard in a race)
Any really good padded underwear?

[Paulatic]

After about 70 miles I feel bruised and then feel sore and bruised for days after.

(Please don’t suggest saddle or bike fit, they’re not the issues,

In that case it must be something else you’re sitting on that’s bruising you.

[nik]

What I mean is that my position is correct and my saddle is the best I can find (ISM with highest padding level and zero chaffing) but I need more padding!! Nothing rubs it’s just hard after several hours!!

[mattsccm]

Whilst I reckon that you have done a lot of work on this and know whats what, based on the fact that you are doing 100s not pootling to the shops, I would still suggest that you haven't found the perfect combination of saddle/fit/position. Of course we are all different so.....
Might I suggest talking to other women doing something similar. Here you will find that you are in a very small minority. Not a lot of us TTers here let alone women. A club mate, you may have come across her, Michelle L has just got home from riding from Argentina to Vancouver with lots of 100 mile days included, she may be the sort of person to talk to.

[slowster]

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyl ... e-cyclists

[foxyrider]

What I mean is that my position is correct and my saddle is the best I can find (ISM with highest padding level and zero chaffing) but I need more padding!! Nothing rubs it’s just hard after several hours!!

You say your position is correct but correct for what? Its not neccesarily the distance but rather the time in the position that results in the discomfort, my TT position moved over time as the usual race distance increased from largely 10/25 miles to include 50's and 100. For 50 i was fine but 100 the only way i could get comfortable was to be a bit higher at the front which relieved some pressure from the sit zone. And contrary to what you might think, you may need less padding rather than more to get better comfort - more padding in shorts and saddle means more movement which in turn can cause bruising of the bones which sounds like what you are getting. So a firmer saddle will more comfortable than a soft one for most riders and a position optimised for shorter events is unlikely to be right for endurance riding.

I don't race these days but i typically do rides of @ 70 miles and i'll get in a few century plus rides across the year too, often the longer distances are ridden faster but regardless of distance, for me, 5 hours is the point where discomfort from the saddle zone will start to make itself felt. If i use a more upright position 8 hours is doable, by that point general fatigue will be putting its oar well in!

[MrsHJ]

I’ve experimented and these days it’s more long days in the saddle than pushing hard for me but I use Corinne Dennis double comfort shorts (nothing like a skin suit!) and every night after cycling I use burts bees hand and cuticle salve over the whole area. For me it’s the repeated days that make it worse (classic touring issue rather than racing one) so I don’t know if that’s your experience but that’s what I have to offer. I’ve suffered a lot of discomfort due to coccyx issues and gradually sorting our fit of saddle has been a long and painful process so tackling general discomfort took a back(hoho) seat but it’s pretty magical now.

All shorts seems to have slightly different patterns as well as depths of padding. That's why I like the Corrine ones- they don't have extra deep padding in the middle which I would find really uncomfortable but seem to have a generous approach to coverage area.

In terms of finding a quorum of women with this issue I might look at some of the FB groups. I’m a member of the bikepacking and touring one for women and they might have a solution but there may be a more appropriate group for you.