Howdy...Hoping for a some wisdom here! Today I did a 49-mile ride and by the time I hit mile 40 I could barely sit on my saddle. By mile 49 I was in such agony that I literally could NOT make it to the 50 that I had planned.

Here's what happened and my questions:

1) My new bike with new saddle (Bontrager) is only about a month old. Longest ride to date on new bike was 22 mi, so today's ride was a big jump. (But I had been doing 40-50 milers on my 'old' bike, so the mileage today wasn't the main issue.) BF has tweaked the new bike pretty well for comfort, at least up to 22 miles. :-))) Saddle height *seems* OK, at least as far as my legs are concerned. No perceptible rocking back and forth across the saddle.

2) Wore my brand-new Louis Garneau Neo Power shorts today. I wore them on a quick 10-mile test ride last night and had no problems--no chafing, no odd pressure points.

3) On today's ride, by mile 30 I was really feeling the saddle whenever I leaned forward to shift gears. Some pressure on my 'privates' in the front that was, ummm, pretty annoying. No chafing per se, but definitely sore, even with a dollop of chamois butter before I started out. Saddle is level at the moment.

4) After about mile 35 or so I began to feel my sitz bones in a way that I had never yet experienced with this saddle. Within 5 miles I was so conscious of the saddle that I couldn't think about anything else! I got up off the saddle as much as I could; moved forward, moved backward; could BARELY stay seated for more than 5 seconds. No chafing, just tremendously uncomfortable pressure.

5) I threw in the towel at a little over the 49-mile mark. I was tired, but could have gone on for another 10 miles or so if not for my butt!

So, here's the question. Since the chief symptom seems to be painful pressure, not chafing, is the more likely culprit the saddle, not the shorts?

I ask because I'm not sure what to do next---a similar ride with the new saddle, but with old shorts that I know 'work' OK on a long ride? Or switch out the new saddle for my older, semi-comfortable Terry Butterfly and then try a long ride with the new shorts?

Given how miserable I was today, I'd like to try to hedge my bets and pick the option that is least likely to bring on an encore of pppaaaaaiiinnnn.

BF thinks it's the shorts, but having just spent $100 on them I loathe the (expensive) possibility that they're the problem, LOL!

Thoughts?? Thanks!!!