San Diego Newbie! Chafing Question??

[drewkari]

Are your shorts at all baggy? A really form fitting chamois will help prevent a lot of chafing. I raced this year in a borrowed skinsuit (my BF's) some of the time, and even though that would be for really short races, it would get pretty uncomfortable just because it was 1 size up from being a really tight skinsuit. The chamois would move around a little too much.

You might also want to tinker with the angle of your saddle to be sure you're putting pressure on the right spots and avoiding pressure elsewhere. That won't really change your bike fit. Just tilt the nose. The angle of the saddle that's the most comfortable for you may vary between saddle models too. For example, with my Jett, I had it nose down a fair bit. With the new Ruby, the way it broke in (really sunk in where I sit), I need to point the nose up so that when I get on it and it sags in a bit, I don't wind up shifting my weight too far forward.

My shorts are form fitting so I know that isn't the problem. Once I get my new seat on there I'll trying tinkering with it. I was worried that would impact the bike fitting I had. Thanks for the advice!

[aicabsolut]

It really shouldn't. Just try to avoid putting the nose so far down that you feel that you are sliding forward and have to hold yourself up with your arms, because that will lead to pain in your neck, shoulders, elbows, hands, etc.

Before you change saddles, measure everything. Your new saddle may be a different thickness and may have a longer nose or different rails so that you will have to change your seatpost and saddle fore/aft position to accommodate the differences. Measure the height from your cranks to the top of the saddle. Measure the distance from all parts of the saddle to the bars. That will give you a good starting point. Then get out and play around with it on your ride. Some saddles will flex more than others which may mean you'll need to do a little more tweaking based on feel. If you feel like you're bouncing off the saddle on the downstroke, you need to raise it up. If you feel like you're rocking or swaying against the sides of the saddle, you'll put it down.

You may also want to note where your knee is relative to the pedal spindle when your leg is at the 3 o'clock position. Generally, a fitter will put you where a plumb bob from the kneecap is even with the spindle, but your fit may ultimately have been different for several reasons. So make note of that too and double check your fore/aft with the new saddle after you set it up where the measurements to the bars are the same as what you had before. That will help account for any changes in WHERE you sit on the new saddle because of its different shape.

[drewkari]

Thank you so much for all the info! I'll make sure to take measurements!

[ladyicon]

Hi drekari. What part of San Diego do you live? I also live in SD and ride a lot of areas. Sounds like you need some type of lube, and make sure your chamois doesn;t move around when you pedal. Good luck.

[drewkari]

Hi drekari. What part of San Diego do you live? I also live in SD and ride a lot of areas. Sounds like you need some type of lube, and make sure your chamois doesn;t move around when you pedal. Good luck.

I live in santee/mission trails area...where are you located? Yeah...I started using lube and it helped some, but hopefully a saddle change will do it!