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Amanda
2011 Specialized Epic Comp 29er | Specialized Phenom | "Marie Laveau"
2007 Cannondale Synapse Carbon Road | Selle Italia Lady Gel Flow | "Miranda"
You don't have to be great to get started, but you do have to get started to be great. -Lee J. Colan
I wonder if those instant ice packs would work as well?
Amanda
2011 Specialized Epic Comp 29er | Specialized Phenom | "Marie Laveau"
2007 Cannondale Synapse Carbon Road | Selle Italia Lady Gel Flow | "Miranda"
You don't have to be great to get started, but you do have to get started to be great. -Lee J. Colan
I used to have this problem when I lived in NC and was often riding in the hottest part of the day. For me, it happened on my thighs, regardless of the shorts, sunscreen or what was covered and what wasn't. Pouring ice water on my legs did nothing to stop it. Some days, it was so violent that they were huge welts for days and a full week before the discoloration went away.
As someone else mentioned, it's your core. Keep the core cool (ice in a buff on my head helped me) by whatever methods possible and you can reduce the effect. BUT, once it starts, there is no stopping it. It has to be prevented to work.
I used to feel this odd tingling feeling when it was happening...minutes later, the welts would start to appear. I was riding this past Saturday in the worst heat I've biked during the last 5 years and I felt the tingling again. Luckily, we were able to immediately move into a shady area and I doused myself with ice water and was able to avoid the reaction this time. I think it helped that relatively speaking...it wasn't THAT hot out this time.
PS - there were a couple of threads about this a few years back if you try searching for something like 'weird rash'.
Last edited by GLC1968; 07-03-2013 at 01:33 PM.
My new non-farm blog: Finding Freedom
So, it's my turn. Last Sunday I rode about 68 miles on a hot sunny day. It was a long, slow ride with various stops for mechanical issues and missed turns as well as scheduled rest stops. Later that day I noticed some red, slightly puffy blotches on my legs, just below the where my shorts ended and just above my knees. At first I thought it was sunburn, but it didn't hurt. It didn't itch, either.
Today (Saturday) I did a 62-mile ride. It was not quite as hot, and though the sky was blue for most of the ride there were a fair number of clouds in the sky to keep the temps in the 80s, below average for July in the DC area. And after the ride I noticed the same red, slightly puffy blotches just below where my shorts ended.
Based on my extensive experience with contact dermatitis, I do not think this is a sunscreen allergy. If it was, I would be covered in an itchy rash, especially on my face.
But -- I also have a history of mystery hives, which my doctor has diagnosed as autoimmune hives. Most commonly this manifests as small red bumps that itch like crazy at first and then slowly fade over several days. Sometimes it is worse than that, with wheals that look like classic hives or angioedema. Anyway I started to experience a flare-up 2 days before the bike ride last Sunday, with small itchy red bumps that mostly have occurred above and below my knees.
So my first thought is that the red puffy blotches are related to the extra histamines that are in my system right now.
I started taking an antihistamine (Zyrtec) every day back in January, and this is the first time since then that I've seen more than an occasional random red itchy bump. Today I stopped at the store to get some Zantac, which is an H2 inhibitor, and I will start taking that to see if it helps the Zyrtec beat down this particular episode. I'm hoping that once these hives fade away then the red puffy patches will also stop appearing.
- Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
- Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
- Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle
Gone but not forgotten:
- Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
- Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles
That's interesting. For me the rash was completely flat.
2012 Jamis Quest Brooks B17 Blue
2012 Jamis Dakar XC Comp SI Ldy Gel
2013 Electra Verse
For me there is only a bit of inflammation, hardly noticeable. I think I only saw it because I've had similar bizarre-red-puffy-skin experiences. Like after getting a massage for lower back pain, my forehead was red and inflamed for hours afterwards, in the exact area where it rested on that donut-shaped pillow thing.
- Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
- Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
- Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle
Gone but not forgotten:
- Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
- Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles