Indelicate questions about chammy cream (total TMI here, be warned)

[fallstoclimb]

OK guys, there's no easy way to gloss over this stuff so I'm just gonna come right out and be direct about it!

I usually only use chammy cream where I typically get saddle sores, which is the bikini line area. It actually never seems to prevent the saddle sores but I assume they would be even worse without the cream? I recently switched to using Bag Balm, which seems more resistant to sweating off so I do like that. I don't go TOO heavy with it though because I hate the feeling of when the stuff gets in your uh...lady parts.

BUTT (lol) on Saturday I rode a century and had a problem I've only had once before (and that was after a long day on a gravel trail so at the time I blamed the gravel). I was sweating profusely during the first half of the ride because it was ten degrees hotter than any other ride I'd done this year. The sweat slipped down into my buttcheek area and I had some chafing issues. Both on the cheeks and a little bit in the uh -- "between" area. That's never happened to me before on a ride but it was also just SO hot with no shade and such a long day in the saddle. Drying off that area at rest stops helped a bit but by the end of the (incredibly long) day the chafing was a major issue -- so much so that I had to shift my seat position but whenever I stood to lift weight off the area I shuddered in pain for a moment. The worst was when we got rained on at the end and my shorts soaked through, it burned like a motha.

I'm sure the long day was a factor here -- I had trained up to an 80 mile ride, but that day we were only out for maybe 7.5 hours total. The century we were out for a total of 11 hours due to a multitude of factors.

But I still feel like this should have been preventable? I got my saddle as part of a bike fit and its mostly worked well for me, other than some occasional ladypart squashing (I do have a cut out but don't think I always sit right to utilize it properly). Butt chafing has never been an issue.

So, my question is.....do y'all put chammy cream like ON the butt cheeks? And....what about the between area? That seems like it would be gross-feeling, but I'd prefer that over the chafing I guess!

[ny biker]

It was by far the hottest, most humid day we've had this summer. Friends who have ridden far more difficult rides recently, in terms of terrain, felt that it was the hardest thing they had done in a long time.

I think moisture (perspiration and rain) were probably the real culprits. One issue could be that your shorts/chamois are not good for hot weather. I have some shorts that feel very clammy on hot days compared to others. Also you might find that powder like Anti-Monkey Butt would be helpful.

For rain, the best thing is a rear fender to keep spray off your back, and a good jacket that covers your butt. I did not have my fenders on Saturday and my shorts were far more soaked by the rain than they would have been with a fender.

[fallstoclimb]

Anti-Monkey Butt powder! I did not know that exists but that is probably exactly what I needed!

Dude, that day was BRUTAL. It was only my second century, by far the most climbing I've ever done, and then to have the heat and the humidity on top of it - it was the hardest thing I've done ever I think!

[OakLeaf]

+1 that it's likely eczema and not chafing. Skinfold eczema is very common. These days I will get it any time the weather is humid OR I'm sweating - doesn't even have to be both - unless I take preventive measures. I'll get it in different forms on various parts of my body - little fluid filled bumps or scaly patches on hands and fingers, pustules on my forehead, dots of lifted skin on my feet, and painful red raw skin in my butt crack.

I've never tried the powder but it seems to me that it would get waterlogged pretty quickly? It's popular among motorcyclists, which is a lot more physical than many non-riders realize, but even in full unventilated leather, unless you're actually racing you probably aren't sweating near as much as a cyclist or runner.

What works for me is Nubütte ... strictly as an eczema preventive/treatment, not as a chamois cream which is what it's marketed as. To me, there's too much olive oil in the formula for it to lubricate effectively or very long. But if I just spread a little in the crack after a shower and before a run, I don't get the "monkey butt," and if I've already got it, it will heal.

For the moment, if you can't find something you like at retail, a little cortisone cream should clear it up. You don't want to use cortisone for long, especially on delicate skin, but it's a quick and easily available cure.

[emily_in_nc]

I have had this happen on hot, sweaty rides, and it really hurts! I can't imagine suffering through a century with it -- poor you!

I've never put chammy cream in that area, but I've found that it clears up pretty quickly on its own. Come to think of it, I think once I had it bad enough I put some hydrocortisone cream on it at night for a couple of nights. That helped a lot!

[Crankin]

Ah, I put chamois cream everywhere. How can it help if you don't apply it? All of those unmentionable places...
I use the kind with no bad stuff, although they stopped selling the Belgium Butter in the US, but I found another paraben free brand.
And yes, the heat makes it all worse.

[thekarens]

I use lantiseptic (recommended on this forum.) It's basically diaper cream for adults. I apply to the chammy just about everywhere. Yes, it can be a bit gross, but comfort is my priority.

[AppleTree]

Anti-Monkey Butt Powder??? Bwahahahaha...

Oh, the things I've learned on this forum!!

[ny biker]

Anti-Monkey Butt Powder??? Bwahahahaha...

Oh, the things I've learned on this forum!!

More here:

http://www.antimonkeybutt.com/

[Crankin]

When I went to buy the anti-monkey butt powder (ladies variety) at my local Ace Hardware, I had to order it, as they only had the male variety. The guy told me that when he worked at an Ace store in Florida, they refused to carry it, because of the word "butt" in the name.

[OakLeaf]

Well they definitely wouldn't carry this Florida product then, made by some people just down the street from me ...