Straddle Injury

[dogman dan]

Good to hear you can still ride.

What I meant by pedaling, is really pedaling which it sounds like you do. But even so, you might consider lowering the seat an inch, leaving you floating above the saddle more when pedaling briskly. Maybe your injury is a result of a too high seat, or maybe you have a pedal forward bike? Learn to ride using the seat as a thing you lean on to steer more than a thing to sit on.

Shorts will help a ton with chafing, but if you are still jamming you taint into the saddle hard, you will reinjure it. Shorts won't fix what caused you to piss blood, unless it was the pants seam on jeans getting jammed into your uretha. Even if it was just the seam causing the problem, you were still sitting too hard on it. Floating on the saddle is why I could stand up to 30 miles a day in jeans. No jamming that seam into my taint.

 

[upward]

Chalo - Thanks for the additional brooks saddle suggestions. I actually bought the brooks flyer last night after reading the descriptions on the brooks sight about which saddles are best for the posture in which you ride. The flyer you recommended was the best for me with a semi-upright posture. The bigger saddles seemed to be for more upright postures. Found it on biketiresdirect for around $103 with free shipping so I grabbed it.

Dogman - You are correct that the bike shorts and new saddle will help with chafing and overall comfort (but probably would not have prevented my injury). Hoping the bike shorts combined with the sprung saddle give some cushioning also, which the bike shorts do. And with the consistent riding I am now doing with the commuting, it is a good investment to get a brooks saddle anyway. It is an upgrade from my performance bike road bike type contour saddle even not considering the injury.

I am most concerned because I have been a recreational weekend road biker for around 7 years but never rode consistently and never had anything close to this type of injury before.
But going 18mph on a road bike is a lot different from going 28mph on an ebike. There is simply less time to spot and go around bumps and potholes and the impact is much bigger.
So if I had been wearing bike shorts and had a brooks saddle and had big apples down to 40psi I still might have gotten hurt. Can't really say I remember what specifically caused the injury (no huge bump where I thought "Ouch, that really hurt my jewels").

Good news is that I rode to work and back yesterday and this morning I feel still better than the day before. I believe my body is truly healing.
Hopefully the measures I'm taking along with looking into a Thudbuster will help with preventing another injury.

Ironically, I believe that with all of the investment in tires, saddles and wearing bike shorts that perhaps the best thing I can do to stay healthy doesn't really cost anything, and that is to pay really close attention and rise before bumps (or avoid them) instead of casually trying to go around them and pedaling through them.

Regarding the the Thudbuster, I am considering going with the Thudbuster LT that has 3" of travel since by bike has no suspension. Thoughts?
Also, anyone know how to determine the seatpost size of my bike? Looks like seatpost sizes are not standard. The thudbuster offers select sizes and "shims."

 

[Chalo]

Chalo - Thanks for the additional brooks saddle suggestions. I actually bought the brooks flyer last night [...]Found it on biketiresdirect for around $103 with free shipping so I grabbed it.

Good score. I think you'll like it. Unlike other saddles, they have excellent resale value if you decide to try a different shape later. Don't soften it with leather care products or it will sag. Use only Brooks Proofide or Obenauf's LP paste.

Regarding the the Thudbuster, I am considering going with the Thudbuster LT that has 3" of travel since by bike has no suspension. Thoughts?
Also, anyone know how to determine the seatpost size of my bike? Looks like seatpost sizes are not standard. The thudbuster offers select sizes and "shims."

I reckon if you're going to have a suspension post, and if you have an elastomer that's firm enough for your weight, then the longer travel option is probably better. What you should try to avoid is using a long travel post that's so softly sprung that your seat-to-pedal distance varies noticeably when you are pedaling on a smooth surface.

The easiest way to determine what seatpost size you need is to pull out your current post and read the markings. 27.2mm is probably the most common diameter these days, but it's far from universal. If there are no markings on your post, you can use a vernier or dial caliper to measure it, or a plug-style seat bore gauge, or you can just try different posts until you find one that fits. The right size should slip in easily but have a minimum of free play. (Remember to completely loosen the bolt or clamp before checking the fit.)

Chalo

 

[Scruffoid]

Hey,

I suffer from a really sore sacrum / Tail bone.

I have a thud buster LT and they are just awesome. I managed to find mine second hand, an unused one as the person bought it for there bike but couldnt use it as they were short and with the mechanics of the post needing to stick up above the seat clamp they couldn't touch the ground when they installed it LOL.

seatpost shims are commonly available. Again thinking of re-sale value, buy the smallest post you can get and get a shim to make it fit your frame. Then when. if you ever want to sell it the person buying it also doesn't need to worry about the size as they can get a shim to suit there frame. Lucky mine is the smallest so i just shimmed it out to fit my frame.

let us know the feedback on the saddle btw as the only reason i read the post was i did a search for comfortable saddle as i am interested in getting something as well so i read all the comments in here with great interest.

Like you i can remember ever doing anything to hurt my tailbone, but crap it hurts now. Anything that i sit on makes it hurt LOL but hey a sore as is the norm on this website, or so i read ROFL!

Have fun

Scruff

 

[docnjoj]

I busted my coccyx (tailbone) falling against a railing and it got me just right. Took about 6 months to heal and I just rebroke it on the trike hitting a curb. Luckily I can pad the recumbent seat with medical grade foam and if I shape it right very little pain even in 20 mile rides. I do post on the trike against the pedals and the seat back and that helps a good deal. Just wasn't watching when I hit.
otherDoc

 

[melodious]

I've been using a 3" thudbuster now for my Surly Ogre and love love it. You need to adjust the preload using a combination of the colored elastomers and bolt/nut tension. When done right, you get no "bobbing" effect as you pedal & a suspension/damper from your ass up to your back. If you see spinningmagnets emphasize the qualities of the thudbuster, it's because it really does change your ride for the better.

It's a $200 investment though. I've test ridden some bikes with springs & dampeners in the seat and have been just as impressed with it's ability to do the same. Much cheaper option for those without the cash flow.

 

[skubadu]

All real cyclists use a time proven 'fit system' that has been around for ages. It measures your leg length, arm length and back length. It uses a horizontal level or slightly elevated seat/saddle position to set up all the riding, steering and pedaling controls. I do understand that this could somewhat hinder sliding back on the saddle during some extream off road mountain biking situations, but all the Mountain Bike Racing pros do use the same bicycle set up.

Why is it that that most e-bikers use a extremely nose down saddle and a seat post lowered setting for their bikes? I could see a 1-1/2 inch lowering of the seat for bump compressions, but riding around with your knees at hip level makes no sense to me.

Please enlighten me to the purpose....

 

[Scruffoid]

All real cyclists use a time proven 'fit system' that has been around for ages. It measures your leg length, arm length and back length. It uses a horizontal level or slightly elevated seat/saddle position to set up all the riding, steering and pedaling controls. I do understand that this could somewhat hinder sliding back on the saddle during some extream off road mountain biking situations, but all the Mountain Bike Racing pros do use the same bicycle set up.

Why is it that that most e-bikers use a extremely nose down saddle and a seat post lowered setting for their bikes? I could see a 1-1/2 inch lowering of the seat for bump compressions, but riding around with your knees at hip level makes no sense to me.

Please enlighten me to the purpose....

Did someone say that the problem here was that the seat was to low?

I personally have my seat about 3 inchs above my handlebars. and dont have my saddle adjusted nose down. I think as stated by someone already in this post. The big difference between normal biking and ebiking is the pedaling action. If you arent really pedaling then you have no tension in your legs already so when you hit a bump you are relying on your butt to take all the shock. But if you are actually on the same bike and putting in some pedaling effort then you have tension in your legs and when approaching bumps you tense your legs a bit more and stand up slightly to not hurt your butt.

Even still the thud-buster or similar option for us hardtail riders is a great thing to have if you go long distances.

To be honest the main reason why is got mine wasnt really for my own comfort. It was more bike preservation. My thinking is that if you got a bike with a lot of weight and then me sitting on it applying a lot of downward force. When you go over a bump the amount of pressure being placed upon the spokes etc has got to be huge. At least with the thud-buster the bike can move up and over the bumps without my huge mass jarring it. Since getting the thud buster i haven't broken any spokes and previous i was breaking them a lot. So i think that its good all around.

Scruff

 

[upward]

Update after a few weeks -
- Injury fully healed and riding with comfort over the last couple of weeks.
- Bought the Thudbuster Long Travel and installed it
- The Thudbuster makes a difference. So does the brooks flyer saddle with springs. So do the big apples at 40psi. I first had the brooks saddle installed without the thudbuster. Smoother than without. Then I had the thudbuster installed with my old saddle. Smoother than without. With both installed, I no longer have to rise over the various small cracks in the road. I know they are still there because my bike has a rigid front fork and my front wheel still feels the bumps.
- There is flex with he thudbuster but I feel no impact to my pedal stroke, and I pedal continuously.
- The seatpost on the Thudbuster is longer than my old seatpost, allowing me to set my seat height similar to my road bike.
Skubadu - I used the inseam measurement x 0.883 = Bottom bracket to top of seat formula.
Unfortunately, this puts my saddle way above my handlebars. Good for my knees and good for power but not the right saddle for this setup. My old saddle was ok at with this setup but I really wanted to make the brooks with springs work.
So I lowered the seat probably 3-4 inches to just above the handlebars. This worked well for me because the saddle feels good now (no pain) and my knees have no pain.
- And I am wearing bike shorts for all of my commutes now. All of these things add to the comfort.
- By the way, my seatpost size was not written on my seatpost but I found it by googling an old trek catalog that listed the seatpost size for my 1994 trek 830.

Perhaps next I can find a front fork with suspension with a 1" steerer that fits my fenders and my big apples.

 

[Scruffoid]

great news buddy!

May you have many kilometres more pain free

scruff