Who here butters their briefs??

[shinomaster]

like many of you when I started riding, fancy shorts had real leather chamois, and it was necessary to lube them up now and again so they wouldn't dry out and rub a rider the wrong way.
Now they all are sythetic, and I didn't think people still buttered their bottoms yet some of my jock racer friends swear by the chamois butter! Sometimes my Exte Ondo pad gets dried and does...well...cause slight discomfort after a long ride.
Would it help to grease them up ? where does one use the stuff? Truly I have no clue as usual!

xxoo

ShinoMAster

[coylifut]

noxema still works. assos cream is best used when the shamy is still moist. lather than hang to dry. can't imagine high mileage without some lube.

[Bill Bove]

I once thought that Avon Skin So Soft would work on a natural chamois, after all it is called "Skin So Soft" and does so many things so well. I was wrong. I was very wrong.

[shinomaster]

and what happened Bill??

[Bill Bove]

and what happened Bill??
Ya really wanna know? Think of a nice close shave and thr bracing feel of slapping on some aftershave. Now multiply that by a thousand and move it "down there" :mad:

[Climb01742]

i butter before every ride. there are just some things in life you don't wanna take chances with. i never want to utter, "not tonite, dear, i'm chaffed."

[bulliedawg]

A&D ointment before every ride.

[PhatMatt]

I have always wondered about this topic too as in all my years of cycling I have never, ever been advised to, or even heard of anyone actually lubing up before heading out. I thought it was an antiquated notion which harkened back to the days of wool clothing, friction-shifting and Reynolds 531 tubes.

So...does it feel as strange as it seems it would? I mean, I generally try to avoid filling my pants with anything viscous. Do you warm the sauce up before applying? Do you use it just because you can play the "I am a serious cyclist card" and it feels just too darn good?

I have lots of question about shaving legs too. I mean, yeah, it feels sexy as hell and middle-aged guys with smooth muscley legs are hotter than heck, but I don't get many post-ride rubdowns nor do I deal with road-rash too terribly often so I don't really understand the point. Plus my wife hates my stubble-strewn legs rubbing up against her in the night.

Anyway. Cream-on!

[coylifut]

I have lots of question about shaving legs too. I mean, yeah, it feels sexy as hell and middle-aged guys with smooth muscley legs are hotter than heck, but I don't get many post-ride rubdowns nor do I deal with road-rash too terribly often so I don't really understand the point. Plus my wife hates my stubble-strewn legs rubbing up against her in the night.

When it's 43 degrees and raining, having nice smooth skin to layer the warming cream on is much better than a hairy mess.

[Climb01742]

phatmatt--for me, lubing the nether-regions is strictly utilitarian. when i don't, i get chafed. stuff rubs together that doesn't feel good. but about leg shaving...i started doing it when i was seriously into triathlons and actually was getting massages twice a week and i was crashing more. but now that neither of those happens much, i gotta admit, i simply got used to how shaved legs look. no practical value anymore, purely poser. ;)

[Kevin]

For long rides I butter up with Asos or Butr Cream.

Kevin

[tch]

If you search the threads, you will see I posted about this about 4 months ago.... Anyway, the long and short of it is that I bought some Assos cream and now butter before EVERY ride. I never thought it would make the difference it does, but (butt).... THe best advice was to slather the nether regions, then gently push the chamois up tight before you move out. It doesn't act like lubrication, as I originally surmised; instead it sort of bonds skin to chamois in a very comfortable, smooth way that makes for NO chafing and for a "skin-and-chamois-is-all-one" feeling. Result: no irritations, chafing, saddle sores, rash after 3,000 miles. Try it.

[jeffg]

Ahhhh

[shinomaster]

but do you apply it to the skin or to the shorts?

How about sitting on a piece of flank steak? :help:

[Dekonick]

I didnt butter until I read the post here a few months ago... but NOW I hate it if I go for longer than a 1 hour ride without. The nuts must be properly cared for! also - for those who care, Butt Buttr works well. Having tried slathering the shamy, I find its best to just apply it to yer friends and then put your shorts on.

Have tried : bag balm (works, but stinks), some other lubes (no thanks) - butt buttr - great stuff!

Butter yer :butt:

[Russ]

....but do you apply it to the skin or to the shorts?
How about sitting on a piece of flank steak? :help:

Shino,

I go in cycles I guess.... Depending on the brand of bibs, the saddle, the ride lengh, etc. When raced, I used Pearl Izumi, Descente and Exte-Ondo... those days, I buttered sporadically. But I lived in much drier climates than I live know.

I have been using Santini clothing for the last couple of years and now live in a much humid enviromnent. I think, Santini has some of the best (synthetic) chamois out there. They have an external chamois "Twist Gel" and regular chamois called "Top". The Twist Gel especially, is a great product for humit climates. My shorts could be drenched, but the chamois stays dry. However,
I have found out that I get less saddle sores or less disconfort when I butter up.

By the way, I used to put the butter on my skin, but I found out the amount was too small as I was still having chaffing problems after long rides... But someone at the bike shop told me that he had better luck putting the butter on the chamois. I tried this a few weeks ago and that's the way to go for me!!!

About the flank steak? I am not sure.... This would get kind of expensive, as I would only use the highest USDA Grade filet mignon. :p

[bcm119]

I've got 2 methods. One is for shorter rides (30- 50 miles) and one for all-day type rides.
The all day method is to butter up the chamois first. I run two beads of Butt'r either side of the chamois centerline, about 3 inches long and an inch apart. This pattern seems to squish out to all the right places once you sit on it. It can feel a little excessive at first but lasts all day.

For shorter rides I squeeze a quarter sized dab of butt'r in my hand, and while wearing the shorts, stick a cupped hand down them and smear a good long stripe of it from the sit bone up one side, then repeat for the other side.

[scottcw]

Guess I have been lucky. I have never had problems with chafing. Even doing a six-day, 500 mile ride, I did not have chafing or sores. Sore muscles OTOH...

[Ozz]

you can get Assos Chamois Cream just about anywhere...check with Bike Gallery, they can get it for you.

You just rub it on your dried out chamois (nothing personal) and it will get soft again!

You also might want to check out some stuff called "Body Glide". A shop recommended it to me and it is pretty good stuff. You can also put it on your nipples to prevent chafing...wasn't there a thread about this a couple weeks ago? I've never had this problem (craft undershirt), but I guess it happens to some...

[Dekonick]

Nipple bleeding is common with runners. GOt a friend who is a marathoner (sp?) and he uses pasties... :eek:

[hypnos]

Early this season I was plagued with painful saddle sores. These were not the chafing kind of sores, they were the folliculitis (boils) kind of misery. I tried showering promptly after a ride, antibiotic gel, steroid cream..... nothing was helping. Many people recommended the Assos cream, so I gave it a try. I have not had a sore since. I do not slather the stuff inside the shorts.... just a dab applied to the problem area does the trick for me.

[Dekonick]

another solution for boils:

1) pre ride wipe yer :butt: with a washcloth & rubbing alcohol. It kills da critters... Its a good idea to wipe any area that will be covered with spandex. Then butter yer :butt:

[Spectrum Bob]

Chamois Butt'r always!! :p
I apply it to my skin first then wipe the excess off on the chamois.

[jerk]

the jerk has refused to shave his legs again untill he can ride everyone he rides with off his wheel up hill, down hill and on flats and false flats....you see the jerk rides with people slow enough this could possibly be achieved, yet the jerk is not fast enough to shave his legs yet...that would be too much of a re-commitment to a sport he no longer excels at....the jerk never really got into the whole chamois cream thing....and not that any of the jerk's pals here really want to know.....but after a few years of riding a thousand km a week rain or shine....certain shall we say "calluses" develop....and the jerk must admit he's never really had much of an issue with chafing or saddle sores....the biggest thing is to not be cheap when it comes to riding shorts....the jerk's current favorite is the giordana tenax laser bib. they are perfect.

jerk

[Kevan]

True story:

A guy went thru the swag line that preceeds the Bloomin' Metric ride, held in Westsnort CT every spring. As I was saying, the guy's helping himself to a T-shirt, razor blades, granola bars, old issues of "Ride" magazine, fliers to upcoming ride events, and a small tube of butt cream. Then hanging out with his crowd before saddling up he cracks the butt cream open, thinking it's an energy gel, and consumes the stuff amidst the gang. Too slow to react to his consuming the stuff they all had plenty of time to gag afterwards. And you thought Gaterade was bad...

One of my pals here showed me the way to slippery-hood. Great stuff that Assos cream. Two finger-licks is generally enough to get the job done, applied directly to the chamois.
:D