I'm having some issues in the nether regions and I'm wondering if it's attributable to riding rough gravel roads. Wondering if anyone else has experienced this. All that jaring around has me wondering if it's contributing to some possible nerve / perineum issues.
First of all, yes I'm the process of figuring this out and have been to the doctor, I'm simply coming here to see if anyone else has had a similar experience. As you might imagine, you mention bike riding to a doctor (not to mention gravel riding) and they don't really get it. Lots of speculation in their part! Would love to find a doctor in my region that is also a long term cyclist.
Some background - been riding over 15 years; gravel in the last 5 or so years - I've had the same style of saddle for 3-5 years on both my road and gravel bike - despite riding gravel on various bikes for 5 years, never had issues down below...this is only 1-2 months old - current gravel bike is a little over a year old, has a fairly upright position
I won't go into any other personal details, but feel free to PM me if you've ever had such issues so perhaps we can compare notes.
I assume we are talking about numbness issues. Happened to me once: After a long gravel event (~7 hours in the saddle?) I felt like I had been given a local anesthetic to the region. Fortunately it went away on its own completely, although it took several weeks and had me concerned.
In my case, I did a combination of things.
For one, I mostly stopped riding for a few weeks while it healed. When I came back, I retired that saddle from long rides and found one I like a whole lot better (Selle Anatomica!). I also eventually started wearing chamois shorts on longer rides. But most importantly I think: After thinking about why it occurred, I realized I spent a loooong time (2-3 hours straight) in the saddle, in the same position, with absolutely no break. Now, I don’t let myself sit in the same position for so long. Every 15 minutes or so, I try to peddle out of the saddle for a 15-30 seconds, and don’t feel bad about occasionally hopping off the bike. I think even changing hand positions (drops/hoods) can help a little.
In any case, I was pretty concerned about it myself and would have gone to a doctor for sure, had it not started to improve so quickly. If the issue is continual for you, I would encourage you to find a doctor more experienced with these issues, as I understand they can cause permanent damage.
I find the opposite is true for me. The rougher the gravel or dirt i am on the better my lower region feels. I think because it is changing my sit position and also i need to stand a few times when it is rough. When on long smooth road rides my lower region can start hurting in the first 25 miles or so.
It’s hard to tell if the OP is a man or a woman. Obviously, different issues.
Over the past several years I have switched to riding almost all gravel, and I’ve dropped my seats a bit. For me at least, almost any seat is comfortable if I don’t have the seat too high. However, if you have a very aggressive position and ride the drops a lot, you might try one of the newer short saddles, Specy Power or similar.
Coming from the roadie end and then gravel this is the only issue I have had. At 68 it does lots of jarring down there which causes me to do numerous pit stops to pee. I never had that at all on roadie rides.
Couple of things: Start with your LBS. Correct saddle? Professional bike fitting on your gravel bike lately, lower tire pressure, I run 700x40's at 40psi, chamois butter if in the saddle for more than two hours.
OP, have you tried a saddle with a cutout? It is supposed to allow more blood flow down there and hence prevent numbness. Specialized makes some great saddles, and their larger dealers are equipped to help you choose the right saddle (and saddle width, which is important for comfort).
