Learnt this on a group ride -
If you are doing a triathlon and worried about chafing - just put a dollop of vaseline / anti chafing stuff on the seat post, to store it there for when you get out t1. Then just slide your finger along the seat post and apply liberally!
Thought this might be of some use - at worst I wouldn’t have thought it would damage your bike (famous last words).
Need more than a dollop - if I’m going to protect against chafing, need sufficient amount to cover an area better described as geographic than anatomic…
Seriously, I used to use Vaseline on long runs, but it rubs off - the BodyGlides of the world last longer. Do you of biking provenance use chamois butter for tris? And does it wash away during the swim?
vaseline on your saddle will just eat away the leather.
James,
He was referring to the seatpost not the saddle.
Personally, i’ve never done IM but up to HIM, the vaseline i apply on the morning of the race manages to stay on after the swim. Then again i am quite liberal with the application and the vaseline can actually be seen as a dark stain through the trisuit sometimes.
By the same token, you could put them anywhere on the bike. I would probably put mine on my helmet if it really came to that. It’s the cheapest part of the bike.
don’t forget to wipe it down when you get done…particularly if you put your bike in your car…and it’s hot out…learned that one the hard way. 
up underneath the nose of the saddle works well.
vaseline on your saddle will just eat away the leather
oh boy, does it ever. that was a good idea gone bad, in my case. i’d read the suggestion somewhere and thought i’d put some on the inside/underside of my saddle, just for insurance. it eventually loosened the saddle cover and so on, and i obviously didn’t repeat that insurance deal.
i still take extra—sportslick, in my case. i put it in a sandwich baggie and have it in my bike shirt pocket. if i need it, it’s easy to get at, and easy to use: evert the baggie over your hand, use it to grease your body, pull the baggie back over/clean side out, and your hands remain ungreased. i’ve actually only used the above in long training rides, and fortunately haven’t needed it in an IM so far. but i still have it along…
peggy
Why not…
Take a ziplock sandwitch back, turn it inside out, and out your hand in the now backwards bag… Scoop out some lube from the jar, what ever quantity you want - trying to position the lube in the corner of the bag. Turn bag right side in (the Vaseline is now in the bag!) Squeeze out as much air as you can, seal and shape bag to what ever form you want Pre-race you can tape the bag to your top tube behind your gel packs or flask When you need to bite off a small hole in the corner of the bag (anywhere for that matter) and then squeeze out what you need like a pastry bag…viola! Clean, easy, light, and easy to get rid of what you dont need with out wiping your bike down. (Trash the extra at an aid station)