This was greeting me in my inbox earlier this evening…
"I wish I had my camera out so you guys could see this.
So I had this saddle sore / boil on my taint that had been calm for a while. I was going with the just ignore it and it will go away medical treatment. But it flared up big time in tonight’s spin class. And just a few minutes ago it was really starting to hurt so I decided to go to the bathroom for a little visual of the situation. It was big and ugly and red with a little blackish tint. I gave it a little squeeze and the little fucker just blew up! I had blood and puss running down my leg and my sack.
So a month ago I shit blood after a long run and tonight I blow blood and puss out of an orifice I didn’t even know I had. God I love this sport!"
I know I’m twisted, because I woke my GF because I was laughing so loud at this one. It’s bad enough to have a saddle sore, but when you’re a spin instructor what do you do?
FYI, I did a climbing simulation one day last year where we stood to climb for nearly 30 minutes. I gave a spiel about how important it is to learn to climb out of the saddle without blowing up. In your case, you could benefit from learning to climb out of the saddle with out blowing out!
Trust me you are not alone. I am a Surgeon and I drain those type of “boils” daily. Do yourself a favor and make sure it drains completly or it will be with you longer then you like. Take a warm bath for the discomfort and after off loading. Oh yeah…dont wear white shorts…
I don’t know if anyone has posted this yet somewhere else, but our team got a kick out of it and even dubbed someone the “Director of Team Main-taint-ence”
"I don’t know if anyone has posted this yet somewhere else, but our team got a kick out of it and even dubbed someone the “Director of Team Main-taint-ence” http://www.davezabriskie.com/pages/4/index.htm
That is good info but unfortunatly a little late for me.
Dave
MAIN-TAINT-ANCE
An often overlooked part of being a healthy and fast cyclist is the taint. The taint is the part of your body that contacts your saddle. I believe the name was derived from the taint not being the parts that are well know by name: as in it taint that and it sure taint those! If you can’t comfortably sit on the saddle you taint gonna be able to ride your bike very far. This can negativly effect training and racing, so one must keep this area well main-taint-ed. There are three simple concepts to accept and follow: Cleanliness, Lubrication and Dryness. Trust me all of this was learned by experience! Here are the steps to follow:
Begin with a clean taint and chamois (if you are a hairy beast like me you may want to shave the area—USE CAUTION!) Generously apply chamois cream Ride, Train, Do what you do Dismount bike (Follow the next steps immediately and without fail)
i. Remove chamois
ii. Shower
iii. Use a truly antibacterial soap like Hibiclens Exit Shower
i. Dry taint with towel
ii. Dry taint with air
Either remain naked while making your after ride meal or use hair dryer
Antique yourself ala Jackass with a handful of Baby Powder
Why do we do this?
The chamois cream, helps reduce chafing that occurs while riding. There are a number of products out there and here are a few that I know work well:
Noxema
Butt Butter
Bag Balm
Assos Chamois cream
Sixtufit
Try them to determine what works best for you. Often when things are getting a bit raw I mix a few to exploit the full potential of each. Do yourself and your training partners a favor by not using too much. I have been known to have a little seep out of my shorts and it never fails to gain the attention of those behind me. Make sure your chamois is in good shape. Don’t use one that is old and worn out. After the ride get out of your shorts ASAP, you don’t wanna start growing mushrooms down there. Get into the shower and wash up, if you are having “problems” use Hibiclens, it is a surgical scrub and very powerful. I take it to races because each hotel has different soaps and who knows which could cause an irritation. After the shower make sure the area is dry either walk around naked for a while and let it air out or use a hairdryer. The final dose of goodness comes from a little shot of baby powder to the taint. By following these steps you should be main-taint-ing fairly well. If you are experiencing some saddle sores sometimes the only way to get rid of them is to stop riding for a couple of days. If it’s really bad you might have to see a doctor. I am sort of an expert so if you want you can send pictures and I’ll give you my opinion on the best way to proceed. PLEASE DON’T!
Oh yeah one more thing I think that can help is to shave all of that “bum fluff” down. It can be tricky, use electric clippers and be careful, I recommend a mirror.