cycling and shaving / saddle rash

Sorry wrong sex but have real sensative skin / excema so these tricks may help the fairer sex .
Rule one : never ever use a new blade from a mans razor , womens razors have blunter blades and will not cut the skin as close / try using an older blade on sensative tissue and be very careful in your choice of shaving foam ( very important ) .
Two : don´t shave and ride , do it the other way around .
Three : It´s no bad idea to wash before riding and when dry applying a thin layer of a baby cream ( you know the type that helps prevent / treat nappy rash ) wet-wipes designed for babies botties work almost as well as soap and water .
Four : if you do get razor burn try dipping the blade in cold water to rinse ( more a hot weather fix , original advice to troops in Vietnam I believe )
Five : buy good quality shorts and maintain with neutral soap and don´t use fabric softeners , also trying applying body milk to the chamois ( real or artificial ) to help keep it soft . You can always save money buy buying pro team gear that´s out of date , ONCE ,IBANESTO clothes will be cheap next year as retailers shed defunct team stock and the quality is usually high but expensive if not on sale .
Six : always , always wash cycle kit every time after use and if washing by hand rinse very carefully .

Why no fabric softener? I've seen that on high performance fleece and figured it would hurt the wicking but not really sure. Is the theory that it will irritate freshly shaved areas?

Curious, as I'm getting a real road bike this year and hope to put on some miles and am already concered after reading the issues on chafing etc!


Thanks!

Diane

Yes , some people don´t react overwell to chemicals , which is what fabric softeners are , on freshly shaved " sensitive " bits .
don´t always happen but if you´ve a problem it´s something to note : saddle rash is a given - like hitting the wall at Indy - you either have or you will have at some point .

A point I missed when I first wrote this is don´t hack away trying to get the perfect shave , accept you´ll miss some so come back after a day or two and try again . Better an imperfect shave than too sore to shave for days / weeks .

__________________
' too old to rock 'n' roll : too young to die '

The only thing that seems to affect my freshly shaved legs is salt water (so far). If I shave the night before I'm fine.

Thanks for the warning on the saddle rash, I've also read with interest the notes on the chamis drying out our "parts". Ouch. Better I read this stuff before time and be prepared though!

I have yet to ride more than 25 miles at a time and everytime I've done so, it's been recreational so it's a completely different thing. We really want to put some miles on this year.

Diane

I have a road bike and MTB but seem to get rashes at the saddle area. I wear under shorts plus normal shorts. I have really sensative skin!

Any suggestion on what i should do?

Just wear cycle shorts - they are not designed to be worn with anything next to them but skin - and buy the best you can afford as cheap shorts don´t suit everybody . You could try washing and applying a nappy cream before going out riding and if the problem continues look at changing your saddle .Good luck .

__________________
' too old to rock 'n' roll : too young to die '

tits rule