I feel like I have a few contact spots of late that give me a little trouble time-to-time (not so much years ago and unsure what changed to trigger it). I decided to apply a little Vicks after a shower before bed to see if it would help…
5 minutes or so in and I’m trying to tell if this is a cruel joke based on the sensation where it was applied 
Will see how it goes.
I promise you, this is no joke.
I use it. It it falls in the “wrong” area, it might feel funny. So avoid the “wrong” areas. Try to keep it to small portions where the sore is growing…
You dont need to apply like lotion, just small bit directly over the affected area.
All I can picture is those old leather chamois with an entire jar of creme spread over them. 
Thanks for the reply, I was kind of kidding and had assumptions around what you describe (maybe used too much or too wide application). Glad to have confirmation regardless and will give it a try.
I struggled for years with saddle sores. Eventually I had to visit a surgeon. What we found was blood clots that prevented the sore from ever fully healing. The surgeon removed the blood clots and my issues have been minimal since. This was a simple out patient procedure.
There was nothing better than a quality chamois, slathered up with chamois cream. Once you got going on the bike and settled, it was awesome.
Only ever had one pair of shorts w/ real chamois, and the maintenance sucked, but they were awesome.
ETA - most people,e think the purpose of chamois is for padding. Originally, it was to prevent chafing, not provide padding. Hence the reason real chamois w/ cream worked so well. Somewhere along the way after synthetic chamois was invented, the primary purpose of the pad changed to padding / comfort vs. chafe prevention.
I still prefer a much thinner chamois….if I could get Tri chamois in all my cycling shorts, I’d do it w/o hesitation.
Now all you kids get off my damn lawn!!!
Umm… I didn’t think this was crazy since some of the chamois cream I’ve used had some menthol-like ingredients so I knew it had some anti-microbial abilities. However, I was dealing with some repeat sores on both sides and thought, let me try that. Holy cow, I did not expect this to work so well. I’ve never felt quite so…“soft.” And obviously, sore-free. Thanks!
Yeah man. I was a little skeptical myself when i started using it few months ago. But after it 100% cured my sore, I am not a convert… and sort of a preacher about the miracle cures of Vicks Vaparub!
now that i am using noxema every time i ride, I have 0 problems!
I use and wanted to share the Noxzema chamois cream technique provided by Chris Horner. It’s become my go-to method before any and all rides and with Noxzema’s list of ingredients including camphor, menthol and eucalyptus, found it’s been nothing but good for my nether region and believe it keeps the saddle sores at bay.
I hope this helps and while the video is a tad long (9 mins or so), most of the Noxzema facts are presented in the first five minutes or so with the balance of the video providing the benefits of using Carmex lip balm in an rather unusual area…
100%. I can vouch for this method.
Obliterated my saddle sores, and folks behind appreciate the scent- win win.
Obviously, you need good hygiene, a nice comfortable saddle and proper bibs/shorts/chamois etc
However, from my experience. Bike fit is 99.999999999999% of the puzzle once you have the above sorted. I went from numerous sores, constant issues, to virtually no issues ever again.
No chamois crème ever, no fancy new shorts, no different saddle. Just correct bike fit. My personal issue was saddle height, too high, leaning to one side, hence saddle sores… it will not be the same issue for everybody, as others have mentioned.
Got fit, lowered saddle, shortened reach a tad. No problems ever again.
Lot’s of time on the trainer, certainly doesn’t help. I can’t even imagine doing indoor training in the aero position. Sounds painful. I suggest more outside riding, just because it’s fun 
I can support this. Saddle too high is probably the worst one. Lowering to the right height did help in my case also.
I would even say that it can be beneficial to be on the lower side of the “fit window”. So if a range of 75-76cm is ok for you, I would rather go with the 75cm than with 76cm. The less you move in the saddle, the better.
IME a good fitter has to get the balance (overall fit) right though. I had never had a saddle sore in my life until a retul lowered my saddle and put me in a more upright position. A subsequent fit by eye from an Ex UK Pro lowered my saddle slightly again but slammed my stem changing my balance after which the saddle sores subsided.
Well, my bike was fitted. I wash my bibs after one use. And take showers after I’m done with my wo. I rode for at least 1.5 years indoor with no issues. Suddenly i got a sore. Out of nowhere.
It’s possible that as your fitness progresses, so does your form on the bike? I constantly review and optimize position based on a number of factors like fitness, flexibility etc… I don’t think it’s uncommon to revisit a fitter on a routine (semi annual?) basis either as you adapt to your position and evolve mechanically.
Good pont…
I believe this, I just think it’s not a foolproof answer. I think you both need to prevent them, but also treat them when you do get them. a sore knee can be enough to force compensations that affect the fit that you spent money dialing in. Bad habits are almost always in flux, appearing and being corrected, so I think it’s likely you will get one at some point. Once you get one, that can be enough to affect your fit, which may cause another one, so eradicating them quickly seems like it needs to be necessarily planned for.
Only broscience to back my response up, but I feel that’s true. Even positioning between effort types is noticeable for me. My all day z2 vs 20 minutes at threshold positions are different and I notice different ‘issues’ based on that, and even indoor vs outdoor. Which makes bro-sense thinking of the different forces and how they interact.
Definitely worth noting these differences, the hard part is what do you do with that info.
Agree- cycling is a dynamic sport with very limited contact-point mobility. IMO, the entire band of effort (i.e., power output in w) requires a different mechanical approach, even if only a minor adjustment (i.e., cadence up/down, lower back flexion for TT, quad vs glute activation for climbs relative to sit bone placement in saddle etc.). My strategy has always been introspection first rather than attempting to adopt any hard-and-fast rules like KOPs or wtv. Find a section of road, feel where the power drives from, and adjust the bike to accommodate that if you think something is lacking. Over time you will recognize the muscle groups recruited to do that effort, and iterate based on experience.
Anecdotally, I now prefer a much lower (12mm) and rearward saddle position over my previous high and super aft position. Unexpectedly i was able to raise my cadence and leverage my hamstrings more which i found balanced out the distribution for longer rides. The goal here being the latter part of my sentence as my personal focus is on sustaining Z2 & Threshold for 4-5 hours at a time in the mountains. If i were going back to a more TT oriented, ‘I’m going to steal all the flat segments in my neighbourhood’ type vibe, i’d probably go back to a more aft, higher saddle setup as i simply generate more power but for shorter, unsustainable periods.
