How to stay in the saddle longer than an hour...

[wanaride67]

I'm 55, a relatively new street rider, and I have a 2022 R1250GS (my first BMW). Thus far most of my rides are just quick out-and-backs of an hour in length. The other night I was able to get a 1.5 hour ride in, and the next day my prostate was slightly sore! (It was checked by my doc a month ago, so no medical problems there.)

Interestingly, I rode a MX track last weekend with my son (different bike of course), and had no such issues the next day.

What must I do to ride the GS for longer than an hour without being sore the next day? Do I need a sheepskin pad or some such? Or should I get a different seat?

I want to be able to do multi-hundred mile days but there is no way I can do that now.

 

[MotoToph]

Russell Day Long!!

Sent from my SM-N975U1 using Tapatalk

 

[Omega Man]

Lots of seat threads. Here is one of the longer threads accessed via the “Tag Cloud”.

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?92801-Another-Seat-attempt

Through all the posts, the Russell Day Long gathers the most endorsements.

OM

 

[88bmwjeff]

While having a good seat is imperative, I remember when I first started riding my butt (and other parts) took sometime to get used to riding long term. I remember easing into long trips by taking longer and longer day trips.

 

[PoorUB]

A better seat, and practice!

You might cut a bit of foam out of the middle of the seat to remove the pressure area.

I know guys that never ride, or maybe to the corner bar and back, they they load up and head to Sturgis, or some place way out west and they complain about being sore from riding.

I can ride all day long, but that first couple long rides in the spring I get a bit sore. As the days get longer and I ride more I toughen up and can stay in the saddle for miles and miles.

 

[jsd]

+1 on the Russell Day Long. I have their sport version being vertically challenged and have no issues with 4 - 5 hrs. The stock Low seat is good for less than 1/2 hr, perhaps an hour with a sheepskin or Airhawk.

 

[dduelin]

Work up to it. Ride at least once a week and ride progressively longer. When I re-entered riding in 2005 I fell in with a small group of guys that rode 300-400 miles on Saturday rides on winding country roads. It hurt my butt and fore arms from the clutching and throttling but I stayed with it. During the week I did reps with a rubber ball to work on hand grip and fore arms. My own opinion is not to spend a bunch of money at first on finding the magic seat but first work on your own physical stamina.

 

[rhbike]

+n for a RDL saddle. The stock seat on our K1600 had us squirming around uncomfortably within an hour. Day trips required frequent stops and getting out of the saddle to make it even tolerable. Stamina and butt conditioning only goes so far. I have a well conditioned butt and am quite fit as a very active cyclist, and it didn't have me doing much better than my partner on hte stock seat. There is no getting around it, most BMW saddles are torture devices. With the RDL, we have never felt any discomfort over long days.

 

[Paul_F]

I agree with all of the above, especially the Russell saddle. As well when on a long ride, besides keeping my fluid levels up, I do a series of exercises once every hour, when traffic allows. Each exercise lasts a minute, wiggling the fingers, lifting my butt off the seat, either stretching my legs or letting them hang loose (depending on which bike) and placing my feet on the passenger pegs. At gas stops, I usually change the height of the seat.

Despite all the thousands of kilometres that I have ridden, I make a point of taking a two hour or more, ride each spring to reacquaint my butt with the seat. That ride, often becomes uncomfortable but necessary to have the seat and me reach comfort that will last for the new riding season.

 

[6322]

A sheep skin will also help but a custom saddle, built for you, giving the support will really make a difference. Mayer (the original RDL design), seats are a good choice too.

 

[ramble]

The "other" wave exercise is one I do if away from traffic, a straight arm long above shoulder wave to stretch, also use the rear crash bar to push/pull. Never thought of the seat height change but will try that, sounds like an easy thing.

 

[riderr1150gsadv]

A different seat, a butt-pad like WildAss (that IS their name), or BeadRider and switch them up when on a long trip. I have a Sargent seat and bring the two others with me.
If you are more in the off road mode on your GS a RDL seat may be in the way for standing on the pegs btw due to the "wings".
Also underwear is important. NEVER wear cotton.... Under Armor, Moto skiveez, ExOfficio and other brands offer quick dry and venting options.. YMMV

 

[dduelin]

+n for a RDL saddle. The stock seat on our K1600 had us squirming around uncomfortably within an hour. Day trips required frequent stops and getting out of the saddle to make it even tolerable. Stamina and butt conditioning only goes so far. I have a well conditioned butt and am quite fit as a very active cyclist, and it didn't have me doing much better than my partner on hte stock seat. There is no getting around it, most BMW saddles are torture devices. With the RDL, we have never felt any discomfort over long days.

I know I am an outlier having ridden tens of thousands of miles on stock seats before changing them but the for sale ads for seats in forum marketplaces suggest there isn't any one that is "the one". I have a RDL on my Wing, a Mayer on the RT, and the NC has a Corbin. I've ridden at least a SaddleSore 1000 on each and my butt cared not a whit.

 

[Stebe]

Like so many have said, I love my RDL. A fine instrument is important, but the answer to your question is the same answer as to the question "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?". Practice, practice, practice.

 

[Paul_F]

I've ridden at least a SaddleSore 1000 on each and my butt cared not a whit.

Your comment is why I believe that my RDL and Corbin are both excellent seats; being able to ride for hours on end without ever thinking or being aware of them.

 

[RTRay]

Russell Day Long. Problem solved.

 

[rich]

Russell Day Long. Problem solved.

Agreed 100%. But be prepared for a taller seat height from the dished shape built into the seat. At 5'10" and with the additional height I gained on my GS I am wishing I had the lowered suspension. But I make do, and the seat is second to none in comfort as far as I am concerned. I'd order it again.

 

[easy]

RDL is definitely the way to go.

E.

 

[senseamidmadness]

I feel like I'm the only person on the entire Internet that is comfortable on stock or near-stock BMW seats every time I read one of these threads!

Having significant seat pain after only an hour definitely means it doesn't fit you. Especially prostate pain the next day after only 1.5 hours! That's a very big nope. If it were me I'd totally avoid riding on that bike for more than a half-hour until you get a different seat on it!

Aftermarket seats can vary a lot in shape and some aren't guaranteed to fit you, either. When I recently bought my 1996 RT, it had a fancy Corbin seat setup with a backrest on it. Problem is, the Corbin's seat pan position pushes me back about 3 inches, which makes my arms and shoulders uncomfortable from the increased reach. Plus it's harder than the stock seat and I'm apparently smaller and lighter than almost every other American motorcyclist at 170 pounds and 5 foot 9, so it's too hard to be comfortable for me.
By contrast, I rode three painless 400-mile days in a row on the BMW-optional Comfort seat, which felt instantly more comfortable the moment I put it on the bike even before riding. The stock seat on my R850R is similarly comfortable for me. I am, however, an extreme outlier in this regard!

In short, the absolute best thing you can do is see if anybody else from the MOA with a GS and an aftermarket seat is in your area and willing to let you sit on their bike. Even better if you can find multiple folks with different seats so you can try a few! You know the stock seat doesn't fit you right at all, and you can probably tell if a seat won't fit you within a few seconds of sitting on it.

Though I will say that you probably can't go wrong with a Russell Day-Long, as everybody else has mentioned. They've got a solid warranty and will make it right if it's not good enough out of the box. Only detriment is that you have to wait a few weeks for the rebuild.

 

[Rainman48]

I'm 55, a relatively new street rider, and I have a 2022 R1250GS (my first BMW). Thus far most of my rides are just quick out-and-backs of an hour in length....

There's a lot of quick suggestions about trading for a new seat, but I read you are a relatively new street rider. How do you feel your comfort level is now on the street? Feel all tense and your sphincter is tightened up while squeezing your butt cheeks and thighs? If so, I'd concentrate on relaxing your lower end in the saddle more and seeing if that helps your ride time before spending more money on another unknown saddle. I can ride on the OEM seat for up to a couple hours before needing to do some simple movements to make sure circulation is still OK (lift one side, then the other, maybe stand up or unload your body weight for a bit on the empty road) and then continue riding for another couple hours. Just a simple suggestion if your not doing that yet.