Swamp "A", monkey butt, etc. How do you deal with it?

[Great White]

My 83 oem seat is sure comfy, even on a 5 hr ride. But the stock vinyl covering, while attractive and period correct, does very little for helping deal with heat, sweat and humidity. I'm sure that big v4 pumping heat into the still air passenger area isn't helping either.

 

Enter: swamp "A".

 

 

So, how do you deal with it?

 

I've been using Google to search it out and have read about beaded seats, sheepskin, Alaskan sheep skin, monkey butt power, gold bond, gel seats, leather seats, custom seats, air hawk covers, sweat wicking bicycle shorts, spandex underwear, "manscaping" and all manner of other ideas.

 

Personally, I'm good for about two hours (wearing Levi jeans, normal "boxer breifs" underwear and making use of the highway pegs) and I'm not really looking to change how I dress (except eventually buying Kevlar jeans) nor am I interested in "manscaping" or powdering my butt before a longer ride.

 

That at leaves the seat itself. The big funky sheepskin covers don't really speak to me (just looks weird) and seat beads just didn't sound comfortable at all. The air hawk seems to get good reviews, but finding a retailer would be challenging and I'm not even sur eif it works with a 1 gen seat (looks to be for separate pilot and passenger seats). Then there the "Harley" connection, which means it's probably stupid expensive for what it is.

 

I'm just wondering what most guys do to deal with "sweaty bottom" on long or hot rides....

Edited July 14, 2015 by Great White

[GAWildKat]

If you want an airhawk seat I can check a couple of places locally to me and get a price quote. I know a lot of people who swear by real sheepskin, beads, and airhawk. Think it's personal preference. If I had a choice, I would go with the beads or sheepskin. The fake sheepskin cover on our seat does well enough in the heat, just don't get stuck on a wet seat...it's cold! Even on a hot day it's still cold.

[Motorcycle Mike]

Sheep skins don't have to be big and funky. Alaska leather, and I'm sure other manufacturers, custom make them for different seats.

That coupled with moisture wicking underwear keeps monkey but away here in the hot humid south.

[Great White]

Thing about sheep skins is that you can be in and out of rain without warning here on Canada's East Coast.

 

I'd rather a solution that is more "wet weather friendly".

 

i also have freind that owns a sheep farm. Getting a skin of whatever size I want wouldn't be an issue. I'd just have to tan the hide and maybe dye the wool (would want black to make it less obvious).

 

hmmm, I wonder if you can treat wool skins to be "waterproof"?

 

Time for another Google...

[bongobobny]

As long as you are setting on them they are waterproof!!

[Du-Rron]

Notice the "bath towel" on the seat? Been doing this forever. Easily removable, washable.

[Motorcycle Mike]

As long as you are setting on them they are waterproof!!

Yep! And when you get off, you can throw it in the tour pack or saddle bag. They dry rather quickly if they do get wet too.

[Great White]

Notice the "bath towel" on the seat? Been doing this forever. Easily removable, washable.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]100620[/ATTACH]

 

interesting.

 

Cheap and available in a multitude of colours. Machine washable, easy to dry and easily made to a custom shape/size. Wouldn't add any significant height to the seat and could be "layered up" if more thickened wanted.

 

Wouldnt fair well in the rain though....

[Daveand Barbie]

On any ride where I am in the saddle for more than an hour or two, I follow the following rules:

 

Never wear underwear that has seams of any type that I will sit on

Opt for shorts that wick away moisture

Wear mesh riding pants that circulate air

 

On my Venture and Bandit, I use an Airhawk because the saddles are not comfortable for me and I am good for 6 to 8 hours.

 

i just finished an 8000 mile trip in the western states, riding in 100+ temps on my FJR without issue. It has a Russell saddle that is finished in leather and was never uncomfortable. That saddle is worth every nickel that the PO spent on it!

[Du-Rron]

Pic from 30 years ago. Towel on seat of V65 Sabre.

[Semi-retired]

Hey, BJ......how's things down east?

 

Here in hot, sweaty, southwestern Ontario, the humidity capital of Canada, I take great pleasure in knowing that my butt will remain somewhat "insulated" from the ravages of nature as well as man-made (vinyl) seatcovers by virtue of always having my portable, one-size-fits-all sheepskin "pad" close at hand.......or, close at BUTT!

 

The PO of my '03 Midnight included it with my purchase, back in '07 and I'm glad he did. It's been with me on every ride "of consequence" ever since. (By that, I mean that if I'm just popping downtown or crosstown for 15 or 20 minutes.....and the weather is friendly (i.e. not 100 deg), I may not bother getting it out of the saddle bag.)

 

You can find these things everywhere from furniture stores to novelty shops for between $20 and $50, and at that price, you can't beat a natural sheepskin for bum-comfort on a hot day or a long trip. The thick wool strands provide multiple layers of ventilation, it's "strong like bull".....and for some people (myself NOT included) it adds a kind of Marlboro Man Mystique-look to your steed. Additionally, if the hide happens to get soiled, it can be washed in Woolite, just like any other wool product such as a good sweater.

 

My Midnight was originally equipped with a 2-section cover (pad for driver/pad for passenger...slot in the middle to accommodate Utopia backrest)....but once wifey got her own bike, the passenger portion spent all the time flapping in the breeze, so I just tore it off and now keep it as a spare for when "mine" gets wet, misplaced or dirty.

 

Yes, agreed, sheepskin DOES look a little hokey......but, not unlike Tilley hats, denim jeans, snow-tires and so many other "useful but not so pretty" things in life......FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION.....and once you get used to the sheepskin solution, it's hard to live without it.

 

Try it. All you've got to lose is a hot, uncomfortable butt! And if you don't like it..........hello.....Kijiji!!!

[RedRider]

I ride long distances in all kinds of temperature and weather. Following works for me:

 

1) Good wicking riding shorts. The ones I swear by are LDComfort (http://www.ldcomfort.com). No seams in the seating area and it keeps a dry layer next to the skin. These are also good for multi-day rides as you can wash out in the sink and they dry quickly.

2) Beaded seat. They are surprisingly comfortable. Thousands of middle eastern cab drivers can't all be wrong. To try it out cheaply, go to Walmart (or Canadian Tire) and get a $10 car beaded seat cover. Take it apart and remove parts to conform to the seat shape. Tie it back up. Takes about a half hour.

3) Sheep skin. Cut it to fit. IKEA has skins for about $30. Usually big enough for two seats.

 

RR

[Semi-retired]

Addendum:

 

The only point I forgot to mention in MY post......(RedRider's "cut to fit" reminded me).....the "fit" of the sheepskin solution need only be "bummed-in-place" aka, "gravity fit".

 

I keep my sheep in place with my rear end while riding.......and when I stop, it goes in the trunk, along with my gloves and/or helmet and/or GPS and/or WHATEVER, depending what the weather, the length of stop, the "security" of the location and the "look" of the local yokals! :-)

[jakester]

I went to the local auto parts and got a beaded seat cover for a car and cut it down. About $15 bucks. This lets the air circulate under you. It does add about a half inch to your seat height. I have a road sofa seat and a utopia back rest. I tie the beads on the backrest on a long ride, or just put them in the trunk when you do not need them. I have enough beads left over to make a passenger cover also. The air ride seat covers will (my opinion ) roll from side to side making me feel somewhat unstable in the curves or turns, the beads stay put. Like I said, My opinion...you can be your own judge.

Bill

[BlueSky]

Lamasil cream combined with Balmex baby zinc ointment will keep the monkey butt away. Long term seat comfort is another issue. My Dodge Magnum does great!

[cowpuc]

Hey GW, first let me say to you on starting this thread,, monkey butt can be a severely painful (even to the point of getting bloody and needing actual medical attention) thing for a lot of folks and yet, a lot of folks fear even talking about the subject.

Note to readers, If you happen to be one of those types ya might not wanna read what I have to say in response to GW's question. If you decide to keep reading PLEASE try to remember that its ol Pucsters way with open communication and way with words that just dont always sound,,,, normal

I rode cross country dirt bikes for many years - pounding the woods all day on a dirt bike can compound the effects of monkey butt exponentially.. Back then I found that wearing spand-x with the shammi cloth crotch and NO underwear between my bottom and the shammi worked AWESOME. That and making sure that whenever I stopped to go pooo pooo I always cleaned my bottom real well afterwards.. Between those two things I can honestly state that all those sun up to sun down dirt biking days never ever resulted in any form of monkey butt.. It took some time to develop those methods for MY bottom though and they were developed because I did endure thru some early days of monkey = NOT FUN AND VERY PAINFUL!!

One of the things that I discovered during those "early years" was how well human spit works for cleaning the bottom after going pooo pooo.. Spitting on toilet paper and wiping my bottom until it wiped clean helped enourmously in making sure monkey butt never stood a chance.. Sounds crazy but (no pun intended) I gotta say - for some reason it worked great!!

Moving into modern times (Venture touring days) I found the spand-x to be uncomfortable for sitting in the saddle for hours and hours and hours like we did/do. I moved to using the type of shorts shown in the picture below. I carry several sets of these when riding long distance and have even tossed out the ones I have after wearing them and purchased new along the journey. I wear them as underwear under my jeans BUT (again - no pun intended) prefer to wear them alone and no jeans (they are "shorts" after all - never a legal problem ) as they are VERY comfortable, plus as mentioned earlier - the seams in jeans can be irritate the skin and possibly cause monkey butt to begin, and they airate fully - a huge plus when chasing away the monkey.. Also they dry very quickly which is extremely important if a person is prone to ride in humid areas, rain, sleet or so on..

On the using spit to clean my bottom routine, Tippy has been working with me on always making sure we have antibacterial baby wipes and using those instead of spit. I have to admit, those things work amazingly well for the task at hand PLUS they have the added feature of being able to use them in the event that no rest area springlers/swimmable lakes or streams or truck stop shower facilities are in the area and you feel like a shower is needed. Spit on toilet paper or one of your socks being used as an actual shower after a long day of CTFW is kind of self defeating... BUTT,,, all that said,, if needed I am still not apposed to using spit if needed in my fight against monkey butt because I have found that the fight against the stuff begins with not letting it start in the first place..

Thru the little bit of biking I have done since the mid 60's I have owned everything from the beads, water seats (remember those?), gel seats (gave one I found to a fellow member that wanted to try it), sheep skins, sitting on card board, sitting on a stack of all cotton tee shirts, using Gold Bond anti cafing powder, anti pimple creams, anti fungal creams and powders and on and on and thru it all - the answer I described in all this are what work for me in all climates of touring..

[Great White]

Yeah,ummmm......I'll pass on the spit on my bum thing. But point taken.

 

I'll opt for the baby wipes or take a small dish of water into the stall with me....

 

there's a reasonably local sheep farm from where I am. I've written them an email to see if they have any hydes in stock and I'll see about picking one up on my way home Friday.

 

Auto upholstry is also a hobby of mine so making up a few custom pads is simple enough. For around 100 bucks a Hyde I'll have enough to make a couple driver pads, passenger pads and maybe one or two for my FJ1200 if I like them...

Edited July 14, 2015 by Great White

[friesman]

I do a couple of things, I but only diamonfd gusset jeans as there is no lump where all the seams join up at one of the most tender pots on a guys body. THey put a gusset in there and move the seams around to avoid a thick seam with 4 or 6 layers of fabric.

On most rides I have my Diamond Gusset defender motorcycle jeans on and somehow the Kevlar keeps the heat levels down somehow of wicks moisture away. Since ive been riding with the Kevlar defenders I havnt had an issue, and now they are the only jeans I wear, biker Kevlar or just regular, they are the most comfortable.

http://www.americangusset.com/

 

Brian

[friesman]

I do a couple of things, I buy only diamond gusset jeans as there is no lump where all the seams join up at one of the most tender pots on a guys body. THey put a gusset in there and move the seams around to avoid a thick seam with 4 or 6 layers of fabric.

On most rides I have my Diamond Gusset defender motorcycle jeans on and somehow the Kevlar butt lining keeps the heat levels down somehow of wicks moisture away. Since ive been riding with the Kevlar defenders I havnt had an issue, and now they are the only jeans I wear, biker Kevlar or just regular, they are the most comfortable.

http://www.americangusset.com/

 

Brian

[Condor]

I'm going this route..... Have a little monkey on my but too. However my old '83 had a leather covered 1stGen seat that never gave me a bit of discomfort. It was done by a local leather shop. Since moving to the 2nd's I have had nothing but trouble, and so far haven't found an answer. Figured I'd try the Air Hawk and see if that helps....

[Freebird]

I agree that leather helps a lot. That's why I loved my Corbin seat. The leather breathes and just stays a lot cooler than vinyl. Never a problem with it.

[Leland]

I vote for the beads. They may look uncomfortable, but they're not. Will keep you high and dry.

[Great White]

I don't have a problem with comfort gents, the 83's seat is comfy for 5+'hours at a stretch (looking for fuel long before that anyways). Problem is just heat and ......errr, "humidity".

 

 

Even then ,it's not a problem unless on a 2+ hour ride.

 

 

Indo do have the seat from the 86 in the loft though. It's in good shape except that it's brown. Maybe I'll stitch up a nice black leather cover for it and see how it goes....

Edited July 14, 2015 by Great White

[Barrycuda]

Wow, all such good answers. I wear the LD comfort shorts on my rides. No opening for the standing bathroom break but there are no seams and it has been fine. Think about trying a spray such as Axe or gold bond spray? I also carry baby wipes and they are so easy to store.

[syscrusher]

Figured I'd try the Air Hawk and see if that helps....

 

I used one of these on my big cruiser. I would start with it fairly full and sit on it. After a while I would let some air out a little at a time. Sometimes I would let it get a little ahead of me and I'd sit in a bucket sort of while it supported my thighs more. Then I'd pull it back and sit on top of it again. My seating position would be constantly changing so that my tush wouldn't get tired of the same old. The Mustang seat for it was soft but put me in a weird position on it so I sold it off. The stock seat and the Corbin Rumble Seat were both a little stiff. The stocker really sucked. I bought a Corbin Dual Tour and reworked it and it was better but still not great. I'm a bigger guy, there's considerable weight on my tushie and that has an effect. The "standard" foot position enables the rider to lift the butt a little while riding which helps. I do suppose if I weighed half as much I could sit there for twice as long.........