As unbelievable as it seems, one club member actually rides without a saddle. Al Boland injured his knee and felt that he could build up his leg by cycling standing. I was with him when he did a century to Greenwood Lake. His saddle-less riding has irked some members to no end but he is a strong rider and proves one can ride without sitting.

Going saddle-less is a bit extreme for most. A half way measure (no pun intended) would be to lower your saddle a bit -- maybe half an inch -- and let your legs carry a bit more of the load.

Similarly, if you build up your upper body, back and neck, you can experiment dropping your handlebars and/or riding in the drops -- and letting your arms take more of the load.

It's a gradual process. As you get tired, more and more weight will fall back on your butt. But as you build up, you'll go longer distances.

Think of distributing your weight 1/3 arms ... 1/3 legs ... 1/3 butt.

[I presume you're talking about a road bike. With a MTB/hybrid, 90% of your weight is on the seat.]

Also, as part of proper riding technique, your sit bones should be planted on the fat part of the saddle with your groin gently resting on the front and NOT taking the load. Discipline's important here. Don't get sloppy. I was able to manage a 90 mile ride when, the day before, I was sidelined with severe chaffing (liberal quantities of corn starch helped too.)

Short of going to a recumbent (which is a whole other subject and set of issues) there's a lot you can do. Once I got my road bike sorted, I was perfectly comfortable spending 8+ hours in the saddle.

Yikes!! I would let the fissure heal. I mean, why become fitter by harming yourself?

Butt, I do understand the need to cycle. So, here’s what I would do to help myself until the fissure was behind me:

- Ride, but keep it moderate and steady. Try not to squirrel around too much on the saddle and create more friction. Maybe an indoor trainer would provide a steadier workout than the road.

- Shorts. Bibs. Get good ones. Pay the extra $$$ to get a superior chammy.

- Crème. Get a chammy crème. Assos is sort of medicated and “cleaner” than most. Butt be careful, the medication, or the crèmes or ButtRs themselves may cause an adverse reaction.

- Clean. Bath before and after you ride. Wash your shorts/bibs well and be sure to rinse the detergent away. You don’t need Tide rubbed into your fissure.

- Stand. When riding, stand frequently to not only relieve pressure, but to get some air movement down there.

- Are you seeing a doctor? If not, and you plan to ride with this thing – well, me? I’d go to a pro.

Good luck with this and with your riding!!

Some great suggestions here. Also, try to eat a high roughage, zero refined sugar diet to eliminate any surrounding inflamation and keep anything that happens to squeeze past nice and soft.

If you love to ride but can't take the weight on your back end, try a recumbent bike. Your weight will be on your posterior thighs and this will take the stress off of the area in question.
~Claudette