Bike saddles - Risk to men's family jewels?

[poeter]

Hi all,

I've just got into biking and been love riding at least 1-2hr everyday. Having much to learn about biking, I've also been digging information on the internet.

Now I've come across there are a few articles expressing concerns that biking riding could potentially make us men impotent and raises risk of testicular cancer.

At this stage, I'm not alarmed or is it stopping me from continuing my rides but I am curious to find out if there are any solutions around this. For instance, are there any seats out there that are designed and engineered to address this concern for male cyclists? Or perhaps some sort of protection gear for the crotch?

Cheers,
Peter.

[AUbicycles]

There are a lot of saddles out there that do this. Even a hundred years ago some saddles were designed and advertised as relieving perenial pressure.

The thing is, with so many different body types, there is no perfct saddle that fits all and it is sometimes a matter of trial and error. You will notice a number of saddles on the market with cutouts in the middle, sometimes these provide a solution, others swear by a certain brand if leather saddles.

[gabrielle260]

Peter, the fuss about male impotence from cycling started in the 90's when Ed Pavelka, an influential journo with Bicycling Magazine in the US discovered he had a problem and wrote about it. It coincided with studies of very overweight bicycle policemen in Seattle that had a predictable finding. Ed finished his article saying he was switching to a recumbent.
He didn't last long as a recumbent rider and soon went back to a road bike as he was never sure his issues were caused by riding. Around the same time a urologist published an article about the subject but it was discredited at the time although it was widely quoted a few years later (I never did figure that out!)
Then Dr Roger Minkow developed the Minkow wedge saddle as a cure and sold it to Specialized who marketed it strongly.
To cut a long story short, to this day I am still not sure whether the whole thing is a marketing ploy playing on what some say is men's biggest fear!
Like the last post I believe saddles are a very individual thing but I would add that bike fit also has a big influence on how comfortable you are down under.
Cheers,
Andrew

[Sydguy]

Most people who cycle opt for surgery and have it all removed.

This assists in keeping your focus 100% on the bike. It reduces 100% your risk of any cancer down there and the risk you will have children who take up a lot of time which would be better spent on your bike.

This is a lesser know fact with cyclists, but you should discuss implications with your GP prior to having the Op done at your LBS.

A good LBS will use a very fine wire, similar to removing a loose tooth, they will attach one end of the wire to you and the other end to a door handle, once you have your vocal anaesthetic "this won't hurt a bit" they slam the door really hard. Every once in a while some tough nut will need a second door slam, this is rare.

As you can see from the above I have no idea on this topic but still felt the need to post something. If your seat is comfortable and your not feeling any pain down below after rides then you should be fine. Wearing tight clothing is said to lower your sperm count, and as such maybe don't wear your knicks to bed.

All the best.

JM

[RonK]

Wearing tight clothing is said to lower your sperm count, and as such maybe don't wear your knicks to bed.

You do wear knicks don't you poeter?

[Ozkaban]

Most people who cycle opt for surgery and have it all removed.

This assists in keeping your focus 100% on the bike. It reduces 100% your risk of any cancer down there and the risk you will have children who take up a lot of time which would be better spent on your bike.

This is a lesser know fact with cyclists, but you should discuss implications with your GP prior to having the Op done at your LBS.

A good LBS will use a very fine wire, similar to removing a loose tooth, they will attach one end of the wire to you and the other end to a door handle, once you have your vocal anaesthetic "this won't hurt a bit" they slam the door really hard. Every once in a while some tough nut will need a second door slam, this is rare.

As you can see from the above I have no idea on this topic but still felt the need to post something. If your seat is comfortable and your not feeling any pain down below after rides then you should be fine. Wearing tight clothing is said to lower your sperm count, and as such maybe don't wear your knicks to bed.

All the best.

JM

Nicely written. Brightened my day up somewhat. Thanks

[unavailablerequest]

imo the biggest concern would be whether after riding for that couple of hours leaves you any body ache? if not, you are doing perfectly fine. my saddle has no cushion, its one pure plank of carbon fiber. i ever ridden without those padded shorts and it didnt hurt me at all (friends say i got balls of steel), but of cos with a padded shorts the ride is more comfortable.

ps. the only time i could possibly hurt myself (when not wearing padded shorts) is when i stand up for sprinting and sit down, as the alignment is off as my body is leaning towards one side hence, my balls will be kinda "crush" when i try to center myself while sitting down. - of cos, after experiencing a few times, sub-consciously, it sure changed my habit of leaving a few cms off the seat to ensure "they" are aligned b4 sitting down.

[silentbutdeadly]

A good LBS will use a very fine wire, similar to removing a loose tooth, they will attach one end of the wire to you and the other end to a door handle, once you have your vocal anaesthetic "this won't hurt a bit" they slam the door really hard. Every once in a while some tough nut will need a second door slam, this is rare.

A 'good' LBS does no such thing....they use the proper tool.

[Sydguy]

Yes I wear knicks, got a couple of pairs of DHB ones which, did 148kms in DHB recently with no issue.

One thing I see often, and I know I should not be looking, is undies under knicks.

Richie Porte confessed to this being something he did when he went from Tri to Cycle, as a 'rookie error'

You should be going commando under your knicks.

JM

[unavailablerequest]

A good LBS will use a very fine wire, similar to removing a loose tooth, they will attach one end of the wire to you and the other end to a door handle, once you have your vocal anaesthetic "this won't hurt a bit" they slam the door really hard. Every once in a while some tough nut will need a second door slam, this is rare.

A 'good' LBS does no such thing....they use the proper tool.

i am getting confused... by which, the "loose tooth", is not referring to what i think it is... correct?

[poeter]

Thanks guys for shedding some light into this with your responses.

At this stage, I don't feel any pain during the ride and post-ride. I'm riding on a Fizik Tundra 2 saddle + fox knickers with padding. So it never really occurred to me what risks there were until I read some articles about it. Especially reading about the Lance Armstrong's battle against testicular cancer, I had become somewhat more what aware of this.

So I'm thinking may I should stand up a bit more in-between my rides to relieve some pressure down there and get some blood flowing back regularly.

[Xplora]

Sydguy, you're a sick depraved man... I felt my special zones contracting as I read that

[AUbicycles]

Sydguy, thanks for the smiles

[fatherofmany]

Read signature, then name again... no problems here !

[kunama]

Some very pertinent information here !! (Some people are just sick...)

Rather than the piano wire removal device, I chose instead to go with this:



No more numbness in the nether regions!

[Benz250]

Sydguy, absolute classic. Had to stop laughing before it could type

[gorilla monsoon]

Read signature, then name again... no problems here !

Ralph, ya gotta stay away from the chook shed and the gold fish tank, dude!

[elStado]

I dunno about jewel damage, but my Brooks B17 Imperial is pretty comfortable.