Soar Butt

[Heliplt]

I know people ride farther than I do in a day, butt my butt can only handle about 4 hours in a day, I want to go on some longer trips, butt I need some suggestions or tips to make the stock seat on a RT more comfortable on longer trips, I do have the utopia back rest which is great.

[SpydherLuv]

You have a few options when it comes to seat comfort, 1) invest in a custom made seat, 2) have your current seat modified, 3) buy some type of seat pad.

Custom/Modify seats:
Www.Corbin.com
Www.Day-Long.com

Seat pads:
http://www.alaskaleatheronline.com/s.../Buttpads/Page
http://www.amspecialtiesusa.com/gelpad.htm
Airhawk seat pad (multiple suppliers, check our sponsors)

I'm sure there are more and others will chime in, but this should get you a good start with your research.

[BlueKnight]

Yeah, i'm not to happy with the stock seat either....my butt is numb after about an hour of riding.

[Dochands]

When I saw the headline SOAR BUTT I thought you flew off your bike. LOL

Airhawk is the best thing I have ever found and remember they use them for people who are wheelchair bound so they are good.

[Mr. White]

Wal-Mart has a gel pad in their auto section for $20 +/-. Try one and see how it goes. I like mine. I also have an Air Hawk, but do not care for it...however, a buddy of mine loves his...different strokes...

This is a secret, but I carry a rubber oval 'invalid cushion" as a backup. On a long trip, I blow it up and trade it with my gell pad. It works for me. After 500 miles it is worth $500! ha ha

[Y Rider]

The stock seat on my bike also gave me a sore butt after about an hour of riding. It was way too soft for me. I put on a Corbin with the "Lamonster" cut (tractor seat) and that improved my riding comfort considerably but on all day rides I use a Air Hawk 2 seat cushion and it works great.

[GI Jane]

Best answer I can give is get rid of the stock seat. That was my first mod almost 3 years ago and I've never regretted the decision. I have the Corbin with backrests. The most I ride is 500 miles in one day which also helps.

[Campverdefela]

When I saw the headline SOAR BUTT I thought you flew off your bike. LOL

Airhawk is the best thing I have ever found and remember they use them for people who are wheelchair bound so they are good.

You think the seat on the RT is bad, then ride an RS sometime, good for 60 miles only, my opinion.

[MarkLawson]

Take a look at my post here ( http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/s...380#post370380 ). This is a great solution for me & may work for you too. The Utopia has you half way there, but you still need to get some weight off that saddle from time to time while still riding.

[jvicker]

Don't have an RT but, I put the bead riders on my RS stock seat. Rode 675 miles with them last Saturday and what a difference. sore butt gone. Didn't have to stretch the legs as much because of the tight hamstrings. Very happy Cheap too, $35.

[dancogan]

Lots of good suggestions here. However, a new seat is a pretty expensive option, so there are a few things I would try first. Right off the bat, I think you should try wearing biker's underwear. LD Comfort sells some made specifically for motorcyclists. REI sells some padded under shorts that are good for either bicycling or motorcycles. They are the Novarra brand sold by REI and less expensive than the stuff sold by LD Comfort. However, even regular bicycle shorts (yeah, the tight, lycra things that have a good pad) can make a big difference. After that I have found Bead Riders to help a lot in hot weather. I also like custom saddles on my 2 wheelers, but really haven't found the need on my Spyder RT.

[NancysToy]

This is a very difficult situation. First of all, you are asking for advice on a subject that is so personal that only you can determine what will work for you. You have seen threads here both praising and condemning Corbin seats, for instance. Is each seat leaving the factory different? No, each butt is different, though. You are in a difficult position. You can already get four good hours out of a seat. That is actually not bad, but you want more. A bad seat will make you scream 50-100 miles down the road, though, so yours is doing pretty well already. It is my opinion that you need some fine tuning, not a new seat.

I like to start at the beginning, so I agree with the idea of a change in underwear. In addition to those mentioned, UnderArmour boxer briefs do a good job of wicking, and avoid seams or hems in bad places. I also agree that taking a rest and stretching your legs every couple of hours is a good practice, and can extend your ride. I take that a step further, and do actual stretching exercises at every other fuel stop. You may want to get back on the road quickly, but 15 minutes off the Spyder can give you a couple more hours on the road. Your blood needs to get a chance to circulate. Taking a moderate walk can help a lot.

I'm not a fan of the Bead Rider, since without natural padding it adds to my misery, but they are cheap to try, and lots of folks love them...especially in hot climates. Next up the cost list is the Alaska Leather sheepskin. That is my favorite on my BMW. Some folks like gel pads, and you can get them combined with sheepskin, but they just make my backside hot and sweaty, and make the whole thing hurt instead of having just a couple of hot spots. Others may do better with them. The AirHawk is the top end of the add-ons. The Roho pads are used for wheelchairs, where the rider cannot just get off and stretch. I like the original AirHawk, but I have not tried the AirHawk 2. Proper adjustment of an AirHawk is essential. Read the directions. I used one on my first RT with fair success, but with the redesigned seat on the 2011 RT, I have not needed it at all.

[dmessenger]

I know people ride farther than I do in a day, butt my butt can only handle about 4 hours in a day, I want to go on some longer trips, butt I need some suggestions or tips to make the stock seat on a RT more comfortable on longer trips, I do have the utopia back rest which is great.

I know that some folks may take issue with this, but I have found the thing that has helped my sore butt the most has been to install highway pegs. It has allowed me to change sitting positions constantly throughout my ride. I can place one or both feet at a time on the pegs allowing relief to both the legs and back as well as the buttocks.

The real culprit when experiencing butt pain is the lack of blood-flow through our muscles, starving the muscles of energy. When moving around with the aid of highway pegs more blood flows, at least for a few moments, to a relieved area due the new positioning.

[Shaggy]

I bought the AirHawk ROHO (the newest cushion) and rode 1250 miles without any problems, the ROHO fits great on my RT Ltd. I did 480 miles on the first day and when I finished felt better than if I would have driven my truck. Several days of shorter rides and then two days of about 300-350 miles. When I finished I was ready for a break but it wasn't due to my butt hurting. Would have easily jumped back on the bike for another 500 miles by the next weekend.

[Eraser]

When I saw the headline SOAR BUTT I thought you flew off your bike. LOL

Airhawk is the best thing I have ever found and remember they use them for people who are wheelchair bound so they are good.

They are fantastic!

[Glider3J]

Returning from Sturgis I rode 1,160 miles in 19 hours. I was uncomfortable going up but with a pair of bicycle shorts and a new Airhawk II returning home it was no problem.

[daveinva]

I'm at a slight disadvantage given my weight-- at 280 lbs right now, it don't matter WHAT I sit on, I put a lot of pressure on my seat... and my seat .

In pursuit of a better seat, I've progressively added the following, at great expense, to my RS (with the equivalent miles I could ride before pain):

Stock seat: 50-60 miles
Beadrider: 75-100 miles
Risers: 100 miles
Floorboards and Ultimate Seat: 150+ miles
... and just this weekend, an Airhawk R (the new model with the bigger cutout for the, ummm, gentlemenly parts): I rode *220* miles on Saturday; 200 miles without pain, the last 20 were pretty bad but I was almost home at that point; on a long trip, 100 mile hops would be perfectly sustainable.

Out of all of those options, somewhat ironically the biggest difference was made by the cheapest item, the Beadrider. Yeah, it's not plush softness, but it move the butt around enough to keep pressure points from forming. That matters a great deal.

The risers and floorboards allow me to move my seating position around, stretch the legs, unhinge my knees, etc. That makes a big difference on a long ride.

The Ultimate Seat is a wonderful product, albeit expensive (and only for the RS right now, so of no help to the OP). Alas, at my weight I could use a bit more padding than it came with; oh well, incentive to lose weight, right?

The Airhawk R... I'm not sold yet, I don't quite know if it's a substantial improvement over the Beadrider (yes, I got a lot of miles out of it this weekend, but I think I could get the same out of the beads with the Ultimate Seat/floorboard setup). The good news about the Airhawk is it comes with a *SIXTY* day guarantee-- I plan on riding with it a lot over the next few weeks, swapping it and the Beadrider out to get a good comparison test.

Next purchase is some padded underwear... I'm hoping the helps a bit, too.

Anyway... good luck with the seat hunt!

[dadof4]

I bought the AirHawk ROHO (the newest cushion) and rode 1250 miles without any problems, the ROHO fits great on my RT Ltd. I did 480 miles on the first day and when I finished felt better than if I would have driven my truck. Several days of shorter rides and then two days of about 300-350 miles. When I finished I was ready for a break but it wasn't due to my butt hurting. Would have easily jumped back on the bike for another 500 miles by the next weekend.

Hi Shaggy,

I'm interested in the Airhawk also. Which cushion is the newest Airhawk ROHO? I don't want to order one that doesn't fit properly.

Thanks

[ARtraveler]

Your discussion got me going again. I just bit the bullet and purchased an Airhawk I.

The difference is that the Airhawk I is made of neoprene and the Airhawk II is made with polyurethene.

The Airhawk website recommends the I for longer rides and the II for shorter rides. There is a 2 year guarantee on the I and a 1 year guarantee on the II. The company stated that the I is easier to repair if needed.

They have a 60 day return policy if not satisfied. Currently, shipping is free. I purchased from the Airhawk website. Cost for the I was $159.95 and cost for the II was $179.95.

I will let you know what I think after I have tried it out. I am still having issues with my back and hips and need to get off the bike every 50 miles or so--I would like to extend that or just raise my confort level when going on rides.

[daveinva]

Good luck with your Airhawk, Alaska... as I said, I bought the new R version (with the risers and floorboards I was putting a lot of pressure straight down, the middle gap on the R appealed to me and so far it seems to help).

The one thing I sorta dislike about the Airhawk, at least the new R, is that with my Ultimate Seat it's not really wide enough to cover the whole width of the seat, so I end up being a little "perched" even with the cushion deflated to the lowest workable level.

That said, the nice thing about the perch is it lets me use my otherwise unusable Rivco highway pegs (I love the floorboards, but those pegs are waaay too close and up high to be of use... thinking of switching out the mounts with KM or ESI, $$$ grrrr).

Last thing: I've heard of people using a sheepskin *over* their Airhawk... I think I might try that.

[teacherbob]

The newest AirHawk is calle the AirHawk R. They guarantee that it will double your ride time. Cheaper than a new seat and it works.

[NancysToy]

Good luck with your Airhawk, Alaska... as I said, I bought the new R version (with the risers and floorboards I was putting a lot of pressure straight down, the middle gap on the R appealed to me and so far it seems to help).

The one thing I sorta dislike about the Airhawk, at least the new R, is that with my Ultimate Seat it's not really wide enough to cover the whole width of the seat, so I end up being a little "perched" even with the cushion deflated to the lowest workable level.

That said, the nice thing about the perch is it lets me use my otherwise unusable Rivco highway pegs (I love the floorboards, but those pegs are waaay too close and up high to be of use... thinking of switching out the mounts with KM or ESI, $$$ grrrr).

Last thing: I've heard of people using a sheepskin *over* their Airhawk... I think I might try that.

The AirHawk R is actually the widest motorcycle cushion they make, so the width is unlikely to cause you to be perched. It is more likely a matter of leg length or footrest position. If they are too low or too far forward, the thighs put pressure on the pad and raise the center.

BTW, the Airhawk fits and reacts and fits a bit differently on the RT seat than on the firmer RS seat or an aftermarket seat.

[Bob Denman]

I'm good for a couple of hours behind the bars before my bottom starts to mutiny... I guess that I'm going to have to look at these Airhawk thingies to see if that'll help keep everybody happy... Thanks!

[Tiny1]

I'm good for a couple of hours behind the bars before my bottom starts to mutiny... I guess that I'm going to have to look at these Airhawk thingies to see if that'll help keep everybody happy... Thanks!

Sounds like something you would hear in the Pen

[Bob Denman]

Okay... I just got back from looking at their website; What model or size of these suckers is right for the RTS: both rider and passenger??

Handle-bars...