And this is why they make custom seats.

Yeah, the stock seat on my WCGS isn't as good as it could be, but for me it's good enough. I've torched a couple of tanks in a day (that's about 400 miles BTW, mine isn't an adventure) and other than perhaps some mild discomfort towards the end it's was okay. One thing I do is down a couple of aspirin not Tylenol, not Alive, not Ibuprofen, but genuine Aspirin before the ride, it helps thin the blood a little and I find this helpful to me.

I have only done a custom seat on one of my motorcycles, this was my '91 Airhead GS P-Dakar. Between very little padding and narrow after about 30 minutes it got uncomfortable to the point of I had to stop and get off. I rode down the Corbin factory and had one custom made for me, it seemed comfortable at first but after a while I found it was worse than the stock seat. What worked was a Meyer built on the Corbin base. It was not low at all, but quite thick and soft.

Otherwise, so far, what comes on the bike is good enough for me.

- John

 

Love a simple fix....

I love a simple fix to what is a true Pain in the Arse. Going to try this before my next ride!

 

I love a simple fix to what is a true Pain in the Arse. Going to try this before my next ride!

Oh, and do. 50 cents worth of aspirin may work as well as a $600 custom seat.

 

Ergonomics is often a pain in the butt.

I find that the tail bone and sore bum issue is often caused by fatigue, which in turn causes the rider to slouch, and as a result roll their pelvis backwards. This is caused by the lower spine flexing incorrectly and reversing what should be a concave lower curve into a convex one. We all do it and the ergonomics of the bike can be a primary cause but often it's just fatigue.

Large cruisers are often the worst examples of this. Legs extended, feet forward, low seat and raked bars.
The geometry compels riders to roll their pelvis and rest on their tail bone.

Unfortunately, the only true cure is a stronger core. Adjusting settings, angling the seat, new seats, lowered or raised foot pegs and bars can all help, as can getting off the bike more often, but when you need to haul long distances, you need to be fit and have a strong core.

Isn't it strange though, that at the end of a long, long, long days ride, if the last few miles are on a twisty piece of smooth, fast blacktop that you have all to yourself - we don't seem to notice our butts. 0