I’m hoping someone can offer some advice.
I love long distance cycling, and plan to do a 200 km brevet within the next year (with plans to do 300 km, 400 km and beyond as my schedule allows).
I’ve done 180 km+ and regularly ride 80 - 100 km+ at a time (multiple times a month).
My ass, hands, and legs are totally fine until around 130 km, then saddle pain creeps in.
I will admit that doing these distances on a folding bike with 20" tires isn’t ideal, and perhaps that’s just the limitation I have to work with. I do have a suspension seat post and wear padded shorts on those long rides, but again, everything is quite comfortable until around 130km.
Is this a bike fit issue? A padded shorts issue? A small tire issue?
Did you ever measure your seat bone width?
Yes, I do recall doing this when deciding which saddle(s) to look at last year. I do have thousands of KM on my current saddle and can go for <50km rides without padded shorts without any issues to speak of.