SADDLES AND SPRINGS IN RELATION TO ANATOMY AND HEALTH.
The problem of saddles in cycles is really one of the greatest moment,
and will continue to be, so long as any pain or discomfort is felt upon
the bicycle sufficient to discriminate against it in contradistinction
to that of sitting on a buggy-seat and being carried over a comparable
distance.
Too little attention has been paid to this subject in the past,
especially during the “Ordinary” _régime_. The general build of the
Ordinary is such as to make it quite difficult to attach comfortable
springs and saddles: many and various have been the attempts at
improvement, but all have been marked by only a comparative degree of
success. Were it not, however, for this success, small as it may be, in
making saddles comfortable, the cycling fraternity would have had the
entire medical profession down upon them, as some of them are anyhow.
Though a layman himself, the writer met a prominent medical man from
the West at the International Medical Congress, who stated that unless
these saddles were improved, he would order off all the young men in
any way under his charge, as he had already been compelled to do in
several individual cases. It is needless to dwell upon proofs of these
evils; they are within the knowledge of every bicyclist of experience.
Almost every rider knows of some special case of complaint, if not one
of real injury.
In an examination on one occasion, made by the writer, of some forty
or fifty wheels at a club house, fully two out of three were found that
would have been condemned as unridable by any good physician who had
given the matter careful attention.
The famous Kirkpatrick style of suspension saddle is a great advance
on most of the old short patterns, yet the necessary amount of free
elasticity is sadly lacking in the early patterns, and to some extent
the deficiency still exists. It is questionable whether the Kirkpatrick
is much better than some of the English types which, though shorter,
have a large amount of vertical play by means of good springs. The old
Harrington cradle spring was a marked advance on the Ordinary, yet it
was objected to as having “too much motion.” It is little encouragement
to inventors, when they have, after considerable labor, improved upon
an old device, to hear riders, who are more anxious to vent their
opinions than to give honest experience, make an objection to the very
point so long striven for and finally attained.
With the Rover pattern, where the room for springs is much more ample,
harmful results are rapidly vanishing. It is quite a novelty to watch
the body of a rider upon a well-sprung rear-driver Safety swinging
through a vertical distance of several inches, when we have been used
to riding upon a spring of a half or three-quarters of an inch of
amplitude.
The writer has examined machines where the saddle leather was down upon
the sheet-iron frame, and in which the entire motion of the spring
would not amount to a half-inch. If such devices do not breed mischief,
it will be for the reason that the riders are simply and absolutely
impervious to any attack upon their systems, and are possessed of
spines in their bodies more invulnerable than those in the machines.
Injury to the spine and other parts naturally showed itself more among
American than English riders, for the reason that the general average
of the road surface is much in favor of the latter, but complaint has
not been unknown even among our English brethren. It is a satisfaction
to know that many have awakened to this question, and it is a common
and gratifying sight to see prospective buyers testing the saddle and
springs of a new mount, as a matter of preliminary inspection, before
other points are considered at all. It is to be sadly feared that some
old Ordinary riders suffered greater injury than is commonly supposed
to have been incurred, but we hope that, since they have come to ignore
the supposed danger of being “thrown off” by a too lively spring, there
will be less trouble in the future.
The worst feature in the bicycle saddle is that nature did not intend
man to sit astride of anything, and this strikes me as the greatest
oversight in the general plan of our physical make up as pertaining to
cycle riding. Nature only provided three convenient ways of supporting
the body,—to wit, first, on the feet; second, sitting down, with the
body bent at the thigh joints; and third, lying down. Yet advancing
civilization desires something a little different from any of these. In
riding a cycle we find it best to stand erect upon the feet and yet get
a partial support for the body at the middle,—a condition nature has
not exactly provided for.
I have had prepared a cut of that part of the bony structure of the
body immediately concerned in this question and sufficient in detail to
enable us to understand the matter with the help of facts known to all.
It will be seen that the femurs, _a_, _a_, would have to swing
forward to a right angle with the trunk of the body—that is,
perpendicular to the plane of the paper—before we could sit upon the
bones nature intended,—to wit, on the tuberosities of the ischia, _e_,
_e_, or promontories of the pelvis. This position can be partially
obtained in horseback riding by the spread of the legs over the saddle.
When sitting upon a chair or buggy-seat, our weight is entirely upon
the right bones in the right way, but upon the bicycle this posture
cannot be attained except, possibly, in the act of coasting on the
Ordinary with the legs over the handle-bar. It must be observed, in
working the bicycle, that the legs are nearly straight down and the
feet almost as close together as when walking; hence, unless a man is
enormously bow-legged, he cannot obtain a rest upon the proper bones,
as will be seen from the drawing, which shows the position of the body
while working the pedals. The coaster on the Ordinary can sit back
upon the broad part of the saddle, and how keenly he appreciates the
relief immediately felt when he throws his legs over the handles! It
will be noticed that in the action of the bicycle saddle, shown by
the dotted lines _b_, _b_, the narrow part of the saddle rests in an
angle, _c_, formed by the pubic bones, which are joined together at the
apex of the angle by a tissue the doctors call the pubic symphysis.
The saddle forms a wedge between these bones and tends to spread them;
and though this wedging action can be modified to some extent, it is
still vicious. The broad part of the saddle catches a small proportion
of the downward pressure upon the tuberosities of the ischia directly,
but this is only attained by severely distorting the fleshy parts,
as shown by the dotted lines _b_, _b_. The body must evidently be
supported by the bones somewhere; we cannot hang upon mere flesh; and
it is doubtful if ever a saddle can be devised that will be entirely
natural and hygienic; hence it is all-important to rest the weight as
much as possible on the only other available support, the feet. This
can be done by keeping well over the work and resting upon the pedals,
and, above all by using good lively springs in connection with the
saddle-support. Here again we come upon the question of proper springs,
and find it has an element of health connected therewith as well as one
of momentum, as hereinbefore treated of.
[Illustration: Bicycle saddle and anatomy.]
Objection might be raised that the body is less bent at the thigh when
over the work than it was when we used to kick out forward in the old
velocipede, and that for this reason we are retrograding. This view
will not hold, however, for in any practical machine we have to get so
nearly straight up anyhow that we had better go a little farther, thus
taking a perfect position for work, and then attack the difficulty of
support by means of proper saddle-springs and by resting upon the feet
as much as possible.
In horseback riding there is no question of self-propulsion; hence
we can bend our bodies sufficiently to sit upon a good wide seat;
therefore the difficulty experienced in bicycle saddles does not apply
in the equestrian art, as would naturally be supposed.
Upon inquiry as to just what the deleterious results are of riding
poorly-sprung machines and improper saddles, and the cause thereof, I
find that “doctors differ” slightly. Some have expressed their opinion
that the trouble is in the irritation of the pubic symphysis resulting
from the wedging action before spoken of; others say it is the bending
and irritation of the coccyx, _d_, shown in the cut, owing to the
pressure sustained by it instead of by the ischia; others assert it is
the constant concussion upon the spine. I am inclined to think that the
entire field is pretty well covered by a letter from Dr. Entriken, of
Ohio, which will be found below.
“+R. P. Scott+:
“+Dear Sir+,—I do not agree with you in the idea as to the cause of
the trouble with the bicycle saddle. It is not the strain upon the
ligaments, muscles, or bones, nor the injury to the pubic symphysis
or adjacent parts, of which physicians complain. It is the bruising
and irritation of the urethra where it passes under the pubic
symphysis, and of the prostate gland, etc.; also the necessity of
muscular action in the lower limbs while the parts are so jostled,
bruised, and irritated. This muscular action pumps more blood into
the parts, increasing congestion and the tendency to cause disease
of the parts I have mentioned....
“Please note the usual narrow saddle fits close to the parts of
the pubic bones, and does not run back wide enough to allow the
weight of the body to fall upon the tuberosities of the ischia, as
in the Mexican and Spanish saddles, but bears upon the soft parts
between. You will note also that the ordinarily-shaped bicycle
saddle turns up so as to allow some weight to fall upon the os
coccyx, or end of the backbone, which brings in another factor in
producing what has been not inaptly called the ‘bicycle disease.’
We have pressure where pressure should never be made, and this
pressure, aggravated by the jolting motion, causing a series of
rapid concussions to fall upon the spinal column at the point where
it is not intended to make resistance,—to wit, the extreme end. If
a saddle could be constructed that would lift the soft parts of
the perineum comparatively free and cause the weight to rest on
the promontories of the ischia, thus protecting the soft parts and
communicating a less direct shock to the spine, the trouble would
be substantially overcome. I know the difficulty of accomplishing
this when the legs must be down and in motion, but some genius will
probably solve the problem.
“Yours truly,
“+F. W. Entriken.+”
Another opinion on the subject of health is as follows, from _The
Cyclist_, by Dr. Jennings:
“‘It is perhaps inevitable that persons who have no practical
experience should accuse the exercise, on theoretical grounds,
of producing various evils, such as varicose veins, hernia,
hemorrhoids, urethral stricture, and various forms of cardiac and
nervous diseases. As to varicose veins, it seems to be clearly
established that in those cases in which this condition is due
to chronic local causes, to constipation, and a sedentary life,
_actual benefit_ is derived from cycling, and that even in those
cases which are due to organic visceral disease no harm is
done.... As to cardiac and nervous disease, the case is different.
Race-meetings and the silly craze to “break the record” have
much to answer for. It is not difficult to understand how such
exercises may cause permanent injury to the heart, neurasthenia,
or even organic nervous disease.’ We presume the writer refers to
such exertions on the part of wholly or partially trained men, for
we have Dr. Turner’s word for it, and that is also the word of a
practical athlete, that to men in condition harm does not result.”
The importance of some care and knowledge on any subject connected with
spirited exercise should always be borne in mind; not only should we
give attention to the matter of saddles, but also to any other point
which may seem to be important. I append an article from the _Bicycling
World_, on another branch of the subject of health in cycling, which
explains itself.
“A SOURCE OF DANGER TO WHEELMEN.
“I would most earnestly call the attention of all wheelmen to that
most dangerous custom of wearing belts drawn tightly about the
waist to support the pants, or even where they are laced tightly or
where there is any constriction about the waist whatever.
“Many wheelmen are leading sedentary lives, especially the older
riders, and are not physically in a proper condition to put forth
the very severe muscular exertions which all wheelmen are called
upon to do, and one of the dangers which I wish to particularly
call attention to is that of causing hernia or rupture.
“I know of two cases of hernia caused directly by the severe
exertions put forth in climbing steep hills. One of them was a
particularly strong, healthy, and robust young man, and I am quite
confident that the indirect cause of those herniæ was the wearing
of tight belts. The young man alluded to above has always been very
active in out-door sports, very fond of lifting, and made it a
common custom to put forth his utmost strength whenever opportunity
offered, and he never had any tendency towards such a result until
he began bicycling, which brought about an entire change in form of
dress.
“When any person puts forth his strength in lifting—‘hill-climbing
is merely a form of lifting’—the abdominal muscles are called
strongly into play, and if by belting or other means they are
prevented from expanding and increasing the circumference of the
waist, their force is then directed towards forcing the abdominal
contents downward, and thereby greatly increasing the chances of
causing hernia.
“The clothing should always be loose about the waist. As suspenders
are inconvenient to wear and very uncomfortable in hot weather,
I would suggest that the simplest, and I think the best, way of
holding up the trousers is by means of a band sewed around the
inside of the flannel shirt, with buttons sewed through the shirt
and band and then the button-holes made on an extra band on the
inside of band of trousers, the same as little boys’ waists and
trousers are joined.
“I sincerely trust that no one will misconstrue this article as
condemning wheeling; no one believes in it more thoroughly than
your humble servant. I am writing from experience, not hearsay,
and I would desire all wheelmen to give heed to my warning, and so
avoid a source of danger.
“L. A. W., 18,954.”
[“The above is written by a physician who has made a special study
of hernia.—+Ed.+”]
There are some strong opinions on the other side of this belt
question, if the belts are of proper kind and rightly worn. Very few
agree unconditionally with L. A. W. However, it is hoped that no
alarm will be taken from the discussion of these subjects. They are
not so serious as might appear, except in cases of gross negligence.
But whatever danger there may be, it is best to be fully aware of it,
and thus be forearmed. As to saddles and springs, let riders show the
makers that they are alive to all improvements which will in any way
eliminate causes for anxiety in this as well as in other respects, and
thereby show that the fact of making a mile in a little shorter space
of time, or that of getting one inch farther up a stiff hill, is not
all that the modern cyclist proposes to consider.