Will Brown's hunt for the perfect Chamois Cream

Will Brown, a pro rider from the Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling Team has been keeping himself busy throughout this "lockdown" period. If you follow his Instagram you'll see! He approached us recently to ask if he could write this piece about his trials and tribulations with finding a chamois cream that worked for him. We'll let Will do the rest...

I can remember the first time I used chamois cream; it was August 2012 at Stockton GP. I’d been granted a last-minute entry after winning the support race on the Friday night, I’d been given some samples as part of the prize. I remember thinking to myself, oh this is the longest race of my life, I better use some of this stuff. Fast forward 4 hours and 100 odd miles and a good kicking and I’m sat at home aching and tired thinking, “well that stuff wasn’t very good”, I can’t say I was any more comfortable in the saddle - right that’s it, no more chamois cream for me.

Now let’s move to 2017, I was having real trouble with the chamois in the team kit that year. For whatever reason, I couldn’t get comfortable; different saddles, changes in position...nothing could get rid of a problematic saddle sore. 

Now saddle sores sound a bit grim, this wasn’t catastrophic, I could still ride, but I just winced every time I sat back down and I really knew about it after a few days of riding and training. Back to the chamois cream we go… I think I tried 8-10 brands in total, all different types. The ones that feel like you’ve put Colgate fresh mint toothpaste down there, ones that did nothing other than smell nice, even one that made you look like you’d used fairy liquid on a wet day! Until I settled on one which was a bit like Vaseline but with a posh name and more ingredients. I liked it. 

I used it for around 18months - I still got the occasional sore but nothing as bad. However, the one downside was it never really washed out properly to the point of it ruining my shorts and it used to leave your saddle more polished than a granite worktop in a kitchen showroom! Anyway, I was back into the comfy bib tights that winter so no more chamois cream needed!

Moving into the winter of 2019, I’m chatting to Jack Rees and he mentions the possibility of Veloskin sponsoring the Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling team for 2020. I’d heard of them and seen them on social media, but didn’t really know what they specifically made or what the company stood for, nor had I ever used their products. We had a team meeting in December 2019, of which all the sponsors were invited as well the new members of the team to have a get-together and find out the plans for the year and the way the team worked. New sponsors included Weldtite, Huub and VeloSkin. That December at the team meet the Veloskin team gave a very interesting product talk. 

It was clear to see they really cared about their range and the purpose they were trying to serve with their products and as a brand. Much like me, as cyclists themselves, they’d used various different chamois creams with differing results, which is why they went to great lengths to make one that actually performs properly. I can remember messaging the Instagram account after using my allocated drop for the first time and being delighted that I’d found a chamois cream that actually worked as it should. 

So that’s that, I’ve been using the Veloskin range for almost 6months now and I can honestly say hand on heart I have never been so comfy on a bike! Along with the chamois cream they offer shaving products with shave cream and post shave lotions, a moisturiser and a soothing gel, which is a hidden gem. I swapped between chamois throughout winter, had 2 training camps in old and new kit and not a saddle sore in sight! 

So that’s it, Will’s chamois cream conundrums - solved! It's easy to say as they're a sponsor for the team, but I can't recommend their products enough. See you on the road, and stay safe!

Will Brown

Check out our blog from the training camp in Calpe from February 2020 to see what we got up to when we spent a few days with Will and the team.