AMS Comfort-Max Gel Pads

CALL IT WHAT YOU WILL, NUMB BUTT, MONKEY BUTT, ETC., AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE SPECIALTIES HAS COME UP WITH A WAY OF COPING WITH THE BUTT-TO-SADDLE PROBLEM

Comfort-Max Gel Pads use a softly firm “viscoelastic molded gel,” one of those small miracles of modern science, to cushion your delicate derriere from the unrelenting pressure of a Naugahyde-covered saddle.

Put the pad on your saddle, throw a leg over the bike, settle in, and a 3/4-inch layer of this gel will redistribute your weight. I don’t know how to describe the sensation, except that at the moment I am sitting in front of my computer on a wooden, with the pad in between. The gel allows for a little bit of movement, and creates quite a difference in how long I can sit.

Same on a motorcycle, where I gave the pad the toughest test. Put a Gel Pad on a Kawasaki Nomad, and you may feel it is time to try that 500 mile day. Anybody who buys a Ducati Multistrada probably thinks about the comfort problem, as that seat seem to be a thinly covered piece of wood. The seat pad comes with either a “stretch vinyl” or a sheepskin cover which zips open so you can put the gel inside. AMS says you can also put the gel in the fridge to cool it down for a hot day’s ride, or, conversely, warm it up for a cold day.

The cover has a rubbery grippy bottom which does not slide around on a Naugahyde surface, allowing you to just plonk the pad down on the saddle without any attachment. You can also use the strip of hook-and-loop fastener on the bottom to stick the pad to an adjustable strap that runs over the saddle and affixes to the seat via plastic-coated metal hooks on each side. Keep in mind that the pad will raise your seat height by its thickness, but a little tippy-toeness may be a small price for longer stays in the saddle.

The AMS Gel Pad comes in four sizes, from the 7- x 11-inch Buddy Pad at $59.95 to the big fleece-covered Jumbo at $114.95. Clement Salvadori