I still recommend them padded bike shorts...
I finally caved and ordered a pair. They're the mtb kind with the sewn in padded liner. Should be here mid-week. But soreness has been cut WAY down since swapping that seat, though. I gave Junior the Bontrager seat off the Trek, and she's holding up OK so far, but may need a new one herself.
I couldn't believe how wiped out ****'s was. Not a single adult bike helmet in the entire store, so I ended up having to order three of them off Amazon with the adjustable MEPS system to make sure they fit (the click-type adjustment for the suspension). REI still has its stores closed other than online pickup, and they don't show what inventory, if any, the local stores already carry, which makes it completely useless.
My super-purple-that-looks-pink platform pedals showed up yesterday, but that's OK, I'm safe in my masculinity
Much wider and grippier than stock, even though I already flattened a couple pins on the curb (whoops). I kept slipping off the stockers.
I am
determined to learn to bunny hop/wheelie/manual this thing. I never thought it would be so much harder than a BMX bike. You REALLY have to commit to throwing your weight back because the wheel is so big and the axle centerline is so far back! But, I really want to be able to hop this thing over bigger roots/branches, and be able to level the bike out in case I go off any drops. I'm sure part of it just has to be overthinking things, because surely the average person who takes up mountain biking can't do any of those things either when they start?
Probably ridden once or twice a day for the past 4 days or so. Bike holding up OK so far other than some little plastic thread protectors that I think were there to protect the threads in the crankset, a wheel coming loose (quick release just not tight enough), and needing to adjust the front brake caliper (it was just barely dragging on the face of the fixed pad). All good now.
My legs are frickin' TIRED, but the quad pump is killer!