Best seat pad?

[Sakly]

A small towel, folded over.

I used to do this until one day somehow it unravelled, caught in the rollers and unceremoniously dumped me painfully on rail behind the seat

Your experience with the loose towel is exactly what can happen if the user wears a loose shirt on the C2 rower. The tail of the shirt can get caught under the rear seat rollers, with a real possibility of the user tumbling backwards and sustaining a serious injury when his or her head strikes the rail or the floor.

To eliminate this risk I years ago built and installed a simple tubular structure that extends a few inches from the rear of the seat, thereby catching the tail of one's shirt and keeping it clear of the seat rollers. At the time I uploaded a video demonstrating the simplicity and effectiveness of this solution. A typical response was, "Ha,ha. Just wear a tight top!" Well, some people are modest and do not wish to wear a tight top. Also, it is a rowing machine, not a punch press. There should be no need to wear protective clothing while using exercise equipment. On a rowing ergometer, on any exercise machine, a person should be able to wear loose clothing without the danger of getting their clothing caught in the machinery. It is an inexcusable design flaw.

At the same time, when I installed the above described seat guard, I replaced the seat with a far superior seat salvaged from an old cheap piston-style rower. If that unknown manufacturer of that junk rower can design a better seat, then so can Concept 2. This too is an inexcusable design flaw.

I agree to the point of the risk of a shirt getting caught by the seat rollers and it could be easily prevented, even though I never had this issue, as I wear tight shirts or no shirt at all when rowing.

Regarding the seat I cannot complain. I find the seat comfortable, even rowing for a marathon (no longer distances rowed yet) I never faced any uncomfortable feelings. Probably I would change my mind, when I had used more comfortable seats on other rowers, but the C2 rower is the only one I used, since I started 2 1/2 years ago.

[Rowan McSheen]

The seat is fine for me, albeit a little hard (hence the folded towel and, previously, bubblewrap).

Seems to me that it's the user's responsibility to dress sensibly when on the erg, ie, don't wear long shirts that could foul the monorail.

[Dangerscouse]

A typical response was, "Ha,ha. Just wear a tight top!" Well, some people are modest and do not wish to wear a tight top. Also, it is a rowing machine, not a punch press. There should be no need to wear protective clothing while using exercise equipment. On a rowing ergometer, on any exercise machine, a person should be able to wear loose clothing without the danger of getting their clothing caught in the machinery. It is an inexcusable design flaw.

My response would be, tuck the back of your top in loosely to your shorts. Problem solved.

I also don't wear a tight top, but I've never had an issue

[Slidewinder]

A typical response was, "Ha,ha. Just wear a tight top!" Well, some people are modest and do not wish to wear a tight top. Also, it is a rowing machine, not a punch press. There should be no need to wear protective clothing while using exercise equipment. On a rowing ergometer, on any exercise machine, a person should be able to wear loose clothing without the danger of getting their clothing caught in the machinery. It is an inexcusable design flaw.

My response would be, tuck the back of your top in loosely to your shorts. Problem solved.

I also don't wear a tight top, but I've never had an issue

Your advice to tuck in any loose clothing, and advice from others to wear tight clothing, is the same safety advice given when operating shop equipment, but a rowing ergometer is not a lathe, milling machine, or table saw, and there should not be any necessity of taking special care with clothing to reduce the risk of injury during use.

[Dangerscouse]

Your advice to tuck in any loose clothing, and advice from others to wear tight clothing, is the same safety advice given when operating shop equipment, but a rowing ergometer is not a lathe, milling machine, or table saw, and there should not be any necessity of taking special care with clothing to reduce the risk of injury during use.

No. All I am doing is confirming that you need to do what is appropriate for the circumstances. You wouldn't run barefoot on a tarmac road, would you?

[Slidewinder]

No. All I am doing is confirming that you need to do what is appropriate for the circumstances.

In my experience your advice to tuck in a loose shirt tail doesn't work. After a few metres it comes out and gets caught under the rear seat roller. Is there any other piece of gym equipment that requires special attention to clothing to reduce the risk of injury? Maybe there is, but I can't think of any. Concept 2 could fix this with a simple, inexpensive guard extending a few inches out at the rear of the seat. Modest people would then not be forced, for their own safety, to wear a tight top in a public place when using the C2 rowing ergometer.

[Sakly]

No. All I am doing is confirming that you need to do what is appropriate for the circumstances.

In my experience your advice to tuck in a loose shirt tail doesn't work. After a few metres it comes out and gets caught under the rear seat roller. Is there any other piece of gym equipment that requires special attention to clothing to reduce the risk of injury? Maybe there is, but I can't think of any. Concept 2 could fix this with a simple, inexpensive guard extending a few inches out at the rear of the seat. Modest people would then not be forced, for their own safety, to wear a tight top in a public place when using the C2 rowing ergometer.

Of course, there is. Not only to clothes.
Treadmill, wear appropriate shoes.
Cable machine, keep check of long hair, as it can get caught by several movements.
Several machines, keep safety bars/devices in check and be sure to be able to handle them throughout the whole workout/set, otherwise you can get harmed.
Sure there are some more, but these came to my mind immediately.

Long story short: you need to use your brain, even when "only" using gym equipment.

[Slidewinder]

Long story short: you need to use your brain, even when "only" using gym equipment.

Short story short: Concept 2 needs to use its brains and for a few dollars add a simple guard to the back of the seat and thereby show its consideration for modest people who do not wish to wear a tight top in a public place while using the C2 rowing ergometer.

[Sakly]

Long story short: you need to use your brain, even when "only" using gym equipment.

Short story short: Concept 2 needs to use its brains and for a few dollars add a simple guard to the back of the seat and thereby show its consideration for modest people who do not wish to wear a tight top in a public place while using the C2 rowing ergometer.

I think different, but that's no problem. Anyone can have his own opinion.

[Ombrax]

Short story short: Concept 2 needs to use its brains and for a few dollars add a simple guard to the back of the seat and thereby show its consideration for modest people who do not wish to wear a tight top in a public place while using the C2 rowing ergometer.

The issue isn't how "tight" a top is, but how long it is. IMO the modesty thing is a total red-herring.

[Slidewinder]

The issue isn't how "tight" a top is, but how long it is. IMO the modesty thing is a total red-herring.

Nevertheless, you are still advising that special attention to clothing selection is necessary in order to avoid getting caught in the machinery. That was something I was taught in high school shop class, but never in the gym. It is an inexcusable design flaw, and it is easily fixed.

[Ombrax]

Nevertheless, you are still advising that special attention to clothing selection is necessary in order to avoid getting caught in the machinery.

Perhaps, but by some stroke of luck every single one of the sleeveless workout jersey's I've bought over the years (so not just regular ol' cotton t-shirts, which no one should use for erging) which means at least a dozen of them, has hit the sweet spot - long enough to avoid "plumber's butt" but short enough to stay away from the rollers. So in my case the degree of "special attention" required is not that special at all.

Furthermore, I buy dedicated tops and bottoms for cycling (and tons of it, because you have to cover a huge range of environmental conditions) and dedicated bottoms for erging, so going one more step and buying a top for indoor rowing (which also works very well for other gym exercises, since that's what it really is) is absolutely no big deal for me. YMMV

[HornetMaX]

For me the one that solved my issues with pain and rubbing was the Citius Remex......expensive but worked for me.

That for me too.

I rowed with the stock seat, the vapor fitness thin silicon thingy and/or the c2 pad and/or a folded towel.
The vapor fitness thingy is for looks only, the c2 pad had some effect on comfort, but still not enough.
The folded towel did close to nothing (I still use it in the summer, just to absorb sweat and avoid it trickles on the rail).

The Citius Remex was the only real solution for me: zero rubbing, zero sit bones pain since I bought it (second-hand, luckily).

[Slidewinder]

... buying a top for indoor rowing is absolutely no big deal for me.

So, you buy special shirts to avoid getting caught in the rowing ergometer machinery. The fix of this design flaw - a simple structure extending a few inches from the rear of the seat - would increase the cost of the RowErg by about one tenth the price of one of your special shirts.

[Rowan McSheen]

Gents, this guy is known for his ability to start an argument in an empty room. Maybe just let him have the last word and move on?