Saddle Physics

[The_Break]

Hi Guys and Girls

 

Interested to hear how you all set up your saddles and what type of saddles they are. Probably a topic that is not often discussed and which is not well known. My coach gave me a 30 min lecture on saddle setup the other day and I was amazed. Didn't know there was so much to it. Interested to see what else everyone knows?

[bikemonster]

No two butts are the same.

 

Saddle setup is therefore as personal as setting up your significant other. Expect it to take hours, involve lots of false starts, setbacks and heartache. But when you get it right expect feelings of deep contentment, satisfaction, smugness and awesomeness. There is no charge for awesomeness.

 

Make small adjustments (I'm focusing on saddles now), and keep track of what you're changing so you can return to previous setup if you need to.

 

And ignore people who tell you what saddle you should be riding, unless they are your identical twin they do not know of what they speak. The saddle is the one piece of bike kit where price is not even a vague clue as to how happy you will be. The saddle that made me happiest was a cheap, no-name brand saddle on a Raleigh...and there have been many, many saddles since.

[Bos]

sheesh Bikemonster you make this sound like a lifelong struggle and no certan success at the end..

 

Im sure there will be seats that work for a "roughly similar build" if there ever was something like this.

have not personally tried one but many swear by Gobi's for mtb's, and they are not all exactly the same build. But you make some valid points, and there is truth in your long term trial and error theory. And it can be expensive!

 

In my eyes a good saddle is a flat firm saddle, It musnt have a rocker, and not to much padding. Though im quite a skinny oke I like a broadish nose that is slightly squared off. Im riding a Tundra on my Mtb. Have been for 18 months. It took about 10 months for my bum to really get use to the pressure on the tailbones but I have never experienced my man-parts go numb. Im using a Planet X team saddle on my roady which is similar to the Arione, I think I might invest in an actual Arione, as Many racers with my "fizik" scuse the pun, have had good results with it. The Planet X I have has a hide strip down the middle and I find it sticks to my short and causes friction giving me saddle sores if in the saddle for long time.

 

I found Specialised BG seats do not work for me at all. Maybe Its also a case of getting use to it, but I cant imagine having to get use to a seat that is so uncomfortable that I cant stay on it for 30 minutes.

 

It might be cool to post ones build and tailbone width so that Others can try what worked for similar body tipes.

 

 

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Hmmm... Quite tricky, I agree.

 

My MTB has the stock-standard Felt saddle on it, that kinda looks like a Tundra but is slightly softer & with a thinner cushion. Very nice, but hard to maneuver unless it's lowered by 3 inches. But that might just be my inexperience.

 

My road saddle is a hard, thin (in both cushioning and width) specimen, which is great for long rides.

 

Both of them are fantastic, although the road saddle was a bit too hard to begin with, it has bedded in nicely.

 

The Felt saddle, though, is the comfiest I have sat on. And I assume it would cost approx R 250 to replace..

[Growler1]

Great topic.

 

I'm going through the whole saddle issue myself and have ordered the Selle Italia Maxiflight. Had my sit bones measured at 150mm and been told this is a good place to start.

 

Unfortunately these saddles don't come cheap and I can see this being a fairly expensive learning curve.

[bikemonster]

The Hub classifieds is a great way to keep the cost down.

 

It also helps if you have a good relationship with your LBS. Deon at Cyclefunatic lent me a Specialized Romin which I used to ride the Burger with. By the end of the race I felt like a new prison initiate.

 

I've tried the Arione, and didn't really get along with it.

 

Selle Italia SLR was lightweight and blingtastic but hateful, although some love them.

 

There was at least one other Selle Italia that I failed to get on with.

 

Fi:zik Aliante felt nice, but chafed around the edges, which was a pity 'cause it's a great saddle to sit on (for me), and I still have one on my MTB.

 

Fi:zike Pave was slightly narrow, although no chafe issues.

 

Currently trying a Selle Italia Flite TT...fingers crossed it might be a keeper. I rode a three hour ride on Sunday and finished in relative comfort, although I still need to get the fore/aft and tilt 100% dialled in. My difficulty has been in finding a saddle that doesn't chafe on the edges. I know I could use some butt lube (oooh, look, we're back at prison jokes!) but I expect to be able to be comfortable without when I ride for between 6 and 10 hours a week.

 

(Edited 'cause I got confused between Arione and Aliante.)

Edited December 14, 2010 by bikemonster

[leeu52]

The Momentum 94.7 and Argus will be etched on my bum forever! Thought I finally cracked the saddle issue, but between my hands going numb and bum burning up....eish!

[Tumbleweed]

There was at least one other Selle Italia that I failed to get on with.

 

Fi:zik Arione felt nice, but chafed around the edges, which was a pity 'cause it's a great saddle to sit on (for me), and I still have one on my MTB.

Have them on most of my bikes.

Fi:zike Pave was slightly narrow, although no chafe issues.

Have one on my (in pieces) Trance.

Currently trying a Selle Italia Flite TT...fingers crossed it might be a keeper. I rode a three hour ride on Sunday and finished in relative comfort, although I still need to get the fore/aft and tilt 100% dialled in. My difficulty has been in finding a saddle that doesn't chafe on the edges. I know I could use some butt lube (oooh, look, we're back at prison jokes!) but I expect to be able to be comfortable without when I ride for between 6 and 10 hours a week.

Hate those saddles. One landed me in hospital

[Squier]

 

 

Fi:zike Pave was slightly narrow, although no chafe issues.

 

 

Decided to give the Pave a go about 5 months back and I am really enjoying it. I love the fact that it is so narrow, like you said, no chafe issues. The saddle is specifically intended for riders doing less than 2500kms a year according to Fizik, and even though I'll probably do a bit more than that (not much more due to the fact that most of my riding during the week is done on a spinning bicycle) but this saddle fits me like a glove. Guess I was lucky as I took a chance and bought it on thehub and I'm really enjoying the saddle now. Also didn't take me that long to get used to it.

[Caerus]

Its taken me a year of testing to get to the right saddle( I hope) Been on the Fizik Gobi for a year and it didn't work for me, tried the Selle Italia SLR Gel, again that didnt work. Then had my butt measured(seat bone) which is always a good idea, and realised that I should rather be on the wider saddles, so it was back to my old(6-7 year old) Specialized V- saddle, which felt like a cloud to sit on, now Ive tried and tested the Specialized Phenom Comp Gel and found that this is the one for me, so they hunt continues, so far its stretched to Oz to find the one I want.

[Caerus]

What did your coach say about saddle physics, some help for the weekend warrior & occasional race snake? What was his take on it(expertly speaking).

 

Its a game of patience, waiting for the seat to eventually break in too. Comfort cannot be related to cost, and vice versa.

[AndreZA]

The best thing you can do to a good saddle is a good seatpost with micro adjustments. None of this one bolt stuff that you have to undo completely to tilt the saddle. Look at a Thomson. You can change the tilt by a fraction of a degree by undoing one bolt 1/4 of a turn and tightening the other by the same.

[Renier82]

The best thing you can do to a good saddle is a good seatpost with micro adjustments. None of this one bolt stuff that you have to undo completely to tilt the saddle. Look at a Thomson. You can change the tilt by a fraction of a degree by undoing one bolt 1/4 of a turn and tightening the other by the same.

 

proper seatpost saved my ass+lowerback on the Hardtail.

[slowpoke]

i loved the pave that i'd had and i did wayyyyyy more than that "recommended" distance. then when i replaced i tested a whole lot of saddles and found my "partner" - the arione and i will have a lifelong relationship. i am a girl, a tad chubby and very short but that saddle works for me.

 

BUT that doesn't mean it will work for everyone...

 

while i had my pave (and loved it) i lent my bike to someone for the fast one... apparently at around 60km she couldn't even sit anymore. she hated it with a passion and it did NOT suit her.

 

LESSON - everyone's butt is different so find the right saddle for yours.

[LeTurbo]

I finally swopped my 1980's Selle Italia leather saddle the other day for a +/- R600 Selle Italia SL. Very bling in white, but I did the Lagoon race on bumpy roads and my bum wasn't as numb at all. Huge relief. That said, I weigh in at 60kg with (I'm told by those I gather might know better than me) the posterior of a 14-year old. I move around a lot in the saddle and often get right off the back, only clinging on with my thighs when climbing

[Fitter]

Well I know a thing or two about saddles and how to set them up. I won't claim any more than a couple or more years of bikefitting and being a qualified bikefitter could lend me, but I do know that ischial width and bike posture are the two most important departure points. Then you can add in leg-length discrepancy, pelvic tilt or rotation, functional leg-length adjustment and proprioceptive response as important elements in achieving optimum saddle fit. I also know dynamic fitting is by far the best method for achieving proper saddle fit and in truth there are few saddle manufacturers out there paying proper attention to saddle design.

 

But love to hear what coach has to say about how to fit a saddle.