So as I’m trying to resolve a nagging case of backside soreness, thoughts again turn to replacing the old saddle. So tell me about yours! What is(n’t) great about it?
I’m on an Ergon SR Pro M/L I’ve had for a few years. Used to be fine, but ironically I feel like - as I’ve lost a bunch of weight - I’ve less cushion for my sit bones, so they’re making more direct contact w the saddle, which feels like it’s causing more friction. Or something. IDK.
Pondering whether a wider or narrower saddle is better for reducing friction. My SB width is around 10cm, per Ergon’s size fitter, I should be on their S/M, with a 140mm width. My M/L is 153mm. So too wide for me?
My primary outdoor bike has a Selle Model X saddle, it’s got light padding and it’s perfectly comfortable. I’ve done several 100+ mile days and off-road (gravel bike that sometimes gets ridden like a mountain bike) rides on it and never had any discomfort.
My trainer bike has a solid carbon saddle with no padding at all. 78g, because saving weight on your static bike is all important (I have a Climb unit, lighter climbs faster, right? ).
I’ve been using it for more than 18 months and I love it.
I’ve actually found that having no padding at all is more comfortable for me on a bike that doesn’t move under you because then, so long as you’ve got a good chamois, you just get comfortable on the saddle and the padding doesn’t pinch, trap or rub you.
I know what you mean - I’ve got very little natural cushion… Long static rides are a challenge, mainly for this.
I’ve opted for a saddle without the cut-out (less surface area = more pressure), that helped.
After trying a few different saddles, I settled for Fizik Antares in regular width. It works ok, long rides outside are fine, indoors my sitbones get sore somewhere after 1 to 1.5hrs
I’m running a specialized power saddle. I love the big cut out (my bits don’t go numb anymore). The weird thing is the sizing. I have been working with a big fitter for a bit now on tweaking my fit due to some structural asymmetries (leg length discrepancy, hip impingement, flat feet). Following the old sit bone method I should be on a 143mm but after a saddle session I find I am way more comfortable on a 168 (just the way my hips roll when I ride). But the padding level works well for me (I’m 195 lbs out of season). I’ve done 100 mile rides and the power has worked great. But what I have learned is finding a place where you can rapid test a bunch of saddles is the way to go!
i’m in the same boat as @Cpref. By sit-bone size i am pretty narrow but because of differential hip mobility on one side vs. the other, i run a wider specialized saddle because i need area on which the hip can pivot a little bit. Continuing on the narrower, sizing based saddle means soft tissue pain. It’s not a leg length discrepancy but it brings me to the same place.
The only reason i know this is because i saw a good bike fitter who also is a physio who could take a holistic view. If you have trouble finding one that works, consider taking this route. It was well worth the money and time spent.
I went to one of those. Women’s specific design though due to a known issue with my hips and the area that my blood flows through. I can feel numbness in my right leg coming on.
Saddles are very personal, but I’ve found that saddle shells made from nylon vs carbon are more comfortable and padding where you need it vs thick padding is more comfortable in the long run. I’ve had a lot of luck with Fabric saddles. Ergon I’ve found to be not-so-cush for an hour or so, but amazing after 2-3 hours. I also discovered saddles with large cut-outs give me saddle sores.
Several manufacturers now offer fitting services. Use them and pay the $5 more for the saddle at the local shop.
— Update –
I broke a rail on one of my saddles and was able to snag a Prologo Scratch M5 AGX last minute to ride The Mid South. It’s seriously my new favorite saddle. The padding and shell are really thin, but supported me perfectly over 8 hours and 100 miles of gravel. There’s no cut-out, but there’s no shell in the perineal area, which provided me all the relief I needed. As a bonus, my gooch wasn’t packed with mud after the ride and having a little material there actually gave me a bit of support.
Road and mtb saddles are Specialized Toupe. These are great riding outside for hours on end. They absolutely kill my but on the immobile trainer. I want to get or build a full motion platform to help with that. In the meantime, I borrowed a Sella Italia Diva from one of my wife’s bikes. It’s kinda big and cushy with a decent groove down the middle.
I have a Selle Italia Novus Endurance TM Superflow Saddle (135 mm width) on my outdoor bike. Nice channel and it is great for long rides in the drops. That same saddle on my indoor spin bike is absolute torture, so, like Jon mentioned above, I use a much firmer Selle Italia Novus TM Saddle on it.
I’ve yet to find the perfect saddle, but I’ve definitely slowly improved over time.
I don’t remember what I had originally. It was whatever long-nose saddle my dad was using and it had a number of rips and was not very helpful for triathlons. I wasn’t able to feel comfortable in my tri bars and had numbness issues.
My cousin gave me his old Selle Italia saddle that had a thin cutout. But it was a bit too soft and the cutout was too small to help with my numbness issues.
Next I bought a clearance model from my LBS for $19. It was what they sold with most of their gravel bikes. It was stiffer and shorter had a slightly lower channel down the middle.
I then bought an ISM PS.1 triathlon split saddle used from a tri club teammate. That was better and alleviated most of the numbness issues. I used it for my first indoor century ride and my initial KOS quest. But the split nose had bumps on the ends and the nose was a bit too wide, so it would sometimes and the bumps would sometime hit in the wrong spots and I got my first ever saddle sore from using it without chamois cream with a certain pair or bike shorts that had a seam right where that saddle rubbed. I had to quit using those shorts until I got a new saddle.
My current saddle is a Fizik Argo R3 150mm. It’s narrower than the ISM which eliminated the thigh rubbing, but has a generous cutout so I can still mostly avoid the numbness and still comfortably use my tri bars. It’s not super comfortable, but it’s more comfortable than any of the other saddles I’ve used. I used it for my 2nd KOS quest which was about 12 hours of bike time. Some times on longer rides I do have to shift around when my sit bones start to get sore. But for the most part it allows me to ride longer indoor rides over 2 hours without a problem. And half of my bike shorts are tri shorts with less padding and I have ridden a number of 2 hour indoor workouts in tri shorts with no issues.
Some days when I’m only scheduled for a recovery ride I will do them indoors wearing gym shorts and boxers instead of putting on my bike shorts and I can do that comfortably for 30+ minutes, so it’s definitely a decently comfortable saddle.
Not necessarily. Some saddles that are absolute joys on the trainer are literal pains in the ass outside. The reverse is very true. However, I do have to change out my saddle and on my Pinarello, this is a chore I’m going to leave to the shop.
Go to a shop that has one. Ask if you can take it out for a test ride of two to three hours. Most shops have or should have testers for that purpose. See if it works for you. It’s like helmets. Sure I can buy a 30 USD helmet, but my brain is worth way more than that. I destroyed a 255USD helmet but it was also do for replacement. Two to three years, tops, here in the desert and the EPS dries out and becomes ineffective.
Get your sitz bones measured and then get a saddle that fits. Once you find one that works, buy in bulk and put it on all your bikes.
Less is more, as in less padding. That’s what the Chamois provides. I had such amazing rides on the Tekno that I’ve shelled all my saddles down to the carbon shell.
Pro Turnix on both my road and Trainer bikes. With anatomical cut-out and, importantly for me, the narrow 132mm one that’s not as easily found (where I live) than the 2 wider models. Went through about 12 saddles with a bike-fitter before hitting on the Turnix - then I did as @SirAlexanderLee recommends! My knighthood and lack of discomfort during or after says it all.
Key for me - the proprietary seat bone measuring “tool” in store wasn’t actually telling me what my measurement was but was just telling me what size I needed - 143mm (the narrowest of that brand’s saddles). When I finally measured myself (sitting on damp paper on a hard surface) and realised how narrow my measurement was I sought out narrower saddles and Voila - happy butt!
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