Commuting - Why such a hard seat vs Soft seat??

I am new to biking and have a mountain bike with a semi soft seat and a road bike brand new just bought it for 2000.00 that i will commute to work with long distances.

Anyway, my work commute will take about 40 miles round trip. My mountain bike i have road 30 mile trips without much issue of saddle sores or discounfort.

I got my NEW road bike the other day and it has a Really Expensive hard seat. I seen the seat costs in stores around 100+ dollars. Anyway, am i missing somthing.

Why are the hard light seats so expensive while my Mountain bike is a little bigger an has more padding ?

I was thinking of swapping my seat out for one that has more padding ?? Any ideas to this ??

I already have a pair of good biking pants with the padding in them along with good biking underwear.

So my next step i guess it to get a little more padding on the seat. Is there anything wrong with this thinking ?

I am 6,2 198lbs

thanks

jay

good biking pants with the padding in them along with good biking underwear

I never wore tights before, but aren't you suppose to "freeball" it when you wear them.

I never wore tights before, but aren't you suppose to "freeball" it when you wear them.

LOL, "freeball"! That's a new one. Anyhow... yes, commando when wearing padded bike shorts. As for the OP's main question... what exactly is your question? My roadbike's saddle is "hard" but quite comfortable. Don't think that it will be uncomfortable merely because it's harder than the saddle on your MTB. Too soft a saddle can be painful too! I'm sure more qualified posters will make suggestions regarding choosing the right saddle for you: while discarding your new road bike's saddle merely because it's hard isn't wise, it still may not be the right saddle!

Use what works best for you. If a seat is too soft, though, your "sit bones" can sink into its padding far enough that now your surrounding tissues (muscles and Other Things) start bearing weight too.

What I like is a saddle more along the lines of a racing saddle, like WTB SST models, with firm thin padding on a flexible base that has some sag to it. I own a Flite Carbon that takes this to the extreme... zero padding, just a very springy carbon shell. And if I'm in shape, cranking out a long ride on it isn't a big deal (given a bike that isn't a sledgehammer to ride, anyway). If I'm not in shape, then anything will hurt after a few hours ;)

A hard, slim saddle can give you support where you need it, and freedom of movement too. Swap it out if it sucks, but try it first. My roadie has a very hard saddle, but it never gets uncomfortable. My tourer that I use for commuting has a slightly softer, but still pretty small saddle, and also never gets uncomfortable. I have a mtb/cruiser thing with a huge foam monstrosity on it, which is nice to sit on, but rubs if I try to do 20 miles on it.

I am new to biking...
This may be the answer to your question.



Soft saddles will be uncomfortable after ~10 miles. A saddle that is too firm with little padding will also be uncomfortable.
Your sit bones and butt aren't used to sitting on a slender seat and you have to give that part of your anatomy time to get used to the saddle. After a few weeks you should be used to it and you may find that the saddle is very comfortable.

Another problem you may be experiencing is riding a road bike for commuting. Twenty miles each way is a lot of time in the saddle if the roads you're riding on are typical of most city roads -- potholes, broken pavement, trash in the road, etc. Road bike frames aren't always built to absorb or dampen the constant shock and vibration caused by crappy roads. Road bikes are intended to be ridden on fairly smooth roads.

Perhaps you should save the road bike for weekend rides and get a bike that is better suited to commuting. My personal choice is a cyclocross bike. Other folks ride hybrids or mountain bikes.



I already have a pair of good biking pants with the padding in them along with good biking underwear.
Oh no! Here comes the UnderWear Nazi. :eek:
By "pants" I'm guessing you mean shorts.
Underwear isn't necessary when wearing padded bike shorts or tights. Commando is the correct way to wear them!!

I'll let the UN fill you in on the details.

I found that some seats with too much padding allow my body parts to settle in and can cause chafing. Too little padding means bruised sitbones.

Sometimes it takes a while to find a seat that's perfect. Almost any seat works fine for me the first 40 miles or so. A really good seat will be reasonably comfy well past 70 miles.

Az

Saddles are pretty much a personal thing. When I first upgraded my saddle to a Flite, I thought, yeah, harder is better. It was better than my stock cheesy perch, but much too hard. Then I bought a WTB mtn saddle for road riding, and things were better still. But after riding the Montauk Century, still wasn't quite right. Came upon a Specialized BG saddle on clearance. Oooh, getting even better. Turns out the saddle was too wide and still not quite comfy.

Then I bought my Tricross. Came with the latest Body Geometry saddle and it was the right size. SWEET! I had to get used to the feel of it, but it is perfect! Now, if I can find the perfect shorts...

Moral of the story is, you will have to try all sorts of different saddles and find out what works for you.

I have a mtb w/ a 1st gen Specialized BG that's wide and well padded. I also have a Brooks which is leather and hard. Both are comfortable with the edge going to the Brooks. I've done 60+ mile rides on the soft, squishy seat, but I noticed after I got my Brooks that it also chafed more than the smooth Brooks. Give the roadie saddle a week to get used to. Your sit bones need to get comfy and adjusted and you need a few trips to adjust the saddle position to find a comfortable position. Unless the saddle's too narrow and feels like it's heading for your colon everytime you sit on it, you may actually get used to it.

When I got back into cycling in a big way, I had some comfort issues with the road bike saddle. I wrapped it up with cloth strips from old t-shirts and duct tape and thus became a laughing stock. So abashed, I removed it, had some pain for a bit, got used to it, and it became a non issue.

When I got a beater that came with a big ass, wide cushioned saddle I thought to give it a try. After ten miles, I found it excruciating for the chaffing and swapped it with a cheapo road saddle. Way better.

Give it time.

Where is the mandatory brooks post?
I'm disappointed in you people.

Not that I can speak towards a brooks. I have a fitz ardonee (or something like that). Works fine except for the creaks are bugging me.

Oh no! Here comes the UnderWear Nazi. :eek:

Where has that guy been, anyway? I haven't seen him in awhile. It's always a pleasant visit. :D

Asside from the fact that you're a new rider and not used to the seat to begin with, the other thing to consider is the possibility that the seat isn't adjusted properly for you. Remember, your assbones should be coming into contact with the seat and supporting you. Try adjusting it. I have a *very* hard, lightweight (read: expensive), saddle on my road bike, and the first time I put it on it was very painful after a handful of miles. An adjustment got rid of all of that.

Where is the mandatory brooks post?
I'm disappointed in you people.

Not that I can speak towards a brooks. I have a fitz ardonee (or something like that). Works fine except for the creaks are bugging me.

I've been busy this morning. Give me a chance...;)

Padding on a bicycle saddle? What silliness will they come up with next? You have padding in your shorts. That should be plenty.

For a short 30 mile ride, any old saddle will do.

Where is the mandatory brooks post?
I'm disappointed in you people.

Not that I can speak towards a brooks. I have a fitz ardonee (or something like that). Works fine except for the creaks are bugging me.

EYUUU-oh-EEEE-oh-OOOOOOO.... (Gregorian Chant)

Come to The Light. Get thee a Brooks and find Peace. Be not a sinner or thou shalt be visited by Fitz of Agonee. :D

Where is the mandatory brooks post?
I'm disappointed in you people.

Not that I can speak towards a brooks. I have a fitz ardonee (or something like that). Works fine except for the creaks are bugging me.


BROOKS!!! Prosoft, no padded shorts, and I (my butt) feels great. If I ride any of my Padded saddles, I get some chaffing, which will hurt for a day or two. I have another brooks with sprung rear side of the saddle, I don't ride it much, and therefore when I do, it doesn't feel right. But it doesn't feel as bad as a soft saddle does to me.

I played polo this last weekend on a borrowed bike (set up for polo), and it had a padded seat. Today is the first day I felt "able" to ride to work, and I wasn't even sure about today, but I had to ride.

I think if it's too well padded, the "stuff" gets up into your stuff, where it aint supposed to be.

All in all, there are different butts out there, some firmer, some softer. find a saddle that doesn't hurt your rear. Unfortunately, this may require some trial and painful error.

Have you ever seen padded saddles on horses? We don't need no stinkin padding, just a fine piece of leather to straddle will do. :D

I thought y'all in Ohio still rode bareback :p

I thought y'all in Ohio still rode bareback :p
I read that as brokeback :roflmao:

I read that as brokeback :roflmao:

ACK! OMG :roflmao: :roflmao:

My road bike came stock with a soft-ish seat. I shopped around and found a new seat with virtually no padding. I'm much more comfortable on this seat than I have ever been on a soft seat, whereas I have friends that can only ride on plusher seats. My conclusion was that the original seat on my road bike didn't fit my geometry correctly. So, I test-rode 4 seats and came up with the lightest and stiffest of them fitting my sit-bones comfortably. Also, I gave up spandex/padded shorts a while ago because I couldn't find a chamois that was reasonably priced that didn't cause chafing. Therefore I use hiking shorts and a pair of MTS underwear. This prevents the amount of material moving around between my legs and crotch. You might want to try getting rid of all that material down there. Hope this helps.

----
Reza Fakhrai

I thought y'all in Ohio still rode bareback :p

Only on the fillies and mares. :p

I read that as brokeback :roflmao:

You being a Texan and all, I can see why!! Easy hoss, this thread is about hard SADDLES :eek:
:beer:

You know I really miss New Mexico this time of year...Memorial Day weekend always marks the start of the Texan hunting season!