Road Cycling - Brooks Saddle Question

After reading so many raves here about Brooks saddles I have decided to try one. On e mailing Wallingford Bike they recommended either the Swift or the Team Pro for a road race type bike. I am currently using a Selle Italia Trans Am Max on my bike and was wondering if either or both are similiar to it. I like the Flite shape and want a fairly slender nose. Also how have you that use them in damp climates found them? I live in Florida and it is always very moist here. Thanks in advance for any input.

I was riding a pro-link and found that it got really painfull after about 90 miles, the thing never broke in, it was always comfortable at the start of a ride and failed at just around 90 miles every time. I replaced it with a Brooks swift TI. The brooks was really uncomfortable for about 700 miles then it one day when I was about 120 miles out I realized that I was still comfortable. Since then the swift has been the most comfortable saddle I've ever owned, so comfortable that I purchased Brooks saddles for some of my other bikes. A swift TI for my race bike and B-17 standard for the commuter. They are all very comfortable and look great on the bikes. I can't say enough about them, I highly recommend a brooks, also consider the fact that they may your bike a little different than others. I used only Brooks proof hide on mine, nothing else. I ride my commuter in all kinds of weather and the saddle has held up well, I just keep it well polished with proof hide.

I just changed from a Selle Italia Flite Ti Gel to a Brooks Swift Ti. I've only ridden it once for about 40 miles. With regard to shape, the Swift is slightly shorter than the SI Flite and it does have a narrow nose. With the SI, it seemed at times that I was "searching" for the best place to sit. The SI felt okay for the first few miles, then started "digging" in to my sit bones with the dull pain worsening as I continued to ride. I can tell there will be some "break-in" time with the Swift, as my behind was a little sore after the aforementioned ride; however, there was no pain while riding, and my behind felt significantly better than compared to the SI. I believe with a little time, this saddle will be everything I expect. Please note that there is a difference in how the saddle can be set up. I had the SI pushed way back, and the rails on the Swift will not allow it to be set up so far back. This actually is a good thing, since the bike I'm riding is the wrong size (too small). Hope this helps.

Side note: The saddle will be noticed by others. The ride above was a Sat. rally (sp?) and 2 people commented on the saddle, unfortunately on their way by me. :(

This is a very timely thread. I was just about to post some observations that have kind of dawned on me over the last couple of days.

First, I have 3 Brooks Team Pro saddles, two of which I got from Bill Laine at Wallingford Bicycle Parts (wallbike.com). Wallingford is located right here in New Orleans, and Bill is active in the very active Crescent City Cyclists touring/recreational bicycle club. Although I had met Bill at meetings, I hadn't heard of Wallingford until someone mentioned it on these forums a couple of years ago! Anyway I like the Team Pro. Its shape is comparable to Selle Italia Flite saddles.

Here are the observations, and I think they may ring with what Toothpick mentioned. Besides the Brooks I have Selle Italia Flite Genuine Gel, Selle San Marco Era, and a Bianchi branded time trial/triathlon saddle on other bikes. The Flite and the tri saddle are quite comfortable, but with the Era I experience chafing but not exactly on the sit bones as Toothpick describes. It's more in the crease where your butt cheek joins the thigh. This occurs on even my 22 mile round trip, maybe not the first day I ride this bike, but the second or third day in a row. Wierd, huh? I don't get this with the Flite or the tri saddle. I've tried various tweaks to no avail. Then just last night I was looking through a new Performance catalog which shows top views of saddles. I noticed that the Era has a definite pear or light bulb shape, that is, its narrow nose is followed by an abrupt widening. The Flite saddle, on the other hand, widens more gradually, almost a wedge, so that it may have a smaller, but adequate, sit bone area without the "corner" or however you would describe the abrupt widening. I suspect that it is that wider sitting area with a distinct forward edge that is the culprit. I am going to swap saddles around to try to confirm this theory.

Everyone sits a bike differently. I have noticed many sit farther forward on the saddle so this may not affect them. I tend to sit farther back. It's not the fore and aft saddle position. Whether I put the saddle all the way forward or all the way back I feel more comfortable on the saddle itself by sitting a little toward the back so that my sit bones are right on that wider area. By the way, my first Brooks was a B17 which was a very comfortable saddle. But as I got better and started trying do develop a fast smooth spin, I started experiencing this same type of chafing. Looking back at the B17 I realize it has the same type of abrupt widening that creates a distinct forward "edge" and corners to the sit area.

If you have read this far I am really sorry for boring you to death. I just thought these ideas may help others.
Regards,
Raymond

RainmanP I agree with what you said about the Selle Italia saddles and chafing. I just switched over to a road bike after several years on a MTB. I have used the Selle Italia brand saddles and was quite happy with them. On the bike I bought it came with a Selle San Marco Era Lux saddle. It was the worst saddle I had ever used. I then took the Selle Italia saddle from my MTB and was fairly confortable but at about 10 miles I would start cramping and chafing where my leg and butt meet. I never had this problem with my MTB possibly becaus of the more upright riding "stance". Hopefully the Brooks solves this. By the way how do the differant types of rails hold up and which is better? The thought of copper has me a little worried about durability.

I'm now up to about 100 miles on a new Brooks Professional. So far so good. I've not experienced break-in pain like some have mentioned. I too have had the chaffing at the leg/butt junction on many other seats. I noticed it the first time on the Brooks seat but it has not happened since.

FWIW, the Team Professional is narrower around the thighs, and is chamfered, too. Chafing is minimal with this saddle. The big, flat rivets likewise are more comfortable.
For those who experience stiffness, you can loosen the leather a bit. Get the adjustment wrench, or just use a 13mm. It's under the nose of the saddle-just don't loosen it too far (or over-tighten it later).

This thread inspired me to go replace the Era with one of my Team Pros. Aaah!

Thanks for the feed back from everyone. I think I will try the Team Pro. Hopefully I am as happy with this as everyone who posts on the site seems to be.