Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling - What saddle do you use?

I am curious what the most common/prefered saddle is. I am in the process of trying out all different sorts and would like to atleast try some that seem to be popular. Anyway can you please write

What saddle do you use?
How far do you usually ride?
Male or Female?
How satisfied are you with the seat?


Thanks

Specialized Toupe
Male
Typical ride 40-50 miles up to 80
Somewhat satisfied. It eliminated the numbness entirely which was a problem. I had tried 3 previous saddles. After 50 miles or so it starts to feel hard. Nothing I haven't handled obviously

A Brooks Titanium Swift, comfortable from day one tested up to 1400km LEL and good
http://www.tredz.co.uk/catalogue/images/large/6510-large.jpg

What saddle do you use? Brooks B17
How far do you usually ride? Up to 1200km randonnees
Male or Female? Male
How satisfied are you with the seat? Extremely

What saddle do you use? -- Brooks B17, of course ... is there any other brand for long distance cyclists?? :D

How far do you usually ride? -- Usually 10,000+ kms a year including everything from short, relaxed rides after work to 1200K randonnees.

Male or Female? -- Female

How satisfied are you with the seat? -- EXTREMELY!!! I've got over 25,000 kms on it now, and it is the most comfortable saddle I've ever owned by far!! :)

fizik carbon ti aliante (i rock brooks b17 and pro on my other bikes):eek:

male.:rolleyes:

110 miles or so miles so far.:roflmao:

way satisfied.:roflmao:

i had my geared bike (IF ti club racer) built up plannin' on a brooks pro. my lbs had to order so they had an aliante they put on til it came in. man o man do i love me some aliante!:beer:

my roots are in fixed gear and brooks of course, but if ya get a chance try out the aliante.
i kid you not!:beer:

Saddle(s): Brooks B17's on my Specialized Sequoia and currently on my Trek 520. The latter used to have a B67 with North Road bars until three weeks ago. On my Trek 930 MTB, I have a B67 because it's been road-morphed for long rides.

How far: Medium 40-50 miles during the week, to 80-100 if I have time on week-ends.

Male

Very satisfied. I've learned. I won't use anything else but thick hide leather saddles.

For some people the B17 doesn't work. I'm one. I suffered mightily with my B17. Twice, on longer rides, I had hematoma's the size of a lemon. Not pretty, and no fun. I took three weeks off the bike to recover both times. The first time I thought the seat wasn't broken in. The second time, months later, I switched. I had close to 4000 miles of breaking in. I switched to a selle-anatomica http://www.mcmwin.com/images/R0010582.JPG It was narrower and floated with my body. There is no break in and is waterproof.

What saddle do you use?
How far do you usually ride?
Male or Female?
How satisfied are you with the seat?
Thanks

Koobi PRS www.koobi.com
Up to 200 miles at a shot and my shortest is commute which is 45 roundtrip
Male
Very

Brooks B-17 Champions Special on 3 different bikes. Oldest one has approximately 20,000 miles and is definitely the fave. I ride between 4,000 and 6,000 miles per year, and longest ride yet is RAIN twice (160+ miles).

For some people the B17 doesn't work. I'm one. I suffered mightily with my B17. Twice, on longer rides, I had hematoma's the size of a lemon. Not pretty, and no fun. I took three weeks off the bike to recover both times. The first time I thought the seat wasn't broken in. The second time, months later, I switched. I had close to 4000 miles of breaking in. I switched to a selle-anatomica http://www.mcmwin.com/images/R0010582.JPG It was narrower and floated with my body. There is no break in and is waterproof.


Ditto for me. 800 or so miles of breaking in and my B-17N was still looking (and feeling) like it was right out of the box.....like it was made of granite. BAD problems w/ numbness and saddle sores which were keeping me from doing any longer rides. I switched back to my stock saddle and have been OK since, but I'm looking for alternatives.

....and yes, it was professionally fitted to me (and the bike).

....and yes, it was professionally fitted to me (and the bike).
Well there you go... that was the problem right from the get-go! ;) :D

Brooks Swallow on the LD bike
Brooks Swift on the beater
Brooks B17 on the MT

Brooks conquest (2)
Brooks Team Pro

250-300 miles per month, longest ride 40 miles.

Male

Very satisfied

I also use a Specialized Alias but am less happy with it. It starts to get uncomfortable after about 25 miles.

For some people the B17 doesn't work. I'm one. I suffered mightily with my B17. Twice, on longer rides, I had hematoma's the size of a lemon. Not pretty, and no fun. I took three weeks off the bike to recover both times. The first time I thought the seat wasn't broken in. The second time, months later, I switched. I had close to 4000 miles of breaking in. I switched to a selle-anatomica http://www.mcmwin.com/images/R0010582.JPG It was narrower and floated with my body. There is no break in and is waterproof.

Count me as another hematoma sufferer. On the second day of last year's 600K (my first), on a Brooks Pro modified by Selle-Anatomica, I had hematomas that made it feel like I was sitting on walnuts. Very unpleasant. Got the same thing again the day after this year's 300K so switched to a different saddle for the rest of the SR series. This saddle is now on my commute bike but it probably won't see long distances again until it is extremely worn in. The new Selle-Anatomica's use a different leather, which I haven't tried.

I also tried a pre-aged Champion Flyer (B-17 with springs) for this year's 400K and 600K, and did not get hematomas, but did get a bruised butt -- in order to avoid numbness, I have to sit way back on the saddle, basically with my sit-bones right on top of the metal frame. Ouch.

So now I'm riding a Specialized Avatar for all my long distance rides, 200K and up, including BMB, for a total so far of 2600+ miles. It's very comfortable, and I haven't got numbness, bruises, or hematomas from it, though I'll admit that by the end of BMB my butt was very sore. But on BMB, I rode the last 25 miles with Machka and Rowan, who apparently favor B-17's, and if memory serves, they were pretty happy to get off their saddles, too. So maybe the bottom line (bad pun) is that your butt's going to be sore if you sit on it for four days of pretty-continuous pounding on BMB pave.

That Koobi PRS looks interesting, but I wonder if I would find it too "bouncy" feeling? Plus, I have the widest Avatar, which is 155 mm, while the widest PRS is 148. The AU Enduro comes in 155 -- wonder why they don't make a wider PRS. Oh, well. The Avatar does a pretty good job of absorbing road shock, you can feel it flex a bit when you hit a bump hard.

Serfas Terrazo Select.

Over 5000 miles using.

Typical ride between 30 and 100 miles, 2 to 5 times a week.

Never sore. Never rubbed. First thing I bought for the new bike.

But everyone likes/needs a different saddle.

Brooks Pro & Swift

Brooks Team Pro and B17

Male

Rides are generally 40 miles and up

If I did not like them I would not ride them.

What saddle do you use? Terry Butterfly Tri Gel http://www.terrybicycles.com/detail.html?c=Saddles&sc=Women%27s+Best+All-Around&item_no=2164300

How far do you usually ride? 20-30 on 2-4 weekdays, 50-70 on most weekends, centuries on some weekends

Male or Female? Female

How satisfied are you with the seat? Very happy. I used a cheap (yay!) Performance men's saddle for years, and was perfectly happy with it, and then, all of a sudden, I couldn't stand it. (??) I tried a new version of the same saddle -- still no good -- and then probably 4 or 5 others before I found this one. I was choking on the cost, but it's been worth it!

Count me as another hematoma sufferer. On the second day of last year's 600K (my first), on a Brooks Pro modified by Selle-Anatomica, I had hematomas that made it feel like I was sitting on walnuts. Very unpleasant. Got the same thing again the day after this year's 300K so switched to a different saddle for the rest of the SR series. This saddle is now on my commute bike but it probably won't see long distances again until it is extremely worn in. The new Selle-Anatomica's use a different leather, which I haven't tried.

I am not sure I understand what you mean by modified by Selle Anatomica. If I recall, too, your riding position wasn't with drastically low handlebars, and maybe the Pro wasnt' the best option in that case.


I also tried a pre-aged Champion Flyer (B-17 with springs) for this year's 400K and 600K, and did not get hematomas, but did get a bruised butt -- in order to avoid numbness, I have to sit way back on the saddle, basically with my sit-bones right on top of the metal frame. Ouch.

No, that's not good, either. A set-back seatpost might have solved that. But the difference in damage between the Pro and B17 sort of illustrates my point.


So now I'm riding a Specialized Avatar for all my long distance rides, 200K and up, including BMB, for a total so far of 2600+ miles. It's very comfortable, and I haven't got numbness, bruises, or hematomas from it, though I'll admit that by the end of BMB my butt was very sore. But on BMB, I rode the last 25 miles with Machka and Rowan, who apparently favor B-17's, and if memory serves, they were pretty happy to get off their saddles, too. So maybe the bottom line (bad pun) is that your butt's going to be sore if you sit on it for four days of pretty-continuous pounding on BMB pave.

You're probably right when it comes to the roads used by BMB... they are the worst roads I've ever ridden a randonnee on, and I thought the roads in New South Wales were bad. Sweat issues play more a role for me, along with tyre pressures. And after the ride back from when we abandonned on BMB, it was probably leg soreness more than anything for me. But the real measure for me is being able to get back on my Brooks once a month only (like it has been for the past three months) and ride a century without any butt problems at all.

I've just been whiling away the time building up a fixed gear. I had the option of five saddles that had been collected over the years, and I picked a leather-covered plastic one. Well it was a butt-hatchet for sure. I tried a couple of others, and settled on a plastic one made by Radical (?) that seemed just fine while pedalling on the trainer.

I am curious what the most common/prefered saddle is. I am in the process of trying out all different sorts and would like to atleast try some that seem to be popular. Anyway can you please write

What saddle do you use?

FG: Brooks Swift
LD: Brooks Swift
Commuter: Brooks Team Pro
How far do you usually ride? 10,000+ miles/year
Male or Female? Male
How satisfied are you with the seat? Very

The trick to riding Brooks - apply liberal coats of Neatsfoot oil. You buy it in a shoe store, it is made
for leather. Do not use the Brooks Proofide. I originally used that on my Team Pro. After 3000 miles it
hadn't broken in. Switched to Neatsfoot oil. Broke in nicely in 2 weeks.

Neatsfoot Oil:
http://www.leatherfactory.com/products.asp?number=2260-24

And Licktons has Brooks saddles at the best prices:
http://www.lickbike.com/searchsite.asp?SEARCH=brooks

I never thought i would find a saddle that i liked more than my beloved B17, but i decided to try the anatomica titanico saddle and I have to admit i think it's even more comfy than the B17. No break-in required at all.
I would describe it as a B17ish saddle, but a bit longer, which gives it even more of a 'hammock' feel than a B17. It is shaped a tad differently, and I don't know why, but for me fits even better. If this was a public company i'd buy stock in it.

I took a look at the anatomica titanico saddle (http://www.selleanatomica.com/) and I'm curious for those that have them. What do you do when the leather invariably starts to stretch? In looking at the pictures, I could see no evidence of a tensioning bolt of any kind. Granted I rarely have to adjust mine, but I'm wondering if anyone has had one long enough to experience saddle sag?

there is a tensioning bolt that takes an allen to tighten the leather in the nose. The leather is actually very soft and "loose". Some have termed the saddle a hammock style.

What saddle do you use?

FG: Brooks Swift
LD: Brooks Swift
Commuter: Brooks Team Pro
How far do you usually ride? 10,000+ miles/year
Male or Female? Male
How satisfied are you with the seat? Very

The trick to riding Brooks - apply liberal coats of Neatsfoot oil. You buy it in a shoe store, it is made
for leather. Do not use the Brooks Proofide. I originally used that on my Team Pro. After 3000 miles it
hadn't broken in. Switched to Neatsfoot oil. Broke in nicely in 2 weeks.

Neatsfoot Oil:
http://www.leatherfactory.com/products.asp?number=2260-24

And Licktons has Brooks saddles at the best prices:
http://www.lickbike.com/searchsite.asp?SEARCH=brooks

Blackbird, I have a new in the box Swift (British Racing Green) will that neatsfoot oil alter the color any? Do you apply to underside as well, or just the top?

This is going to sound odd, but here goes.

I've been pretty comfortable on a Bontrager race luxe for rides up to 100 miles. No worries about it getting wet.

That said, I am in the process of getting 4 leather saddles to conform. B-15, A Brooks Professional. a Fuji Belt, and an Ideale model 43. Right now, the B-15 is the most comfy, but it seems a bit thin.

Selle Italia Turbomatic 3 ( I have them on 3 bikes), ride 6,000 miles per year, longest ride 406 miles over 4 days (DALMAC)
I have never had any issues with the saddle and it is definitely more comfortable than any others I have tried. I do have a cheap Bontrager Sport saddle on my Mountain Bike and this is also good - the shapes are very similar.

H

I am not sure I understand what you mean by modified by Selle Anatomica. If I recall, too, your riding position wasn't with drastically low handlebars, and maybe the Pro wasnt' the best option in that case.

The Selle-Anatomica-modified Brooks Pro has a slot cut out of it and looks kind of like http://www.mcmwin.com/images/R0012715.JPG. You're right about my riding position not being low. And the Brooks Pro was not worn in enough, and still doesn't seem worn in yet, after a couple of thousand miles. You can barely tell I've ridden it. Maybe I need to take the advice of another poster and soak it in Neat's foot oil. But it's comfortable enough for commuting so I probably won't bother.


No, that's not good, either. A set-back seatpost might have solved that. But the difference in damage between the Pro and B17 sort of illustrates my point.

I agree. I think the Pro is too narrow for me, which combined with the saddle not being worn in caused the hematoma. On my commuting (mountain) bike, the frame geometry makes it easier to get my saddle back further, and I don't find myself sitting on the saddle frame as much. If I decide to start trying a Brooks again on brevets, I'll probably go with a B17 and seatpost with more setback. What's a good one?


You're probably right when it comes to the roads used by BMB... they are the worst roads I've ever ridden a randonnee on, and I thought the roads in New South Wales were bad. Sweat issues play more a role for me, along with tyre pressures. And after the ride back from when we abandonned on BMB, it was probably leg soreness more than anything for me. But the real measure for me is being able to get back on my Brooks once a month only (like it has been for the past three months) and ride a century without any butt problems at all.

I've just been whiling away the time building up a fixed gear. I had the option of five saddles that had been collected over the years, and I picked a leather-covered plastic one. Well it was a butt-hatchet for sure. I tried a couple of others, and settled on a plastic one made by Radical (?) that seemed just fine while pedalling on the trainer.

Will I see you riding PBP on a fixie?

Selle Italia Max Flite Gel Flow. Dumbest name ever for a saddle, but I've used it on three different bikes, and it's been a delight. Genuine leather cover, BTW. It still looks new after 5000+ miles. No hematomas, no numbness (a terrifying thought at my age, that), no chafing.

Now that I'm riding a lightweight carbon bike I'm tempted to try the lightweight Specialized Toupe, but what would be the point?

Ah. I'm male, and the longest ride I've done on this saddle is 120 miles. Typical weekend ride is 50-60. If I forget to put Bodyglide on it doesn't seem to make a difference.

Selle San Marcos Regal
Selle San Marcos Era
era on one bike and and the san marcos regal on another bike.
Have ridden them both 100+ miles.
I have been using Selle san Marcos saddles for over 15+ years

Will I see you riding PBP on a fixie?
Unlikely for this fixie... it's staying in Canada. But I would like to build up another when I get back to Australia (there's an old MTB frame I left there that would do just fine) and do maybe one randonnee... although I would start off with a century first. PBP 2007 may be a bit ambitious, but I definitely would consider it for 2011.

I've seen saddles treated with glove oil. They felt waaay too soft for my taste. I personally wouldn't use it.

Selle SMP Evolution

I was suffering from extreme N.N. during centuries and longer on my flite gel. When I saw the "Grand Canyon" slot in this thing it was love at first sight. Because the slot swings down all the way through the nose, I can stay in the drops forever! A couple of words of warning, this is a stiff saddle (about the same as flite gel) and it isn't cheap (about $180 on sale).

http://www.sellesmp.com/en/evolution.htm

btw:
Bike: Giant TCR C2
Weight: 190
Eyes: Brown :)

For me, the less saddle in contact with me the better. That's why I go for the "minimalist" Sella Italia SLR. It's such a small, hard saddle that it gets me plenty of horrified looks from other cyclists (especially at 100+ mile events), but, for me, it's the most comfortable saddle I've found (the light weight is a nice added bonus). I'm a male cyclist who doesn't often go over 200 miles (although I do a fair number of double centuries) and rides in a fairly aggressive (low handlebar) position. If I was sitting more upright, with more of my weight on the saddle, and riding for four days straight, it's certainly possible I'd find myself wanting something different.

I've been won over, I now ride with great comfort on my "Recurve" seat on my Bacchetta Giro 20. Will attempt my first triple century later this year. I do get along pretty well on my Terry Liberator on my wedgie bike but not for more than a century and a half.

I ride with a Specialized Body Geometry Alias saddle. I briefly considered Brooks, along with the rest of the herd, but have generally been reluctant because of reputed break-in times and maintainenance (ie. applying Proofide regularly) . And, besides, I've been pretty happy with the Specialized saddle. If it wears out, I might replace it with a Brooks ... or not.

I switched to the Performance E3 and love it.

http://www.performancebike.com/product_images/250/50-3088-BLK-ANGLE.jpg

I like it so much I bought 2 extras in case they stop making them like my last saddle.:lol:

You can read here (http://www.performancebike.com/E3saddle.cfm) what makes it different than other saddles.

What saddle do you use?

Various, depends on bike

How far do you usually ride?

Just over 10,000 miles/yr. The vast majority of those are commuting miles, but my favorite rides require me to be in the saddle for over 10 hours. On those, I'm usually riding the stock saddle that came with my Fuji Team Pro

Male or Female?

Male

How satisfied are you with the seat?

Very

A couple observations about comfort. It's important to condition yourself to any seat and that just takes time. Also, adjustment is critical -- very slight tweaks can have a huge impact on comfort when you're riding for long periods of time. The optimal saddle adjustments depend on your riding position. Lastly, I'm a huge believer in firm seats (I find most racing saddles to be quite comfortable) but gel in the shorts to dampen road vibrations. They weigh more, but it's really worth it if you're out long enough.

Brooks Swift on the beater


Can you still call that a beater? :)

went out yesterday for 3 hours on a brand new brooks b17 and my ass is suffering today.

i'm gettin' one of those sprung brooks on my new rohloff karate monkey. my lbs guru said i wasn't heavy enough to really make use of it, but i love the retro look. i'll report back later.:) :) :) :)

I recently replaced my fizi:k "hard as a rock" saddle with a Reactive Gel saddle from Serfas. Huge difference! I rode 51 miles on its maiden voyage, and my 'behind' felt great afterwards. You can see their full selection at www.serfas.com (http://www.serfas.com).

What saddle do you use?
How far do you usually ride?
Male or Female?
How satisfied are you with the seat?

What saddle do you use? Brooks
How far do you usually ride? depends: 100 km or more
Male or Female? Male chauvinistic :)
How satisfied are you with the seat? Very. It dates 1999, I oil it both sides quite each time I use it. Verrrrry comfortable

Can you still call that a beater? :)

:D

Brooks Swift TI; after buying about 13 or 14 saddles over a 15 year period trying to get a comfortable saddle, I decided to splurge for the Brooks, and I'm glad I did because it's the most comfortable saddle I have ever rode on. The amount of money I spent on saddles I could have bought another bike!

Both road bikes have Brooks. Swift TI on one and B17 on the other. When I first tried a Brooks I could not seem to get comfortable, on long rides forget it! Discovered that the Brooks geometry doesn't allow as much setback as other saddles, plus my overall setback still wasn't enough with the Brooks slid back as far as it would go. Changed to a seatpost which provides additional setback and voila! Now very comfortable, no problems whatsoever on long rides.

Bob

What saddle do you use? Sell San Marco Rolls, on all 4 bikes
How far do you usually ride? 40-100 miles, or more occasionally
Male or Female? Male 50s
How satisfied are you with the seat? Very. Tried several others

Fi'zi:k Aliante

It is comfortable for all distances, no complaints.

I have a Brooks B-17.

I haven't been riding many miles since last summer, but I do ride most days of the week. Just started some training yesterday, hopefully I'll be putting on a lot more miles this year as I try and get into this long distance thing. Let's just say that I've done about 700 miles or so since the beginning of last August :o.

I am male.

I am extremely satisfied. There seem to be a lot of varying reports with Brooks saddles. Personally, I did not use any treatments, even Proofide, but my B-17 broke in within about 200 miles. I'm not a heavy person, either - I'm about 125 lbs. I considered the saddle that I had been using previously, an old generic Selle Royal from my old touring bike, to be "not bad." The Brooks is in a whole 'nother universe of comfort. On the 30k I rode yesterday (my first long ride since my weekend tour at the end of last May), I didn't have a hint of discomfort. Obviously, with longer rides it'll become more clear as to just how comfortable it really is, but I have high expectations.

What saddle do you use?
How far do you usually ride?
Male or Female?
How satisfied are you with the seat?
Whatever came stock on my bikes. 2004 Specialized Roubaix Comp, 2005 Specialized Allez Sport, 2006 Cervelo R3. The three bikes all have different saddles.

Variable distance, but I've done century length rides on all three bikes.

Male.

I seem to be indifferent to the saddles. I evidently don't have a very discerning rear.