Southern California - Looking for a new saddle

I am in need of a new saddle and am looking for a local bike shop with a large selection that will allow me to take a saddle for a few days to test. I have tried five different saddles and have yet to find the right fit.

The saddle I am most interested in is from SMP. The local bikes shops that carry it will not like me try a saddle for more than an hour. SMP saddles cost about $250.00 so I want a little more time to try one out.

I will drive out of the county if necessary. Any recommendations?

For your consideration the Specialized Toupe Ti (non Gel)130cm. I am 5'5" @170lbs. It may seem hard but it flexes pretty good. Good luck

No SMP but Competitive Cyclist has a demo program with some other popular saddles. http://www.competitivecyclist.com/road-bikes/demo-saddle

Or you can try Performance. They have a good return policy if the saddle is not marked or damaged.

Try Sand Canyon Cyclery in Irvine. http://www.sandcanyoncyclery.com/. Ask for Jim. He will set you up and will let you ride the saddle for way more than one hour. He let me demo a set of HED Ardeenes for three weeks! If you have the time (2-3 hours) he will make your bike fit like a glove. IMHO, best LBS ever.

Try Sand Canyon Cyclery in Irvine. http://www.sandcanyoncyclery.com/. Ask for Jim. He will set you up and will let you ride the saddle for way more than one hour. He let me demo a set of HED Ardeenes for three weeks! If you have the time (2-3 hours) he will make your bike fit like a glove. IMHO, best LBS ever.

Your response is very timely. About the time you were writing your post, Jim was installing a saddle on my bike and I couldn't be happier with the service I got. Before I stopped by Jim's shop, I stopped by Laguna Cyclery and had a very different experience. I think Sand Canyon just became my new bike shop.

Jim gave me two saddles to try; a Selle Italia and a SMP Plus Strike. The SMP was considerably more money but was easier on the soft tissue which is where I was having a problem. Jim told me I can bring it back if it doesn't workout but after a 15 mile test ride, it seems great so far.

Thanks for all that responded and especially thank you PinarelloPaul.

I have an SMP Glider that I'm selling. I wanted to try something really different so I purchased it from the LBS in the summer. I rode it for less than 400 miles. On the plus side, it was one of the very few saddles that I never got a saddle sore from. Really like that feature. However I wasn't able to quite tweak the overall fit for me so I went back to my SLK.

I found the saddle to be well made and decent, it just wasn't for me. Here is the link to my note in BF. PM me if you are interested. I'm putting it on EBay this week.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=490690

I have the SMP Evolution on my road bike and honestly couldn't be happier. No numbing, no saddle sores, etc. I bought it before the summer so I probably have around 2000 to 2500 miles on it. The "beak" feature is nice if you're on the nose as it doesn't pinch off anything. I cringed when I sunk $250 for it but there's one thing I've learning cycling, the comfort and well being of the family jewels are not worth an ill-fitting saddle.

Funny that a $80 saddle works best on my TT bike.

Your response is very timely. About the time you were writing your post, Jim was installing a saddle on my bike and I couldn't be happier with the service I got. Before I stopped by Jim's shop, I stopped by Laguna Cyclery and had a very different experience. I think Sand Canyon just became my new bike shop.

Jim gave me two saddles to try; a Selle Italia and a SMP Plus Strike. The SMP was considerably more money but was easier on the soft tissue which is where I was having a problem. Jim told me I can bring it back if it doesn't workout but after a 15 mile test ride, it seems great so far.

Thanks for all that responded and especially thank you PinarelloPaul.

I have used the SMP at it is awesome once you get used to the unique shape. Best of luck!