fishugly

I had some bike unrelated perineum issues a number of yrs ago and the sight of a conventional seat makes me cringe. However, I'm seriously considering purchasing a Mtn like bike...or Gary Fisher Montare dual sport/hybrid to be exact.

How many people use noseless/hornless seats such as the Easyseat, Realseat, etc on these type of bikes and what is the general consensus?

Thanks.

tagaproject6

Ridiculous! However, if it gets you on the bike, who cares?

fietsbob

who knew the NY Times thinks they are Bike Expert too..

its only useful for JRA casual , because you need the lever
of the saddle nose to steer an MTB thru technical sections.
Lots of Doughnut hole in the nose saddles too ..


Oh by the way, consensus, is agreement...

you gotta be kidding to expect that

stapfam

There are plenty of unusual- inovative-Cr*p ideas about and saddles are not immune to those ideas.

It may take time to find the right standard saddle- and even more time to set it up right but none of these weird saddles will be as effective in use than a conventional saddle properly set up.

And I hate to say it--BUT Brooks saddles. There I have said it--and I promise to do penance on my Flite Titanium on a 50 mile offroad just for swearing at you.

fishugly

Thanks for the replies. I should have mentioned though. I'm not planning to do any technical riding. I'm just interested in riding for some exercise and commuting short distances.

tagaproject6

This perineum issue and a regular bike saddle making you cringe...is it physical or psychological? I mean, is there physical pain when using a regular saddle?

You could check out the manta saddle. It looks crazy, but once you are on it, nobody really sees the type of saddle you are using anyway.

fishugly

About 12 yrs ago, when I was running more than riding, I spent a week in bed due to some bizarre perineum issue that three Dr's couldn't diagnose. I promptly sold my mtn bike and got a recumbent.

Things seem ok now, though on occasion, there is some sensitivity down there when hiking. I want a "regular" bike again but as one might imagine, I'm not all that keen to test my perineum with a "regular" seat.

Thanks for mentioning the Manta saddle. Hadn't seen that one. One funky looking saddle! I really don't care much what the saddle looks like though. I just want something that works and isn't a gimmick.

jtdickie

I have a bi-saddle on my cannondale super v-500. Love it. Very comfortable.

Jim

Nightshade

You won't find much love for noseless saddles here on BF so don't look for many, or any, positive comments on them.

That said, if YOU want to ride a noseless saddle then by all means do so. The rest of the world can go to hades if you're comfortable.

fishugly

Why is that? Are they considered to be too geeky....not "cool" enough or do they simply not work for most people? If the latter, have that many people gotten over the image thing to even give them a serious try?

fishugly

Thanks for your post! If I may ask, why did you choose that saddle over all the others? Did you try any thing else?

Thanks again.

chandltp

I have the Ergo Endurance on order right now. I've tried 3 different Brooks and all failed me in various ways. I had the last one for 4 months and thought it was going to be a winner, but it never got "great". If there's not something better, I definitely need a recumbent.

Nightshade

Noseless isn't popular because they are "different" not because they aren't good saddles.

Lot's of cyclist don't do different very well due to the herd instinct...........

fishugly

That's just what I suspected. Now, which one to get??? The more I search online, the more I find. Problem is, I have yet to see any type of noseless saddle in a bike shop....and I have been to a lot of shops, including those in a biking haven resort town today. All sorts of saddles....but zero noseless. Guess I'll just have to take a gamble and order one online.....

dahut

I tried one AND I read the NY Times article recommending them.

Both are bollocks.

You cannot stay in them, unless you are riding an upright beach cruiser. I always felt like I was sliding forward. It lasted about 5 minutes.
On an MTB, I'd suggest it's a no-go.

Look at one of the saddles with a large cutout for the tenderloins. Selle, I believe, has them with a cutout AND a down turned nose...

Retro Grouch 

I know for sure that some people absolutely LOVE them. What I don't know is what percentage of all riders hold that opinion. I'm guessing it's pretty low but I know there are definitely some.

My question is: "How can you tell whether or not you fall into that group?" Asking other riders won't give you the answer you're looking for. I'm thinking that by the fact that you asked the question you are more likely than most to fall into the "hornless saddle lovers group." The only way to know for sure is to acquire one and try it out for yourself.

Nightshade

Sorry to say this but it matters not where you buy a saddle since it will be awhile after the purchase before you know if that saddle works for your.

That said, online is often safer than LBS when it comes to saddles, grips etc. since online has to have a published return policy where LBS is dodgy at best.

fishugly

I bit the bullet and ordered the ISM Touring saddle last night. Fingers crossed.....

Thanks for the replies/info/help, everyone!

BikeLite

https://www.ipmba.org/newsletters/Nos...eSolutions.pdf

https://healthycycling.org/

AlanSmithee

Three years ago, I started cycling in earnest and increased my saddle time substantially. After about 6 months of near-daily cycling, I came down with a (thankfully brief) case of prostatitis - believe me when I tell you that this is no fun.

Determined to do what I could to avoid this, I switched to a Spiderflex saddle. It definitely took some getting used to and adjustment (the first few weeks were rough), but after two years of regular use, it's quite comfortable. In fact, I just finished using it on a weeklong, 350-mile bike tour. I have no problems with control of the bike, even with loaded panniers; on smooth roads I can still ride hands-free.

Most importantly, since I switched to the Spiderflex, no more issues "down under" - no numbness, pain, nothing.

Retro Grouch 

There's lots of people who don't ride noseless saddles. I haven't finished asking each of them why they don't. My guess would be that most have never tried one.

chandltp

I am contemplating trying one after a previous noseless fail. I the "The Seat" from Ergo, but the corners poked into the back of my thighs. The one thing I'm having a hard time getting past are their testimonials. The people there talk about their weekly mileage.. that's similar to the amount I want to go in a day. What's your average daily mileage with this seat? It's a lot of money to gamble on a seat. A 30 day satisfaction guarantee isn't much when you factor in shipping times.

Drakonchik

The Hobson Easyseat II makes a great office-and-shop-stool. I'm sitting on one now as I type this. Really high-quality construction I might add.

On a contrary note, I tried one on my mtn bike for about 60 seconds before I had to remove in a hurry due freakin dangerous interference with normal posture and pedaling IMHO.

fishugly

UPDATE:

The ISM felt very strange to me right off the bat...and not overly comfortable. Not less so than a conventional seat for me....just different. Many adjustments later and it's better. My mother also purchased a Schwinn noseless saddle for me at Walmart of all places. That thing fits my buttocks like a dream and is incredibly comfortable. While using it, I keep asking myself over and over why anyone who's not riding for performance reasons (ie, MTN biking for example) would sit on anything but one of these things. Perhaps the answer is right there: everyone wants the image of "performance". Perhaps these things are viewed as something only elderly people would use...on their indoor stationary. I don't know but I'm 43, fit, athletic and comfortable with myself and with that much comfort, could care less what kind of image my bike saddle portrayed. Unfortunately, I can not get this particular saddle far enough back to make it work long term. A setback seat post might make it work for me so am looking into that.

FutureHero

A hundred different people will tell you a hundred different things. If the noseless saddle feels right to you, then put it on your bike and ride the hell out of it.