Originally Posted by
Skipjacks
Alright...my Crosstrail came with a harder saddle that I've never liked. I've never gone more than 5 miles on it before putting the softer saddle back on.
I'm going to trust you, stranger from the internet (I'm a risk taker!), and put the stock saddle back on the bike for a whole week and leave it there, good or bad, to see if I get used to it.
Do you have a Specialized Phenom on your CrossTrail? If so, I'd stick with it. I had it on my previous Roubaix and ditched it immediately for the reasons you mentioned.
It also came as stock on my CrossTrail so I thought I'd give it a fair chance. What I found was that it is very sensitive to saddle position and height. It's worth spending one or two evenings in getting the saddle height, saddle tilt and fore-and-aft position just right. Then, after several rides it'll feel good.
It worked so well for me on my CrossTrail that I bought one for my fatbike too.
It's a very high quality saddle and highly rated, but it needs to be set up exactly right and you need to stick with it.