Originally Posted by
Jerry in So IL
I still get that numbness though.
I've read where a noseless saddle is great for that. I think I'm going to get one and try it out. According to a study at a PD, almost all the LEOs choose the noseless saddle over the regular one.
Jerry
A saddle causes numbness because it is putting pressure on blood vessels in "that" area, this can be resolved a couple of ways, you can either change the saddle fit, moving the saddle forward or back, raising the bars will reduce the body angle, and that can take off some pressure, I suspect those folks with the bars 30cm below the saddle have the most problems, having the bars even with the saddle or even slightly higher may also help. Probably the best solution is to get a professional bike fit done, tell the fitter your having numbness issues, and they can deal with it. You can try a different saddle, you need to make sure your saddle is the right width, too narrow you get numbness, too wide you get chaffing. A fitter should deal with this as well.
The noseless saddle affects balance, in that you can't then use your thighs to assist in keeping the bike upright, realise that the thighs contain some of the largest bones and muscles in the human body, and if you get into a speed wobble, you can't clamp the saddle with your thighs, and will more likely crash. Even if you ride for 4 hours, doesn't mean you need to peddle for 4 hours, some riders find it best to get off the bike and walk around once in a while, this restores circulation, and will prevent problems.
One of the problems with studies, is often they fall into one of four categories:
1) They only deal with those that have problems....
2) They have a biased sample.
3) Have too small a sample size to be accurate
4) Have a result already intended at set out to prove it.
Let me explain what I mean by a biased sample. All the riders in the TdF would be a biased sample, because they are mostly long distance racers, with aggressive bike setups, you would expect them to have a disproportionate number of riders with this issue. An unbiased sample would be to telephone people, asking them if they are male and ride a bicycle, and then if they are and do, asking if they have this problem, until you have, say 500 riders.
It's like doing a political poll and only including those coming out of a particular parties campaign office.
First suggestion, if you have this issue, is to get a fit done, second try a different conventional saddle, if that doesn't work, switch to a bent.