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Shorter and wider saddle--next "trend"?....

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Shorter and wider saddle--next "trend"?....

Old 12-22-22, 07:37 AM
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Shorter and wider saddle--next "trend"?....

Did I miss the memo? Was looking at some info on bike saddles, and came across a few articles on shorter and wider saddles. Now, I'm slim, but have never found narrow saddles comfortable (yes, I'm aware that build is not necessarily an indication of sit bones width). And evidently, the shorter, wider saddle thing applies to all disciplines. Has conventional thinking been wrong all along? BTW-I'm not running out and buying new saddles because of this "revelation". One of the articles: Nose jobs: the rise of the short saddle | Cyclist
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Old 12-22-22, 08:39 AM
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Originally Posted by freeranger
Did I miss the memo? Was looking at some info on bike saddles, and came across a few articles on shorter and wider saddles. Now, I'm slim, but have never found narrow saddles comfortable (yes, I'm aware that build is not necessarily an indication of sit bones width). And evidently, the shorter, wider saddle thing applies to all disciplines. Has conventional thinking been wrong all along? BTW-I'm not running out and buying new saddles because of this "revelation". One of the articles: Nose jobs: the rise of the short saddle | Cyclist
Like with most things, there is now simply more choice available. Bums come in all shapes and sizes, as do modern saddles to match. Shorter saddles are certainly becoming more popular and they are often available in a wider variety of widths than previously.

I recently went from a pretty conventional Fizik Aliante to one of their more contemporary designs (Tempo Argo), which is a little wider and shorter. I do prefer it overall, so it works well for me. But saddles are highly personal. For those who are not 100% happy with conventional long/narrow saddles, shorter/wider ones are certainly worth a try.
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Old 12-22-22, 09:12 AM
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Amazing another saddle thread.
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Old 12-22-22, 09:30 AM
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Originally Posted by rydabent
Amazing another saddle thread.
And amazing that there's no comment about how much more comfortable a 'bent is compared to a DF bike.
Not so amazing--Nothing to add to the thread except sarcasm.
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Old 12-22-22, 09:37 AM
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Cycling population is increasing. Kind'a sort'a like TV went from a few channels to several hundreds of channels to please differing groups of viewers, I'm sure that more groups of butts that do slightly different riding styles and efforts will be found that favor a different saddle.
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Old 12-22-22, 09:40 AM
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What? Wait! Where did the "short" part come in? I've been complaining about skinny saddles for about as long as I can remember, and the bicycle industry is just now finally starting to listen. 😉

But where did this "shorter" thing come from? I don't wanna slide off the front or back, because some idjit got confused about what we wanted. 😁😉
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Old 12-22-22, 10:03 AM
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The industry's quest for the next "better mousetrap" goes on. They say they may be more comfortable and "faster," but I think it's an ugly look. I'll be keeping my Brooks.

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Old 12-22-22, 11:10 AM
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The shape of the future:

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Old 12-22-22, 11:42 AM
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When I got the Kona Sutra with the iconic saddle I was thrilled. I love it. There was a time that I thought a padded male configuration was the berries. No more!!
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Old 12-22-22, 11:53 AM
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Originally Posted by freeranger
And amazing that there's no comment about how much more comfortable a 'bent is compared to a DF bike.
Not so amazing--Nothing to add to the thread except sarcasm.
Same guy who thinks about the only place in the U.S. with good cycling temps this time of year is the Fla. Keys, ignoring places such as SoCal.
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Old 12-22-22, 11:58 AM
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Wow, RTFA, guys. They're not coming to take your Brooks away

Short take: Riding "on the Rivet" isn't comfortable. If you spend a lot of time gettin' down and diggin' in (racing?), a shorter nosed saddle keeps the pressure off your soft tissues, so you can go faster, for longer. This is something TRI-guys have been onto for years now, with stubby, noseless saddles like the ISM.

Comfortable with your current saddle? Not a speed-obsessed full-aero racer type? There's still plenty of conventional saddles on the market. Heck, Selle even reissued the '1990 Flite' and the classic Turbo. And I'm sure that as long as Tweed exists, Brooks will still sell you a B-17.
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Old 12-22-22, 01:47 PM
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Originally Posted by Ironfish653
They're not coming to take your Brooks away.
Nobody suggested they were.
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Old 12-22-22, 02:09 PM
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There's no one size fits in saddles.
It might take a while to find one that fits and comfortable.
I've been riding the same brand and type of saddle in the last 15 years regardless of trends.
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Old 12-22-22, 03:36 PM
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Shorter saddles come with a downside, at least for me. A shorter nose means your legs are less effective at steering the bike, and when I have a hand off the bars holding a waterbottle or something, I really notice it.
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Old 12-23-22, 09:09 AM
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Originally Posted by Ironfish653
. They're not coming to take your Brooks away

17.
“From my cold dead hand!!!!!!”

Or Brooks is going to build a wall , and they’re making Specialized pay for it
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Old 12-23-22, 09:24 AM
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Originally Posted by DMC707
“From my cold dead hand!!!!!!”

Or Brooks is going to build a wall , and they’re making Specialized pay for it
You mean "Cold Dead Butt"
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Old 12-23-22, 10:24 AM
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Originally Posted by rydabent
Amazing another saddle thread.
Interestingly, perhaps the most uncomfortable bicycle seat I have ever used was on a recumbent. It was like sitting on a hot plank.
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Old 12-23-22, 03:19 PM
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I'm sold on SMP saddles. I use the Stratos model that's narrow with standard padding. Many models are offered and SMP tends to think that wider folks usually need wider saddles.

www.sellesmp.com/en/saddleapp
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Old 12-28-22, 11:00 PM
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Originally Posted by Ironfish653
Wow, RTFA, guys. They're not coming to take your Brooks away.
I put my wife's unused woman's B-17 on one of my bikes. The only difference is the shorter nose.

Apart from it not being broken in, I can't feel any difference. The one nice thing is it doesn't snag on my ill-formed, protruding fake chamois.
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Old 12-28-22, 11:04 PM
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Originally Posted by rydabent
Amazing another saddle thread.
Amazing, with 9,656 posts, people still have opinions at variance with your own.

Last edited by Polaris OBark; 12-29-22 at 01:08 PM. Reason: removed grey text
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Old 12-29-22, 08:39 AM
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Originally Posted by Polaris OBark
Amazing, with 9,656 posts, people still have opinions at variance with your own.
Why the gray text? I still dont understand the reason.
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Old 12-29-22, 08:50 AM
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Originally Posted by DMC707
“From my cold dead hand!!!!!!”

Or Brooks is going to build a wall , and they’re making Specialized pay for it
When Brooks saddles are outlawed, only outlaws will have Brooks saddles.
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Old 12-29-22, 08:56 AM
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Shorter and wider is what I see in the mirror as I age.
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Old 12-29-22, 01:03 PM
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
Why the gray text? I still dont understand the reason.
I guess I don't see it with my black background. But to answer your question, I think somehow the copy/paste of his post-count inserted these color bb markup tags:


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Old 12-29-22, 01:08 PM
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With a white background:




With a black background:


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