Help Choosing a Saddle
 

I have been scouring the internet trying to decide on a new saddle, I currently have a Body Geometry Toupé Expert Gel, hollow Ti rails, 143mm, it came with my bike. This, and most other saddles, are perfectly fine for around 30 miles, it's after this threshold that it always becomes increasingly more uncomfortable. I end up moving all over the place on it (normally I'm near the front) I experience numbness, eventually pain, but rarely any chafing.

My actual riding position is pretty aggressive, either drops (if in a race or excessively fast group ride) or on pretty far forward/low hoods. Height weight, I'm 5'7", 138lbs, sit bone wise I'm on the narrower end, around 100mm, I have had a professional fit, around 6 months ago (after just purchasing bike, so didn't try many long rides yet).

I participate in races, both Crits and RRs, as well as long distance events, up to multiple centuries.

My main issue is, most saddles I test feel alright for that first 30mi, so testing them in the store doesn't do me much good. I'm hoping a few suggestions from you awesome Bike Forum people can point me in the right direction. I plan on buying one, trying it for awhile, hopefully like it, and return it if not (after really putting it to the test) as many of the stores offering them have a decent return policy.

I've been considering the Fabric Scoop/line options, but they seem limited to the "enduro" posture, while I typically gravitate to a bit more "aggressive". I looked at the "flat" offerings they have, but they don't seem like a great option for very long rides. I've been highly considering the Specialized Power line, as I like the idea of the snub nose and more support as well as the channel, but am a bit concerned that the 143mm narrowest option isn't quite narrow enough.

Any opinions/thoughts/etc. are appreciated, thanks in advance.

Was planning on it, but still got to choose one.

I researched and tried saddles for a few years. No saddles work for everyone, and it seems that there's no substitute for trying them yourself.

I thought I liked the flatter saddles best, but a Fizik Aliante came with my new bike. It's very curved, with no cutout. I hated it for the first few rides, then tolerated it. After a few weeks, it felt pretty good. Now it's my favorite. (I never had numbness, I had more problems with irritation around the top of my thigh. The smooth curve of the Aliante solved that. )

I am very much considering the Prologo Scratch, specifically the Prologo Scratch 2 CPC PAS, I just fear it will be too similar to the Body Geometry Toupé Expert Gel I currently have.

Sounds like an adjustment issue. Adjust the tilt and drop the nose down a hair. A tiny amount can be a night and day difference.

I've done that, then there is too much pressure on my wrists as I tend to slid forward, I might go back to it though. Not a huge difference comfort wise.

Solid adjustment point though, thanks.

As has been stated, saddles are very personal and fit us all differently. You mentioned the Fabric Scoop. One of my favorite saddles is the Fabric Line. It has a channel for almost the entire length, the shell flexes slightly, it has a concave shape in the middle which allows the sit bone area to give the most support. When I set the saddle up correctly, I have had no numbness.

With that said, I have a few Fizik saddles in the "For Sale" forum at really good prices if you'd like to give one a try.

In that case, the Prologo Zero II on my new bike is totally comfortable to me. Just one you can look at.

I purchased the Infinity saddle bike seat some months ago after trying several other saddles over the years. The longest ride I have done this year is 65 miles and I had absolutely no discomfort at all from the saddle area. When I sit in it at the start of a ride it is like sitting on a sofa (family room seat). It is not cheap but well worth it in my opinion. They allow you to return within 30 days if it does not work for you I believe. I also think the saddles are a one size fits all.

Another vote for the Prologo Zero

I've already googled it, I'm liking the price and everything, seems like an excellent option, I'm very much considering it and appreciate your input.

Toupe is a fairly flat profile, have you tried anything with a little more curve? In Specialized something like the Romin or Power Arc. Or at the extreme my favorite saddle, SMP Dynamic.

One other thing to consider, especially with the curvier saddles is to experiment with tilt a bit. A couple degrees of tilt down can make a huge difference.

If you are having trouble finding a comfortable saddle, and testing saddles in the store doesn't help, then you need to be able to test saddles on the road. Some shops will allow you to do that and they have saddles set aside specifically for that purpose. If that's not an option, then you might consider asking fellow riders to let you demo a few of their saddles. A lot of people who've been riding for a while will have a bunch of unused saddles for a start. You could ask to borrow them.

Something else you might consider is that the local shop will probably have several saddles that they pulled off of various bikes. Most of them are probably never used. You could see about testing or buying those. One of the most comfortable saddles I ever bought was out of a bin full of various stock saddles and other parts which the shop had pulled off of bikes while setting them up for customers. I paid 12 bucks for it. It was in new condition. Trying out these saddles would obviously be way less expensive than buying a saddle off the shelf.

* Personally, it is uncomfortable for me to be forward on the saddle.* I find that if I position my saddle fore and aft and adjust the tilt that I can find a happy place where my "sit bones" rest towards the back of the saddle and are well supported without much pressure towards the front, towards the nose of the saddle.* Sometimes the adjustment requires some fiddling so that there is not a tendancy to slide forward or to put too much pressure on my arms and wrists.

I recently bought a Selle Italia 1980 Turbo repro and have ridden it a bit and find it ok.* But, my butt needs to be pretty far back on it for support, It's about a 140 mm saddle, I think.* Very retro.
*