Bike sit. Saddle is tearing the $%^ out of me. /Sol Rosenburg
01-30-14, 09:19 AM
#26
Senior Member
Usually the saddles that come with the bike are pretty crummy. I think most bike mtgs expect that people will replace them with something specific to their anatomy.
j.
j.
01-30-14, 12:28 PM
#27
Senior Member
Knox, I just went thru this whole process and here are some things I found out.
First of all, you can pretty easily measure your sit bone width with a piece of cardboard. I put a large piece of cardboard on a step stool, then sat on it leaned forward. It sort of equated to how I sit on a bike. Then measure between the indentions. Of course, you can also use silly putty, but that seems like too much effort. They also say that your sit bone width changes slightly as you lean backward and forwards...
I found that my width was about 115mm. I was riding a Fizik Arione which measured 130 and so I set out to find a 140-145ish width saddle based on the fact that I was experiencing pain and numbness on longer rides. I ordered a Selle Italia Flight Flow. It was absolute murder and worse than my Fizik. That's when I gave it up and went to the LBS and found a test program. About 4 saddles later, I found out that the Prologo Nago Evo Tri 40 works for me like a charm. It disappears and I'm no longer thinking about repositioning my rear to get more comfortable. I think it's only 135mm wide but somehow the rest of the way the saddle is positioned works for me. I'm still on their test saddle and plan to buy it as soon as I get back to the LBS. (too cold here right now and snow on the ground)
FWIW, they charged me $25 'rental' fee for the program and I've switched a few saddles out with them. Just one charge and they apply that to the purchase of the final saddle you choose. Can't argue with that. I'll pay a little more than I would from buying it online, but 1. I'm buying local and 2. I don't have 5 $200 saddles to get rid of. A win/win.
So I found you can read all you want online and hear what works for some people but the only way to truly know is to put your butt on a saddle and ride it. Then if it feels good, go for a longer ride. Then ride it again and if you didn't think about the saddle during the ride, I think it's the one for you. Btw, I don't do Triathlons, but I'm buying a Tri saddle. Curiously enough, several people from my LBS just did an Ironman last fall and one of the guys uses the Tri40 saddle on his road bike and a different saddle for his Triathlon bike.
Anyway, let us know what you finally decide to do.
First of all, you can pretty easily measure your sit bone width with a piece of cardboard. I put a large piece of cardboard on a step stool, then sat on it leaned forward. It sort of equated to how I sit on a bike. Then measure between the indentions. Of course, you can also use silly putty, but that seems like too much effort. They also say that your sit bone width changes slightly as you lean backward and forwards...
I found that my width was about 115mm. I was riding a Fizik Arione which measured 130 and so I set out to find a 140-145ish width saddle based on the fact that I was experiencing pain and numbness on longer rides. I ordered a Selle Italia Flight Flow. It was absolute murder and worse than my Fizik. That's when I gave it up and went to the LBS and found a test program. About 4 saddles later, I found out that the Prologo Nago Evo Tri 40 works for me like a charm. It disappears and I'm no longer thinking about repositioning my rear to get more comfortable. I think it's only 135mm wide but somehow the rest of the way the saddle is positioned works for me. I'm still on their test saddle and plan to buy it as soon as I get back to the LBS. (too cold here right now and snow on the ground)
FWIW, they charged me $25 'rental' fee for the program and I've switched a few saddles out with them. Just one charge and they apply that to the purchase of the final saddle you choose. Can't argue with that. I'll pay a little more than I would from buying it online, but 1. I'm buying local and 2. I don't have 5 $200 saddles to get rid of. A win/win.
So I found you can read all you want online and hear what works for some people but the only way to truly know is to put your butt on a saddle and ride it. Then if it feels good, go for a longer ride. Then ride it again and if you didn't think about the saddle during the ride, I think it's the one for you. Btw, I don't do Triathlons, but I'm buying a Tri saddle. Curiously enough, several people from my LBS just did an Ironman last fall and one of the guys uses the Tri40 saddle on his road bike and a different saddle for his Triathlon bike.
Anyway, let us know what you finally decide to do.
01-30-14, 09:39 PM
#28
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I can't believe no one got the Sol Rosenberg bit. I'd have Frank Rizzo measure ya up!
02-02-14, 09:02 AM
#29
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You've been given good advice here, so I'll only add props for knowing Sol Rosenberg!
02-06-14, 04:11 PM
#31
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Funny thing about the Jerky Boys as applies to this site...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPYH3Ky0bVA
"Ohh. Does it have speeds???"
Anyway, I ordered a saddle online. It's wider and has a cutout. I'll try it out for a couple of days and return it if I have to. I didn't make it to the LBS last week because, believe it or not, we were snowed in. I use that term loosely.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPYH3Ky0bVA
"Ohh. Does it have speeds???"
Anyway, I ordered a saddle online. It's wider and has a cutout. I'll try it out for a couple of days and return it if I have to. I didn't make it to the LBS last week because, believe it or not, we were snowed in. I use that term loosely.
