Saddles - What do you use?

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Permalink Reply by andrew on February 18, 2009 at 1:44pm

i dig the arionne. i like em flat. make it easier for remounts and to slide forward and back based on terrain. but if you dig the wtb, you probably like them contoured?

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Permalink Reply by Matt Allyn on February 19, 2009 at 7:25am

As a fellow 6'3", 185lb rider, here's what I use:

Fizik Aliante Gamma on my cross bike ($109 at http://greatadventuresports.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=7815)
Selle San Marco Era Luxe for road

I've also found the few Specialized saddles I've tried to be especially uncomfortable. The Era Luxe has too much cushion for some people, but I've found its a real ass-saver on long rides.

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Permalink Reply by Jim Nowak on February 19, 2009 at 10:12am

Selle Italia Flight. have it on all my bikes.

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Permalink Reply by Surly Bastard on February 19, 2009 at 12:13pm

I'm with Andrew. The Arionne makes a nice peddlin' perch and has survived some pretty badly botched landings over the years without bending or breaking. Being able to shift fore and aft is also a great feature in cross.

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Permalink Reply by Hamilton on February 19, 2009 at 12:19pm

I think I may give the Selle Italia Flite a try, the Arionne scares me a bit. About 3/4 of the reviews I've read report severe numbness occuring.

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Permalink Reply by AndyB on February 19, 2009 at 5:04pm

For the amount of time you spend in the saddle for a 'cross race, numbness probably won't be an issue. However, if you are going to use the bike as a double-duty commuter/century ride/road bike, you might check out the WTB Devo, or the Terry Zero. I've got both, they feel really similar and are pretty comfy. Both have a pretty flat, wide shape, and are reasonably light.

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Permalink Reply by Dan Werle on February 19, 2009 at 6:38pm

I've just spent a bunch of time looking in to this same question. I've been using Fizik Gobi saddles on all my bikes for several years and have been pretty happy with them. The general concensus is that the saddle is one of the last places you should be trying to cut corners. If your WTB mountain bike saddle works for you and it's under $100, stick with it for your 'cross bike. Andy B. loves his WTB. He weighs around 140 lbs and has virtually no body fat. I point that out because he is more likely to feel subtle changes in saddles more than I do (weighing in at around 180 lbs and overweight, or "well padded"). I'm going to be trying out a new saddle with a very narrow nose. It's the Selle San Marco Zoncolan. It's gotten good reviews, weighs around 190 grams, and can be bought online from some retailers for under $100. I think Backcountry.com might have some on the cheap right now. The nice thing about the nose is that it reduces the likelihood of rub on the inner aspect of the thighs, which, up until now, I thought was something that occurred with every saddle. I've read some good reviews and spoken with one rider who uses it on his mountain bikes, road bike, and fixed gear bike.

I share your frustration. Saddles are such a personal preference kind of component...

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Permalink Reply by Steve on February 19, 2009 at 11:04pm

I use an E3 Titanium from Performance (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=20853&item=...). On sale for $35 with a no hassle return policy assuming you don't damage the saddle. I think it works as described (http://www.performancebike.com/E3saddle.cfm).

I'm 6'0"; 195lbs.

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Permalink Reply by David Hutton on February 20, 2009 at 5:43am

Being a rider that normally puts in 10-30 hrs on the bike throughout the entire season, saddle choice for me has always been important. For cross I have ridden both the fizik arione, aliente, and pave as well as a selle italia SLR, selle san marco concor and apside, and finally a prologo saddle (similar to that of lars boom).

Origionally the arione was a favorite of mine as thats the saddle I have always ended up going back to, but I soon realized that for any race requiring you to get on and off the bike a lot the back point of the saddle isn't too chamoise friendly when your crosseyed 40 minutes into an Elite UCI race. Soome of the others (SLR and Apside) prove a bit too "rough" in terms of over bumpy terrain. Fine for the road, but a little less desirable off road for my tastes. Finally, I have found that a move to the Prologo, Aliente, or Concor is the best fit for me personally. The contoured shape keeps me in place on the saddle, and give a nice contour for my leg to follow when remounting (without the hanging up possibility of the arione. Also, all three offer a bit more padding and from what I have seen a little bit more durability as I am not moving around on them as much. Currently my "A" bike holds the concor and I am absolutely in love with this saddle, and my pit big holds a similarly shaped aliente gamma.

In the end, the BEST fit is what works for YOUR physical build. What may be comfortable for some may not be AT ALL for you. Thats the un-fun thing about sponsorship for me. If it fits AWESOME, if it doesn't, well, I wont ride it and sponsors get a little angry. If you have concerns with this look at competative cyclist.com. They have a saddle demo kit you can order and once you decide what you are looking for they will pro-rate your purchase price with what you payed for the kit. Also, fizik is really pushing for their "demo kits" at there retailers. My team has had a chance to ride all of them and it really helps. Check out your local fizik dealer and ask them about it. They should hook you up wioth a sweet orange test saddle of your choice. Give them a try. They have a saddle type for any preference!

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Permalink Reply by JMack on February 20, 2009 at 6:44am

I'm a big fan of Selle Italia. Currently have a Selle Italia SLR gel flow. Though I find the standard SLR comfortable as well. I've tried a couple of the fizik models and I find them a little narrow, at least on longer rides with lots of saddle time.

But if you're happy with WTB, is there a dealer in your area with their Test Ride kit? Would give you the opportunity to try a bunch of saddles before you buy.

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Permalink Reply by Hamilton on February 20, 2009 at 7:30am

Man, thanks for the advice everyone. Sadly, all of the bike shops around me seem to only sell Specialized saddles. The competitive cyclist.com test option seems pretty good, I think I'll give that a try. It would be nice to have a selection of saddles to try out.

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Permalink Reply by GeWilli on February 23, 2009 at 9:30am

me and treefarm, lance and a few others like the San Marco Concor.

it just fits me well... i'm 6'6" and 200# fwiw

but hey if you love your WTB mt saddle, just stick one of them on your corss bike...

everyones ass is a different size... ride what fits yours best and don't settle for less...

your LBS SHOULD be able to get you just about any saddle... tell em to open up their QBP catalog ;) or you just go mail order...

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