Needing a comfortable saddle!

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by gregk

Selle San Marco ERA K
Selle San Marco Apside
Selle San Marco Arami
Selle Italia SLR Gelflow
Specialized Pro Gel

I would really appreciate any recommendations that anyone has to offer, whether it be one of these saddles I mentioned or not.

Greg,

Recommendations about things like saddles are just like movie critic reviews. They should be taken only as very loose guidance as to what's good and what's not... In the end, advice from other people on something as completely individual as saddles is only useful for identifying the one's that are REALLY bad and sometimes not even for that 🙂

I bought a Trek 5200 and it came with the Era K and I'm having problems with it as far as finding a comfortable position for a ride any longer than an hour...

Like crank length, saddles are one of those things that you have to just experiment with starting from intelligent assumptions and go from there. The good news is, unlike cranks, most LBSs that you develop a good relationship with are very loose about return saddles. the owner of my LBS (Livermore Cyclery) has told me specifically that if I wanted to I could try as many saddles as I wanted for extended times (have to actually buy them and return them for refund) and as long as the saddle came back with no damage, I could keep exchanging it with others till I found one that worked. (big advantage of LBS over mail order) Plus I get 10% off for a year as I bought the bike from them as well...

My advice is to go to your LBS and see if you can do the same thing... Try a saddle for a few days, if its not to your liking, return it and try another and so on and so on... I know that a few days is not a long time in the scheme of things, but it should get you ALOT closer than advice from other people on saddles or even a short test ride thru the parking lot...

Good luck to you!

Feanor

It's your butt!

I have a wonderfully comfortable "Century" saddle gotten from Performance for $9.95 -- I tried one and then bought two more.

There's really no predicting that one.

Thanks for the replies; I guess I'll have to just try a bunch out.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by gregk
Thanks for the replies; I guess I'll have to just try a bunch out.

Also check out Terry saddles Terry Saddles for Men

My wife and brother just got a Terry saddles - both find these quite a bit more comfortable than their previous seats.

Note, my wife did not find the seat more comfortable until AFTER a 1 hour ride.

I have been using a Serfas cut-out for a couple of months. It's comfortable and aleviated numbness I esperienced with the previous saddle.

I sat on one of these and was very surprised how nice it was, but im not giving up my Avocet O2 have been on it since 91 and wont ever go to another

[IMG]bikemag.com043003 saddleco gear.jpgOpen ↗[/IMG]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I think I am going to go with one of the Arrowhead saddles from Selle San Marco. They all look comfortable for me with a big cutout. I narrowed it down to the ERA Arrowhead, the Apside Arrowhead, and the Arami Gel saddle. Does anyone have any experience with these saddles?

My bit on saddles vs. weight:
I have decided that if there is one place to NOT worry about weight on a bike, it is the saddle. Who cares if my new saddle weighs 100 grams more than my old one? That isn't even a quarter of a pound. If I am in a race I'd rather concentrate on the actual race, not how much my butt hurts. Comfort should defenitely take priority.

I have experience with the Selle San Marco ASPIDE Arrowhead saddle.

I did'nt like it one bit. I used to have a Selle Italia SLR (my favorite saddle of all time!) before my bike was stolen.

So, I had problems with the Arrowhead, but loved the SLR. I think it was because of the somewhat "sharp" corners on the rear of the Arrowhead, while the SLR has much more of a rounded rear.

Anyways...my 2 cents...

randy

I've had a Terry Zero for this season. It is like no seat at all ! On long rides, and centuries, no physical discomfort.....period. Even in the aero position. At 200 gr. (Ti rails) and for about $90, you won't be disappointed.

I ride the Era Pro. I'd only rate it as OK. I need to be riding at least 10 hours a week to make it feel comfortable, any less and it feels like a really stiff ride. I've heard very good things about the SLR Transam gelflow - I'm trying to find one to test...

Get a Brooks. www.brookssaddles.com
Just like new shoes, it will need a period of breaking in, but it will also last for 20 or 30 years. Also unlike saddles made from jells and other high tech materials, it WILL break in and conform to your body. All a plastic and jell saddle can do is be squishy. If you want the ultimate in comfort and really don't care about weight, consider a sprung brooks touring saddle.

Besides, they look a hell of a lot better :-)

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by gregk
My first saddle was a Selle Italia Tri Matic. Not comfortable at all. My current saddle is a Selle Italia SLK, which is okay, but not the comfort I was expecting. I am looking for a saddle with comfort being the main goal. I don't care too much about weight, as it will be my training saddle (will run a Selle Italia SLR for competition). I am currently looking at the following:

Selle San Marco ERA K
Selle San Marco Apside
Selle San Marco Arami
Selle Italia SLR Gelflow
Specialized Pro Gel

I would really appreciate any recommendations that anyone has to offer, whether it be one of these saddles I mentioned or not.

For two years now I have Serfas saddles on both road bike and mountain bike.

http://www.gearshark.com/finder/details/Serfas-RX-Saddle-Men-s/details/Serfas-RX-Saddle-Men-s/7281.html?no_f

No more numbness. I am 6-3 (190 ) 260 lbs (118 kg)

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by gregk
My first saddle was a Selle Italia Tri Matic. Not comfortable at all. My current saddle is a Selle Italia SLK, which is okay, but not the comfort I was expecting. I am looking for a saddle with comfort being the main goal. I don't care too much about weight, as it will be my training saddle (will run a Selle Italia SLR for competition). I am currently looking at the following:

Selle San Marco ERA K
Selle San Marco Apside
Selle San Marco Arami
Selle Italia SLR Gelflow
Specialized Pro Gel

I would really appreciate any recommendations that anyone has to offer, whether it be one of these saddles I mentioned or not.