Bike Saddles: what's good?

After reading sheldon brown's thoughts on this over and over, I went
out and found myself an old but useable Selle Italia Flite. It's stiff
and hard, but after getting over the minor saddle soreness, I found it
so much easier to ride on then the big, bouncy gel thing I was using
before. And, my circulation in my crotch isn't cut off, which it was
before.

I'd say that you should look for something that's not all cushiony.
Sounds odd, but if you feel your sit bones (in the lower end of your
butt, BEHIND your groin) getting sore, then that's a good sign. If you
feel any numbness below, you either have a bad saddle, or it's adjusted
poorly. A lot of people adjust their saddles so they're tilted, and I
think this is a bad idea. I had a saddle that was only a couple of
degrees forward, and I was getting sore wrists and palms, and losing
some feeling in my crotch. I also actually think that the harder the
saddle is, the quicker you get over the initial soreness. In the past,
I'd be in incredible discomfort from saddle soreness, but now, I barely
feel anything like it when I haven't ridden for a while.

You'd be surprised at how small and hard the thing can be, as long as
it supports you at those bony contact points, rather than in the soft
tissue between your legs.

I'd really recommend trying out one of the classic Italian saddles
(Selle Royale, Selle Italia, Selle San Marco, Vettas are nice, too), or
a Brooks, if you want to drop the dough. They're all a bit pricey, but
I'd take a beat up, used one of these than a brand new
gel-comfot-plush-thing-a-majig-seat anyday.

Good luck.

Per [email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

A strange question perhaps, but what do I look for in a Bike saddle?
Isn't it all abouit comfort or shouldn't it not bee too comfortable?

There's short-term comfort and there's long-term comfort.

Soft feels more comfortable for the demo ride, but long term, your sit bones
sink in to the hard part and the rest of the saddle is left pressing on your
perineum - where it shouldn't press.

If you only ride the bike to the news stand on Sunday mornings; soft is more
comfortable....
--
PeteCresswell

Quoted message said:

A strange question perhaps, but what do I look for in a Bike saddle?
Isn't it all abouit comfort or shouldn't it not bee too comfortable?

I don't know what is your experience? This seems to me, like shoed one
of the most important purchases, no?

Hope to hear from you!

Thanks,

Mathijs

Look for a bike shop that will allow you to buy and try and return and
swap if it isn't right. Tough with MO, most decent bike shops will have
this try first policy...

email hidden said:

A strange question perhaps, but what do I look for in a Bike saddle?
Isn't it all abouit comfort or shouldn't it not bee too comfortable?

I don't know what is your experience? This seems to me, like shoed one
of the most important purchases, no?

"What is good" is very subjective. Shaping is important for some
riders, while width is the big issue for others, and padding thickness
(or the lack of it) is the important thing for still more.

I find that I most easily adapt to a new seat whose rear area is
reasonably flat, whose center has a cutout, whose nose is slightly
below the level of the flat area, and whose padding is minimal but not
absent. But this doesn't describe all of my saddles; there is
variation in the designs which is hard to account for. I think the
real answer is that you know you've found a good saddle when you get
off the bike after more than 20 miles and have no problem with the
idea of getting back on again.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
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Thanks for your comment!

Cheers,

Mathijs

Thanks for your comment!

Cheers,

Mathijs

Thanks for your comment too!

Cheers,

Mathijs

Good point / advice!

Thanks!

Mathijs

Thanks for your comments and insights!

Cheers,

Mathijs