ayceejay
Guru
- Location
- Rural Quebec
I think the weight of the rider is the most important factor. If indeed choosing a saddle is like sex if you get deep penetration when you mount your bike you are probably over sexed/weight.
best endurance saddle
- Thread starter Part time cyclist
- Start date
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- Tags
- saddle
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KnackeredBike
I do my own stunts
Bit of a pain in the arse, though.
iandg
Legendary Member
- Location
- Dumfries and Galloway
I like the San Marco Regal and have it on 3 bikes now. Have also used Selle Italia Max Flite Genuine Gel with no problems.
I too use Regals - on 4 of my bikes!
andrew_s
Legendary Member
- Location
- Gloucester
True then, and true now.
Using a hard saddle, your weight is supported by your sit bones, where it's meant to be.
If you use a soft saddle, the sit bones just sink in to it, leaving your weight supported by various soft bits that don't like getting squashed. Hence various problems such as a numb knob, or muscles cramping up because they are trying to work when you've cut off the blood supply by sitting on it.
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
That's true if using a too-soft saddle (or thick padding in an attempt to counteract a too-hard saddle), but using a too-hard saddle will just put all your weight on too small an area at the points of your sit bones and bruise the flesh over them. Maybe in time you can bruise it so often that you lose feeling there, but what you really need is a "Goldilocks saddle" that's just right for you, not too soft but also not too hard, that cups the ends of your sit bones, putting the pressure through the sit bones but all of them. Many classic shapes are reasonably close to that for wide ranges of people, while leather hammock saddles develop into that.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
That's not at all how I interpret that quote (which is one of my favourite cycling quotes). I take it to mean: "get used to something hard. It's going to hurt. Get over it"
That's pretty much my view. I rode Brooks B17s for ages, then I thought "there must be something better" I've tried several but to no avail.
After 10 or 12 hours in the saddle my legs will hurt a bit and my arse will hurt a lot. The idea of balancing a significant percentage of my weight on a few square cm for hours and not expecting it to hurt seem optimistic to me.
Others are luckier, so I hear.
cyberknight
As long as I breathe, I attack.
- Location
- Land of confusion
No chance of the 1st my kids have shagdar , wake up if you get rumpy.
GuyBoden
Guru
- Location
- Warrington
Here's an interesting blog about an endurance rider's quest for the ultimate saddle.
http://www.randorichard.com/hints-helps/saddles
http://www.randorichard.com/hints-helps/saddles
I find I just can't get on with padded/gel saddles built on a hard base (or there might be one with just the right amount of padding for me which I haven't found). They always seem to leave me with a bruised feeling or with various numb parts.
I did think the gel saddle that came with my recent 2nd hand MTB was good, but if I do more than about 8 or 9 miles I start to get problems - bit sore today after yesterday's ride on it.
I've always found leather hammock saddles best for me, specifically Brooks (though those Rivet saddles look good), and I'm currently riding on a Swallow that's lovely and comfy after having ridden a total of about 100 miles on it. In the past I had a B17 that was wonderful and lasted for years (and I note the modern Swallow has thinner leather than that old B17).
I also have a Cambium which immediately seems very nice, but I haven't done enough distance to be sure yet.
Alan
I did think the gel saddle that came with my recent 2nd hand MTB was good, but if I do more than about 8 or 9 miles I start to get problems - bit sore today after yesterday's ride on it.
I've always found leather hammock saddles best for me, specifically Brooks (though those Rivet saddles look good), and I'm currently riding on a Swallow that's lovely and comfy after having ridden a total of about 100 miles on it. In the past I had a B17 that was wonderful and lasted for years (and I note the modern Swallow has thinner leather than that old B17).
I also have a Cambium which immediately seems very nice, but I haven't done enough distance to be sure yet.
Alan
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Aravis
Putrid Donut
- Location
- Gloucester
If I touch the underside of my B17 when riding, I feel the leather yielding in reassuring fashion in sympathy with each pedal stroke. That seems to be the key; the surface is hard to the touch, but there is just the right amount of give in the structure itself. Why this should work so brilliantly for some, less so for others, remains a puzzle.
Since using the B17 I've reached 12 hours of continuous riding a few times, and I'm confident that amongst the many things making me glad I'd finished, saddle discomfort did not feature amongst them. So in my case, I'd say the optimism you refer to is fulfilled.
My first reputable bike, a Viscount Aerospace, came with a lump of aluminium covered by a skin of plastic. I rode on that, quite a lot, for 5½ years. It's probably too fanciful a theory, but maybe the lengthy apprenticeship using such a thing served me well in the long term.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
Sadly its a significant limiting factor for me. After my longest ride last year (about 18hr on a B17) it hurt to sit down for a week. Legs recovered after a day or so.
smutchin
Cat 6 Racer
- Location
- The Red Enclave
If you get deep penetration when you mount your bike, you have probably forgotten to fit the saddle.
jefmcg
Guru
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
"for some casual cyclists, they only ride maybe one or two century rides a season" - saucer of milk for the distance snob, please!
The summary on the end of the second page is basically good, though. The reviews are likely to be of limited interest unless you've a similar backside, although some of the methods and musings may help some people.
