Saddles

SuzeQ

Hi all,
I'm new to mountain biking having come from a road cycling background. I've bought a second hand MTB from a hire shop to get me going. Nothing special just a Trek 4300 that I can learn on. However, I'm finding the saddle really uncomfortable and am looking to change it as soon as possible. It's a rather large, plush saddle which just doesn't fit me, plus I'm rather used to the sleeker saddle on my road bike.

My question is, do road and mountain bike saddles differ? I'm quite small and would be looking for a female specific saddle.

I've noticed that the SDG Allure saddle is highly rated and this I think is listed as a mountain bike saddle. It's reasonably pricey for a newbie but I don't mind too much if it'll be more comfortable. Otherwise I might find a cheaper 'road style' saddle. Any thoughts on whether it matters if it's MTB specific?

supersonic

MTB ones can be sturdier with thicker covers.

But get what you like best. Specialized do a fitting and try out service.

SuzeQ

Many thanks. I'll try to find out more about this. The Specialized website is down at the moment and I can't seem to find any retailer websites that state they offer a trial.

I'll investigate further.

Thanks again.

Mrs Toast

I think most Specialized dealers have the arse measuring tool - it's a pad you sit on, then they measure the dimples from the sit bones. The Specialized Concept stores definitely have them, if you could get to one of those.

Ditch Witch

Yeah, except my natural padding meant that my sit bones didn't leave a mark :oops:

miss notax

Mrs Toast wrote:

I think most Specialized dealers have the ars* measuring tool - it's a pad you sit on, then they measure the dimples from the sit bones. The Specialized Concept stores definitely have them, if you could get to one of those.

God, how horrific :shock:

I can't think of anything worse (regardless of the positives) than getting my @rse measured :shock:

"Ah yes, sarah75, we have measured you and you officially have a huge @rse and need our biggest saddle ever" :oops:

Ditch Witch

Well, fortunately, it's just your sit bones they measure, which stay the same no matter how much "comfort covering" you're carrying

Mrs Toast

Unfortunately my sit bones confirmed what my mother always keeps telling me - I have 'childbearing hips' -_-.

On the plus side, I've heard rumours that me and my kind make the rockin' world go round....

cee

and also....

'Bicycle races are coming your way
So forget all your duties oh yeah
Fat bottomed girls they'll be riding today
So look out for those beauties oh yeah
On your marks get set go
Bicycle race bicycle race bicycle race'

Mrs Toast

cee wrote:

and also....

'Bicycle races are coming your way
So forget all your duties oh yeah
Fat bottomed girls they'll be riding today
So look out for those beauties oh yeah
On your marks get set go
Bicycle race bicycle race bicycle race'

Always makes me giggle when I'm out riding and that song pops up on my iPod....

Ditch Witch

Spinal Tap wrote a song just for us:

Big bottoms, big bottoms,
talk about mudflaps
my girl's got 'em

helen984

I just bought a BARGAIN Selle Royal Rio Gel women's saddle from Bikehut at Halfords (having rejected 2 more expensive 'women's' saddles for being horrendously uncomfortable) and I'm super-impressed! Its quite bulbous at the back with generously thick gel. Also make sure the tilt is correct (sticking up a teensy little bit at the front) otherwise your weight falls in the wrong places and not even the best saddle in the world will help!

PBo

apologies for dipping into the womens section,but my wife suffers from saddle issues, so I always look at saddle related posts for ideas.....

.....anyway, I just wanted to say that I watched a repeat of "friends" today, which coincidentally featured one of the best odes to well cushioned sit bones ever - "baby got back"

http://new.music.yahoo.com/videos/sir-m ... cVQNDxsyUv

Before I get dissed for watching "friends", I did get out on my bike too........

PBo

apologies for dipping into the womens section,but my wife suffers from saddle issues, so I always look at saddle related posts for ideas.....

.....anyway, I just wanted to say that I watched a repeat of "friends" today, which coincidentally featured one of the best odes to well cushioned sit bones ever - "baby got back"

http://new.music.yahoo.com/videos/sir-m ... cVQNDxsyUv

Before I get dissed for watching "friends", I did get out on my bike too........

SpinningJenny

PBo - I love that clip.

and well-rounded bottoms are a natural womanly feature, I find

mine goes down well, anyway

Si78

sarah75 wrote:

Mrs Toast wrote:

I think most Specialized dealers have the ars* measuring tool - it's a pad you sit on, then they measure the dimples from the sit bones. The Specialized Concept stores definitely have them, if you could get to one of those.

God, how horrific :shock:

I can't think of anything worse (regardless of the positives) than getting my @rse measured :shock:

"Ah yes, sarah75, we have measured you and you officially have a huge @rse and need our biggest saddle ever" :oops:

Cooool, Gonna send my CV to Specialized Concept...Sounds like my ideal job! lol
I will only measure ladys bottoms tho :shock:

Si

Ditch Witch

Let us know how you get on with that

SpinningJenny

Ditch Witch wrote:

Let us know how you get on with that

thighsofsteel

Hi

I found this forum when I was googling new saddles - just wanted to say that I ended up buying a Selle Italia Diva Gel ladies saddle and it's the best money I've ever spent! No more numbness in the lady areas and it's wide enough at the back for my sit bones. It meant i had to go through the humiliation of having my ar$e measured in the middle of a very busy bike shop but well worth it as my saddle is the perfect width and makes riding soooooo much more comfortable!

Ditch Witch

Awesome. Nothing beats a comfy caboose on an all day ride

thighsofsteel

Hell yeah... with my old saddle i was getting to the stage where even after onl half an hour my butt was aching, whereas with my new one i don't even notice it - all good! That'll teach me to stick with the saddle that came with my bike and not get one soecially made for laydeeeez...

Ditch Witch

Definitely. I bought a spesh seat and it's so comfy. I couldn't have ridden all day on Sunday with my old man seat.

SpinningJenny

mine's a spesh boys' seat which came with the bike.

i don't notice it's there, which either means (a) it's a perfect fit or (b) i have such a huge layer of flubber on my nether regions that I could sit on a razoe blade and it wouldn't matter

Maria1

Hi,

I'm fairly new to this forum, although been cycling a little while on a ancient, heavy, cheap nightmare of a bike!

Anyway, I've put a deposit down on one of these:

but the saddle it comes with is:

a) for boys
b) not very comfy

Do you have any recommendations? I have a larg(ish) bottom & want to be comfy, but I'll be racing on the bike, so lightweight would be good as well.

Ditch Witch

It really depends on how wide your sit bones are. If they're wider (e.g. child bearing hips), you,ll probably need a ladies seat.

I love specialized stuff so always recommend it.

Unfortunately, saddles are just like bikes in that they're all different and it can come down to trial and error. I'd tried about four saddles before I settled on mine.

One thing to remember: softer is not necessarily better.

SpinningJenny

hello!

i have child bearing hips and have a men's saddle. it's great. i think it really does depend on personal preference. it looked like a razor to me when i first saw it, but it works really well.

you really do need to try them out. good luck

Maria1

Thanks!

Looks like I'll just have to have a look around, although there's not much you can find out about a saddle in the shop - it's only after 2hrs out riding that the pain starts!

I'm getting really excited about picking up my new bike though - only a week and a half to go!

spingle

I really want a selle italia diva gel saddle but they are so expensive. Need to save up!

SpinningJenny

Yay! I'd be excited too

You may be lucky that the saddle works for you...... fingers crossed!