Sore bottom!!!

GER 67

I'm riding a trek 1.2 , with a very uncomfortable saddle- Aphinity, its not bad for the first 10- 15 miles,but more than that, and i'm in agony, and its spoils my ride,must sort this out now, because i'm doing a charity ride 200m plus and the coast to coast next year.Is the aphinity that bad ? which saddles are the most comfortable? and not too expensive!!! And guarantee's a SORELESS BOTTOM!!!!

cooldad

Nothing but Charge Spoons seem to fit most people. And are cheap.

ToeKnee

Many moons ago I did my first race on a secondhand bike. I was determined to finish even if I was lapped once or twice (Goodwood). Alas, the saddle got the better of me. At the time I was advised that Rolls San Marco were preferred by the more mature riders. Gave it a shot and never looked back. Now all my bikes have the same saddle in one guise or another. Not cheap tough.

cooldad

I have an old Rolls on my road bike. Extremely comfortable. Actually Selle San Marco are the company, Rolls the model.

TheStone

If you've given it a good try and it's not working for you, then change it.
Ebay can almost work like a swap shop till you find the right one.

Try and find out what the width is and go for something different. I think they range around 120-150mm.

Personally, anything I've used from Selle Italia that's not too narrow seems to work.

Jay dubbleU

Brooks

bunter

I love my Spoon. Did the C2C on it last year...

nich

Are you wearing padded undershorts, if not, get some

I didn't get on with the Charge Spoon, and I've opted for the fairly weird looking, but extremely comfy Selle SMP TRK: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=23428

All butts are different, so you may just have to experiment, and get used to selling those you don't get on with

GER 67

I always wear padded shorts,(altura airstream) I've got a good list of saddles now, so i'm going shopping, firstly i'm going to get properly gel measured at my LBS,and go from there. you've been really helpful. open to more advice.

Rich158

I've found the biggest issue is sizing, which you're getting sorted by the sounds of it. I've used heaps of different saddles and find that's the single biggest factor in comfort, if it's not supporting your sit bones then you'll be putting lots of pressure on soft fleshy bits that aren't designed to take your weight. I also go for a harder saddle and let the padded shorts do their job, a soft saddle again will put too much pressure on the wrong bits. It may also be worth looking at your saddle position, is it horizontal and not too far forward or back?

Good luck with the rides

Wrath Rob

Padded shorts are a must.

After that, go to your local bike shop and explain the issue. They'll suggest several saddles and let you try a test saddle for a week to see how you get on. I went through 5 different test saddles to arrive at my preferred choice (Fizik Antares Versus). Once you find the right one, don't be a cheap arse and go and buy the same saddle from Wiggle (or others), buy it from your local bike shop. If you want to buy from Wiggle, they do a 30 day refund so you can buy the ones you want to try, try and return if its not right, so do that and be prepared to pay for returning a few.

Saddles are very personal so just taking someone else's recommendation won't help beyond giving you a pointer in what to try.

First.Aspect

Could you be more specific about the discomfort?
If its a "someone took a mallet to my sit bones" sort of a pain; get a giant spongey saddle or just put up with it until you've destroyed all the nerve endings (your rear will get used to it eventually).
If its a "someone took wire wool to my nether regions" sort of a chafedom, then its either the clothes you are wearing or you might need a narrower nosed saddle.
If its a "someone's stolen my knackers because I can't feel them" sort of a discomfort (some people like it, actually) then you need to be looking at a flatter or cut-out saddle to help maintain communication when you are riding.

The saddle I think you have, from google images, doesn't look terrible. Fairly flat, but not too extreme. A bit of padding, a bit of a cutout. If you are really uncomfortable, it could well be your riding position and this is the cheapest thing to tinker with. Small changes in saddle height, forward/backwards position or angle can make a big difference.

GER 67

My main problem is the sit bones, like a sore pain that goes from the sit bones to the perineum then numbs 'Mr John Thomas' then the pins and needles hits the poor fellow, not nice!!! oh yeah, what's the shrinkage all about, is this normal for bike riders(not for me!!} i'll never take my lycra shorts off in front of the Mrs after a long ride!! embarrassing or what!!!

First.Aspect

Shrinkage is inevitable (I hope) but non-permanent (I hope).

Your sit bones are going to get used to this cycling thing, given time. But the combination of syptoms could be consistent with poor saddle position (or bike position generally). Definitely worth tinkering before anything else, imo; its free.

The Rookie

Charge Spoon for me, yes the sit bones (well muscle padding over them) were sore for the first 3 days, yes they are sore if I've been off the bike for a while (like months not days) for a day or 2, I use mine with just cotton shorts and regular undies for my 6.7mile commute and with padded undershorts on my MTB for longer rides, simply put I can't see anything fitting me better than a spoon and with that quality at that price (my last one was £18.63 delievered with cro-mo rails - again price difference to non cro-mo makes it a no-brainer) why try anything else. They are also so popular that if you don't like them you can near enough get your money back anyway.

Simon

MonkeyMonster

specialized bg saddle has been on the steed for 8 years or so and still good.

Jay dubbleU

Charge Spoon - I've got one on my commuter bike and the MTB - regularly do 25 mile CX rides without any issues

Torvid

selle italia flite gelflow saddle for me, took me a few saddle to get one I liked though, best bet, find a shop with demo models (then buy from them). My LBS let me keep the demo's for two weeks to get enough miles in to see if I liked them.

KonaMike

Another vote for the Charge Spoon here ! Had mine for nearly 3 years on three different bikes and I would never consider anything else .

coopster_the_1st

GER 67 wrote:

My main problem is the sit bones, like a sore pain that goes from the sit bones to the perineum then numbs 'Mr John Thomas' then the pins and needles hits the poor fellow, not nice!!! oh yeah, what's the shrinkage all about, is this normal for bike riders(not for me!!} i'll never take my lycra shorts off in front of the Mrs after a long ride!! embarrassing or what!!!

Is your saddle level? It sounds as it if may be pointing upwards(may only be a few degrees)

GER 67

Just bought a charge spoon today,got it cheap i'll start with this one, "Its going to be a long ride"!!!!!!!

The Rookie

You won't regret it, also try tweaking the saddle a fraction nose down.....

Simon