Saddles / Tyres

like2bike

Hello,

I recently bought a C. Badboy with rigid forks and the slim tyres without tread. There are a lot of pot holes and grates on my various routes, and the ride is a little uncomfortable.

I sort of wish I had got front suspension, but I went for the rigid. I know most people say you don't need it for general commuting etc, its added weight etc, but I did once have a bike with suspension just for getting around and I loved it - so much more comfortable going over pot holes, curbs, grates etc. Anyway, I don't have this and imagine this is not something you can upgrade, so I was thinking I should buy some wider tyres, which I have heard would make a more comfy ride. Has anyone upgraded from the standard badboy tyres to something a little wider? If so, what would you recommend? And how wide? They currently have Schwalbe Kojak Race Guard, 700×28c according to the spec. I think my mudguards will take bigger tyres as they are wide road ones.

Lastly, the urban saddle the bike comes with is not particularly comfortable. What would you recommend as an alternative? I would like something more comfy, but also something black, looks goog and not too large so that it fits the style of the bike.

Thanks a lot.

w00dster

Hi There,
I ride off road quite a bit, gravel paths, forest trails and also on road, not on a hybrid as such, I have a CX Bike, but fundamentally the same type of riding as you mention.
When riding on road I don't really care too much about my tyre being a full on slick, I run Bontrager CX0 Tyres run at a fairly low pressure, about 40/50 psi depending on the type of ride I'm doing. Mine are 34c, not sure if your bike will have clearance for this? I notice the difference mainly due to the lower tyre pressures more than anything else - my road bike has 23c tyres pumped up to approx 95/100 psi - the 34c at 40psi feels so much more comfortable.
Also to dampen vibration I have upgraded some of my aluminium components to carbon , seatpost, saddle, bars and stem. This can be done cheap (ish) if you shop around. Don't worry too much about weight of the products, I went uber light with mine but to be honest, any carbon product would have likely been as good.
The saddle really is something that is personal to the rider. I'm very lucky in the fact that I have had very few issues with the saddles I have had. Specialised Toupe Gel Expert for me was fine, but we are all different down there. I've recently moved to a Bontrager Paradigm XXX Carbon Seat, but they are expensive just to save a bit of weight.
My local Trel store has a stock of demo saddles that they let you try out for a period of time to see how you get on with them and also Specialised do a months trial. Worth a visit to your local bike shop to see what they recommend for you, they can measure your sit bones and based on that can recommend a saddle that may be comfortable.