Overwhelmed with saddle choices!

Hi! I just bought a Trek 7.2FX, and while I love the bike, I hate the saddle. I've never had a chafing/saddle sore problem before, but I do now! Anyway, I'm trying to figure out what saddle to get, and I'm sort of overwhelmed by (expensive) options. I measured my sitbones, and they are 130mm apart. I guess with the 7.2, you're a bit more upright than on a road bike, so I don't know if that makes a difference as to what kind of saddle to get.

Any suggestions/recommendations would be great. I'd love to avoid spending more than $100 if possible.

Thanks!

i have no problem with the saddle on my FX. surprising because it is a Bontrager.
Have you considered a Terry?

have you seen the saddle thread?

Go to your local LBS and ask them if they have saddles you can try. We have no idea what will work for you, everyone is different.

Thanks. Unfortunately, I don't have a decent LBS. When I bought the bike, I mentioned that the saddle was extremely uncomfortable on my test ride. He said, well, it's for women, so it should work. :confused: I was hoping to just get a nudge in the right direction -- there are lots of threads that I've read, but none address someone on the smaller side of sitbones like mine. I guess I'll just have to go with trial and error (although doesn't that get costly?).

now you've given us a tiny bit more of information. you say your sit bones are set closer than normal. Have you measured them?
how do you like to sit, more upright, or lower like a race position.
Do you need/want a channel down the middle?
I love my Brooks saddle, they come in several widths.

there, that will get some responses.
Honestly, the bottom line is that no two people like the same exact thing. My fantastic saddle is soemthing the next person will hate.
Go back to your LBS. tell them YOU HATE this saddle. I bet they'll find another for you.
Don't let some callow salesperson intimidate you. And if they're that bad, take some extra time to travel to wherever there IS another LBS. (and let them know you're taking your business elsewhere)

I've posted this before - but what worked for me is when I measured my sitbones, I did so by sitting on a piece of paper on top of my Pilates mat, on top of a concrete step, with my pelvis approximating my riding position. Then I took a felt-tip pen and outlined the indentations on the piece of paper.

I had a pretty good idea of what saddle I wanted just from reading the threads here, but before I bought it, I brought my butt-print to the LBS and laid it on top of the saddle. So I could see whether it was going to support my sitbones, or whether it curved away from me in a way that wasn't going to work. A portable, flexible butt-print plus the hard chair cut-out test goes a long way, IMO.

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Originally Posted by Buster

Thanks. Unfortunately, I don't have a decent LBS. When I bought the bike, I mentioned that the saddle was extremely uncomfortable on my test ride. He said, well, it's for women, so it should work. :confused: I was hoping to just get a nudge in the right direction -- there are lots of threads that I've read, but none address someone on the smaller side of sitbones like mine. I guess I'll just have to go with trial and error (although doesn't that get costly?).

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Hi Buster,
I'm on the small side as well, and usually ride saddles from 124 to 130 wide.
If you are in the same range let me know and I will send you info on the seats I've tried.
Good luck!

Well, I've tried many, and I"m still searching... but getting a whole lot closer.

Some places offer a demo program. If you find one you love, that's more $ than you can swing, try an ad here on TE. Or e-bay. There are lots of folks who could not return a saddle they disliked that are happy to re-coup some $. One woman's trash is another woman's treasure;).

Bontrager and Specialized make saddles in different widths. Specialized states that your riding position does affect what width you may like. Frankly, after trying many ladies saddles, I think the closest one I like is a mens. Just keep an open mind. Good Luck:).

If you are in the 130mm area, it's likely that you can use a saddle that isn't woman-specific (they tend to be wider)

I found the saddle of my dreams from a demo program from Pro Net Inc.(I think that is their name, I'm away from home) They sent me 4 women's Selle Italia saddles - free shipping both ways - just with a security deposit that they refund. You can demo up to 5 saddles. If you purchase, they give you a 10% discount. Good luck! Tokie

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Originally Posted by Buster

I measured my sitbones, and they are 130mm apart.

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Hi Buster,

I see you have already measured your sitbones -- good for you! :D I have the 130mm Specialized Jett and LOVE IT!!!

This is what it looks like:

http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCEqu...ipmodel=Womens BG Jett Saddle

Hope you find something you like. Luckily for me, this is the saddle that came on my bike. It was in the 143 and I was able to exchange it for the 130 at no charge.

Hi Buster.

I have a Terry Damselfly for sale on the For Sale/Wanted board. Check it out and let me know what you think. It's one of the narrower female specific saddles and has a cut out.

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=28189

I'm sending you a PM...