Saddle LENGTH for a change

I'm happy on my Brooks B67/68s saddles--but all my saddles are short because they are all hand-me-downs from the tandem.

I've been reading lately about greater control gained by greater length and it has gotten me thinking--because greater control would be...well, great!!

How much more length do I need to add?

B 67/68 normal are 260mm long (compared to 235 for the Short)
B72 is 210 wide and 260 long while the B18Flowery is 210 wide and 250 long that I have on my commuter.

I'm wondering about a saddle for my Surly which is slightly more agressive (funny to say "agressive" about me and my riding) but anyway, would moving from 235 length to 260 would make a difference in control?

The fwd/back position seems to be ok.

I get confused and think maybe I if I got a gigantic B190 (W250 x L323) I would never ever again wonder if my saddle were big enough!

I am very happy with the length of my B68 and B67, I do tend to use the nose to steer a lot.

Sitting on one of Quilfred's "short" Brooks (I don't remember what it was) kind of scared me because I didn't have that control. Kinda felt like I was gonna fall, you know?

Do you feel like you have great control with your B18? The B67/B68 only have 1 cm more, so it's not a huge difference, but you might notice it.

My Surly said to tell your Surly that she loves her black B67 with black springs, and highly recommends www.wallbike.com because you have 6 months to return the saddle if the heavens don't open up and the angels sing when you ride. (my Surly is a little melodramatic.) ;)

"...the angels sing when you ride."

And all this time I thought it was just Malkin's saddle squeaking...

My Surly blushes coyly and is eagerly awating a new saddle, but she'll have to wait until a proper gift giving occasion for it.

Ah yes--the Wallbike return policy--it calls us everytime, but we never end up returning anything!


Do you think brewer is stalking me?
is he just trying to get even for all the time I spend behind him on the tandem?
;)

I have both the Brooks 'S' type saddles and regular Brooks. I found that the 'S' saddles hammock area isn't as noticeable when I first ride it and the nose is pointed up a tiny bit. On the men's saddles--oooh boy. I have to drop the nose ever so slightly to reduce the pressure until the hammock area has softened up a little.

The women's saddles don't give you as much fore/aft wiggle room but it will support your sit bones and you're not as likely to ride more towards the nose. In terms of comfort, if I am sitting more upright the ladies saddle is comfie but I do run the risk of the saddle rubbing the area between my thigh and butt. It's that reason I swapped the Team Pro S to the Team Pro on the road bike. And as Knott pointed out, you don't have as much steering with a shorter nosed saddle.

I have a B72 on my touring bike and B18 on my mixte. I don't notice the 1 cm. difference between the two. However, I am in a more upright position on the mixte if that matters any.

I love my S saddle (B67 S) on my commuter. I think I'd want a longer saddle on my mountain bike, though. Another thing to think about is how far back you need your saddle to go. The S saddles have very short rails. I ended up getting a seatpost with more setback to get the Brooks in the right position on my Kona.

Deb