Selle Italia Prolink Light Gel Flow saddle

[nscrbug]

Anyone using this saddle...or have any past experience with it? I'm looking for general likes/dislikes with this particular saddle. My butt is not really liking the 143mm Specialized Phenom saddle that I've been "testing" for the last 2 months...time to find something else, and the SI Prolink caught my attention. The width of this saddle is 144mm, so it's close to what I've been using with the Phenom...and it has a cut-out, like the Phenom. The difference, I'm assuming, comes with the gel padding on the Prolink...whereas, my Phenom has very minimal (basically none) padding. Hoping to hear some thoughts on this saddle. Thanks!

Linda

[kermit]

I tried one and it was very padded. It was just okay for me, the width was alright but the cutout was very small and not where it needed to be. Have you looked at the SI lady SLR, there was one on ebay for a good price. I am still happy with the max flite if the width works for you, I love the huge cutout. Do a search on here, I think some others have tried it. Also check out www.road bike review.com, there is a review section that may help you.

[OakLeaf]

Knowing what you don't like about your Phenom might give some clues on what direction to try.

[nscrbug]

Knowing what you don't like about your Phenom might give some clues on what direction to try.

Well...I just can't seem to get comfortable on it. The first few miles, are generally okay...but then I start squirming around to find that "sweet spot" somewhere at around the 15-20 mile mark. Then, by about the 40 mile mark, the discomfort turns into a burning/numbing sensation on my sitbones, and sometimes will radiate UP into my lower back area. After that point, I'm toast...nothing will relieve the pain except getting off the bike.

I should point out, that I went from a very thickly-padded Terry Butterfly Tri Gel saddle to the very minimal Phenom. I'm not sure if the extreme difference in padding might be causing this discomfort or possibly the fact that the Phenom is quite a bit narrower (143mm) than the Terry (154mm). Perhaps, it is both issues that are contributing to my butt pain...which I should also mention, is present even OFF the bike. I am truly starting to wonder if I have developed piriformis syndrome from the Phenom saddle...because my left glute has been hurting pretty much since I swapped out saddles roughly 2 months ago.