Guys, can you recommend a saddle for hubby?

[sundial]

He's in the process of breaking in a Selle An Atomica and he can't quite get it right. He's loosened the tension, tightened it, turned the nose up a little, down, a wee to the side, etc. He has also tried a thicker and thinner chamois and a shock absorbing seatpost and his sit bones are still soooo sore.

He tried another saddle (Specialized and Trek) with and without a gel cover on it. No luck.

He's got a birthday coming up and I'd like to find some neat cycling accessories--maybe even a new saddle.

He is a huggable teddybear and he really wants to be comfie on his rides.

Any suggestions?

[boy in a kilt]

I would say try a Brooks B-17. I don't have any experience with the saddle you mention, but it looks like it would hurt something awful.

Here's what mine looks like:


If you look at how it's worn, note that it's pretty well worn where my sit bones go but there is almost no wear up front. That's about how it should work. No pressure in unfortunate places. In fact, I frequently do shorter rides (under about 20 miles) without padded shorts.

Plus, it's a pretty saddle, although it does require patience. I have about 8 years of work into this one.

[sundial]

Thanks BIK. He looked at the Brooks but didn't think there was an appreciable amount of difference in the two saddles. The Selle is also leather with a cut-out which he reports is really comfy. He's put in over a 100 miles in his saddle. It's just that his sit bones are still pretty uncomfie.

How long did it take you to break yours in?

[boy in a kilt]

Mine never really needed breaking in. It was comfortable from the git-go. In fact, I'd had it for about a month before I ever bothered to wear padded shorts.

From what I understand, this is a bit unusual.

One of my friends had the same problem as your husband was with a brooks saddle. His favorite mechanic took a look at it and tightened it up. Problem solved.

It sounds like he's tried pretty much everything. Out of curiosity, how does he feel about his position on the bike otherwise? Sometimes what seems to be a saddle problem is actually a position problem.

The other thing is there is no "one" saddle for everyone, regardless of what the adverts say. I utterly hate gel and most anatomic saddles. But I know people that swear by both of them. I also know people who can't tolerate brooks.

[VeloVT]

what has he liked/not liked about the saddles he's tried?

[KnottedYet]

You mentioned he's a "teddy bear". Is it possible that his sit bones are wider than the average guy's, and so instead of sitting on the suspended leather portion of his An-Atomica, he's sitting on the metal frame the leather is tacked to instead, or too close to the frame? (which would be VERY uncomfy on the sitz.) I think MimiTabby or someone said the An-Atomicas come in 3 different sizes. Maybe he just needs to switch for a wider size?

Somewhere there is a thread with a jillion very cool ideas for how to measure sit bones. (you just want to make sure his saddle is a good 1-2 cm wider on each side than he is, so 2-4 cm wider total to avoid the metal frame and to be sure he has wiggle room to shift positions)

[sundial]

Knotted, he talked to Tom about his size, type of riding, etc. before ordering the saddle. He keeps tightening the tension, but it doesn't seem to help. Maybe it takes a lot longer to break one in?

He used to ride a Specialized saddle with a 155 mm width and he reported that was just as uncomfie on the sit bones.

[sundial]

what has he liked/not liked about the saddles he's tried?

At least he doesn't have numbness. Just sore sit bones.

[blueskies]

I've also had a lot of trouble with sit bone pain. Basically, once I had my bike fit, it felt like I was sitting on gravel. I've got the Specialized Jett saddle that came with my bike. I don't have saddle advice, but I can share a couple things that have helped me.

Changing the height & angle of my seat, very slightly, helped quite a bit. Like a couple mms higher. Somehow, this changed the angle of my pelvis just enough so that it felt like sitting on slightly smoother rocks, instead of sharp pointy rocks. Sounds like he's been trying this, already, though.

The other big key was finding the right shorts. I spent a lot of time trying different shorts before I found one that was just right for me. One tip- look for high density chamois, rather than thick or thin. I ended up learning to feel for density first when shopping. Then I'd try on the short, squat & feel my sit bones from underneath the shorts. (Sometimes, the prime part of the chamois wasn't actually under my sit bones.) Then, I'd take them home & sit on my bike with the shorts on. (Undies on, tags in place.) Balancing with one foot on the curb, I would sit with one hand between my seat & the bike seat, and feel how dense the chamois felt directly under my bones. (Do I care what my neighbors think? When pain comes in the door, all pride goes out the window.)

Sounds extreme, but I wound up buying & returning several pair of shorts before I found the Castelli Ypro Donna, which has been the ride-saving short for me. Literally. Expensive, but worth it. They make shorts for men with the Ypro chamois. I got mine half price at backcountry outlet. Sugoi has shorts with dense chamois, but it hit me just behind my bones. Specialized makes some high end shorts that feel like they'd be excellent to me.

Also, trying to get up out of the saddle every 15 minutes or so helps with circulation to the compressed areas. I originally tried to do all seated climbing, because my training plan recommended this. Now, I try to stand for at least a minute or two every minutes. Coming out of intersections, and short inclines are great places for this.

Have you checked for overall bike fit? Is his weight distributed? That helps, too. On rough pavement, I use a slightly higher gear than I normally would & pedal a little harder to put a little more weight on the feet, and a little less on the seat.

Good luck!
Blueskies