saddle and shorts

[VeloVT]

As far as saddles are concerned -- you will probably find as many opinions here as there are folks to offer them ... But it would be helpful if you could be more specific about what you liked & didn't like about each of the saddles you've tried. Are you looking for a cutout, or not, for instance?

Shorts... also as many opinions as riders...
--I really like the chamois in the SSS short too -- it's one of the most comfortable I've found. The higher-end Shebeest short has a comfy chamois too. Sadly I'm not crazy about the fabrics Shebeest uses and I think the paneling/cut/design tends to be ok, but there are better-fitting/more flattering shorts out there... it's always a trade-off...

--The chamois in the Terry Bella short is VERY similar the the Shebeest chamois, and is just as comfortable. The no-front-elastic design of the Bella is really comfortable. My biggest complaint with these shorts is that the lycra is super shiny -- which I don't mind the looks of but it's actually slippery, I find myself sliding around on my saddle more .

--I like Castelli's Kiss chamois (in lower-end shorts) and Y-Pro chamois (in more expensive shorts -- pad isn't much thicker but it is denser). I haven't tried their highest end chamois (in the Free shorts). Generally speaking, I just really like Castelli. Watch out for some of the lower end shorts with "Softlex" fabric -- it's kind of sloppy for shorts in my opinion (not very high lycra content).

--Lots of people LOVE Sugoi's RS Flex shorts. I really like the fabric (amazing for hot weather) and the super-slick paneling (the shorts fit beautifully -- they're extremely comfortable and flattering... generally speaking, I find that Sugoi does a great job with cut), but I just don't find this chamois that comfortable. It has much denser padding under the sitbones, and much lighter padding in front, which is the opposite of what I need -- but everyone is different.

--I am completely indifferent about PI shorts. If I find a great sale I'll pick a pair up, but I won't go out of my way to buy them.

That's all I can think of for now ... Good luck!

[indysteel]

I think Liza and I are cut from the same cloth so to speak, although I have admittedly not tried the Castellis. But I share many of her opinions, having gone on a bit of a quest last year for new shorts. The Shebeest Ultra D's chamois has quite a bit of sit bone padding. I, personally, didn't love the the overall bulk of the chamois, however, and didn't find the cut particularly flattering. I liked the Craft Master short's chamois, too. The rise was just a little too short for my taste. I ultimately settled on the Sugoi RS short. I really love the material and the chamois's concentrated density for my sitbones. I agree with Liza that the density in the front it a bit less. I use a Terry saddle with a cut out, and that combo seems to work for me. I have a pair of PI Microsensors (2007 model). They're okay. Again, like Liza, I'm indifferent to PIs. I used to really like the Ultrasensors, but they widened the chamois in the front for 2007 and that didn't "sit" well with me.

At the end of the day, finding the right short requires a bit of trial and error unfortunately. I still have a pair of Hincapies that are almost brand new that need a good home.

[redrhodie]

I still have a pair of Hincapies that are almost brand new that need a good home.

What's the deal with them? I've been thinking of giving them a try.

[Tokie]

The Selle Italia sport saddle sold here at TE is a pretty comfy saddle, good padding, but not soft. I found the Specialized saddles rock-hard too, and have never liked the Terry saddles. I only ride about 125 miles a week and my butt is never sore tokie

[motochick]

I was in the same boat as you, too many saddles and none of them worked for longer rides. I researched what the distance riders were using and ended up trying the selle an-atomica saddle. It is wonderful. No pain anywhere! It worked out so well that hubby and I now have 4 of them.

Shorts was another pain in my @ss, quite literally. I used to wear PI but realized I needed bibs and the only chamois PI offered didn't work for me. I bought some Louis Garneau from TE and they work well but not perfect. They seem to "cameltoe" and it gets a little uncomfortable after a while.

My problem is, I need a chamois that is wide in the back end. My hubby wears Castelli bibs with the KISS chamois so I tried them on and the pad seemed like it would work for me. I ordered some in my size and the pad was great in the back, but too wide in the middle and front. (BTW, they do not make castelli bibs for women with the KISS chamois or those would be the ones I would wear) SOOOOO, what I did was undo the front half of the chamois, cut out the excess material (the wings) and sew the chamois back in place. Voila! $58 shipped and 20 min to customize. I have 2 pairs with another coming soon.

I have also tried the Exto Ondo bibs with the racior chamois and it was too narrow in the back. Too bad cuz they are NICE shorts. I need to get them in the for sale section.

Good luck on finding your right combo, it took me about 8 months but now all is good on my bottom end!

Brenda

[redrhodie]

I was in the same boat as you, too many saddles and none of them worked for longer rides. I researched what the distance riders were using and ended up trying the selle an-atomica saddle. It is wonderful. No pain anywhere!
Brenda

+1 for Selle An-Atomica. It's fannytastic. I love mine. Andrea had one that stretched out and caused HUGE discomfort, though. Mine is the Watershed leather, and I don't know if that's more resistant to stretching or not, but I haven't needed to tighten it yet, and it has around 1000 miles on it.

[Brandi]

I road 250 miles on rough road with a terry damselfly (spelling) and not a pain any place but for a little rash from a cheap pair of shorts (never do that again) My favorite shorts as of right now are a pair of Terry's I bought from someone here and now i don't know what they are called! So when i go to order i an scr*wed!

[Andrea]

+1 for Selle An-Atomica. It's fannytastic. I love mine. Andrea had one that stretched out and caused HUGE discomfort, though. Mine is the Watershed leather, and I don't know if that's more resistant to stretching or not, but I haven't needed to tighten it yet, and it has around 1000 miles on it.

Yep- I had two of them (watershed version & all). They were great when the tension was up, but as soon as I reached the end of the tension bolt, the cutout started rubbing and cutting. I'm not close to the weight limit at which they'd recommend the Clydesdale version, either.

Now I ride a San Marco Glamour Aspide. I tried three Terry saddles and two Specialized ones. The Terry ones were too padded and the padding broke down & closed the cutouts shut (ow), and the specialized ones were just too wide in the middle area.