Anyone familiar with the Selle Royal saddles?

[Trekhawk]

[QUOTE emily_in_nc]
Do those of you who have the Atola have the regular model or the Gelaround? If you don't know, the Gelaround model says "Gelaround" in the back in large letters, the regular does not. Except for the gel, they seem to be exactly the same (size, weight, styling).

Hi Emily
I have the gelaround and so far it seems pretty good. I really can feel my sit bones but after a while on a ride I dont seem to notice it as much. I like the fact that the saddle seems a tad shorter than my old terry as I use to get myself snagged on the end of that all the time. This has not happened on the San Marco.

Let us know how you get on with yours.

[bikerz]

Do those of you who have the Atola have the regular model or the Gelaround?

Mine is the regular Atola womens saddle. I ordered it from Cambria Bicycle Outfitters for $64.95

Hey BikerZ... which Terry saddle did you have before?

I had a Terry Women's Butterfly Titanium. I was just looking at the picture of it on the REI website, and my cutout looks like it was quite a bit narrower than the photo. Hmmm - maybe I had some sort of reject saddle... Oh well, I'm happy with the Atola and it was $40 cheaper!

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks for the info, Bikerz...

I was also interested to see that the Atola is ever so slightly lighter weight than the Terry Butterfly ti (254g vs 262g), I guess because it is a little smaller. So for it to be that much less expensive than the Butterfly ti is pretty cool. I have Butterfly ti models on three of my four bikes now, but I'm looking forward to trying out this Atola!

Emily

[kim]

I've been lurking for a long time gathering very valuable information from this site, so I felt compelled to finally register and post a reply where I've had some minimal experience since I'm a relatively new rider. I bought a San Marco Atola Gelaround saddle this spring and have since put almost 3000 miles on it (I'm a new rider, but I really like it). For the most part, the Atola is very comfortable--even during centuries. My only complaint is that there is little padding in the nose. So I find it a lot less comfortable when I'm riding in the drops. Now that I'm getting a little faster, I find I like to ride in that position more, so I'm looking for a similar saddle that might accomodate that better. If you don't spend much time in the drops, I believe you will be very pleased, though.

[emily_in_nc]

I've been lurking for a long time gathering very valuable information from this site, so I felt compelled to finally register and post a reply where I've had some minimal experience since I'm a relatively new rider. I bought a San Marco Atola Gelaround saddle this spring and have since put almost 3000 miles on it (I'm a new rider, but I really like it). For the most part, the Atola is very comfortable--even during centuries. My only complaint is that there is little padding in the nose. So I find it a lot less comfortable when I'm riding in the drops. Now that I'm getting a little faster, I find I like to ride in that position more, so I'm looking for a similar saddle that might accomodate that better. If you don't spend much time in the drops, I believe you will be very pleased, though.

Hi Kim - welcome to Team E! This is a great place to hang out!

I found your experience with the Atola interesting, because I ride in the drops fairly frequently and find the nose extremely comfortable. I wear Performance Ultra shorts most often, which have a lot of padding in the front, which may be the difference. I just don't notice the nose of the saddle at all, one way or another, which is a good thing. Once again, just shows how different we all are!

Again, welcome, and now that you've registered, post on!

Emily

[bikerz]

Well, on the last two 45 mile rides on my Selle San Marco Atola, I started thinking maybe it's NOT the saddle for me after all. I think it might be too narrow at the back. I've been getting some unpleasant chafing where the back of my thigh meets the rear-end itself after about 20 miles... ouch. Bu tthe cut-out is perfect. I may try to find another saddle with a similar cut-out but with a slightly wider back. Any ideas?

[Trekhawk]

Well, on the last two 45 mile rides on my Selle San Marco Atola, I started thinking maybe it's NOT the saddle for me after all. I think it might be too narrow at the back. I've been getting some unpleasant chafing where the back of my thigh meets the rear-end itself after about 20 miles... ouch. Bu tthe cut-out is perfect. I may try to find another saddle with a similar cut-out but with a slightly wider back. Any ideas?

Maybe you could check out the San Marco Aero. Same cutout but different shape. Some of the girls here at TE recommended that one to me and a few preferred it to the Atola.

Sorry to hear the Atola might not be a winner for you - saddle searching is such a pain (literally as well).

[kim]

Another thing I noticed is that very small adjustments in bike fit can make big differences. At first I had paid a lot of attention to articles I'd read about how to fit the bike. And that was a good starting point. But I've since found I'm more comfortable if I ignore some of the "rules." The seat post that came with my bike was not adjustable (could move the seat minimally forward or backward, but could not change the angle), but my husband bought me a Bontrager carbon fully-adjustable post a couple of weeks ago--just out of the blue, what a guy. I've been playing around with that a little. Perhaps I just haven't found the perfect angle yet to be comfortable in the drops.

Thanks for the shorts advice, though. That seems obvious, but I hadn't paid much attention to that--which is why I like this forum. There must be another thread for that, eh?

[bikerz]

Hi Trekhawk -
Thanks for the suggestion - I might try out the Aero because it looks wider at the back. In the meantime I'm ordering a Koobi Classic saddle ($60 for a demo) which has a different cutout - more of a channel, but wider at the back. I'll try the Aero next, I guess.

I'm trying not to panic! I really need to get a saddle I can sit on day after day, mile after mile for the ALC! Of course, hopefully as I get stronger and develop better riding posture (and my own rear end gets narrower!), I'll find a setup that works.

[SadieKate]

I've been getting some unpleasant chafing where the back of my thigh meets the rear-end itself after about 20 miles... ouch. . . . Any ideas?

Sometimes, the chamois/saddle combo isn't right. Do you have the same problem if you wear a different brand short and chamois?

[bikerz]

Sometimes, the chamois/saddle combo isn't right. Do you have the same problem if you wear a different brand short and chamois?

yeah - that was my first hopeful thought, but I've had the same issues with three separate shorts - 2 terrys and 1 aerotech. Granted the terry chamois is not so great - seams and so on, but the trouble area does not seem to be associated with the camois seams, so I don't think that's it. And since the shorts and the saddles are all about the same price, it's $60+ no matter what! Wish me luck! I might just needto start experimenting with chamois butter, bag balm, etc.

BikerZ... are you going to get rid of that Atola? I might be interested in taking it off your hands.

Hey Slinkedog - I was hoping that might be the case! I'll let you now after I've taken the new Koobi for a few rides...

[slinkedog]

Hey Z! How's that Koobi treating your, er, you?