Finding the right saddle...

[indysteel]

I can handle being in the drops a long time and have always ridden a saddle--the Terry Butterfly Tri Gel to be precise--with a cutout. You might try that.

[Miranda]

I can handle being in the drops a long time and have always ridden a saddle--the Terry Butterfly Tri Gel to be precise--with a cutout. You might try that.

That's my saddle. I love it.

I had tried many, many, saddles on my old bike. That I later learned it was not the saddles so much. It was the bike being 2 frames sizes too big for me. Which TWO shops had told me that my bike *fit* me. What a joke.

I tried a couple Terrys too for saddles. Pressure problems. The tri gel is a variant that I did not try. But, the main thing was the bike.

I knew it was the saddle for me (on the new correct fitting ride to boot) because I was riding along... and it disappeared. When I got off the bike from the test ride the shop owner wanted to know how the bike was. First thing I said was, "WHAT is this saddle?!?!". I was shocked it was a Terry. I had wrote them off.

OK... also, how aero is your bike set up? I have all the steering quill w/spacers & a riser stem... I'm still about 1.5" below saddle height. I love my drops. But alternate. Still, no pressure problems. You should really be able to ride comfortably on the hoods most of the time. THAT I could never do either on the old ride. Now, it's ok.

The short of it: it you are too stretched out/ rolled forward--weight bearing on the pubic bone, NO saddle will ever completely relieve tender parts pressure (mine never did).

Good Luck!

[BalaRoja]

That's my saddle. I love it.

I had tried many, many, saddles on my old bike. That I later learned it was not the saddles so much. It was the bike being 2 frames sizes too big for me. Which TWO shops had told me that my bike *fit* me. What a joke.

I tried a couple Terrys too for saddles. Pressure problems. The tri gel is a variant that I did not try. But, the main thing was the bike.

I knew it was the saddle for me (on the new correct fitting ride to boot) because I was riding along... and it disappeared. When I got off the bike from the test ride the shop owner wanted to know how the bike was. First thing I said was, "WHAT is this saddle?!?!". I was shocked it was a Terry. I had wrote them off.

OK... also, how aero is your bike set up? I have all the steering quill w/spacers & a riser stem... I'm still about 1.5" below saddle height. I love my drops. But alternate. Still, no pressure problems. You should really be able to ride comfortably on the hoods most of the time. THAT I could never do either on the old ride. Now, it's ok.

The short of it: it you are too stretched out/ rolled forward--weight bearing on the pubic bone, NO saddle will ever completely relieve tender parts pressure (mine never did).

Good Luck!

Another vote for the Terry Tri saddle? Maybe I need to give that one a good look

Miranda, I agree with your idea that a so-so fit or being too stretched out can make for saddle discomfort. It is possible that's my case but I'm not sure as of yet and probably need to study my position/placement more.

Bars are maybe 1" below the top of the saddle and the latter being a pretty standard trek wsd road saddle. A bit more cushy than the aftermarket saddles we are talking about here.

Aside from that, I'm rather long waisted so I have a longer stem than many people use (having a much longer torso), plus I am a bit tall-ish. The WSD bike is probably not the best fit for me, but that's a whole other conversation and I've got too much money in the bike (and not enough in my pocket!) to switch right now. So to get to the point - I may be a bit more stretched out than need be although I don't think or imagine that I am

[BalaRoja]

Got the sit-bone measurement and it looks like 16cm. I got the measurement from someone who knows anatomy very well so I'm thinking it is right.

WOuld that change the saddle selection? maybe a wider seat?

[sarahspins]

160mm is definitely on the wider end.... so if you've been on a seat that was too narrow, that can definitely contribute to a lot of pressure/pain up front.

[Suechoccy]

A bike fit done several years ago can be forgotten. You will have changed shape, fitness and age during the intervening years so it's irrelevant. If you're trying now to use the bikefit position prescribed some years ago (when presumably you were fit and riding a lot), then you're probably in too aggressive a/low a position at the front now for your fitness/shape/age at the moment.

The lower the front end goes, the more pressure is put on the soft tissues esp towards the very front of your genitals.

I'd raise the front slightly to take pressure off yourself, then get a few weeks acclimization, then maybe lower the front if you really want to.

Saddles, I'm fine with a typical bloke's saddle on a road bike with drop handlebars, but had a difficult time finding a comfy saddle for my tri-bars time trial bike as the front position is more acute/lower. After several false starts including WTB Rockets, Specialised Jetts and Fizik Rondines, I had a week's free trial of an Adamo Race and loved it so bought one for the tribar bike. It is an acquired taste though, quite hard, hard on the seatbones, and the short nose is wide too, so you definitely need the free trial first to see if it suits you, and you need to set it up according to the saddle-fitting demo at:

http://www.ismseat.com/faqs/htm

Here's a thread all about Adamo saddles from an English timetrialling forum (men and women:
http://www.timetriallingforum.co.uk/...hp?t34359.html

Good luck, I hope you find comfort soon!

[OakLeaf]

Got the sit-bone measurement and it looks like 16cm. I got the measurement from someone who knows anatomy very well so I'm thinking it is right.

WOuld that change the saddle selection? maybe a wider seat?

Yeah, 160 mm is pretty wide, wider than most saddles go. Remember that you need some room on either side of the center of your sitbones, for proper support - when a manufacturer says their saddle is, say, 162 mm (about as wide as anything other than Brooks go), that's measuring from outside to outside at the widest point. The points on the top that will actually be supporting you are closer together. If you're 160mm center-to-center, then seriously consider a Brooks. They're heavy, yeah, but they're wide, very T-shaped, and people who need a very wide saddle just love them.

Just as they say about aero position - if you can't breathe, then the deepest tuck with the least wind resistance isn't the fastest position for you - it's the same with saddles. You may be giving up some weight to other riders, but if other saddles don't let you push off your saddle as hard or as long as you need to, then your weight savings is useless.

[dianne_1234]

You're right Oak, 160 is off the charts. Well, off these charts anyway.

From a post I made anticipating just this circumstance:

Ischial Tuberosity Spacing stats

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Found this in my old uni notes and wanted to post it here for easy reference:

Ischial Tuberosity Spacing among women:
5th percentile 112 mm
50th percentile 130 mm
95th percentile 148 mm

Ischial Tuberosity Spacing among men:
5th percentile 100 mm
50th percentile 118 mm
95th percentile 137 mm

I don't remember the population this data was taken from, but I remember being under the impression that it was a very large number of individuals and it was considered "safe" to assume it might represent the whole world.

I've used this info to help narrow the search - once I learned I was wider the 95th percentile(!) I stopped bothering with a lot of narrow saddles.

From http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...t=21451&page=3

[BalaRoja]

Hi Oakleaf & Dianne - Those are some interesting stats. I suppose I would hope to be in the 99% (give or take a percentage point or two) of something a bit more impressive than, um....sit bones but what the heck