Brooks or Selle An-Atomica?

[Biciclista]

I agree with Knot. You do NOT want the B17N. At the very least start with the B17, which is the same width as the sella an-atomica

I don't know why they are selling the "s" Brooks models. the only application I can think of that would be useful is the stoker position on a tandem.

[OakLeaf]

Lind, did you mean your measurements were 143-150, or that's the width of the saddles the shops recommended for you (which would mean a measurement closer to 120)?

[nscrbug]

Lind, did you mean your measurements were 143-150, or that's the width of the saddles the shops recommended for you (which would mean a measurement closer to 120)?

That is the width of saddles that the shops suggested to me, based on my measurements on each of their respective measuring devices. I fell in the "mid-range" category on both the Bontrager and Specialized butt measuring pads. The mid range for Specialized is 143mm and for Bontrager saddles, it is 150mm. I never did get an actual number out of either one of them...they just told me which size saddle would be best for me.

So...does that drastically change things for me? Should I still be looking at a standard B17, and not the B17N? Same goes for the Selle An-Atomica...wider Titanico, or narrower Robusto?

ETA - On a side note...while I really like the 6-month return policy of the Brooks at Wallbike.com, I much prefer the Selle An-Atomica because it is offered in white (my bike is white)...although the return policy for the SAA is only 30 days, which may not be enough time to get a good enough feel for it. Any comments on this?

[Veronica]

It sounds like your sit bones are narrower than mine. I rode a Brooks Finesse -177 mm - for several years before it finally dawned on me that it was too wide and the cause of my shoulder rocking and saddle sores. So going with a regular Brooks B17 sounds like a bad idea to me.


I do love my Selle Italia SLK Lady Gel Flow and will buy yours from you if you still have it.

Competitive Cyclist does do a saddle demo program. Most of the saddles in it are men's. But by riding each of them in the trainer and taking careful notes about how each felt, I was able to figure out that the Selle Italia SLK Lady Gel Flow was the saddle I wanted from how they described each demo saddle on their website. You might give that a try.


Veronica

[nscrbug]

It sounds like your sit bones are narrower than mine. I rode a Brooks Finesse -177 mm - for several years before it finally dawned on me that it was too wide and the cause of my shoulder rocking and saddle sores. So going with a regular Brooks B17 sounds like a bad idea to me.


I do love my Selle Italia SLK Lady Gel Flow and will buy yours from you if you still have it.

Competitive Cyclist does do a saddle demo program. Most of the saddles in it are men's. But by riding each of them in the trainer and taking careful notes about how each felt, I was able to figure out that the Selle Italia SLK Lady Gel Flow was the saddle I wanted from how they described each demo saddle on their website. You might give that a try.

Veronica...after I had my SLK on the bike for a few hundred miles, it started to "droop" on the left side. I could visibly see that the left half was sitting about 1/4" lower than the right half. Now some folks on here have said that this is just the saddle conforming to my body...and while I would agree with that somewhat, it did cause me a fair amount of pain mainly due to the fact that I could feel a "ridge" where the left side had dropped down. Have you experienced anything like this with your SLK? I understand the concept behind the "split" design and that each side flexes independently...but I did not expect the saddle to physically look lop-sided after I got off it. I've been offered the option of sending it back to the distributor for warranty evalution, but I'm still trying to figure out if this is a defective flaw in the saddle or if it is supposed to do that. What's your take on this?

Linda

[Veronica]

I've got a couple of hundred miles on two different SLKs and have not seen that. I remember now you posting about the droop. My right leg is shorter than my left according to my tailor. So you would think I'd have a droop by now too if the saddle was designed to flex that much.

I'd send it in for evaluation. The worse thing they can say is that it's not a defect. But you may get a new saddle out of it.

Veronica