Female Specific Bike Saddle

[KnottedYet]

KTK - be sure to talk to some physiotherapists about bike saddles, especially any who work with pelvic problems (incontinence, pain, etc) Find some models of the pelvis, both male and female. Sit in on a cadaver study, if you can.

Skeletally and perineally you may find that men and women are more alike than you think. The difference is in proportions more than anything.

In my experience, women don't need a different *kind* of saddle than men, they just need one that fits their proportions properly.

Manufacturers are starting to get the idea that saddles should come in sizes, like shoes, which is great. More sizes, more variety in proportions and shapes, and a clear way of categorizing them; and I think the world will be a better place.

[Rebecca19804]

And then ... start reading Knott's posts on saddle fit.

+1. In fact, if there's a way of sorting search results by poster, make anything posted by KnottedYet on saddle fit top priority reading. The item she posted a few minutes ago is just the tip of the iceberg of her wisdom on this topic, IMO.

[Trek420]

The item she posted a few minutes ago is just the tip of the iceberg of her wisdom on this topic, IMO.

Yes, Knott is very wise.

Sit in on a cadaver study, if you can.

Is this a study of someone who died of saddle pain from a Bontrager? "if only she had ridden a Brooks "

More sizes, more variety in proportions and shapes, and a clear way of categorizing them; and I think the world will be a better place.

I think the world would be a better place if more LBS fit riders to a great saddle. There are many makes, models, shapes out there but too many riders are getting the wrong one for them. My perfect saddle is your implement of torture.

[Rebecca19804]

KTK

Great resource options suggested by Knott. I'm in London too and her post got me thinking -

See if you can get an interview with cycling specialists at Balance Performance Physiotherapy (www.balancephysio.com). They're a short walk from North Clapham tube station.

Another source of info might be Cyclefit in Covent Garden (www.cyclefit.co.uk). They're highly recommended amongst both men and women. Contact points have got to be major factors in what they do.

Cadavers... I'll leave it to you to sort out a source/access.

[OakLeaf]

Cadavers... I'll leave it to you to sort out a source/access.

/partial hijack

I went to one seminar about spinal anatomy where the lecturer had cadaver pieces. I learned an INCREDIBLE amount, just unbelievably more than I'd ever been able to understand from photographs or drawings. Even though I was still essentially looking at a two-dimensional image on the overhead projector, the fact that the lecturer could manipulate the chunks in three dimensions was ENORMOUSLY instructive.

I sat in the back of the lecture hall with probably 300+ people between me and the overhead projector. That was as close as I wanted to be to the trays full of vertebrae, ligaments, nerves and muscles.

But anyway, as someone coming from a profession where a knowledge of anatomy is secondary, I heartily second the recommendation.

/hijack

Yes, Knott is very wise.

+a milliion!

Is this a study of someone who died of saddle pain from a Bontrager? "if only she had ridden a Brooks "

I know there must be women who've had to have 130 mm saddles surgically extracted from their nether parts.