New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for.

Apr 19, 18 16:35

Post #1 of 15 (2858 views)

I’ll start with some details about me. I’m sitting at 263 right now. I’m on my way down from 329. I plan to lose at least 30 more lbs.

I just got my first tri specific bike. I had been using my road bike for everything for the past few years. I did a few trainer rides and immediately tossed the stock saddle.

I first grabbed an ISM PR 2.0. It was tough to tell on the trainer how it felt, I only got one ride outside with it but about 100 miles on the trainer. I’m pretty sure I was sitting on it correctly. I had my business out in front of the nose. It felt like the saddle was trying to split me in two.

I next got the PR 3.0. The amount of padding is the only difference in these two saddles.
It felt on, but a little squishy when I was riding outside. Again due to the weather ono my got two rides outside but about 100 miles inside. It just felt off. So I sent it back.

I currently have the ism PN 1.1. This is the best feeling saddle, but I was riding the other day and my entire undercarriage went numb. This hasn’t happened with either of the other two saddles. All three of these saddles are pretty identical as far as the dimensions on the website, except for the padding. I mean identical as far as the part where you actually sit.

My question is, how should a properly fitting saddle feel? I could ride my road bike all day and I would only get numbness if I wa son a long climb and I didn’t shift around for a while.

I keep seeing people talk about the Cobb 55, but it looks like the same thing.

I would really appreciate some proper advice, maybe some pictures of how to measure sit bones, or anything like that.
Really just any advice would be appreciated.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 19, 18 17:01

Post #2 of 15 (2837 views)

I'll say this. Tried the ISM about 2 years ago. Hated it and sent it back. LBS had a Cobb Jof 55. Looks the same to me but I liked it and bought 2 of them.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [mdtrihard] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 7:00

Post #3 of 15 (2708 views)

Maybe I’ll give the Cobb a shot. I don’t see anything on their website about a demo program though, like ISM does.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 7:27

Post #4 of 15 (2682 views)

my favorite saddle right now is the Fizik Mistica large.... a very good TT and long course saddle.

jonp9576 wrote:

I’ll start with some details about me. I’m sitting at 263 right now. I’m on my way down from 329. I plan to lose at least 30 more lbs.

I just got my first tri specific bike. I had been using my road bike for everything for the past few years. I did a few trainer rides and immediately tossed the stock saddle.

I first grabbed an ISM PR 2.0. It was tough to tell on the trainer how it felt, I only got one ride outside with it but about 100 miles on the trainer. I’m pretty sure I was sitting on it correctly. I had my business out in front of the nose. It felt like the saddle was trying to split me in two.

I next got the PR 3.0. The amount of padding is the only difference in these two saddles.
It felt on, but a little squishy when I was riding outside. Again due to the weather ono my got two rides outside but about 100 miles inside. It just felt off. So I sent it back.

I currently have the ism PN 1.1. This is the best feeling saddle, but I was riding the other day and my entire undercarriage went numb. This hasn’t happened with either of the other two saddles. All three of these saddles are pretty identical as far as the dimensions on the website, except for the padding. I mean identical as far as the part where you actually sit.

My question is, how should a properly fitting saddle feel? I could ride my road bike all day and I would only get numbness if I wa son a long climb and I didn’t shift around for a while.

I keep seeing people talk about the Cobb 55, but it looks like the same thing.

I would really appreciate some proper advice, maybe some pictures of how to measure sit bones, or anything like that.
Really just any advice would be appreciated.

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Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 7:39

Post #5 of 15 (2658 views)

Try a LBS.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 7:55

Post #6 of 15 (2638 views)

Unfortunately with saddles, you may have to try many different ones before finding one that "works" for you. As others said, the best advice is find a LBS that carries several different brands and try them out. They can help direct you on what you should be "feeling" and make sure you're on the correct width saddle. Fizik offers "test" saddles that Fizik dealers can loan you, and Specialized offers a 30 day no questions asked return on saddles so it's essentially a trial program except you are paying for it up front.

Granted I'm a road rider and not a triathlete, but over my 10 years of riding and racing, I've probably tried a dozen or so different saddles over the years. I tried just about everything Fizik makes and couldn't find anything comfortable. When Specialized came out with the Power saddle several years ago, I tried it and haven't looked back. It's now on all my bikes.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [mdtrihard] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 7:58

Post #7 of 15 (2637 views)

My shop wasn’t much help saying give each saddle a little more time before switching.

Maybe I’ll look for a shop that does the pressure mapping.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [ttusomeone] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 8:01

Post #8 of 15 (2634 views)

Mainly what I’m looking for is , an I going to know right away? Or do I need to give every one I try the full month?

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 8:12

Post #9 of 15 (2618 views)

If it's setup properly, you'll know right away if it's a definite "no". It's also possible that something that feels good on the first few rides won't after a few more. If it still feels good after three weeks chances are you've found your saddle.

One thing to keep in mind is each saddle is designed for you to be "sitting" in a certain area. When you swap saddles you may have to adjust your saddle placement forward/aft to make sure this target area is aligned with how your body naturally wants to fit on the bike. Meaning some of the discomfort may be due to saddle placement and/or tilt and not saddle design. For example if you keep wanting to slide forward or backwards on the saddle, it could be because you need to move the saddle itself forward or backwards and/or adjust the tilt. Or it could just be the saddle doesn't work for you. There's a lot of variables to consider which is why a good bike fitter/LBS will help.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 20, 18 8:18

Post #10 of 15 (2606 views)

As a starting point if you are getting numbness or isolated pressure points something is wrong. The headache is that it could be the saddle relative you your physiology, it could be your overall position on the bike/saddle height or it could be where you have the saddle positioned on the rails/how you are sitting on the saddle. However it doesn't take long to discover a saddle doesn't work so don't suffer through pain in the hopes that suddenly a saddle becomes comfortable.

Pressure mapping can help but it is real important to get tested in the same position you ride in. Pressure mapping can also hide important aspects of saddle discomfort. For example I naturally favour my right side as I begin to fatigue (most likely due a leg length discrepancy and old running injury) and this was really giving me problems in the saddle. This never showed up during fit measurements because I was fresh and it took some more work with a bike fitter and shims in my shoe to get me comfortable on long rides. I would just keep making adjustments until you find something that works.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

Apr 21, 18 8:52

Post #11 of 15 (2442 views)

jonp9576 wrote:

Maybe I’ll give the Cobb a shot. I don’t see anything on their website about a demo program though, like ISM does.

The Cobb website is down right now, so I couldn't confirm, but for years they've had a 90-day satisfaction guarantee, i.e. you can ride the saddle for up to 90 days and return it for a full refund if it didn't work out. When I settled on my current Randee, I bought five Cobb saddles and ended up returning four. Their customer service was fantastic.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [niccolo] [ In reply to ]

Apr 21, 18 12:46

Post #12 of 15 (2373 views)

niccolo wrote:

jonp9576 wrote:

Maybe I’ll give the Cobb a shot. I don’t see anything on their website about a demo program though, like ISM does.

The Cobb website is down right now, so I couldn't confirm, but for years they've had a 90-day satisfaction guarantee, i.e. you can ride the saddle for up to 90 days and return it for a full refund if it didn't work out. When I settled on my current Randee, I bought five Cobb saddles and ended up returning four. Their customer service was fantastic.

Cobb website is now http://www.speedandcomfort.com , just found this out the other day.

check out my blog http://theswimmingtriathlete.com

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [SDCali] [ In reply to ]

Apr 21, 18 13:06

Post #13 of 15 (2356 views)

SDCali wrote:

niccolo wrote:

jonp9576 wrote:

Maybe I’ll give the Cobb a shot. I don’t see anything on their website about a demo program though, like ISM does.

The Cobb website is down right now, so I couldn't confirm, but for years they've had a 90-day satisfaction guarantee, i.e. you can ride the saddle for up to 90 days and return it for a full refund if it didn't work out. When I settled on my current Randee, I bought five Cobb saddles and ended up returning four. Their customer service was fantastic.

Cobb website is now http://www.speedandcomfort.com , just found this out the other day.

Interesting. I see that they now have a 30-day return policy, and "The product must be in its original condition when returning." My guess is they're still okay with demoing the product, they just don't want people to trash it, but I'd want to confirm with them that they are, in fact, okay with multiple demos, i.e. a modest amount of wear (probably not even visible, though I suppose the foam might compress a little).

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

May 23, 18 12:44

Post #14 of 15 (1982 views)

Tilt the 1.1 nose down a degree or two. Might solve the numbness issue.

Re: New seat. I’m so confused. What am I actually looking for. [jonp9576] [ In reply to ]

May 23, 18 13:01

Post #15 of 15 (1955 views)

I've been through about 10 tri saddles in search of comfort, no chafing, and support. Cobb 55 fit me best. Tri saddle won't be the same as a road saddle in the upright position though.

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