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Saddle Help
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I just bought a tri bike and paid to have it professionally fitted. I am new to tri bikes. The bike came with a Specialized Sitero Pro saddle. The fitter mounted it flat.

When ridding I noticed I was only ridding on the noise of the saddle, because if I sat back on it my inner legs would rub with the saddle. I could only ride for about 30 minutes before it became too much pain. I basically feel pain between my inner legs and balls, on that tendon.

I went back to the shop and the fitter but a Cobb’s G2 saddle on for me to test. It is better, but I still have some rubbing.
I read some online reviews about the sitero and rave about the saddle. I have also read online that some people angle their saddle down slightly. The bike fitter was very adamant about keeping the saddle flat and trying a new saddle with a narrower noise. My road saddle is a toupe 143, and it fits me great. My road bike was also fitted by the same fitter and it is perfect. I just want my tri bike to be the same.

I have gone to a couple of shops to look at saddles now, but most don’t carry a large selection of tri saddles. I don’t want to buy something unless it fixes the problem, Should I remount the sitero with a slight down angle? Any recommendations for a narrow tri saddle? Is a noiseless tri saddle something I should look for? Any thoughts are much appreciated.
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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ahlerscurtis wrote:
I just bought a tri bike and paid to have it professionally fitted. I am new to tri bikes. The bike came with a Specialized Sitero Pro saddle. The fitter mounted it flat.

When ridding I noticed I was only ridding on the noise of the saddle, because if I sat back on it my inner legs would rub with the saddle. I could only ride for about 30 minutes before it became too much pain. I basically feel pain between my inner legs and balls, on that tendon.

I went back to the shop and the fitter but a Cobb’s G2 saddle on for me to test. It is better, but I still have some rubbing.
I read some online reviews about the sitero and rave about the saddle. I have also read online that some people angle their saddle down slightly. The bike fitter was very adamant about keeping the saddle flat and trying a new saddle with a narrower noise. My road saddle is a toupe 143, and it fits me great. My road bike was also fitted by the same fitter and it is perfect. I just want my tri bike to be the same.

I have gone to a couple of shops to look at saddles now, but most don’t carry a large selection of tri saddles. I don’t want to buy something unless it fixes the problem, Should I remount the sitero with a slight down angle? Any recommendations for a narrow tri saddle? Is a noiseless tri saddle something I should look for? Any thoughts are much appreciated.

it is not necessary to keep the saddle flat. the only thing that is necessary is that the saddle is not angled down so much that you're sliding off the front, having to push yourself back up onto the saddle every few pedal strokes.

would i be correct that you got your bike fit at dealer that sells predominantly specialized?

Dan Empfield
aka Slowman
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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ahlerscurtis wrote:
Any recommendations for a narrow tri saddle?
No
Quote:
Is a noiseless tri saddle something I should look for?
Yes
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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there's no reason not to play with the saddle tilt if you think it'd help your comfort.

i have the sitero saddle, have for 2+ years now. i like the saddle, but not love. i just got an ISM off the classifieds here to try something different. i have experienced some discomfort from it on longer rides of 3+ hours (training for my first full IM, but done years of training/racing up to 70.3s with sitero). sitero's triangular shape allows one to experiment with width pretty well as you say (slide back, it's wider, and vice versa), but i think the consensus is that it's a pretty firm saddle, and my biggest gripe is that the central channel is not that deep at all (barely a channel if you ask me - i wanted the ISM for the full cut out). so i guess what i'm saying is that while it's a good saddle, i wouldn't call it one that sits (hah!) at the top of the range when it comes to comfortable features. Honestly, one reason I've stuck with it so long for shorter distances is because of its integrated rear bottle cage...

i thnk the refrain with tri/tt saddles is that you just have to try a few - when your body agrees with one, you'll know it.
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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I fought this all last year, and especially into last fall, going back to the indoor trainer. I have two ISM models, and tried everything (including the zip-tie thing) to get them comfortable. One day on a long ride, I noticed that when I wanted some relief, I would subconsciously hunker down further into aero position, scrunching my knees into my chest. I thought oh how nice if the saddle was always that comfy. Well duh. I went against the norm, and tilted the front UP a little. Walla. It hasn't been an issue since, and I can ride unlimited.

Athlinks / Strava
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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The Sitero was an instantaneous saddle sore generator for me. The edges are too dramatic and the width flares way too quickly, so it created high pressure points any time I slid back on a climb. The complications from that saddle ruined an entire season.

I have settled on the old Bontrager Hilo. it is narrow and has a decent channel. They make a version you can change the nose width on. Definitely try dropping the nose a bit and see if that helps. You are trying to make the bike fit your body and everyone is different. Don't take orthodoxy too seriously. I ride at 9 degrees down and I don't slip off the front of the saddle.
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Re: Saddle Help [ahlerscurtis] [ In reply to ]
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2 narrow saddles I have tried are the Cobb Flow and the SMP Dynamic and 209. I also have a need for a very narrow saddle and these worked so far. Hope this helps.....Good luck.

Gary Geiger
http://www.geigerphoto.com Professional photographer

TEAM KiWAMi NORTH AMERICA http://www.kiwamitri.com, Rudy Project http://www.rudyprojectusa.com, GU https://guenergy.com/shop/ ; Salming World Ambassador; https://www.shopsalming.com
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