Honest question; Why?

I’ve had a Dash Stage on my tri bike for 2+ years now and a Strike on my road bike. I’ve done a bunch of 70.3’s on the Dash and am doing an IM in July. It does take some adjusting to, especially on the trainer. I feel it’s a lot more comfortable on outside rides as there is naturally a bit more moving around as you ride.

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Yea I’m not trying to get stupid with the weight weenie stuff but I see some low hanging fruit. I’ve got 2 fairly hilly races this year in 70.3 chatty and I’m Louisville. My Shiv was kind of a budget build that I built as a resident and between the aerobar and saddle upgrade I’ll be shedding over a pound.

Awesome. Just ordered my stage a few minutes ago. Looking forward to trying it out.

I switched to Dash last year. I ride on both my TT bike and my road bike. Fantastic. I cannot say enough good things about them.

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

Awesome! As an aside, are they no longer making wheels? Can’t find them anywhere.

I have stock stage narrow. Because my ism that came with cervelo p3 was too wide and heavy. I have not raced full IM yet but done some 5 hour rides and so far so good. Mainly because is in right width for me now.
The padding. It is thin, but i like it.

X2. Multiple years in the saddle as well and still a happy rider!

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DFL > DNF > DNS

I think my last 4-5 Ironmans have been done with the Dash Stage 9, plus 7-8 100 mile time trials. The TT's would be done with skinsuit/full pad but the IM's with a thin speedsuit pad. It's a great saddle and nothing to fear for long rides.

There is inevitably some soreness given you are perched in one place in TT position on a harsh carbon frame riding over rough roads, but it is far less than any other saddle I've ridden. The Dash was a 'last chance desperation, money no object' purchase after some truly appalling saddle sores after riding a 12 hour time trial on an Adamo, which blew my bike training to pieces for 2 weeks after. Dash was different gravy from the off (although I've not mustered the courage to try another 12 hour....yet ;-))

Chatty 70.3 hills are nothing to worry about. Just be ready to climb as soon as you turn left on the first one. One minute and you’re at the top, so no big deal.
That said...I love my dash strike.

I'm not sure but it would not surprise me. The wheel business always seemed odd to me for them, and I don't think they ever got much traction. Expanding their saddle offerings should have been - and should still be - the core focus of their business. Wheels distracted from that. So I hope they've stopped and are focused on saddles. Especially a cheaper metal rail and fiber-reinforced polymer shell version. If they can get close to 1/2 the price of their carbon saddles, I think they'd move away from being the type of super-niche product they are now...

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

I had a stock Stage on for about 1.5 years and basically found out that it works ok for the outdoors rides but for the indoor training it was killing my 'sack. Went back to ISM Road - it is heavier but is a better all around saddle for me.

Edit: forgot to mention that I have Strike on my road bike and it is the best saddle ever. I am going to try moving it over to the TT bike to see how it rides - perhaps it will work better than Stage?

YMMV obviously.

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Next races on the schedule: none at the moment

My current saddle (Cobb Max) is 55mm at the nose. It looks like the Dash Stage narrow is 50mm and the standard is 60mm.

Any thoughts on which way to go? Thanks.

So to circle back around on this, I did buy a Stock Stage and switched from my ISM PN 1.1. I bought the narrow stage saddle. Took it out for a 4 hour ride last Saturday as the maiden voyage and was blown away. Like no thigh rubbing (like with my ISM). No numbness. Just worked for me right away. Really happy with it 2 rides in.

Man were you right. Got my Stock Stage last week and was blown away at the quality. Yes, it’s $229 which isn’t cheap but it looks and feels like a $400 saddle. Rode it for 4 hours on the TT bike and zero issues. Really good stuff.

I'd say it depends on how you feel about that width. The 55 was - for me - too wide at the nose. So that's why I went narrow. If it feels good, then go 60, because the 55 widens up pretty quickly.

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"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

Had ism prologue for few years, than switch to dash stock stage, size standart, in 2017. One ironman and three 70.3. Everything OK, Ism was little more comfortable, but weight too much ))

Amen, especially for those with weird saddle clamp systems (I'm looking at you, Felt/3T!) where the round carbon rails just don't feel like a safe option. My partner is getting desperate for a better saddle, and at this point Dash is the only suggestion I have left for her.

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