If the rider does not have any really weird injuries and/or morphology issues, riding with a seat angled like that is typically not good.

It is generally an indicator that the rider's seat height is way too high.

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Advanced Aero TopTube Storage for Road, Gravel, & Tri...ZeroSlip & Direct-mount, made in the USA.
DarkSpeedWorks.com.....Reviews.....Insta.....Facebook
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That’s Matt Hanson’s bike. Wonder if that’s his secret to running so fast? :)


Also, between the disc brake rotor and the saw tooth front wheel, I assume he is going to cut up every athlete in the race. So that may be another good strategy for him to win...

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Alex Arman

Strava

I hate to mention this but a professional triathlete will be starting this season in this fashion!

Sure, he may be a pro.
It does not matter because any pro can be faster, much faster.

There have been world class cyclists out there that rode half of their careers with a seat height that was way off (over 2cm). But guess what happened when they got their seat in the right position?

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Advanced Aero TopTube Storage for Road, Gravel, & Tri...ZeroSlip & Direct-mount, made in the USA.
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Shit... my saddle would be vertical If it would help me run 1:10 and 2:41 off the bike.

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What's your CdA?

it's the "wedge"

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Eric Reid AeroFit | Instagram Portfolio
Aerodynamic Retul Bike Fitting

“You are experiencing the criminal coverup of a foreign backed fascist hostile takeover of a mafia shakedown of an authoritarian religious slow motion coup. Persuade people to vote for Democracy.”

Don't try this however with a slick hard all-carbon seat with no padding - you'll slide right off the nose! (Happened to me in training when I was messing with my seat earlier and didn't tighten the bolt enough, so it tilted down just about that much. Was like fighting a slide. Prob not as bad with a seat that has friction with your suit)

Tilting the saddle a few degrees feels pretty good. Match it up by tilting the bars up a few degrees as well and you dont really slide forward but get a nice, relaxed aero position.

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Endurance coach | Physiotherapist (primary care) | Bikefitter | Swede

ie. the "wedge"

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Eric Reid AeroFit | Instagram Portfolio
Aerodynamic Retul Bike Fitting

“You are experiencing the criminal coverup of a foreign backed fascist hostile takeover of a mafia shakedown of an authoritarian religious slow motion coup. Persuade people to vote for Democracy.”

It is not new, it has been around as long as aero bars have been, mid 80's. And almost always it is a fit issue, and doing this makes the rider feel better. So if you dont fix that issue, then this is the next best thing I guess...

Doesn't the downward nose also help with hip rotation?

And the wedge is freaking awesome!

If I remember correctly, this rider stated it helps prevent lumbar pain later in the ride when he had a tendency to not tilt his pelvis anterior.

Happened to me a few times as I'm not a small fellow. When I got my bike refit my mechanic tightened that nut well, haven't had any issues since.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Ideally the saddle angle would automatically move slightly nose downward as you go into the aero tuck and reverse upward toward the horizontal when you sat up. I have been riding for decades with nose angled downwards and find it is the most comfortable position to hold long term when down on the aero bars.

I have tried for years and done multiple pro fits with local fitters as well as at ReTUL and Boulder Center for Sports Medicine. I just haven't been able to get comfy with a flat seat and my soft tissue takes quite a beating (and yes I have tried just about every short nose saddle out there). I have been riding with a downward tilt for a number of years now and it really works well for me.

Last year I saw two difference videos talking about how ProTour riders are adopting this so either I am ahead of the curve or this is an area where I could improve my position (who knows). I am hoping to get to ERO this spring. I figure if anyone can get me comfy on a flat saddle, Jim would be the one. If he thinks it is OK or I can't get comfy I will just keep using the downward tilt.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69OzE3KB2IY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UzR2KjKRyw

Fit issue. No one should ever have their saddle in that position. Ever.

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Jim Manton / ERO Sports

Please explain.

Hotman 637 or whatever that dudes name was would be proud! Gotta be faster when you're always pointed downhill.

Fwiw, the UCI relaxed the angle rule about one or 2 years ago.

Not that much they didn't! ;-) That looks like more than 10 degrees to me.

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Jim Manton / ERO Sports

Matt takes his triathlon seriously. While racing with him over the years he has complained about low back pain after moving to a more aggressive setup on the bike. I watched behind him at Ironman Racine 70.3 and he was moving around a lot on the bike and I could tell he was not comfortable. To me this downward tilt is a band-aid solution for a bigger problem that is structural in his body. It can probably be fixed thru strength, mobility, flexibility. This saddle position is going to put a lot more weight on his upper body and shoulders. Matt was a wrestler and has always complained about shoulders rotated in - maybe the downward tilt helps him out . Regardless I don't see this becoming a trend. A saddle should be flat to ever so slightly up.

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Thomas Gerlach wrote:

Regardless I don't see this becoming a trend. A saddle should be flat to ever so slightly up.

This my new favorite saddle, the Bontrager Hilo Comp.

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What's your CdA?

Do you feel like he does a good job rolling his hips?

That's a very general statement, and incorrect. ISM saddles are all designed to have the nose tilted down a few degrees, as is the Cobb JOF, VFlow, Dash range of saddles, and others. Tilted up has it's place, but it's not common, nor should it be. Men can cause injury to themselves if not careful.

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Jim Manton / ERO Sports