A Case Study on the Importance of Saddles

Triathlon Forum
41

My mediocrity in local SkiMo events aside, which was mostly down to trying to race against guys who specialize in it all the time (versus the one I did in Colorado, where not adjusted to altitude I finished mid-pack), we reviewed the last two years of data together to come to the conclusion we did.

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42

Tucson is only a day drive from here. Iā€™m tempted but weā€™re only 5 weeks out from IMAZ, I am really hesitant about making any changes to my bike at this point.

The other factor is Iā€™m counting on IMAZ to be my piece de resistance. From then on, I plan to just stick to sprints, maybe the occasional oly. I can put up with just about anything short of a spike for 13 miles.

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43

I have an athlete coming in from CA for a fit 2d before the IM. After the race heā€™ll be able to port his numbers over to his current bike.

Changing up a few days before the race is probably not the best idea. Hope you have a great race.

If I get any requests for bike fitting and aero testing in the Vegas area Iā€™ll let you know.

44

Uncomfortable after five hours, acceptable.

If itā€™s painful after two hours, then Iā€™m not sitting on it properly.

If itā€™s painful in under an hour then itā€™s the wrong saddle entirely.

Broad strokes I know but those are the general principles I work to.

45

I just pulled off a 6-hr training ride this weekend. It would have been impossible if I didnā€™t make some changes to my fit before hand. I was struggling a lot around the 100minute mark**. What worked for me is the combination of stretching out my position, lowering the saddle and reducing the saddle angle a couple degrees. Just lowering it wasnā€™t the trick and just tweaking the angle wasnā€™t working either. It was the added reach in my case with the other two adjustments that got me to 6 really quite comfortably. I was surprised.

Using one of these fancy V8 saddles in fact.

**and itā€™s interesting as I noticed I was fine on the road and much better on the rollers. But the fixed trainer I really suffered until these changes.

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46

You could post a video to this forum and get some of the best fitters in the world to give you some ideas for free.

47

And yet people continue to go through saddle after saddle looking for the perfect fit rather than just getting a bisaddle and having instant and infinite fit options. I donā€™t understand (other than marketing) why more people donā€™t buy one of these.

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48

Iā€™m tempted to drive down first of November butā€¦

As for Vegas, keep me in mind. I might do that if youā€™re going to be here already.

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49

Do you personally run one? Iā€™ve heard some complaints about them that have kept me away, but I love the concept still.

50

I do. It isnā€™t perfect but it necessarily drops the number of potential complaints of other saddles dramatically. My only complaint is I wish padding is a bit firmer. It just does what no other manufacturer can offer.

51

Blockquote[quote=ā€œLurker4, post:45, topic:1281564ā€]
It was the added reach in my case with the other two adjustments that got me to 6 really quite comfortably. I was surprised.
[/quote]

Iā€™m not surprised. The number of people Iā€™ve aero tested and fit that have commented with that has to be in the 100s over the last 8 years. It often sounds like : Holy F, xx mm more reach is so much more comfortable!

It might be 15mm or it might be 30-40mm more reach.

While currently the long majority of the shaped elbow pads/extensions have not been testing faster, imo due to their increased A, they do help facilitate some of the added reach people are clamoring for.

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52

Iā€™ve heard that the bisaddle has quality issues and that constantly making adjustments leads to things falling apartā€¦even mid ride.

To be fair, all of this is 2nd hand information, but I figured Iā€™d ask you.

53

Iā€™ve not had that experience personally but I have low mileage on mine in past couple years.

54

This is probably because Iā€™m fairly heavy, but I found that the plastic base of the bisaddle deformed over time

They also use super low quality bolts that round out fairly quickly.

I did buy an early model though.

55

I canā€™t really speak to the durability of the product as mine has relatively little use. I too am fairly heavy (190-195). But even if durability becomes an issue, I would buy one of these every couple years over a non adjustable saddle every time. I tried too many tri saddles over the years trying to make them work for me. This saddle works for you. Iā€™m really surprised other manufacturers havenā€™t decided something similar.

56

I could have sworn that Ramus was adjustable, but just looked closer and it is not. But, I have been following their development as I have worked on the development of my own saddle, and here is a shout out to them because the guy had worked so hard and constantly updated his design and materials, and from what I understand, it is a bomb proof and sturdy design with amazing foam that is replaceable, with a surprisingly comfortable shape:

@thetestlab really likes it: The Test Lab on Instagram: "Review - @ramusseat LFE115NN ( PART 1 ) . Ok so straight up letā€™s explain the LFE115NN name. L - Lightest saddle in the range. F - Flexible frame to dampen more road vibrations. E - Extended rails ( this was a game changer for me ). 115 - max width ( this is their narrowest saddle ). NN - Narrow Nose ( definitely a big plus for me ). . This is the second time we have reviewed a Ramus saddle, and there are 3 differences that have turned this from what we considered a good saddle for Olympic and maybe 70.3 racing, into a great saddle for really, all distances. Firstly the narrower nose. It might only be 1 cm but it made a big difference for me, our saddle measured at approximately 4.5cm wide at the nose. Suddenly I was comfortable for much more extended periods of time. The saddle genuinely feels like there is nothing pushing into any soft spots. Next is the extra padding. The 15mm padding is a huge improvement. They call it XTRA Muffy, but it could be called ā€˜Staypuff the Marshmallow Manā€™ for all I care, because it helped change the whole dynamic of the saddle and made it a real long course option. And lastly the very cool rear hydration mount which literally bolts directly into the saddle rails. It looks cool and functions brilliantly. You could possibly attach an Elite Chrono to the underneath as well, like a number of pros, to improve air flow. I wouldnā€™t be confident that the 3D print could hold 2 full bottles though. Iā€™ve found with the top mount cage it becomes very easy to grab and replace the rear bottle, which is always a concern with those extreme rear facing mounts. So a genuine plus there. . In part 2 Iā€™ll address the reason behind the unique shape of the Ramus and why I like it. . . . #triathlete / #triathlon / #triatlon / #triathlontraining / #triathlonlife / #trisaddle / #ironman / #ironmanlife / #ironman703 / #ironmantraining / #tri365 / #swimbikerun / #cycling / #timetrial / #cyclinglife / #innovation"

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57

Interesting design for sure. Also interesting claim that they are the first to develop replaceable seat pads. Iā€™m not sure how old they are but Bisaddle has offered that for many years so that claim is likely false.

58

I believe what bisaddle offers is that the user can replace the two adjustable top pieces of the saddle, and the foam, saddle shell and cover material are all replaced during this process.

What Ramus is offering is the user can replace just the foam, on its own. The saddle shell remains, and there is no cover material. So, this is novel and new and I believe they are correct being the first to offer the ability for the user to replace just the foam with no need to dispose of a saddle shell or cover material.

We offer the ability for users to replace the foam and cover material, but the user has to mail their saddle in and the carbon shell/rails is not replaced (has a lifetime warranty).

59

I am doing 5-6 hr training rides and competing in 100m TT and 12 hours without an uncomfortable groin. I have even done a 24hr. Saddle comfort is not a problem, even when it poured it does for half the 24hr TT and I was soaked.

I got lucky that the TT bike I bought 6-7 years ago had an ISM PS2, that I immediately got on with. However upgraging the bike from the Boardman ATT to a Giant Trinity I find the saddle clamp is 20mm further back. So I am more restricted on getting saddle over BB. Saddle is still comfortable but I am after a better position.

I have been working on my flexibility and changing my position from pushing against the saddle to sitting on the nose with a more forward rotated pelvis. It is taking a while to get used to the new position. Yet to do longer that 90 mins on the turbo, but I think its partly a change of muscle use as much as anything else.

I am still searching for a saddle that is comfortable and has longer rails so I can be more forward, and rotated forward as well.

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60

Responding back to this thread in generalā€¦

After trying so many damn saddles that always had one problem or another, I finally got a bisaddle.

I took about 90 minutes of ridding, fiddling but that ride and the hour I just did was the most comfortable Iā€™ve been in a long time. Time will tell, but seems like we have a winner.

Interesting thing I realized is that my sit bones seem to be not symetrical. I noticed it when I did the cardboard measurement. Then after adjusting the seat for comfort, had to have the left arm of the nose out just a bit more than the right.

I will do some longer rides and see if things stay copasetic. The only complaint (if you want to call it that) is that the seat is noticably heavier than my ISM or Fizik

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