So I’ve got my first road bike, had a fit done by the shop who built it, love the bike. The STA angle on my tri bike is 76 degrees, but the saddle is a little forward of center and when really riding hard I sit way out on the nose, so probably close to 78 or 79 degrees. I’ve just gotten used to sitting on the nose, only use probably the front third of the saddle and am more than comfortable that way.
No when riding the road bike, I continuosly find myself sliding towards the nose of the saddle (but it’s not as comfortable seated in the road position as it is in the tri position). So my question is, should I slide the saddle forward a little in an attempt to use the whole saddle, mostly for comfort. Or do you think even if I slide it forward I am still going to creep towards the nose and then end up to steep so I shoud leave the saddle where it is now and get used to staying back on it?
I like the saddle, I just can’t stop wanting to move forward on it. When I am seated on it correctly it’s super-comfy.
When I sit way out on the nose of my road saddle like I do on my tri saddle, it’s not comfy. That said, my tri saddle isn’t very comfy seated on the nose when I am sitting up, it works for me when I am on the nose and in the aerobars. So I am trying to figure out how to sit correctly on my road saddle.
I do not have an actual answer but I do know exactly what you are talking about.
I rode a tt bike (76 degree, out on the nose) most of last summer.
In August I started riding my cross bike on the road. My body wanted the seat much further forward the first few rides on the cross bike. I ended up moving the seat forward about 1.5 to 2 cm (it had been all the way back). A month later I started feeling as if the seat was too far forward and it eventually ended up more or less back where it had started (but a little lower). I really wanted it back where it had been when I tried powering up hills and cornering.
My takeaway thought - move it forward and see how it feels. Seat height, etc., is a moving target based on conditioning, adaptation, etc.
The more I ride a tri bike and become acclimated to that given riding style the more I tend to gravitate toward a steep posture on my road bike. That means that I’ve experimented with some pretty steep road bikes. A 52 cm Felt F1 has a seat tube angle of 76 degrees- that is on a road bike- with a top tube length of effectively 53.5 cm. I use a 130 mm stem on that and get the appropriate reach and also sit steep enough to be able to use the center of the saddle most of the time.
I have had road bikes that are 73 degrees (Cevelo Soloist Carbon, R2.5, R3) and was able to make them work, but I did notice I was really sliding forward on the saddle under very hard, desperate efforts of short duration. ON the steeper angled road bikes I don’t get that.
Most of my saddle time is on the tri bike since my primary interest is doing tris.
Yeah, I lived out on the nose of my tri-bike saddle all spring and summer. Maybe only ever having been on a tri bike I am just not used to the slack STA.
Now, if I move it forward, it should also go up a little bit right? I think my saddle may be a touch too high, so maybe I will just go forward a little bit, and by not raising it to adjust for the forward movement it will effectively lower it a bit and put me at a STA I like more.
Sorry… I apparently didn’t pay attention while reading your post!
It sounds like you may need to relax your arms more. Does it feel like you are trying to pull yourself forward on your road bike? If yes, focus on keeping your arm muscles relaxed, with a slight bend in your elbows. You should have very little pressure on your hands.
I am riding an R3 and along with sliding forward on the saddle, feel a little stretched out (it’s a 56cm frame with a 120mm stem).
I think I’ll slide the saddle forward a bit and see how it feels, it is sort of back-center position right now so it’s not like I need to jam it all the way forward on the rails to move it up.
Now, when you move a saddle forward, you are also supposed to raise it a touch right? As I replied to another poster, I think my saddle may be a bit high right now, so I may move it forward and not raise it, which will effectively lower it (if my assumption is correct) and hopefully put me at a better STA and saddle height.
Yes, remember, the distance between the center of your bottom bracket and the top/center of the saddle needs to remain constant so you can think of your saddle center as rotating around your bottom bracket in an arc. That means as it comes forward it will trend upward. The actual distance remains constant.
Another idea might be a center mount seatpost- but do keep an eye on your weight distribution- you don’t want to get to much weight on the front wheel. The bike will handle poorly then (too responsive).
In general, reach (distance from saddle to handlebars) should be best controlled by top tube length (the right frame for your torso length) and stem length. Sliding the saddle fore/aft is really intended to locate your pelvis over the bottom bracket in the optimal orientation for pedalling.
Thanks Tom. As I said, I don’t think I am in danger of being too far forward in terms of weight distribution as the saddle right now is in a rear-center position on the rails. So I will probably have it centered or just forward of center. Thanks.
I ride my tri bike on the nose at about 83 or so degrees of seat angle and when I had a road bike built for me, had the maker build it at 76 degrees. That seems to work pretty well when I’m riding the bar tops while climbing, but hunched over on the drops I end up on the nose as well. I suspect it is just your body trying to find the most powerful hip angle. My present post has quite a bit of setback and I am thinking of going to a neutral one.
After about six months of riding the road bike again after a couple of years of exclusive tri bike use, I find there is a good balance between riding the nose on the tri bike and sitting on my sit bones at the rear of the saddle for the road bike. If I overdo it and develop a saddle sore I can switch back to the other bike for a bit without issues.
I would definate move the saddle forward until you are supporting your weight on the sit bones.