I know there was a recent post on this but there were not a lot of responses from the women.
I need a new one. My butterfly has broken down. I have heard the “areola”, aliante, damselfly… My big fear with another Terry is I have heard they break down faster? How long are they supposed to last? I need a slim seat, my legs are quite hefty 
and I ride quite forward.
I want to hear what saddle you ride on and if you like it. Thanks!
My wife uses a Specialized Comp Women’s. They come in either leather or Suede. She really likes it.
First off, being a male doesn’t disqualify me from having an opinion on female saddles since I sell them- that has been suggested in the past.
Your observation that Terry saddles “break down” is an excellent one. They “break down” the second you sit on them. I still sell them becasue people buy them but we are honest with people about how they work.
Most of these saddles have a “comfort hole” or some such thing in them. We shot some photos of what happens to that hole when people actually sit on the saddle, a view from underneath. In general, the hole either becomes significantly smaller as the sides of the saddle pres together or the hole disappears altogether leaving the riding sitting in a depression in the saddle where the two sides of the hole came together under the rider’s weight.
Try this- have someone sit on a bike with a “comfort hole” in the saddle. Look under the saddle while they are seated on it. Wow! Incredible. The hole (on most saddles) is suddenly closed up.
Additionally, one dubious feature of women’s saddles is they are generally shorter than so-called “men’s” saddles at around 25 cm. Since women generally have longer legs and shorter torsos, and a corresponding shorter reach measurement- if anything, they need longer saddles than men to try to compensate for top tubes that are a touch too long.
My take on this is saddles are uni-sex and a lot of the gender specific saddle marketing is just that- good marketing. Trying a couple good quality, basic saddles without novelty features like odd shapes and holes may give you good results. Our experience with saddles that are 25cm long, wider in the back (significantly) and have comfort holes in them is that they work well for entry level and low mileage riders initially, but they rapidly need to transition to a more conventional saddle as they accumulate miles on the bike. Their bodies are starting to adapt to the saddle and their tolerance for saddle (dis)comfort is getting better.
Good luck with this!
Maylene,
I love the Aliante. I’m a woman, I also have muscular quads and I ride forward. See if your local shop has one you can try out for a few miles. I’ve actually put this saddle on all three of my road bikes.
Leigh
Hello,
I use the fizik Vitesse, I like the saddle very much, from the first day!
Petra
Bicycle Sports has a cut-away saddle that my wife and several of her friends like quite a bit. (She rides a P2K in the forward position.) It’s based on a Terry saddle, which you may not like, but it is specifically designed to address the need for a slim option. If that sounds interesting, give them a call.
Dan
Thanks Tom, and all that have responded.
I have read your other posts where you have stated all this valuable info. The problem is, I know what specs I need, I just need to know what brands to look for and then go try them. The problem is, I don’t have time to go to 4 different shops and since most shops here do not have a full line I will have to narrow it down depending on the actual brands I am seeking. Any suggestions?
Good luck on your saddle hunt. Obviously, I am a male, but I hope I can offer a bit of advice from 25 years of riding. First, ask yourself what part of your anatomy needs the most protection. For example, for me the front of my crotch is fine–it is my sit bones that can get sore. So a holed-saddle doesn’t work for me. For my female partner, it is just the opposite. Another thing–if for you the front of your crotch is more sensitive, try to get a saddle set-up where you can sit normally, i.e., not toward the front of your saddle. Sitting more centrally on the saddle distributes your weight all over your entire rear instead of focusing all the weight on the sensitive front. If you need to slide your whole saddle forward on its rails to get comfortable doing this, do it. Or, if you need a straight seatpost (one with no setback like a Thomsom), get that. My guess is that you are sitting forward on your current seat because your bars feel too far from you. FYI, my female partner rides on narrow saddles and has had good luck with the Selle Italia Flite Trans Am (firm narrow saddle with a small hole) and the Selle Italia Max Flite Trans Am (slightly more padded fairly narrow saddle with a bit bigger hole). Both run from $60 to $80.
Someone here has suggested ordering a couple from a reputable Etailer like Performance. You could order the 4 or 5 you are interested in, use them indoors on the trainer, and then return the ones you don’t like. You might need to cover the rails so you do not scratch them up. I think the shipping charges would be well worth not having to vist 4 or 5 different shops.
Another man (primarily bike road racer) chiming in here, but seeing as I am my wifes training partner, coach, and team mechanic (grin), I do have a little bit of experience with the subject matter. When we first met, she was riding a Cannondale R2000 that was not only two sizes too big for her, but was equipped with this fruify (sp), heavily padded, ‘women’ specific saddle (Terry I think). It was immediately obvious to me that she was a natural born cyclist - even on a road bike that was two sizes too big, she still rode with a flat back and had could pedal nice circles with her speedplay pedals. Other than fatigue, her only complaint after a bike ride was how much her seat sucked; to the extent that she had come to rely heavily on something called ‘Bag Balm’.
** Humorous side note - I am unsure how an ointment originally designed to help sooth chapped skin, small scrapes and cuts on horses, cattle, pets or other domestic animals that may suffer from occasional skin irritations, found its way into my wifes shorts much less cycling in general (grin)?
The first thing I did was change her position (got her a new bike a few months later when we got serious) and it was clear to me that her saddle had to go! I ride a Selle Italia Flite Gel saddle and decided to let her try one knowing in advance that she was probably not going to like it (too firm/stiff). Surprisingly she liked the profile but did not feel it offered enough support at the back so being long-time friends with a local shop owner, I was able to borrow a Pro Link Gel (adaptation of the Flite shape) that a customer had exchanged for a fruify, padded saddle. The Pro Link Gel has several features that might make it a viable option such as gel elastomer padding, flexible shell, and carbon lined rails to help dampen/cushion road shock. It was a stretch but she liked it and has been riding on this saddle ever since and although she tends to wear these saddles out within 9,000-10,000 miles (about ever 13-14 months), she has not had to use Bag Balm since!
Michael