Split nose saddle?
After two years of serious cycling, I got my first saddle sore. Sad face. I currently ride the Fizik Arione that came with my P2 and up to now have been quite happy. I have been considering a split nose saddle for a while.
Anyone in da haus rocking the ISM Adamo or something like? I know Specialized has a new one. I'd love to hear people's experiences with making this switch.
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Here we go, the saddle question;-). First, there are a lot of opinions out there, so I'll be the first out of Pandora's box. I've ridden the Fizik (narrow and long), classic tri saddles (fat nose), saddles with cut outs (selle something?) and I'm currently on the adamo prologue and the attack on my racing and training bikes respectively. IMHO, I don't have any plans to leave the split nose saddle corral. About the adamo, in my opinion, if you ride very padded shorts, like the DeSoto 400 milers, the adamo attack has plenty of cushion. The Prologue has the same dimensions as the attack, but more padding. Again, I like the attack just fine. The issue with adamo saddles and probably some other split nose saddles is you have to get used to the new contact points of the saddle. Being wider, the adamo can tend to chafe a little or a lot depending. It can easily take a month to get used to an adamo saddle; worth it in my opinion. I also hear good things about Cobb and the new Sitero. If someone wants to send me one (smile), I'll write a review.
Rich....see this thread for lots of input (although as mentioned, it is Pandora's box and saddles are soooo individual that it's really trial and error for most folks, unfortunately):
http://members.endurancenation.us/Forums/tabid/57/aft/13651/Default.aspx
For my input, n = 1, my Giant TCR Advance road bike came with the Fizik Arione. I see them in the TdF and the pros all seem to ride them, so I figured it would be awesome (and I'd turn pro real quick!). Perhaps that is driven by endorsement money....cuz I HATED that saddle. Holy crap it felt like a 2x4. Sold it on Craig's list after a couple of months of torture. Yet, others love them. I got a Specialized mountain bike saddle (recommended by really fast road racer at my LBS) and I really like it. It would not be good for me for my TT bike though.
My TT bike (QR Lucero) came with the ISM Adamo Race. I really like the split nose and can't imagine riding a narrow (non-split) nose saddle in the TT position. The crus of my dingus and perineal urethra would just be squished all day. So, I like the Adamo. Not sure there's much difference in the Cobb split, and I think Rich and Tim C. mentioned they like them. Haven't seen or tried the Sitero, although I've heard good things. Unless someone is gonna give me something else to try, I won't be risking a change!
In the TT/aero position, your pelvis is rotated forward more, placing the crus and perineal urethra in harms way. For me, the two noses allow my ischial tuberosities to rest without squishing the important stuff in between. Minor chaffing on the inner thighs bothers some folks though, as the nose has to be wider in the split designs. I've got chicken legs, so chaffing has never been a problem for me!
I've been riding the Adamo ISM time trial on my try bike for about 2 years now and it has made a huge difference. Prior to this saddle, I road on the stock saddle that came with the bike (Felt B16), and it was ok for shorter rides, but couldn't get comfortable for longer rides and also got numbness. Today, I can't ride my road bike because it doesn't have the Adamo on it and I cannot get comfortable without it. Worth the investment.
Richard,
With the caveat that saddles are different for everybody...
In the beginning of 2012 I went on a Tour de Saddles. I tried like eight different saddles. I had been using the ISM Adamo Race for about three years before that. The Adamo was a nice saddle but I wanted to try to see if there was something better.
Off the top of my head I tried the Adamo Race, Adamo Road, Cobb V-Flow Max, Cobb V-Flow Plus, Fizik Arione, Specialized Romin Evo, Specialized Romin and there was another one I'm forgetting. After years of using a split rail or cutout saddle the Fizik felt like I was sitting on a fence post. It was horrible. The two Specialized Romin saddles felt great sitting up and riding in a road position. Felt awful in the aero position.
The Cobb V-Flow Plus was too narrow for me. The Adamo Road felt a lot like the Adamo Race. The Cobb V-Flow Max was the best of the saddles and I went with that one.
Then Specialized came out with the Sitero earlier this year. I read good things about it and decided to be an early adaptor. Hands down the best saddle I have ever used. I can't say enough about this saddle.
Hey Richard,
Erg, sorry to hear about your sore underparts. I second the opinions about how personal this is having personally survived the “Battle of the Saddle 2008” in my own quest. To answer your specific question I was on an Adamo Breakaway for two years and then one day it just mysteriously became too wide. Never really figured out what to attribute that to but last year I landed on a Cobb Plus and am in relative crotch-saddle harmony again.
The one thing to know for sure is you should NOT pay full price for a saddle that doesn’t work out. Your LBS may have a saddle demo program and barring that even TriSports.com can help you out there.
Good luck and keep us posted!
A couple previous posts that may help:
http://members.endurancenation.us/F...fault.aspx
http://members.endurancenation.us/F...fault.aspx
OK all...thanks so much for the input. I am demoing the Sitero and the Adamo Attack. I rode the Sitero for 25 miles today...not completely converted but I am not sure I have it dialed in yet. Will ride at least 200 miles before I make any decisions.
I've ridden Koobi saddles on my road bike for 15+ years and tried to transfer one over to my tri-bike. No joy. So then, like others, I tried a couple different ones til settling on a Cobb V-Flow Plus. One thing that made a difference was going to a thin pad. Sounds counter-intuitive, but that saddle is much more comfortable with a thin pad instead of a thick one. Probably something to do with the different position. Another good thing about Cobb is that they offer a 90 day money back guarantee.
Good luck with your search!
I changed from a stock Specialised Allez saddle to an Adamo ISM - I find it super comfy like an armchair!
I like the Adamo ISM saddle as it supports a forward position which is good for TT bike / being on the clip on aeros on a road bike. However, if i'm not on the areobars (e.g. on a 90 mile sportif) I do get some chafing (if I've forgotten my chamois cream) - shorter rides (e.g. 3hrs or so) are fine.
IMHO Main thing is comfort and no chafing / soreness / loss of feeling in the undercarriage!! Its not fun riding for 6hrs if your hopping around when you've other things you need to worry about (nutrition, race execution etc)
I'm glad I asked about returning the Sitero at the LBS: they told me "sure, but no one's ever returned one before." I guess I'll be the first. I just couldn't get it to be comfortable despite multiple adjustments. ISM Attack just felt much better right off the bat.
Thanks for all the great advice everyone!
I'm with your LBS. I haven't heard of anyone not liking the Sitero.
It did take some adjusting to get it into the right spot and then it was pure gold. Much less adjusting than the Adamo or Cobb saddles, IMO.
It fits very different than the Cobb or Adamo saddles. It's shorter in height and not as long in the rails. I had to move it all the way forward and lower my seat post by 5mm when compared to the Cobb or Adamo saddles. It also needs to be dead level or even nose tilted slightly up. It's not a saddle that works well with the nose tilted down. I always had the Cobb or Adamo tilted down and my Sitero is level.
Just my $.02.
I also have to tilt my ISM Adamo saddle down slightly. But once I got it set, very comfortable.
There were 2018 bikes at Kona when Lava Magazine did their bike count. 517 were using an Adamo (the most of any saddle maker) and 181 were using a Cobb. That's 698 of 2018.
Some online shops and some LBS will loan/rent you a set of trial saddles. This seems like a very sensible thing to do to me.
If you go to tri sports.com, I think they have a program where you can test saddles for a small fee. The fee goes towards the cost of the saddle when you buy one.
The longer I ride on my ISM Adamo the more I'm convinced it is for me! But, I haven't tried a Cobb....probably won't unless I get one free somehow.
I have an Adamo Prologue...which I like and a great improvement over the stock Fizik Arionne that came with my Slice...but I would like to try a narrower and/or shorter nose saddle...Adamo Attack or CobbVFlow...Sitero sounds interesting...I wish trying out saddles was a simpler proposition.
Hey all...thanks for all the input. Here's an update:
1. Sitero went back to the bike store. They were shocked (SHOCKED) to see it come back but I HATED it.
2. I have the ISM Adamo Attack on now, and have done the last two rides on it including the bike test. I like it so far.
3. My triathlon store (Speedy Reedy ftw!) has the fizik Tritone in stock so I am going over there to see if they will let me demo it today.
I'm also going to buy a pair of Hoka One One's there too...but that's for another thread
I'll provide another update soon. Thanks again!
Ok I got the demo Fizik Tritone. Will report back here after my first ride.
Tritone saddle pic
I am all set with the Tritone. I returned all of the other demos. My favorite thing about it is that I don't think about my saddle while I'm on it...love it!
@Ryan: I have the xlab sonic wing setup, so I'm not relying on the water bottle mount. I also use the xlab mini bag to hold one tube, levers, and a minitool and the inflator nut to hold two CO2 cartridges and my inflator. If I am doing a long ride, I'll carry another tube in my jersey pocket. If I'm racing, I just carry one tube.