Originally Posted by
FarHorizon
Sprung saddles are appropriate if (and only if) a very "upright" seating position is used on the bike. If you're sitting upright, the springs are almost essential to cushion the bumps. If, however, you're on a "road" bike, where the posture is somewhat (to extremely) leaned forward, sprung saddles can't be used at all. Why? Because springs allow the rear of the saddle to sag downward, which, combined with the forward-leaning riding position, puts pressure on the tender parts of the rider's anatomy (which lie toward the front of the saddle). This combination creates numbness, tingling, and an extremely unpleasant riding experience.
I've been wondering about this myself. And, while I appreciate the thorough explanation; I remain a bit confused. Presuming one has low drops and a 0deg from horizontal (with positive indicating back-down and negative indicating front-down as seen from the right side with the bike pointing right) unsprung saddle on a road bike. Assume that a sprung saddle will have a static tilt of 5 deg with a rider's weight in normal riding position, i.e. hands in the drops, relatively forward weight distribution.
If one install the saddle at 0 deg, then the rider will indeed experience squashed genitals when riding. But, what if one installs the saddle with a -5 deg tilt -- nose down. Then, during normal riding, the will have the exact same saddle position as with an unsprung saddle. But, when the are leaning further forward, pedalling hard, etc. the saddle will rise with them keeping contact and stability longer. And, none of that unpleasant ass-smack when going over a bad road joint while really mashing the cranks.
Note, I am NOT suggesting that this is a proper or useful way of doing things. I want to know whether this would work or what the actual drawbacks are on a road-training or road-touring bike where freedom from pain is more important than the extra weight. Thanks!