Lucillle

I have heard that the more upright one rides, the wider the saddle should be . But many of the hybrids seem to have very narrow saddles. Why is that?

Kedosto

My guess is that the mfg’s want to use the same saddle for multiple models. It’s cheaper and easier to use one design and just swap covers for any number of bikes.

Just a guess.


-Kedosto

VegasTriker

This idea might come about because you see wide saddles on beach cruisers which are about as upright as you can get. Most avid riders avoid them like the plague because a wide saddle tends to chafe your thighs the farther you ride it. Works fine for a trip around town but might be a real pain for a long ride.

Lucillle

So you are saying a narrow saddle is OK for a beach cruiser?

JohnDThompson 

Saddles are a personal choice; what works for me doesn't necessarily work for you. The manufacturer can save a little money by using the same saddle on multiple models, and the dealer can make a little money by selling the customer a more appropriate saddle if the OEM saddle doesn't work for them.

Kedosto

Well sure, if that’s what works. One could use a wide, beach cruiser type saddle on a racing bike as well. The mfg’s spec saddles designed for the intended purpose, but ultimately the decision to choose and ride any particular saddle is up to the end user.

There are no rules when it comes to saddle preference — ride whatever you like. Most riders will be comfortable on a saddle that approximates the saddle originally specified in the design, but there’s no reason it can’t be changed. If you wanna mount a narrow racing saddle on your cruiser, knock yourself out.


-Kedosto

Lucillle

Most beach cruisers have wide saddles. Why is this? Is there not just as much chafing on the beach as on the road? Or is it that cruisers tend to be ridden for shorter distances so chafing is not as much of a problem?

Wilfred Laurier

In general, wider for more upright makes logical sense. But I'm only familiar with how my arse works - yours might be different.

For anything below completely bolt-upright, spine 90 degrees from the horizon, a less wide saddle will be better.

I think the other thing driving the wide saddle spec on most cruisers is perception - most people buying cruisers are probably wary of anything that looks 'racy', so manufacturers spec tractor seats so the casual eye will not conflate them with performance seats.

Lucillle

.....

VegasTriker

The bike manufacturers send them out with the saddle that appeals to most of the buyers. For beach cruisers that is often older riders who assume that a wider saddle is more comfortable than a narrow saddle. That certainly is the case for short rides. The chafing problem becomes much more apparent if you ride the bike long distances. While some owners do ride them a long way, most are just ridden around the neighborhood. I see a fair number of lightly-used beach cruisers at garage sales and the owners is rarely a teenager or millennium.

Contrast that to a hybrid bike. The buyers probably are not just going to just ride them around the block once or twice. It is a bike intended for long distance riding if the owner should want that. If the bike shop put a really wide saddle on the bike most would react in horror if they realized how uncomfortable it would be on a long ride. So, the manufacturers equip them with a saddle suitable for longer rides.

Kedosto

Another thing to consider is your perspective. You think many hybrids have "very narrow" saddles. Ask any racer and I'm pretty sure their opinion would be that hybrids have wider, more heavily padded saddles. A racer might ask "why do many of the hybrids have very wide and heavily padded saddles?" It all depends on ones perspective. But again, buy what you like and put whatever kind of saddle you want on it. It's your bike, your butt, and your money.


-Kedosto

Lucillle

VegasTriker's explanation totally clarified the issue for me and answered my question. It is not so much whether one rides upright or not, it is the length of the ride. It makes sense to buy a narrower saddle which won't chafe if one plans to ride for hours.

Phil_gretz

If you were to familiarize yourself with the three-dimensional shape of the female pelvis, you'd see that the separation between the bones (ischium coming forward toward but not reaching the pubis) narrows as you tilt the pelvis forward. A more forward tilt requires a narrower support from the saddle, an "upright" or vertical tile requires a wider support. This is a simplification, of course, because there are soft tissues involved as well.

Lucillle

Yes, I referred to this in my first post. However, many hybrids are built for a more upright position, yet have narrow saddles, that is what I was questioning, and VegasTriker provided an excellent answer.

Paul Barnard

Why is that? I don't know for certain. Possibly because some hybrids aren't very upright at all. Some have very aggressive ergos. Take this one for example Save up to 60% off new Carbon Hybrid Bicycles | Road Bikes Cafe Century PRO DX

There's an ill defined line between a flat bar road bike and a hybrid, and there is some overlap I suppose. I consider the above to be a flat bar road bike. Bikes Direct covers a lot of ground in their hybrid bike category and generally the more upright the hybrid the wider the saddle.

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