ezryder03

Hi everyone. Did my first 1 hr. ride last weekend on my trek 5500 with a selle italia SLR carbon saddle and my oh my, my butt got sore after 20-30 min. of riding. The next 30 min was a nightmare doing pressure relief to my rear end - getting off the saddle every few minutes. I have tried other selle italia saddles but got no luck. I'm planning to get me a fizik brand saddle and wanted to know wheter to get the aliante, arione or gobi model. I would appreciate it if you can give me your inputs between the comparison of the 3 models as well as your advice and preference before buying a high priced saddle. Thanks.

sm266

You butt may not be "broken in" yet. How long have you been riding, and what distances?

I ride the Aliante on both my mtb and road bike. I love it.

Phatman

well, I got a bit of personal question...is the pain that you are experiencing numbness or just pain in the sit-bones area? I dont know how experienced you are in cycling, but a lot of new cyclists need to build up the muscles in their ass before riding can be comfortable. try to get 200 miles or so in over the next two or three weeks, and by then your butt will be "broken in" and you will be pain free.

however, if you are getting numb in the, uh, crochal area, then I'd say to get a new saddle. I've never used any of those saddles, so I'm gonna pass the baton on this one...

bitemail

I am a saddle expert as I have tried many and own at least 12 different types. when I first started riding I used the San Marco Era which hurt my butt because it was designed for a small rider , the width being small. I then tried a barrage of seats to ease my rear including the Fizik Pave CP, Vitesse, San MArco night k etc...Alas I bought the Fizik Aliente and the pain disappeared after 50 miles of riding, obviously the seat need a bit of breaking in. The only problem with the Aliente is that it gives you only one riding position and if not correctly positioned could cause chaffing. I use the Arione now and trust me if your butt isnt seasoned to it stay away from it, its actually not bad though giving you many positions and a broad tip to ride on. I would recommend the Aliente for you.

NUNOLATRI

1. I just started riding for the season totally out of it from head to Sit-bones. I started this two weeks ago with a brand new out of the box Arione. Perfect saddle. No break in needed. AT ALL!!! Just luck? I don't think so. I only regret not having this saddle last year when I first started riding all together.

2. Why would you recomend a saddle with only one position (Aliente) instead of one with many possibilities? Or did I miss read your post?


ezryder03
I recommend the Arione.

ezryder03

I just started riding lately and it could be that my seat bones may not be broken yet. I did not have any numbness or crouch problems other than trying to do some pressure relief. I am 5"6" 150 lbs. I'll ride again tomorrow and see what it does.

sm266

Get a good pair of shorts. I have several "positions" available to me with the Aliante; albeit everyone is different.

bitemail

The Arione is a good seat, I use it now it has a lot of positions due to its long design and straight shape. The Aliente is countoured so obviously its takes your shape and has less positions. Its a trade off IMO...either more positions less comfort or less positions more comfort. The good thing about the Fizik brand is that all their seats flex in the middle to cushion your ride.

abqhudson

Just purchased an Arione and have ridden it a couple of times. Last ride was 23 miles. So far I think that the saddle is great. I'm 6', 215 lbs.
Jim

Markedoc

6'2" 190ish and just did 80 miles yesterday on the Arione. The only thing that did NOT hurt was my azz. Highly recommended.

Trouble

I took the two; Aliante and Arione out for a head to head test over a month period. Both seats were dialed in and at the correct "level". I tried to keep everything the same. No chamois buttr, same rides-effort level, same time of day.
The Arione: As much as I tried to like the Arione it's just too hard for me and putting pressure on my perineum. I could not go more than 5 miles without experiencing discomfort and having to shift and shift and stand. The wing flex thing doesn't make sense and the so called many positions were also available on the Aliante and my legs didn't rub on either saddle. Some claim a break in period...

The Aliante: After the initial dialing in I was able to get up to 2-3cm of movement on the seat so positioning wasn't an issue weather climbing or in the drops. I never really experienced that "one riding position" some people mentioned. No rubbing or hot spots - no chaffing, comfortable over rough pavement. There were a couple of times were I realized I had not moved or felt the need to stand up for several miles.
Weight? Never an issue with me, not when it comes to comfort.

Both saddles were taken on short, hills and a 50 mile rides. Twice I parked my truck in a parking lot and did a 5 mile ride, came back and switched seats (over and over). During this comparison, when ever I switched over to the Aliante it's just felt right and comfortable and that's what I'm looking for.
On Roadbike Review 112 people rated it at a 4.63 out of 5. Many having done centuries.
I'm 6'2", 188lbs. I'm riding an 2003 Zurich.

ManBearPig

I just got the Aliante and was eager to give my review on this excellent saddle. I give it a top rating of 5 stars. But I am too long winded to leave it at that.

I have two days riding on it so far -- a 15 mile Friday ride followed by a 50 mile jaunt the next day. The ooohs and aaahhs came more on the first day, perhaps because I was fresher.

My initial visual impression was "boring," I hope it feels good. The black "Microtex" (I think that means "vinyl") cover is uninspiring. The bumpers are a smart but not particular ingenious feature. I thought, "this saddle better be damn comfy, cause it LOOKS overpriced."

Looking further at the saddle's construction, the rails are labeled "Titanio." I was disappointed at first, thinking this was some misleading trade name for a "titanium finished" steel rail. I did some Google translating, however, and concluded it's just a foreign (italian?) spelling. Flipping the saddle over, I noticed a yellow (presumably Kevlar) center - almost like non-impregnated (i.e. non-cured, non-structural) Kevlar. I think the Kevlar is positioned there underneath the upper padding to support the anatomy like a hammock. Radially outward from the Kevlar I notice the structural carbon-fiber frame. The carbon fiber laminate has an almost low-production, handmade appearance, dull and unfinished looking. This may account for part of the saddle's cost, if it is a good quality hand-laid/molded carbon laminate.

My initial seated impression was the saddle was like butter. I hadn't owned a comfy seat, and wasn't sure what comfortable meant in the context of a bike saddle. Now I know. Clearly, as expected, it is not comfy like sitting in a La-Z-Boy reclineer at the end of the day. And it would be maddening to sit on the Aliante in your office while working on your computer. But when riding on a bike it just feels smooth and anatomically compatible. I attribute much of the comfort to its smooth, convex (gently downward sloping) shape. Just a simple shape that doesn't introduce any surprises to your butt.

I notice that as my thighs move up and down during pedaling, they pass nicely into the narrowed out forward-portion of the seat (i.e. as they pass by the nose). Although every saddle has a nose, I have not noticed this anatomical interaction on any other seat, that the cutaways seem to accomodate my moving legs. Also, as each thigh moves into the down position, that back of that particular bun or thigh comes to rest gently and supportively on the wide back portion of the seat. Someone in another thread described this pejoritively, as though it were an incumberance, but it feels proper to me. It's like my arse gets supported thrroughout the range of motion, and my leg gets assistance from the seat at the end of its downward stroke. As I noticed this anatomical cooperation between legs and seat, I decided maybe this was the reason for the prevalence of the smooth Microtex cover. It probably helps the thighs move with the seat without excess friction.

I have been tweaking the position.

Day 1: it was positioned maybe a few cm back and tilted downward. Comfy, but I had increased pressure on my thingy as a result. I moved forward a few cm and my butt settled nicely into the seat's sweet spot. The tilt was a hair downward, however, and I felt I had to push myself slightly back to stay in position. Still, it felt great.

Day 2: I adjusted it to a more level position at the 25 mile mark, and it felt much more correct, no sliding forward, easy to stay in position, although maybe a hair less comfort on the boys (or maybe that was due to the length of time in the saddle at that point).

Another poster alsomentioned making multiple adjustments, trying to get the seat dialled in. Don't misinterpret this. It's not that this saddle requires more adjustment than other seats -- rather, it's that due to its superior shaping and comfort, I think you can better tell which position is "right" or "wrong." If you try to adjust an inferior seat, you simply have an uncomfortable seat in a different position, that is no more or less comfortable.

After 50 miles, I can't say there is absolutely zero discomfort. After all, you are sitting and moving constantly. I think most of what little discomfort remains may largely be a function of anatomy against anatomy, rather than anatomy against seat. Legs are moving and skin can chafe against itself, not just the bike seat. I plan to try some of that chamois butter and see how that goes.

Oh, I am 5'11" 170 lbs.

shokhead

So did you like it?

netso

I have used many saddles, the Fizik Aliante is great. I have over 1000 miles on mine with no discomfort. I am 5'10, 195lbs.

TimB

I use Aliante's on my MTB and my Road bike. I've not used the Arione yet but will be receiving a couple in September from my sponsors.
That being the case, I purchased both my Aliante's myself and think that they are perfect for my fi'zi:k.

San Marco era was too narrow, SI SLR was not flexy enough for me so I still suffered from numb nuts.
I can say the Aliante is more comfory than the Gobi which is an exceptionally comfortable saddle in it'sown right.

get the Aliante!