Torrilin

Given what you're describing, it *really* sounds like you might have wide sit bones. I know Specialized makes a few extra wide saddles if you don't want to try a B-67. A too narrow saddle is *really* painful, and it can be a bit weird to track down. (I'd offer descriptions, but I suspect the way it feels on a female body isn't much like the way it feels on a male body... different stuff getting squashed)

phinney

Have you tried raising the bars? You shouldn't be getting numbness on a hard saddle if you're sitting on it correctly. If your bars are too low your hips will rotate forward and you'll not be sitting on what you should be sitting on.

I don't like the B17 either, it's just too soft for me. Sort of like a hammock. I do like the Pro and the B67. Interestingly, I don't have any issues with the wide saddles on low bars other than a little too much contact at the butt/hamstring junction which I've found I can live with. The Conquest is too darn hard.

kwrides

I agree with everyone else that saddles are really tough...everyone likes something different. If you don't like the Brooks, maybe go in a totally different direction and try a Fizik Arione or a Specialized Toupe. Those 2 are very popular with roadies.

I ride an Arione on my road bike and my singlespeed and it works for me on both. I will be putting one on my Kona Jake if it ever arrives

thebarerider

This is honestly what I think, as well. I want to try another Brooks and I think I might, because the saddle I got today is NOT going to cut it. I've already put my Brooks back on and it feels like heaven compared to the Adamo

I changed the stem on my bike two months ago and it helped. I was told I couldn't get it any higher up by two bike shops, but I've been given bad info from bike shops before. It would really help if I learned these things on my own I suppose

I like the hardness of the B17 and the feel of the leather saddle compared to the plastic saddles I've been on. I think I might get a wider Brooks from Wallbike and see how that goes...

Magnolia_Fan

Looking at that picture, I would say you need to scoot your saddle forward a bit and possibly tilt it back a bit more. The idea of the Brooks is to get you to put your weight on your sit bones, taking the pressure off the soft tissue. This is why Brooks are always tilted back a bit, it forces you to slide back onto the sit bones.

It looks like you have the tilted back angle correct, but when you ride, especially in the drops, your naturally sliding forward a bit, putting pressure on the soft tissue and getting numbness/irritation. I think if you positioned the saddle farther forward (you would probably need to tweak the height as well), you would find it more comfortable.

The moral of the story is, get all your weight onto the sit bones and off the soft tissue. If you go on a ride and your sit bones are a bit sore when you're done, thats fine, as you wear in the saddle that issue will disappear! It took my quite a bit of tweaking with the saddle angle and position to hone it in, but well worth the effort. Bring a allen wrench on your next ride and make tiny adjustments as you go; I have found this is the best way to hone it in.

nmanhipot

I traded out a 2006 Specialized Toupe for a Selle Italia SLR, which I prefer. I still have a 2007 Toupe on my road bike and it's better than the 2006, but I think I would still prefer the SLR to it. I have an agressive 6" drop because of my long legs and flexibility so the Brooks wouldn't work for me, either.

Specialized dealers should have a pad that will measure the distance between your sit bones. The Toupe comes in a small 135 mm and medium 143 mm version. You have to get a different model if you want a large. I have a Specialized Avatar and after breaking the nose of it on the velodrome, I got it warrantied but don't find it all that comfortable despite the extra cushioning.

I'll probably try the Fizik Arione next.

crhilton

That saddle looks like a leg splitter. I can't imagine having such big hips that that saddle would fit. But that's just my impression from looking at it.

When I had my brooks level, as level as I could it was probably slightly down, I felt as if I was always sliding forward. I was only comfortable in the drops and if I was pushing it (which offset my weight as it increases my pressure down on each pedal stroke).

You might try the brooks slightly tipped up.

Maybe these pictures can help as reference.

DataJunkie

Brooks do not agree with my body either. Hence the reason I find the statement that Brooks are the be all to end all of saddles a bit amusing.
My current favorite is a selle italia flite followed by a toupe. I may replace the toupe with either a flite or another selle italia saddle.

jyossarian

I don't know who said Brooks is the be all end all of saddles. Most of us say we like them and recommend them but allow that saddles are a personal preference and YMMV.

Anyways, have you tried a Toupe or Fizik Arione? They're designed for more aggressive positions. I put a Brooks Swift on my roadie and it definitely feels harder than the B17, but not uncomfortable and no numbness. YMMV.

sping

Is it possible you have wide bones? I bought a B17 Narrow thinking I the standard looked very wide, only to find that my weight was all on the metal support at the back, effectively like sitting on a leather-covered steel saddle!

So, I swapped for a sprung B17 (Flyer?), and it's much better, even though I too am seeing next to no wear after 600 miles or so (perhaps that's expected in a Brooks timescale). I think I'm still a bit wide for it - sitting near the back and not getting the leather flex/reshaping benefits. It's much better for me than the narrow, and the springs mean it's quite comfortable, but it's still pretty hard. I have a long stretch ahead of my 4 mile commutes to get this thing broken in, though the Cambridge potholes must help!

So what I'm saying is, is it possible your bones are too wide for the B17, meaning you are sitting near the back of the saddle - effectively almost a leather covered steel saddle?

d2create

I had my butts measured at my lbs and found out that I have narrow sit bones. I find the B17 to be very comfortable. So I agree, if you have wide sit bones, that might be an issue. And my saddle is most definitely tilted nose up and I still slide forward a little sometimes.

Technojunkie

I've been suspecting that my sit bones are just too wide for my Brooks Flyer. Moving the saddle forward helped a little but it feels like I have to move my butt to the very back edge of the saddle and I still keep sliding forward. My dad insists on a wide saddle for his bike, which he hasn't ridden in ages. But if I go with a wider saddle I'll definitely want to raise the handlebars to be closer to even with the seat height, right? I want to do that anyhow, need to go get a stem riser.

Time to go to one of the better LBS and get the bike professionally fitted while I'm at it?

iPirate

is this a joke?

treebound 

Here's a pic of the Brooks in the testing thread:


Saddles are such a personal issue that there is no way to really know what will work for you without trying one. Brooks, Arione, others. I rode in to work today, a little over 23 miles, no discomfort or numbness at all but I might tip it up one more notch as I was sliding forward a little at times (probably close to level now).

I still like the old trick of sitting on wet newspapers or paper towels or some of that compressable foam padding that backpackers use for sleeping pads as a way to really get a decent measurement of your sitbone width.

I was wondering if you had any issues with the wideness of that split-nose saddle?

And there are options to raise your bars higher if you need to, adjustable stems, risers, others. Your LBS just needs to look a little harder or at least beyond what they have hanging on their wall.

Tude 

That is an interesting looking saddle. Went to the web site - I rather like the racing saddle.

But I have to say their touring saddle is rather stange! Probably comfortable - but ... strange.

thebarerider

Yeah, the width of the split nose saddle was the real killer. I also didn't like the feeling of a saddle without a legitimate nose.

Even though I was already riding the Brooks tilted up, I tilted it up to an almost ridiculous level last night. I could tell for the first time how a Brooks is supposed to feel -- very cushy and comfy on the butt. Too bad there was a load of pressure and my knees don't like the angle.

I'm concerned with getting a wider saddle because I like to get down in the drops and ride hard and long. I wonder how a wider Brooks would affect my performance? I think I will try another plastic saddle at the LBS today, but I wish my body was better suited for the B17 A few miles on a plastic saddle made me realize how much more I liked the feel of the leather...

jpdesjar

my b17 is slightly tipped up so that my sit bones rest on the right spot in the saddle, the claim about brooks only for 'small' guys is kind of ridiculous...i would like to think i have some decent equipment and i am having no issues with the saddle, it's been really good to me and continues to be



i am noticing that the shape of the saddle has changed slightly since i bought it and i have soaked it once, which i will try to prevent in the future

Bottomfeeder

I was checking out the picture of the B17 on your bike in Colorado. Honestly, it looks like the nose is a bit high, and might be putting a bit more pressure on your perineum because of it. Now I know that a new Brooks is a slippery thing, especially if you're treating it with proofide. I myself was tilting the nose up a bit high at first in order to keep from sliding forward. But as the saddle breaks in, a bit of the luster should wear off, it won't be so damn slippery and you should be able to drop the front down and away from your perineum. Even with 3500 miles on my Imperial I still have to scoot back on occasion. But it's a small price to pay for riding with zero numbness.

Also; have you tightened up the tension at all? With a few hundred or thousand miles on the saddle, the leather might need to be stretched a little. A tighter tension helps the sitz bones keep your perineum clear as well. I tend to scoot pretty far back on the saddle, and consciously keep my pelvis level, even when leaning forward over my mustache handlebars - akin to riding in the drops.

One more thing: Have you measured the distance between your sit bones? Mine are roughly 3.75" apart, and I find the width of the B17 to be comfortable - although I would like to try a B17 Imperial Narrow, just to see if it could be even better. Getting this measurement is easy. Just bend over, find your sit bones with index or middle fingers and stretch a piece of string between them, then measure the string.

thebarerider

The nose height was right for me. I have sat on it level for a few rides and it was worse than when tilted up. In regards to tensioning, I have not done that. I tended to scoot back pretty far on the saddle, too. I didn't buy any proofide or a tensioning wrench when I bought the saddle so I can't tension it immediately and I will likely wait to purchase it.

I swapped that Adamo saddle out for a Fizik Arione today. Seemed to be opposite what I wanted, but it wasn't too bad. I rode twenty miles back home on it and rode around town around eight miles tonight. Like the Brooks, it is fine when I am riding around 19-20mph, but once I drop down to 15 or 16 I start to notice it. I am going to keep it and get in a long ride on it before I decide one way or the other. As for now I will be keeping the Brooks.

crhilton

Sounds like you want a swallow.

crhilton

You shouldn't need to tension it, don't buy the tool. I'm told you're not supposed to mess with tensioning. You're more likely to ruin the saddle than improve it and it should be properly tensioned from the factory.

pgoat

what high school did you go to?

harrier

Perhaps a bar or seat adjustment problem? I have had problems when I had the seat too high and when I had the drops too low. You have probably covered these, but worth mentioning.

+1 to slight tilt back for the brooks, but only if the bar height is correct.

AdrianFly

The one that had the bike rack out front and nearly every bike had Brooks saddles on them.

Instead of talking about girls, music, etc. the Brooks guys just talked about their saddles, leather treatment and wore tensioning keys as necklaces. They also made it a clear effort to promote Brooks saddles at every opportunity. Pep Rally's, Senior Prom, Football games. No matter what was happening the guys with the "Brooks Saddles" were constantly promoting them as the last thing that will save humanity. Having a hard time dealing with that harsh breakup with the girlfriend? Brooks Saddle! Need help studying for exams? Study while sitting on a Brooks Saddle! Brooks Saddle! Brooks Saddle!

Some of them grew up and now own Rivendale's..... with Brooks Saddles.

chipcom 

LOL, the BS meter just went off the scale.

So tell us, do you often sit on your 'junk' when you ride? Noobs, gotta love em.