Street Pedaler

Well, I gave it my best but this saddle is just not working out. I'm just under 300 miles on it and, while it feels AWESOME on my Sits Bones, there's just too much, uhhh, "Crushage" going on. I've done all I can think to do as for as adjusting the nose angle but no joy. I've not been able to stay on it for 30 miles a single time and the post-ride soreness is enough that I haven't been able to consistently even ride two consecutive days.

I'm taking it back to the LBS this morning and I'll try something else. They have a V Flow Max that I may give a shot. It's got a little more padding and the cut-out is different. Don't know if it's different enough to correct my issues, but the only way to know is to try it.

FrenchFit 

Just saying, many of the regular posters here will tell you "padding is the problem". The natural padding of your fat layer and your shorts chamois is more than plenty, you don't need to add more on your saddle. Lots of people riding centuries on plain leather saddles and hard saddles.

sstorkel

Overly-padded saddles often cause numbness. It doesn't sound like this is the OP's problem. Given that he is in pain, a saddle with slightly more padding or a different shape is entirely appropriate.

Street Pedaler

You're both right but, as each butt is different, sometimes too little padding is the culprit. I don't think my issue is so much padding related as cut-out related. While the V Flow Max does have more padding, it's also a firmer saddle.

CraigB

Not to get overly indelicate, but are you sitting on your, um, equipment when you ride? No saddle will fix that. One of the benefits of relatively tight bike shorts is the ability to hold everything up and out of the way. What kind of shorts are you wearing?

Street Pedaler

Craig, I think the problem I was having was with the shape of the saddle itself. The V Flow has an upward angle to the nose. When the saddle is properly mounted, it has a slight "Nose Up" attitude. I understand John Cobb's theory behind why it's designed that way but for me it just didn't work. The only way I could get the nose out of my "bits" was to lower the nose to the point that I'd start sliding forward on the saddle. I know a lot of people who use them and love them, but I just couldn't get comfortable on it.

I picked up a V Flow Max which is more flat in the nose and has a bit wider, longer cut-out through the center. I hope this might offer better results but I haven't been able to get out on it yet.

Notgrownup

Vader saddle on Ebay for $14.00... works great for me, did my forst 26 miler Sunday and the saddle wasn't an issue at all...By the way, i am 245lbs.

Street Pedaler

Hard to tell from a pic but that one looks longer in the nose than the Cobb? I'll add it to my list. I'm going to take my time and find one that works well for me. One thing I love about Cobb is the 180 day Comfort Guarantee. I'm hopeful I'll find something before six months get away from me, lol. Thanks for the suggestion!

Notgrownup

Yeah but $14.00 delivered???? hard not to bite...I bought it after i saw a member show it to me and said...Hell i have thrown away more than that in useless $hit in the past year fo sure...

Street Pedaler

Here's the one I just put on. Pics aren't great, but you can get an idea. I just haven't had time to get on it, yet.

Street Pedaler

I actually had a fairly good run with a Bontrager SSR on the Madone. I think I paid about $20 bucks for it. I also like some of the CLoud9 saddles that, again, were in the $20 range. But, in my own experience, the cheaper saddles wear out too fast with me and, while both of them were generally comfortable, they were never "just right". This is the first time that I've ever been measured for proper saddle width so I'm hoping to find one that fits well in all of the necessary areas. It's a process, just takes time.

Notgrownup

To me (IMHO) the saddle in your picture looks way to fat in the front for me...the vader is narrow...The next one i buy will be the Forte XLR i think it is called from Performance Bike... But not until this one tears up and it seems to be halfway decent, actually i might buy a spare one just like this one...

Street Pedaler

Yeah, nose width could be an issue but I THINK my issue with the other saddle was more to do with nose angle and the cut out being just a bit too narrow and/ or short. If I can ever get out on this sucker, I'll know more.

sstorkel

Your problem may be that the saddle is just too long. I find that I do much better with a saddle that doesn't have a long nose poking me in areas where I don't want to be poked. This is one of the reasons why I like Selle SMP and ISM Adamo saddles...

Street Pedaler

Finally got to take a test ride on the V Flow Max. Initial reaction is all positive. Sits Bones are sore but that's actually encouraging. This saddle, while having a bit more cushion is a lot more firm than the V Flow so that will take some getting used to. But I'm OK with that. The perineum and, uhh, fiddly bits were much, much happier at the end of the ride than they were with the V Flow. I'm not going to adjust anything until my butt adjusts (again) to the new saddle and the saddle has time to break in and hammock a little bit. Still too early to know for sure if it's going to work, but I do know that I feel much better Post Ride than I have for the previous 250 miles. I'll keep riding and see what happens.