Finding the Right Road Bike Saddle

Even the first Tour de France riders rode with it – the bend leather saddle. Many swear by it even today and put it on every one of their bicycles. The best-known leather saddle manufacturer is the English company Brooks, whose saddles are eye-catching not only because of their materials, but also because of their hammered copper rivets and the little metal logo plate at the rear of the saddle. The British company not only works exclusively with leather, but also uses saddle shells made of natural rubber covered with waterproof nylon for some models. Above all, they are lighter than their leather counterparts, but still weigh a little more overall than the conventional road bike saddle. Traditional leather saddles are also a signature product of Italy, and can be sourced from manufacturers such as Selle Italia. These old-school products can add a touch of nostalgia to old steel racers. What’s more, leather saddles adapt to your body more and more over time – similar to good leather shoes. They develop a patina, become softer and provide more of a tailor-made type of comfort. They are especially recommended if you often travel across long distances.
Think you’ve got a good grasp over the subject of road bike saddles? Well, we’re just getting started! What else to know about road bike saddles:

Saddle Rails Made of Steel, Aluminium, Carbon and Titanium

Saddle rails form the frame of the saddle – they are clamped on the head of the seatpost. Before carbon and titanium, steel was the standard for everything. However, “new” materials do not spell the end for saddles with steel rails. On the contrary: most manufacturers rely on the robust material especially for lower-priced models, but this does not necessarily have a negative effect on the saddle’s weight. However, if you’re building a road bike by counting every gram, saddles with carbon rails or saddles made entirely of carbon are exactly the right thing. However, lightweight carbon also often denotes a weight limit for the rider. By the way, when fitting carbon saddles, always ensure the correct torque by using a torque wrench and carbon assembly paste. Titanium is also a popular material for saddle rails – it is lightweight, extremely durable and can be manipulated very well. To save even more on weight, manufacturers such as Fabric offer saddle rails made of a titanium alloy that are hollow on the inside. Lightweight but stable are aluminium saddle rails, which can be found in Ergowave models from SQlab. Saddles with carbon, steel and titanium rails offer a little more flex and comfort, but the differences are not too severe. Likewise, carbon seatposts provide a stronger flex, and saddle shells made of the same material also contribute to a stronger flex feeling.

How You Pad = How You Ride

First things first: how thick or thin your saddle’s padding should be, if you have any at all, is based on your personal preferences. As a rule of thumb, the more athletic and outstretched you are on the bike, the less padding you need. This also allows the muscles in the pelvic area to work without restriction. Less padding and a hard saddle also avoid chafing, as the butt cannot them sink into soft padding. On the other hand, light padding also provides some cushioning. Manufacturer Ergon uses a specially-developed foam padding, which provides better pressure distribution. Selle Italia uses extra padding and a gel insert in the Lady Gel Flow to dampen vibrations and increase comfort. Specialized does away with foam and gel completely on the S-Works Power Mirror: the saddle is made using a 3D printing process. In this process, liquid polymer is given a honeycomb structure that is supposed to provide very even pressure distribution and special degree of comfort.
Once you have found the right saddle, it should not cause any problems for your backside, even on longer rides in combination with padded bib shorts and chamois cream (at least for beginners after a period of acclimatisation).

There is a Hole in the Saddle – What Are Recesses For?

Imagine pedalling hard and reaching deep into the lower handlebars for the final sprint. In this posture you put extreme strain on your perineum (lat. perineum): the friction and pressure can cause long-term discomfort in the perineal and urogenital tract. To relieve this sensitive area, there are saddles with a cutout. In general, however, determining the most suitable cutout depends very much on personal pressure sensitivity and your actual posture. Gender can also play a role. Women often have a more flexible pelvic area and can subsequently tilt their pelvis further forward. The Koblenz-based ergonomics specialist Ergon, for example, offers the SR Pro Women with a long cutout positioned far to the front, along with wide saddle flanks to distribute pressure homogeneously. In the men’s version of the saddle, the SR Pro Men, a relief channel with a small recess is located much further back.

Start Horizontally – Saddle Angle and Posture

To feel comfortable on your road bike, it is not enough to have the right saddle: it must also be correctly adjusted. Basically, you should align the saddle horizontally and only make changes (e.g. angle or height) step-by-step starting from this position. In this article we have summarised what you can do yourself – apart from professional bike fitting – to adapt your bike to your needs. As a rule, about 80 to 90 percent of the pressure on the road bike saddle is placed on the sit bones. The rest of the pressure is transferred to the soft tissue in front of the sit bones. You can influence this kind of pressure distribution by experimenting with the saddle angle. Don’t forget: every new adjustment should be tested for several kilometres – not just for a lap around the field – before you adopt or discard it. If you want to delve deeper into the matter of individual bike adjustment, we recommend the Ergon Fitting Box Road.

A Saddle for Every Demand – Long Distance vs. Performance vs. Gravel

When looking for the right saddle, the main area of use is an important factor. If enjoying long distances on the bike is your thing, then comfort-focused marathon saddles with a light amount of padding are a good as well as affordable choice. If you are sporty and ambitious, comfort and padding take a backseat to weight, which certainly plays an essential factor. Carbon speedsters like the SLR C59 are certainly worth considering, although your wallet will take a hit from such models. If you often ride your gravel bike off-road, the saddle padding can be more generous in order to better absorb shock. The sides should also be abrasion-resistant and the nose of the saddle should be large enough to allow the bike to be easily guided off-road with the thighs.