Check out store take-off bins & Free Ride— they come up with some good stuff sometimes. EBay can't hurt either.
2009-08-17 18:12:30
6
Saddles
After many years happily riding one ass-hatchet or another, I have been recently having no end of trouble with saddles. Yesterday was particularly bad, and it wasn't even a long ride -- just a couple of hours. So I'm looking forward to going through four or five saddles before I find one that works with whatever has changed down there 
This could get expensive. I figure someone else must have gone through this and wound up with a bunch of saddles that didn't work. Want to unload them? My future children will be grateful.
2009-08-17 15:50:04
Definitely let us know if you find something good. I was just thinking about finding a new saddle myself yesterday. I hit the 25 mile mark and the boys started to scream a bit. (Lately that seems to be about as much as I can do before the "discomfort" starts to set in, thus making finishing the rest of the ride less than enjoyable.)
2009-08-17 20:04:15
I ride a Brooks saddle and swear by it. It looks a little bit goofy on my road bike, but it's been worth it. My first ride was a 400 mile trip to DC, with a detour through the mountains of West Virginia. I often do 50+ mile rides and haven't had an issue yet while riding with the Brooks. Any other seat would give me major issues.
2009-08-17 20:48:31
I agree with Jake. I thought that Brooks saddles were just a trendy thing at first, but since getting mine in the spring I've found that all the great stuff that's been written about them are true.
I went through a few different saddles in my search for comfort, and found that anything with even the smallest amount of foam or gel is going to cause saddle sores as you approach the 70 mile mark. You sink a little when you sit on something squishy, and your sit bones produce a little bit of friction as you pedal, which causes huge problems in the long run. Also, the padding gets pushed in toward the center of the seat as time goes by, which puts pressure on sensitive areas.
I used to ride one of those split rail saddles, but had problems with pressure, since your weight gets concentrated on a smaller surface area.
I'm sticking with the Brooks for sure. Since the spring it has developed two smooth indentations where the sit bones go, and has gradually formed itself to the shape of my posterior. Since it's hard and smooth, I never have problems with friction, and don't need to use chamois butter.
I think Brooks, or another company, make a leather saddle with a cut-out in the center. Perhaps you should look in to something like that.
2009-08-17 23:59:54
See, I'm riding a Brooks already. It's been fine for me for years, riding around SW Pa, but this week I'm riding somewhere flat with a steady wind out of the west. I think that spending more time in the drops, and no time climbing out of the saddle, is what hurt me. I agree about no problems with friction and have never used chamois butter (but I have used a bit of triple antibiotic or vaseline from time to time)
I have seen the Selle Anatomica cutout Brooks.
2009-08-18 01:10:15