#188 : Saddle Review

Fizik Plateau

This is not a joke. The above saddle is really from

Fizik. I found this in the 'Sale' bin of Hup Leong.

I bought this 3 years back... that was when I first

started cycling. At that time I thought to myself

it's from Fizik and I have never seen any bad reviews

of Fizik Gobi and Tundra, ergo! this must be a good

saddle! ... and did I mention that it was in the 'Sale' bin?

Sigh... why am I such a sucker for these things?

Always looking for something cheap and good.

So, you might have guessed what this saddle did to my ass.

From the looks of it, it is very well padded, right?

But for some reason, it doesn't agree with my butt.

So, after just one ride, I took it off and never, ever

used it again. I am now contemplating whether

it will be a good paperweight or should I stand it

up on it's nose and call it modern art?

Rating -  Booooooo!!!!!

Selle Italia SLR

Ahhhh finally! My first expensive saddle. StairRider

Deck got bitten by the weightweenie bug and so he sold

me this saddle which is in perfectly good shape and whose

only fault is that he saw another lighter Selle Italia saddle.

This saddle is being touted as a Triathlon saddle.

The nose is well padded. Logic dictates that this saddle

should be very good for TT bikes. Not just that! For those

steep climbs like the first cement climb in BT, you can sit

on the nose and just spin your way up. I also know for a fact

that SR Deck used this saddle for quite sometime and has

never heard him utter a single word of complaint, not even

a grunt of dissatisfaction with this saddle.

Why you may ask is this second on the list?

Again, I don't know why, but my butt bones find the

rear of the saddle too firm... and yes, I am wearing proper

gel cycling shorts. Still I find it very uncomfortable.

I took this for one city ride and after that I took it

off and put it together with my other bike spares.

Every now and then, I take it out, look at it and

admire it since it is sooo expensive... I get the urge

to use it again ... but remembering the last time

I used it ... naahhh

Rating - Booooo!!!!

Fizik Tundra

This saddle came with my Giant Anthem. I finally have

a Fizik Tundra! .... but why is it on the floor and not

on my bike?

This saddle has minimal padding but the sides and

the back part are quite flexible. I'm not sure about this

but the 'nose' seems to be longer and it is firmer and

less flexible than the rest of the saddle. This one is

noticeable because whenever there are long or steep

climbs, I find myself inching forward on the nose

and spinning away. This is a good trait.

Now for the bad part. Go to the loo. Put down the

toilet seat cover. Now seat on the toilet seat cover.

Very stiff, right? But still tolerable.

Ok, sit there for 2 hours. You

get what I mean?

I used this for 2 months so it isn't that bad.

It's just that I have better saddles that I can use.

Rating - Ok. Polite clapping.

WTB Devo

My original wingman(woman), Tabs, bought

a WTB Deva. It was recommended to her by

Gilbert of Hup Leong because she finds the saddle

that came with her Jamis uncomfortable (more on this

later).

She let me try her saddle and I was sold.

Of course I didn't get the Deva, I bought the Devo :-)

This saddle has lesser padding relative to other WTB

saddles. However, it is flexible. It also cradles

my butt cheeks nicely.

But, why is it on the floor and not on my bikes?

I know it's just me but I find the same nice butt cheek

cradling width of the Devo too wide. When there's a

downhill section, I get this feeling that I have to open

my legs wider to clear the saddle.

If you also notice, the sides of the saddle are

scuffed. Is that proof that the saddle is indeed

too wide for me?

Anyway, what made me take it out is that it

developed a squeak that I can't get rid of.

I used this for a long time. 6 - 8 months?

So this is a good saddle.

Rating - clap clap clap

SDG BelAir RL

The SDG above was bought upon recommendation

of people from C2C in Ang Mo Kio. I asked them for

a comfortable saddle and they told me "WTB!".

I said I know they are comfortable but I want to

try other brands.

So they told me to try SDG and after giving them

75$, I was the proud owner of a non-WTB but

comfortable saddle.

SDG is indeed comfortable. I used this for a long

time as well. I can sit on my bike on the trail for

more than half a day and never complain...

The thing is, I used this saddle on my steel HT

which I use for road rides. There are evenings

when I cycle from Balestier all the way to Changi

Village (via Loyang) and then head back

home via ECP and Kallang. This ride is around

3 hours. By that time I feel like I am again

sitting on the toilet seat cover.

Now I have this mounted on my Giant Anthem.

This means I only use it on trail rides.

For trail rides, I have no complaints.

Rating - clap clap clap

At first I thought I will never, never, never, ever buy

another Selle Italia saddle. I promised myself I will

not even touch a Selle Italia saddle with a 10-foot pole.

But! There was this Mt. Faber ride when SR Deck

told me "hey, look at my saddle". I said 'what saddle?

that's not a saddle. that's a torture device'. Deck said

'nooo... look at this' and then he proceeded to show me

how flexible the saddle was. It was very flexible. I

rode his bike around the petrol station below Mt. Faber

... and it was very good.

That was just last week, last Saturday I went

and bought myself the exact same saddle at Hup Leong

for 116$ ... then when I showed it to SR Deck

he told me 'huh?! why did you buy so fast?'

I said 'why???' ... do you all remember that this

Sunday it rained heavily? hehehehe the black trim

on his saddle faded! They are now white!!!!

I thought to myself : oh sheep! I just paid 100$+

for this saddle! SR Deck must have seen my face

and he consoled me by saying : nevermind, there is

nothing wrong with the performance. just an aesthetic

issue... well ... yes... but now, when it rains,

I better make sure, I'm not using my hardtail.

Anyway, I tested this last Monday. We cycled from

ECP to Mt. Faber and back to Balestier... and my

butt says it's all good :-)

Rating : clap clap clap

WTB Rocket V

Rating - Standing ovation, clap clap clap, with shouts of 'encore'

The WTB Rocket V is not a saddle. It is

a sofa. You can sit on it, grab a throw pillow

and watch your favorite show on DVD. Make

sure that you are watching your favorite show

because if not, you may even fall asleep on this

saddle. That is how comfortable this saddle is.

Look at the picture above, I used this saddle until

most of the stitchings are gone. Quite ironic really

because the stitchings are the worst part of this saddle.

When you clean your bike at Esso, the leather part of

the saddle would dry quickly but it takes the

stitchings soooo long to dry.

I got this saddle for 45$ at the now defunct

Tay Cycle Tanglin branch.

Ok, now go back to the review for WTB Devo.

I warned you that there will be 'more' on that

later, right? This is the twist : If I remember

correctly, the saddle that my friend found so

uncomfortable was the WTB Rocket V.

... and yet, here I am, giving the same saddle

a standing ovation.

This only proves that one man's meat is

another man's poison :-)

Ooops, before I forget, you might wonder.

If the WTB Rocket V is the best saddle for me,

why is it on the floor and not on any of my

bikes?

Well, I used this saddle the longest, and it shows.

So I am going to bring this saddle to one of the

shops near Lavender that fixes motorbike saddles

and have them refurbish it.

I already talked to one shop. I think I was quoted

35$ for refurbishing. ... the nice thing is for a few

dollars PER LETTER, you can have your name

embroidered on your saddle :-)