Heather Fell: A triathlon saddle, what does that even mean? It's a saddle which you can
put on your bike to do a triathlon, but then you guys knew that, didn't you? It's not why you're
here. We are spoiled for choice when it comes to what saddle to put on our bike for a triathlon.
You've got triathlon-specific saddles, you've got saddles labeled as TT saddles and obviously,
you've got road bike saddles but how on earth do you choose what is right for you? That's where
we come in in. Today, I'm going to be covering all the things that you need to consider to be able to
find the perfect saddle for your next triathlon. [music]
How long is your race? What type of bike are you riding? What's your position like?
How much cushioning do you want on your saddle? What is your budget? There are so many things to
consider when you're buying a saddle. Let's take a closer look at each of these factors. The most
significant will be your bike choice, which will obviously relate to your position too.
If you're on a road bike, you're likely to be more upright in your torso and as a result,
you're going to be putting more pressure through your seat bones. On a TT bike,
you're naturally tipped forward, your whole pelvis is rotated forwards, therefore putting
the pressure further forwards. Of course, you can be on a road bike in an extremely aero position
and the opposite, you can be on a TT bike in a very upright position, but we're going to stick
with the normal scenarios here. That's why road bikes come with road saddles and triathlon or
TT bikes tend to come with the equivalent saddle. That is not set in stone though. It might actually
come down to more your position as to what saddle you need, as opposed to the bike.
On a triathlon bike, it does usually come with some sort of TT saddle. On a road bike,
you might want to actually consider putting a triathlon or a TT saddle onto it if, say,
you're going to be riding with aero bars or you're going to be spending a long time riding
on your drops in that more rotated position. You'll probably notice you see very few road bikes
with a triathlon style of saddle. This comes with a bit of a reason, mainly because of aesthetics.
It doesn't look that pleasing to look at but you're going to be sat on the saddle after all, so
no one's really going to see it. If it means you can hold that more aero position more comfortably,
then you're the one who is going to be laughing. [music]
Let's take a look at all of those categories that are available to you. The most common
is a standard road saddle, some of these can be perfectly suitable for triathlon.
If for example, you're doing a draft legal race, then it's not really going to be much different
to just riding on a road bike because you don't need to get particularly aero
and you're going to have to be on a road bike. If, however, you're using your road
bike but adapting and putting on some TT bars, a road saddle can still work but you might want
to look for one with a shorter nose, so you're able to get into that more rotated position.
If you look closely, quite a few triathlon saddles and compare them to a road saddle,
some of them even look quite similar in shape, they're just shorter in length.
I almost forgot, there's one more type of road saddle,
the cutout road saddle. This is designed to alleviate pressure on the sensitive areas,
which is great for allowing you to get into that more aggressive road riding position. When
you think about it and you look closely, a road saddle that's got a cutout with a shorter nose is
starting to look very much like a TT saddle. Then we have the specific triathlon saddle.
Let's take a closer look at this WATT Kit Carbonio SuperFlow by Selle Italia,
our channel partner. This one allows you to get into that more forward rotated position,
again, it's got that cutout to relieve any unwanted pressure. Then you've got this extra
grip on the surface that is common on TT saddles. This helps you to maintain the position without
slipping forward and when you've got a smaller surface area in contact with the saddle and also
if you're potentially wet after the swim. The split nose design is also very common
in triathlon, this is when the two sides of the saddle have the cutout but they don't
rejoin at the front. This can feel quite wide at the nose and a tip here, you can
pull these together and hold them with cable ties, something that I used to do.
The length of the rails on your saddle might seem an odd feature to notice, you would normally think
that longer is going to mean more weight but you need to look beyond that. Actually, it's
about the adjustability that comes with a saddle. Say you've got one saddle on your road bike but
you're using a road bike for triathlon but also for casual road riding, then you're going to have
to change your position. For example, if you're getting into the aero bars, you normally want to
put your seat post up and move your saddle forward quite significantly, to allow you to get into that
correct position. When you're back onto your road bike position, you might want to move it back to
make youre you've got enough length to play with. With that in mind, you'll notice that TT and
triathlon saddles do tend to have slightly longer rails. As you rotate forwards into
that more aero position, your contact point of your seat changes but also reduces. The
area that is in contact with the saddle needs to make sure that it can grip well. You'll notice
in triathlon and TT saddles that they tend to have a slightly different material more towards
the front of the saddle to enhance that grip. In fact, this one's actually got grip towards the
front but in the middle part of the saddle. It's natural to think that more cushioning
equals more comfort but that isn't always true. If you relate it to something like a mattress,
the softest mattresses aren't necessarily the best for you. When it comes to a saddle, if it's really
soft then it's going to dissipate that pressure, which initially feels really nice but then it can
actually start to put unwanted contact on areas that don't actually appreciate that pressure.
It's really hard to find the fine lines. Sometimes a really hard saddle to touch might actually
be really comfortable to sit on. Within reason, you're going to have to do your own reading and a
little bit of trial and error on this one. [music]
The cost of the saddle will not only reflect its technical development but also its material.
Let's look at the rails, for example, carbon rails will weigh less than aluminum,
and therefore they're going to cost more on a saddle, and that actually goes for the overall
weight of the saddle. On the whole, a lighter one is more expensive. If you delve into the rails,
you just need to know that carbon rails are usually an oval type shape and that doesn't
fit with every C-clamp on a seat post, so just check it's compatible with your bike.
It's worth noting that the most expensive saddle isn't necessarily the best. When it comes to
investment, it's not so much about the money you invest but actually the time and the patience.
Maybe that's not what you want to hear right now but you will find that a lot of shops
and some brands will actually allow you to take a saddle home and try it. You've also
got the option of trying other people's saddles, so maybe to speak friends, speak to your local
club and see if you can borrow one. Some shops even offer a fitting service,
where there'll be pressure pads on a saddle, you will get into your normal riding position,
and they can then suggest can type of saddle would suit your position from that. At the moment,
in the climate we live in, I know a lot of our shopping is done online. Quite a few brands will
offer a service to help you work out what you need. Selle Italia have their ID match system,
which basically gets you answering lots of questions and then narrows it down into just
a few saddles for you to choose from, without you even really having to think very much.
You're going to be spending more time sat on your saddle during a triathlon than in any other
position, so it really is worth it investing a little bit of time and patience into finding
the correct one for you. Just be aware that if you do quite a lot of work on altering
your position on the bike, then you'll need to think potentially about changing your saddle but
at least changing the position of your saddle. I would love to know what you guys do, what type
of saddles do you use for your triathlon bike. Do you even ride a road bike with a road saddle still
on your TT bars and what have you found works for you? Do make this a conversation in the comment
section below. Give us a like if you've enjoyed it. Follow us on our social media channels. Why
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