Hammer

Female Specific Saddle for Beginner?

Angela asked:

I'm a beginning bicycle rider and am a little overwhelmed by the number of bicycle saddle choices out there. I want a comfortable riding saddle that will support my geometry and won't kill my butt. The small thin hard bicycle saddles do not appeal to me at all.....can you recommend a good female specific bicycle saddle. I'm considering the Fizik Arione, Selle Italia Signo, Selle Italia Flite Gel and I am riding a Giant OCR 2 about 50 miles a week for now.

Thanks!

Our Answer:

Welcome to the wonderful world of cycling...it's an amazing sport that can do a lot for both your physical and mental well being.

Now that said, you need to be aware of a few things when choosing your bicycle saddle. The first thing you should do is measure your sit bones and make sure your saddle matches your style of riding. You can check out this article for a quick primer on saddle selection and then make your choices.

I have no personal experience with a Fizik Arione however I have ridden the Selle Italia saddles on a number of occasions and they are fantastic. Well built, quality made, good materials and a reasonable price. The Selle Italia Flite or the Selle Italia Diva make excellent choices depending on your personal geometry.

Selle Italia Diva Gel Women's Bicycle Saddle (Vanox Rails, Black)
List Price: $184.99
Sale Price: $99.99

For those seeking performance without compromising comfort, this is your lightweight dream. Genuine Gel models have silicone gel molded into the saddle for additional comfortStreamlined, lightweight, and comfortableGel Flow models feature a central anatomic cutout and silicone gel molded into the saddle baseItem SpecificationsColorBlackWeight275gWidth160mmLength265mmRailTubular VanoxStyleWomen'sClamp StyleStd Rails

	Selle Italia Diva GelFlow White List Price: $151.22 Sale Price: $136.99
	The result of extensive anatomic study of ladies saddles. Ladies saddles now become more streamlined and shaped to hold the same determination as the most assiduous athletes and riders. Gel Flow gel inserts under sit bones and around cutout...

	Selle Italia Diva Genuine Gel List Price: $170.00 Sale Price: $150.93
	The result of extensive anatomic study of ladies saddles. Ladies saddles now become more streamlined and shaped to hold the same determination as the most assiduous athletes and riders. Gel Flow gel inserts under sit bones and around cutout...

9 Comments »

Roberto rated this:

Actually, I think that the right saddle varies for each person. Don’t go for a very cushy saddle, they seem nice, but actually are not that good.

Maybe go to a bike shop to have your butt measured. And I mean it literally Some bike shops have like a cushion where you sit, and it leaves your sit bones and they measure that distance. Usually saddles comes in 135,145 and 155 widths.

Another brand that you might consider is Terry.

# 19 March 2009 at 3:27 am

uncleneal rated this:

those are all very good brand names, but try a Specialized womens specific saddle. my friends tell me they are great.

# 19 March 2009 at 6:42 am

avidcyclist4 rated this:

Don’t go with a soft saddle, you’ll regret it.

# 20 March 2009 at 4:44 am

giant_blackhawk rated this:

Hi, i think its better for u to use Salle Italia Trans am (prolink) saddle its good for female riders.

# 22 March 2009 at 5:31 pm

Jeff rated this:

I understand that Specialized has a new fitting system to put you in the right saddle by having you sit on a gel thing and measuring the width of the indentations. of course there are differences between road and off road, and everyone is different, but this seems like an intelligent place to start, so I’d check out my local Specialized dealer.
Good luck.

# 24 March 2009 at 12:23 pm

Ric rated this:

As a beginner, I would not worry about saddles, I would first worry about what type of rider I wanted to be, the time you’ll be putting in on the bike and what type of riding you’ll be doing. I would set up some guidelines as to ( Time, Avg. Distance etc.) and start there.

Chances are the saddle that came with the bike is sufficient for the bike and a beginner or it wouldn’t have been put on the bike. The saddles you’re considering IMO are for a seasoned cyclist, not a beginner, they are butt breakers and a person can look forward to 3 to 4 hundred mile break-in period with those saddles.

If you must change, as someone said consider a Terry it’s a good female-specific saddle.

# 25 March 2009 at 1:56 pm

Daniel H rated this:

Ah, several different shapes of females.

Most love WTB’s She Speed (or similar WTB varieties)

Terry Liberator is torture for some, blessing for others.
Terry Butterfly is somewhat similar to the WTB product and less complaints than Liberator (yet some females match up with one and not the other).

Those 3 above are the majority of female-preferred saddle choices. One of those. . .should. . .be a pleasant experience.

Sportourer is fantastic on the mountain bike, XC, mountain comfort hybrid, 700c hybrid, and some, but not all of the new turbo-hybrids. A road bike with handlebars that are at least as high as the saddle is also eligable for the Sportourer. For those bikes that aren’t eligable, a Profile Designs H20 can put the handlebars at the necessary height to support a wider saddle. Wider isn’t for everyone because some saddles have squarish edges. Who’s butt is square?? Anyway, wider with gently sloping very rounded side edges can be quite good.

aebike.com has these at very nice prices

The Specialized dealer has a thing nicknamed the “Assometer” which is a newly-popular measurement tool. It can be helpful . . . except for what you’ve mentioned.

Why? It, alone, cannot convince manufacturers to take the padding out of the shorts and put it back in the saddle where it isn’t so darned hot. So, the resulting saddle from the Specialized Assometer will probably still require that you wear the padding in your shorts. Why? Very firm marine foam in the size for a bike saddle is also very expensive to produce, and squishy is no good. So, a top of the line padded saddle? At the price required, there’s no market.

If none of the above will do it, get the female specific racing size PRE-Softened Brooks, smear it both sides with proofhide or mink (rub, rub, rub–THIN coat!) and then put it into a large ziplock bag onto the roof of the house or inside a hot car for about a week. In 7 days, clean well with leather horse saddle cleaner and give it a light coating with proofhide. Ignore it for another day. Polish with towel. Now, break it in slowly as if you were starting the training season. You know the drill, 2 miles, 5 miles, 7 miles, 10 miles, etc until the two large dents form in the top right where your sit bones are. Don’t go distance on it till the 2 dents appear. This will custom fit for you and only you. You’ll need to add a disposable shower cap to your under-seat flat-pac for those times the bike is on tour and must endure an overnight rain.

Well, one of these 5 is sure to get it. In any case, most cyclists have a cardboard box brimming with saddles. Might ask around at the road touring club if anyone has something you can test drive.

# 26 March 2009 at 11:38 pm

trl_666 rated this:

Find one that is a good medium. ultra light seats were not meant to sit on for long times. Big ones rub the insides of your legs raw unless you sit super low. There are not many female specific seats out there so your best bet is to either go to the bike shop and let them hook you up or go through trial and error. But I suggest picking on in the middle because you will be better off in the long run.

# 28 March 2009 at 9:08 am

djs820 rated this:

You are probably going to have to try them out. I’m guessing this is for a road bike? Go to your local bike store and try them out. Bring your bike, (or try one on display) and ask to have them put on to try. Most bike stores are really laid back, and will oblige. Good luck!

# 30 March 2009 at 10:46 pm