Romin and Romin Evo test

[zap]

The Fizik Aliante saddles I have on our tandems has been bothering me a bit of late on longer rides so I decided to test some saddles.

I have a Specialized Toupe (modified-plastic nose delete) on my mtb which felt rather comfortable on my last ride a month ago before tear down. But based on many positive web reviews (and unwillingness to modify a saddle) I decided to check out the Romin saddle.

Man that saddle was uncomfortable. First the nose is quite wide and was not to my liking. The sit bones hurt after 10 or so miles and I just could not get comfortable (no matter the height, tilt or fore/aft changes) in the drops. After one shortened ride I returned the Romin and decided (again, based on online reviews) to give the Evo a shot.

The Romin Evo has a narrower nose (good) and a bit more padding. But, again, sit bones didn't care for the saddle and despite angle adjustments and fore/aft changes, just did not work in the drops. In addition to sore sit bones, these saddles created a problem which Specialized claim to solve.

Returned the Evo for refund (thanks lbs) and installed the Aliante for this weekends ride. The Aliante is nowhere near as painful.

Thanks to my wife for being patient while I fiddled with the saddles on three rides.

I just finished modifying/rebuilding my mtb last weekend and took it out earlier this week. The Toupe felt great but for now I'm fed up with the fiddling on rides and just want to ride. If the Aliante is still a bother on longer rides, maybe I'll try the Toupe in early spring.

I don't think I have tender sit bones as my road single has an AX Lightness carbon saddle with no padding that feels great.

[rice rocket]

Testing any saddle for 10 miles won't yield any reasonable results.

I'd say 100 miles or 4 rides minimum. Riding a saddle is as much your body adjusting to the saddle as it is you fitting it.

I did the same thing, Aliante to a Romin, and yeah my sitbones hurt for the first 20 miles, but by the 100th mile (3rd ride), it was great. I can do a century on it now and the saddle is the last thing I think about. Feet on the other hand... :(

[CDollarsign]

I love the Romin Pro I have on my Lemond. Its one of the more comfortable saddles I've ever ridden. Do you think you have the correct width via specialized's measurement tool?

[zap]

Testing any saddle for 10 miles won't yield any reasonable results.



That is quite obvious. All rides were longer than 10 miles though there is no way in hell I was going to ride these saddles for a 100 miles. I've been at this game for a loooong time and know when an item just is not going to work out.

Yes, I sat on Specialized measuring device. As noted, sit bone was just one problem.

[BdaGhisallo]

I concur with the last two posters. I changed to the Romin back in the spring and it took a good week of riding to really decide whether I liked it or not. I started with the 143mm width and have recently hopped on the 155mm. I do not see myself having to ever change to a different saddle. The Romin (regular, not the EVO) is perfect.

Give it some time and mileage before you make a definitive decision.

[John H.]

Specialized Romin and Romin evo need some downward tilt.
You want the middles third of the saddle to be level. That will likely require a tilt of 2.5-4 degrees (if measuring front to back).

[PoppaWheelie]

I go between an Aliante and a Romin depending on time of year...I find the Romin great for indoor use (no numbness) and in cross season when the privates can get a little tender due to the constant bumpiness. All personal preference of course.

The Romins do tend to wear out a little faster than a carbon-shell saddle. The plastic sags like the old Ariones did.

[zap]

Give it some time and mileage before you make a definitive decision.

I respect your input but I've given up on the Romin type saddles.

Ignoring the sit bone issue, I just could not get comfortable when in the drops no matter the tilt/fore/aft position. I could not find the sweet spot between comfort and being pushed forward. It was a big problem for me. For reference, when I'm in the drops on the tandem I used (with only 9.5cm hbar drop), my back is close to pretty flat. Despite being over 6', when I ride next to many shorter cyclists I feel small. Our other tandem and my single have 10.5 - 11 cm drop.

Tandeming is unique and problems tend to get compounded. One sits more when riding a tandem. Also, I recognize these test reports are difficult because we all have different body bits and sit differently on bikes.

I think those who know me and have similar low positions are better served with my report.

Anyhow, my wife needs a break from all the stopping for saddle adjustments.

[rice rocket]

I could not find the sweet spot between comfort and being pushed forward.

Doesn't sound like you're rotating your hips, which is the whole premise of the design.

[JonB]

Doesn't sound like you're rotating your hips....

That's what she said.

[MattTuck]

There are a bunch of things that go into a good saddle fit.

A little soreness can be expected and should be ridden out to see if it persists, but if it is more an issue of not being able to find a comfortable position on the saddle, that is something that you can chase for 1000 miles and never get there.

Chaffing is another one that probably would rule out a saddle with limited mileage. I'm not going to suffer through chaffed skin and saddle sores to get my butt to like a certain saddle.

[rpm]

I converted from the Aliante to the Romin Evo on two of my bikes this year. It took awhile to adjust, but the results are generally good. I said good-bye to saddle sores for the whole season. Oddly, one of the saddles feels perfect, but the other still feels a little off. I'm thinking about getting a replacement for the second.

I first tried the regular Romin in my recommended width of 143 and didn't care for it. But then I got the Evo in the 155 and that worked much better.

[vav]

switched from Arione to Romin 155 on my two roadies and it's been day and night. I find the Romin so much more confortable. Still think Ariones look great but this is an area where function should trump aesthetics.

[ultraman6970]

I had the same problem with both romin models too. The saddles went ok like for 15 to 30 mins then was unbearable discomfort like the fizik aliante for example.

The romin doesnt look like a bad saddle but my but did not like it at all, maybe is too curved? The toupe have worked fine for me almost all the time. Just in case I still havent find like that Balhala everybody is looking for ever. The toupe works fine in 5 hours rides so im ok with that one.

The Prologo saddles are ok but definitely need something with a cutout.

[TAW]

Yes, I sat on Specialized measuring device. As noted, sit bone was just one problem.

I don't do much of the fitting stuff since I'm just a mechanic, but I wouldn't put a lot of stock in the sit bones measuring thing. There have been several people who measure a certain width, but are more comfortable on another width saddle.

[ultraman6970]

The thing is the shape, some guys can use curved saddles, other asses goes better with flat ones like the toupe for example... back in the day every loved the turbo, I couldnt get into those ones and I end up in a super turbo that is basically flat compared with the regular turbo.

Remember the kontact pass around saddle we got from kontact, sincerely great saddle... a lot of features and things they state you can tell are true but my butt did not like it or I would have jumped to one right away, great saddle after all.

[zap]

Doesn't sound like you're rotating your hips, which is the whole premise of the design.

You can take it to the bank that I know all about hip rotation.

Believe me, I was puzzled. In profile, the shape of the Romin & Romin Evo was very close to my AX Lightness saddle and both were initially installed at the same angle.

The Romin Evo wasn't so bad when I was riding on the tops, but there was no way in hell that I could hold a position for any length of time in the drops and function sexually post ride.

[fuzzalow]

I can empathize with the effort in getting a new saddle dialed in. I am doing the same over the past month or so with using a SSM Regale saddle only on one bike whereas I use Fizik Antares on everything else.

I'll concur with some of what you're already doing as you seem to know some things and have been around the block. I'll add:

- Fiddling with the saddle while riding is the only way to dial in but there are diminishing returns on this as the feel for the correct saddle neutral position gets blurred by fatigue from holding a forced static position. You start hurting from this so even if you were to hit the right spot, you might not know it. After a while it's better to go home, adjust the saddle slightly and start fresh on that setup next ride.

- In season, you should feel no pain. If you do it's because the Romin doesn't hit you up in the same spot as the AX.

- Saddle adjustment increments are small, sometimes hard to do with precision on the side of the road. If the rails aren't marked you must mark it with tape so the amount of movement is identifiable.

- Saddle position is always set in the drops. If the drops cannot be used as a full time position then the position is not correct yet.

I don't agree that a new saddle setup is something to get used to, especially if you are dialed in perfectly on another setup. The target and goal is to replicate the feel of the known, perfect setup. There is nothing to get used to, when you hit it, you know it.