What's your go to XC saddle?

[Matthew]

Looking to maybe replace my 90's vintage Bontrager Ti railed saddle with something new. I like the Arione for the road but not sure that would be good for XC riding and racing. Something fairly light and relatively comfortable!! Thanks!

[Ken Robb]

how high or low are your bars for this bike?

[joosttx]

Fizik Tundra. I like ariones too.

[Ken Robb]

I'd try an Arione. If they are comfy on your road bike they should be even better on a XC bike where you will probably stand and move around more. I haven't found them to be too fragile even when I weighed 215 lbs.

[Jaybee]

The Arione is kinda long and pointy on the back for situations where you should be behind the saddle. I like them on the road, but not so much for MTB. Currently sporting a Bontrager Serrano, Fabric Scoop Shallow and a WTB Silverado on my MTBs.

[993rs]

Specialized Phenom. Road/gravel/mtb I run it on all my bikes.

[djg21]

Looking to maybe replace my 90's vintage Bontrager Ti railed saddle with something new. I like the Arione for the road but not sure that would be good for XC riding and racing. Something fairly light and relatively comfortable!! Thanks!

I ride the Arione on the road, and used the Fizik MTB saddle that is about 10 years old — I think it’s a Gobi of some sort. I tend use the same saddles on all my bikes, but went MTB specific. The cover has some non-slip strips on it, and it’s very comfortable for me.

[AJosiahK]

I run Ariones on most CX and road rigs. tried it once on an XC full sus rig. Aside from the fact that it looked weird, it felt ok. I do prefer a bit more width on mtb. Ive always been a fan of the older Tundra models. Longer and flat. Recently was running a Syncros XR 1.0 SL loved it once I got used to it. It is a little shorter and harder than a Tundra but similar in shape in some ways. I felt like I wanted a saddle that had the length for out of the saddle control, and a point or edge where I could hook up within and plop in place. So instead of a fluid shape like the arione, I would look for something with a corner or edge moving from tip to wings if that makes sense.

[zennmotion]

Arione is my favorite road saddle. WTB Silverado is my favorite saddle for MTB and CX. It's long like an Arione, similar width, rounded rear for getting behind the saddle. Try one, they come in several variations you can get a basic version used/cheap to see if you like the shape without much risk- I hate buying high end stuff and taking a hit when I discover that it doesn't work for me.

[zennmotion]

Like the OP, Arione is my favorite road saddle. WTB Silverado is my favorite saddle for MTB and CX. It's long like an Arione, similar width, rounded rear for getting behind the saddle. Try one, they come in several variations you can get a basic version used/cheap to see if you like the shape without much risk- I hate buying high end stuff and taking a hit when I discover that it doesn't work for me.

[Peter P.]

Riding D2R2, where there's a considerable amount of seated climbing, I found my narrower, road saddles were painful after several hours.

I believe it was due to the more upright position on my ATB vs. my road bikes.

So I wanted a "performance" saddle with more padding, that was wider than my 130mm road saddle.

I chose the WTB Pure (https://www.wtb.com/collections/medium-width-saddles/products/pure?variant=1062374104).

For rides of 2 hours or less, I'm fine with a narrower, less padded road saddle.

[Matthew]

The bike is a 2002 Moots Rigormootis 26er. A decent amount of saddle to bar drop but probably a little less than what was usually run back in the day. But more than what seems most 29ers of today have. I will likely pick up something used for a decent price to see if I like something. May try one of my Ariones but thinking it may be a bit too hard for MTB. I do see a lot of WTB saddles it seems. May check those out. Thanks for the input so far.

[sw3759]

second the Fizik Tundra model.fwiw,like most of the others the Arione has been my road saddle of choice for the last 10+ years

[yarbsr02]

I’ve had good luck with the mid level aliante (dont remember exact model, not carbon rail). Really like the shape and comfort, not as long as the arione. Have had really good durability from that saddle as well.

[EB]

WTB Silverado. Mic drop.

[commonguy001]

Specialized Phenom. Road/gravel/mtb I run it on all my bikes.

Love this one as well

[Ronsonic]

So I wanted a "performance" saddle with more padding, that was wider than my 130mm road saddle.

I chose the WTB Pure (https://www.wtb.com/collections/medium-width-saddles/products/pure?variant=1062374104).

That's what I'm riding. The WTB guys are very good at this stuff. Their saddles are all available in different grades by weight and price so pick within your budget and weenieness.

[KonaSS]

I don't prescribe to road versus mountain saddles. But use Specialized Phenoms and Specialized Power saddles off road (and on).

[mod6]

Wtb Pure here also. Been hording the older version when they pop up on ebay.

[Jad]

I'll add to the WTB Silverado vote. I started out with it on my CX bike, but have come to use it for everything. I'd like to try a Fizik Tundra to compare at some point though.