Specialized saddles

[ultraman6970]

No idea if this came up before but since a few specialized saddles came out in the last few days i went to one of the dealers around to look at their saddles. Some have a lot of padding/gel... but well noticed that the toupe has apparently 3 useless pieces of plastic and the construction is pretty "light" so ligth that no wonder people get those saddles cracked time to time. I give you that the saddle looks nice and the ride should be pretty smooth also. The toupe in particular looks like was built to bend somehow to absorb some of the road vibration but at which cost?? My ass is like 200 pounds and while putting pressure with my hands over the saddle i was able to see how flexible is.

Looked at the romin saddle and looked better, probably it will last longer.

Well just a comment.

[FixedNotBroken]

I have the Romin and I love it..no complaints and it's lasted well!

[cp43]

I just bought an Avatar over the weekend. Seemed like the right amount of padding and strength for me. Only ~40 miles on it so far, but no complaints as of now.

I looked at the Romin too, it seemed too flexible to me. I'm ~225lbs, so I wasn't impressed with any amount of flex that I could cause with my hands.

Regarding the Toupe, I have a co-worker who broke 2 or 3 of them, each in less than a year. He's probably in the 150 to 160 pound range. I'm going to stay from the Toupe.

Chris

[pavel]

I have 2 romins (both on serottas) and they've treated me very well. It seems to be just the right amount of flex, but I fluctuate between 140 and 145.

[AngryScientist]

Toupes on four bikes now, only cracked one, but there was a ton of saddle time on that one

[Sheldon4209]

Surprisingly, my favorite is the Rival. Too bad Specialized stopped making it a couple of years ago. Specialized saddles are not for everyone but they have done a nice job in the last few years.

[superfish]

i owned 3 toupes. 1st cracked after extensive use and 2nd held on very well until a crash. now i'm using my 3rd one.

i've used the fizik aliante and arione, both wasn't as comfortable as the toupe. somehow, the padding and the length of fizik saddle are too long for body so the toupe has been the best and comfortable saddle i've had. i think i ridden over 2000 miles on my 3rd toupe though i am only 120 lbs.

[gasman]

I'm a fan of flat saddles with a cutout and the Toupe has worked great for me. Have one on three bikes, the only saddle that broke was on my daily commuter/cross bike after three seasons. It broke during a race so i had to stand the last half of the race. Replaced it the next day with another.
Saddles are so individual. Find what you like.

[Ralph]

I'm an old guy (about 160 lbs) with some recurring coccyx issues, and need a flat saddle, not rounded on rear part, and cut outs in rear also help some. That basically means I need a "sit bone" saddle. The problem I had with the Romin and Alias was they were just too hard after about 25 miles. They limited my riding, although I had no coccyx or lower back issues with them.

Recently found relief with the 2011 version of the Specialized Avatar. Nose of saddle about 3-3 1/16" behind BB axle, and nose of saddle slightly higher than rear. Lots of padding and gel. Also....My postage scale makes them closer to 300 grams than the 350 or so of the older generation....for those who worry about a few grams on a saddle. Recently bought two of them. My butt can now last as long as my legs, and do it again the next day. That's amazing for me.

[cmg]

toupe on 4 bikes with the phenom on one bike with a white one coming.

[Steve in SLO]

180# with Toupes on numerous bikes without problems.
Phenom on my CX and MTB--comfy and light.

[bzbvh5]

I weigh quite a bit more than 200 lbs and have had my toupe for about 4 years. Still works like a champ. I love the flex in thing. I think that's what makes the magic (why such a pancake seat can be so comfortable) happen.

[Onno]

How does one know what size of Toupe saddle to get? Most on ebay are the 143s, though there are also a few 130s. What, exactly, does one measure on one's butt to figure out what size saddle is appropriate? Or do most folks just get the one in the middle (the 143)?

[MadRocketSci]

How does one know what size of Toupe saddle to get? Most on ebay are the 143s, though there are also a few 130s. What, exactly, does one measure on one's butt to figure out what size saddle is appropriate? Or do most folks just get the one in the middle (the 143)?

sit on the specialized Ass-O-Meter (TM)

http://www.goinggoingbike.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Ass-O-Meter.jpg

[67-59]

How does one know what size of Toupe saddle to get? Most on ebay are the 143s, though there are also a few 130s. What, exactly, does one measure on one's butt to figure out what size saddle is appropriate? Or do most folks just get the one in the middle (the 143)?

Specialized dealers have a device that you sit on with small cushions that allow them to measure how far apart your sit bones are. They then translate the result into one of their three sizes. One of the FAQs on the Specialized website lists the translation as the following:

* Sit bones 70-100mm apart: 130 saddle
* Sit bones 100-130mm apart: 143 saddle
* Sit bones 130+ mm apart: 155 saddle

[rice rocket]

Here's a more detailed guide, which is a scan of the back of the ass-o-meter.

http://i.imgur.com/8iU04.png

[bozman]

I have a Romin on the road bike and the previous version of the Phenom on my commuter. I like both very much. I am over 200 lbs. fwiw.

[russ46]

I'm using an Avatar Comp Gel right now. Got it late last fall. It's the 4th saddle I've tried since beginning to ride again. Of the 4 it's the best. My old rear end wears out about the same time as my old leg muscles now.