Review Of Parts Past: WTB SST Saddle

Note: Occasionally I will be struck as to the awesomeness of some part or piece that I use on my bicycles. This was the genesis for the idea of "Review Of Parts Past" where I do a review of a piece or part I use that, perhaps, is no longer in production or that I feel deserves more notice.

WTB SST Saddle: The first time I heard about the SST saddle was late in 1996 when word came out in some MTB magazine that WTB had introduced a new MTB specific saddle that was radically different than the then currently available fare. It was swoopy, curvy, and with that droopy nose, kinda weird looking. I decided to bite on an industry only offer to buy one of the first ones and placed an order over the phone to WTB directly. (Who does THAT anymore?)

Well, my SST came and immediately became my favorite saddle. My first one was a top of the line Titanium railed and leather covered one. Later versions had steel rails, sparkle covers in vinyl, and there were less expensive, Original Equipment versions which weren't really anything like the nicer ones. My suspicions are that the less expensive, OE ones were actually made in a completely different factory. (That's not uncommon, by the way) 

My 1996 vintage SST saddle has resided on several bikes. It spent a long time on my OS Bikes Blackbuck, but recently has found a new lease on life on my Black Mountain Cycles MCD. In a mix-up with a review bike, I ended up with another leather covered SST, only this one has the Kevlar bumpers, and that is now on the Blackbuck. I have a sparkle SST, in gold, which I got from an old friend who sourced it off e-bay. That one was on the Fargo Gen I for ages until I removed it back a few years ago. That sparkle SST was the one I rode 155 miles on in the DK200 in 2015, one of my longest single day rides ever. 

So, there's the history. Saddles are a very personal thing. You may not like the SST, but for me it works really well. However; maybe not quite as you might expect. I like my SST saddles a bit more 'nose-up' than most folks ever would. That is just the way I feel sat the best on them. And, obviously, it agrees with me and still does. Now I've gone off for other saddles since then, thinking I'd found "saddle nirvana", but the SST keeps satisfying my posterior the best. It's the shape, of course, and the leather versions are nicer for sure than the vinyl covered ones are. But none of that matters since they do not make it anymore. 

Interestingly, the SST shape has informed many subsequent WTB saddles. You can still discern the drooped nose idea and "bellied" center section on saddles like the Pure V, the Silverado, and to a very minor degree, the Volt, which has since become WTB's most popular saddle ever. I love the Volt and Silverado, but I really wish WTB would re-introduce a vintage styled SST again. That would be a rad throwback!

Review Of Parts Past: WTB SST Saddle

Note: Occasionally I will be struck as to the awesomeness of some part or piece that I use on my bicycles. This was the genesis for the idea of "Review Of Parts Past" where I do a review of a piece or part I use that, perhaps, is no longer in production or that I feel deserves more notice.

WTB SST Saddle: The first time I heard about the SST saddle was late in 1996 when word came out in some MTB magazine that WTB had introduced a new MTB specific saddle that was radically different than the then currently available fare. It was swoopy, curvy, and with that droopy nose, kinda weird looking. I decided to bite on an industry only offer to buy one of the first ones and placed an order over the phone to WTB directly. (Who does THAT anymore?)

Well, my SST came and immediately became my favorite saddle. My first one was a top of the line Titanium railed and leather covered one. Later versions had steel rails, sparkle covers in vinyl, and there were less expensive, Original Equipment versions which weren't really anything like the nicer ones. My suspicions are that the less expensive, OE ones were actually made in a completely different factory. (That's not uncommon, by the way) 

My 1996 vintage SST saddle has resided on several bikes. It spent a long time on my OS Bikes Blackbuck, but recently has found a new lease on life on my Black Mountain Cycles MCD. In a mix-up with a review bike, I ended up with another leather covered SST, only this one has the Kevlar bumpers, and that is now on the Blackbuck. I have a sparkle SST, in gold, which I got from an old friend who sourced it off e-bay. That one was on the Fargo Gen I for ages until I removed it back a few years ago. That sparkle SST was the one I rode 155 miles on in the DK200 in 2015, one of my longest single day rides ever. 

So, there's the history. Saddles are a very personal thing. You may not like the SST, but for me it works really well. However; maybe not quite as you might expect. I like my SST saddles a bit more 'nose-up' than most folks ever would. That is just the way I feel sat the best on them. And, obviously, it agrees with me and still does. Now I've gone off for other saddles since then, thinking I'd found "saddle nirvana", but the SST keeps satisfying my posterior the best. It's the shape, of course, and the leather versions are nicer for sure than the vinyl covered ones are. But none of that matters since they do not make it anymore. 

Interestingly, the SST shape has informed many subsequent WTB saddles. You can still discern the drooped nose idea and "bellied" center section on saddles like the Pure V, the Silverado, and to a very minor degree, the Volt, which has since become WTB's most popular saddle ever. I love the Volt and Silverado, but I really wish WTB would re-introduce a vintage styled SST again. That would be a rad throwback!

Resaddled

Busted. (Click to embiggen- look for red arrow)

During the Renegade Gent's Race I was lifting my bike up during some stop or another and noticed that the typically solid feel I had when grabbing the saddle by the nose had been replaced by an alarmingly flexible feel. Oh oh! Something done busted! 

Once I determined that it wasn't catastrophic and that I could continue, I didn't worry about that old WTB Pure V saddle until I got back to the familiar confines of the Guitar Ted Laboratories. There I scrutinized the saddle and saw that the insert in the nose of the saddle placed there to give some relief to a rider's......ahem!....undercarriage, had broken free from its bonds. This allowed the surrounding plastic shell to be far more flexible than it should be. And who knows? That shell may be compromised as well. At any rate, it was time to replace that old Pure V.

So, typically I almost never get a saddle to wear out, break, or whatever. I have too many bikes to ride and too little time in each saddle to really cause any of them to fail in some way. Then too, there was the search for a good saddle for my gravel travels which took some time to figure out. Back in my mtb days when all I did was ride mountain bikes, the saddle of choice was the WTB SST. That saddle was a shade too narrow for me to sit on and grind out miles of gravel, but for mountain biking, it was the bees knees from where I sat.

Once I started riding gravel in earnest, I had to figure out what I liked for sitting long periods of time on during long periods of pedaling. The WTB Pure V came over from a mountain bike when I built up that Black Mountain Cycles frame and fork, so it has been there since. I lucked out by getting to ride that saddle and have it work out. Meanwhile I figured I would experiment with other saddles because maybe there was something better. Well, besides the Brooks saddles I use, no- there wasn't anything better. Sheer luck there.

That's how it is supposed to look underneath there.

Anyway, that's how I came to get this WTB Pure V to break. I just had it on there long enough and rode it enough every year to get it to finally give up the ghost. So, I didn't mess around with any thoughts of another saddle. I immediately placed an order for another WTB Pure saddle in the "Pro" version. Note- WTB dropped the "V" designation from the Pure. I guess maybe they got too much speculation about what the "V" meant? Hmm.....

Well, however that is, I have a new Pure saddle on there now and after a short test ride the feel is very good. Back to that "firm nose" again, which is to say, "not a loosey-goosey" broken nose feel. It was obvious to me that the old Pure V probably had been broken before the Gent's Race but I hadn't discovered it until that event.

Other than graphics, this Pure has a different cover than my old Pure V has. WTB calls it "Microfiber", whatever that means. I am pretty sure my old Pure V has a leather cover. At least it feels and acts like leather.  I also just got an older OE (Original Equipment) Pure V off of my friend's Fargo which I think has a stitched leather cover. So there are a few different versions floating around out there. The new Pure saddle's cover feels good right now. I'll withhold judgment until I get a hot weather ride in on it. But I think it will be just fine otherwise. Same shape, and essentially the same saddle as the Old Pure V. Why shouldn't it work?

Ready for miles of gravel traveling.

Now I'm all fixed up and the Black Mountain Cycles rig is back to being the functional, versatile rig that it always has been. Between this new saddle and ability to run big, puffy 700c rubber, I should be doing some long rides in relative comfort. The WTB Pure also makes a great mountain biking perch as well if you don't have to scoot off the back too much, or if you have a dropper post, which then renders the width a moot point.

Resaddled

Busted. (Click to embiggen- look for red arrow)

During the Renegade Gent's Race I was lifting my bike up during some stop or another and noticed that the typically solid feel I had when grabbing the saddle by the nose had been replaced by an alarmingly flexible feel. Oh oh! Something done busted! 

Once I determined that it wasn't catastrophic and that I could continue, I didn't worry about that old WTB Pure V saddle until I got back to the familiar confines of the Guitar Ted Laboratories. There I scrutinized the saddle and saw that the insert in the nose of the saddle placed there to give some relief to a rider's......ahem!....undercarriage, had broken free from its bonds. This allowed the surrounding plastic shell to be far more flexible than it should be. And who knows? That shell may be compromised as well. At any rate, it was time to replace that old Pure V.

So, typically I almost never get a saddle to wear out, break, or whatever. I have too many bikes to ride and too little time in each saddle to really cause any of them to fail in some way. Then too, there was the search for a good saddle for my gravel travels which took some time to figure out. Back in my mtb days when all I did was ride mountain bikes, the saddle of choice was the WTB SST. That saddle was a shade too narrow for me to sit on and grind out miles of gravel, but for mountain biking, it was the bees knees from where I sat.

Once I started riding gravel in earnest, I had to figure out what I liked for sitting long periods of time on during long periods of pedaling. The WTB Pure V came over from a mountain bike when I built up that Black Mountain Cycles frame and fork, so it has been there since. I lucked out by getting to ride that saddle and have it work out. Meanwhile I figured I would experiment with other saddles because maybe there was something better. Well, besides the Brooks saddles I use, no- there wasn't anything better. Sheer luck there.

That's how it is supposed to look underneath there.

Anyway, that's how I came to get this WTB Pure V to break. I just had it on there long enough and rode it enough every year to get it to finally give up the ghost. So, I didn't mess around with any thoughts of another saddle. I immediately placed an order for another WTB Pure saddle in the "Pro" version. Note- WTB dropped the "V" designation from the Pure. I guess maybe they got too much speculation about what the "V" meant? Hmm.....

Well, however that is, I have a new Pure saddle on there now and after a short test ride the feel is very good. Back to that "firm nose" again, which is to say, "not a loosey-goosey" broken nose feel. It was obvious to me that the old Pure V probably had been broken before the Gent's Race but I hadn't discovered it until that event.

Other than graphics, this Pure has a different cover than my old Pure V has. WTB calls it "Microfiber", whatever that means. I am pretty sure my old Pure V has a leather cover. At least it feels and acts like leather.  I also just got an older OE (Original Equipment) Pure V off of my friend's Fargo which I think has a stitched leather cover. So there are a few different versions floating around out there. The new Pure saddle's cover feels good right now. I'll withhold judgment until I get a hot weather ride in on it. But I think it will be just fine otherwise. Same shape, and essentially the same saddle as the Old Pure V. Why shouldn't it work?

Ready for miles of gravel traveling.

Now I'm all fixed up and the Black Mountain Cycles rig is back to being the functional, versatile rig that it always has been. Between this new saddle and ability to run big, puffy 700c rubber, I should be doing some long rides in relative comfort. The WTB Pure also makes a great mountain biking perch as well if you don't have to scoot off the back too much, or if you have a dropper post, which then renders the width a moot point.

Gearing Up For Gent's Madness

It should look like this.

The Renegade Gents Race v7 is happening this weekend. Yes, you know that it is one of my favorite rides of the year. Well......you do if you have been paying attention here. So, like any other year, I have to decide which rig to pull from the Lab for duty.

The last few years, I think, I've been using the Raleigh Tamland Two. I've used a Vaya I used to have and my Black Mountain Cycles "Orange Crush" in the past. I could use the Twin Six Standard Rando as well.

Right now the Tamland is running a strong first for the choice and the Standard Rando is a close second. I recently swapped out the saddle on the Tamland and man! Why did I not just go with what I knew all along and stick a WTB Pure V on there in the first place? I don't know. Sometimes I inexplicably try odd things because......well, they might work. You never know until you try, right? Uggh. Then again, you could be wasting time when a great solution already exists. It's a saddle. Don't mess with what works.

So, then there is the issue of having to wrap up the review on the Gevenalle HYDRAULIC components, and what better way to do that than put in a metric century within the context of a race? The downside is that the roads of the Gents Race call out for a tire that is a bit wider. I have 37's on the wheels on the Tamland currently. The Standard Rando has 650B X 47's. I know those wider tires could be a game changer. The sandy gravel in the area really can be a bad deal, especially if the maintainers have been out and about. Then there are the occasional fresh gravel dumps which make wider tires a better deal as well.

This could also be the look for the weekend.

Then there is the lack of miles. This could erase any choice of bicycle. I just haven't had opportunity due to illness and weather to log in any longer rides so far this year. Not that this is anything new running up to the Gent's Race. Many years I have been in Texas a week or so beforehand and/or doing Trans Iowa stuff, so getting miles in March has never really ever worked out for me.

At any rate, I should be having a good time, and for the first time I won't have to wake up at "dark-thirty" to get my carcass down there on Saturday morning. This is because my family is joining me and coming down with me on Friday evening so they can all go to Tacopocalypse and gallivant around Des Moines for the day. So, I actually may even be rested this time around. There is a first time for everything!

Well, however it goes, I need to pick a bike. Stay tuned for that later this week.....



 

Gearing Up For Gent's Madness

It should look like this.

The Renegade Gents Race v7 is happening this weekend. Yes, you know that it is one of my favorite rides of the year. Well......you do if you have been paying attention here. So, like any other year, I have to decide which rig to pull from the Lab for duty.

The last few years, I think, I've been using the Raleigh Tamland Two. I've used a Vaya I used to have and my Black Mountain Cycles "Orange Crush" in the past. I could use the Twin Six Standard Rando as well.

Right now the Tamland is running a strong first for the choice and the Standard Rando is a close second. I recently swapped out the saddle on the Tamland and man! Why did I not just go with what I knew all along and stick a WTB Pure V on there in the first place? I don't know. Sometimes I inexplicably try odd things because......well, they might work. You never know until you try, right? Uggh. Then again, you could be wasting time when a great solution already exists. It's a saddle. Don't mess with what works.

So, then there is the issue of having to wrap up the review on the Gevenalle HYDRAULIC components, and what better way to do that than put in a metric century within the context of a race? The downside is that the roads of the Gents Race call out for a tire that is a bit wider. I have 37's on the wheels on the Tamland currently. The Standard Rando has 650B X 47's. I know those wider tires could be a game changer. The sandy gravel in the area really can be a bad deal, especially if the maintainers have been out and about. Then there are the occasional fresh gravel dumps which make wider tires a better deal as well.

This could also be the look for the weekend.

Then there is the lack of miles. This could erase any choice of bicycle. I just haven't had opportunity due to illness and weather to log in any longer rides so far this year. Not that this is anything new running up to the Gent's Race. Many years I have been in Texas a week or so beforehand and/or doing Trans Iowa stuff, so getting miles in March has never really ever worked out for me.

At any rate, I should be having a good time, and for the first time I won't have to wake up at "dark-thirty" to get my carcass down there on Saturday morning. This is because my family is joining me and coming down with me on Friday evening so they can all go to Tacopocalypse and gallivant around Des Moines for the day. So, I actually may even be rested this time around. There is a first time for everything!

Well, however it goes, I need to pick a bike. Stay tuned for that later this week.....



 

Country Views '17: Where Eagles Fly

Riding the Great Plains looks easy, except you cannot see the wind here!

Saturday I planned on doing a longer ride. This would be the first planned longer ride since I have (mostly) recovered from a nasty head cold. My nose was still runny, but otherwise I felt fit and good to go. The weather was not ideal. The temperatures were in the mid-30's and the wind was stiff from the Northwest, but I have gear for that. No excuses!

The first order of the day was to get shorn. My hair was out of control since I did not feel that I should submit my barbers to the illnesses I experienced during January and February. So, this was the soonest I could get in. Last week I did recon, so that was out. Anyway......

I didn't get headed out until after the hair cut and some lunch. Before that I changed something  on the Raleigh Tamland Two. I had gotten a hold of a WTB Pure V saddle from my friend Tony, who I believe got it when he purchased his used Fargo. At any rate, this replaced a fizik saddle that was okay, but it never really felt good. I knew that Pure V's were good on drop bar bikes like the Tamland because I use one on my Black Mountain Cycles "Monster Cross" bike and I love it. So, I figured why fight it by trying anything else, and so I just decided to go with this Pure V for the Tamland.

I also popped on my Lezyne Super GPS and my FitBit watch and set both to track my ride. Okay.......gizmos. Bah! I get why some folks dig them, but for me they are an extra layer of complexity that tell me precisely what I already kind of know anyway. It isn't that hard to figure out how many miles you have ridden and in what time if you think about that with the natural gizmo you were provided with at birth. But maybe I expect too much........

The Tamland Two with the WTB Pure V now mounted.

So since the wind was out of the Northwest I decided to do a loop that took me East and then North out of town. It is a loop I generally never use unless it is early in the Spring. This is due to the fact that it starts out with miles of flat- really flat- terrain. It is good when you aren't sure where you are at with fitness and you just want to get some miles in. On Saturday, the opening stretches were with the mighty tailwind, so it was fairly easy to get settled in before I had to get working and go North.

There was a stretch which was flanked on the South side by very tall Evergreen trees. I happened to notice something moving high up in the sky, coming from behind these trees. It was a magnificent Bald Eagle, soaring across my path diagonally. I thought that was really cool, and my eyes tracked it as it moved to the Northeast, seemingly untouched by the winds which were strong then. Suddenly, I noticed the Bald Eagle had company!

At first I only saw one......

But there were seven in all.

There ended up being seven of them in all. Bald Eagles are not rare by any stretch these days, but it is odd to see them in such numbers in mostly dry, flat territory. I've seen the odd single eagle sitting in an open field at times, but this was a spectacle that I was blessed to be treated to. After a bit of marveling at them, I decided I had better push on.

Here is where I turned North, on Pilot Grove Road.

I turned North and into the head wind on Pilot Grove Road. Thanks to my friend Tony, who lent me a book on early Native American, Pioneer, and settler's trails in the area, I know now that Pilot Grove Road got its name because at the time of the first settlers coming to this area, there was a Native American trail that cut Northwestward through here that used an isolated grove of trees as a "pilot", or guide", to navigate the wide open grasslands of the day.

Of course, no one knows exactly where the grove was, but as I turned North, I would like to think it was along Poyner Creek in that hollow off in the distance where trees line the waterway to this day. I have done some other research into the area, but nothing has turned up and I may never know for certain where the old grove once was.

The last remnants of snow lining the ditch looking South on Pilot Grove Road

The wind was giving no quarter and I was working the bike hard to maintain 10mph. Of course, you cannot hear anything but the roaring of the wind when you are headed directly into it, or nearly so. This is another thing one has to train for because I feel that this wind noise is a natural deterrent to your mental drive to carry on. It wears on you mentally, and it is easy to let yourself get discouraged by that noise. I try to think about other stuff and it works, mostly. That is until your legs ache and belly aches to the point that you must stop to address those needs. That I did. A flattened banana and some water to wash it down and I felt a lot better. Then it was off Westward on East Bennington Road.

I had a plan at this point to tack the wind by going a mile West, then a mile North, and so on till I reached the county line. However, a turn North on Ordaway Road led me to a "T" intersection with a busy paved county road. Bah! A mile West and an intersection with another paved road! Okay, back South to Bennington then, and off West once more. No more pavement!

Crossing Crane Creek on Bennington Road.

Okay, now I was headed back into familiar territory once again. The way Westward didn't seem as arduous as it had been going North, so this was good, although my legs were barking at me. I knew the truncated course and plan was probably going to work out for the best on this day. Too much too soon and I would run the risk of getting sick all over again.

Oh yeah, I found another country church. St. Francis Catholic Church on East Airline Road, just off Pilot Grove Road.

This dike and emergency spillway are a flood protection for North Waterloo. Located near Moline Road and Airline Road intersections.

The Pure V saddle worked great because I never noticed it at all during the almost three hour ride. So, I think I have finally arrived at the two saddles I can ride on gravel bikes now- WTB Pure V and Brooks Cambium C-17's. That took long enough to figure out!

Hopefully this will make for a good base to get up to speed to do a metric century with my teammates for the Gent's Race on April 1st. I don't have much time!

Country Views '17: Where Eagles Fly

Riding the Great Plains looks easy, except you cannot see the wind here!

Saturday I planned on doing a longer ride. This would be the first planned longer ride since I have (mostly) recovered from a nasty head cold. My nose was still runny, but otherwise I felt fit and good to go. The weather was not ideal. The temperatures were in the mid-30's and the wind was stiff from the Northwest, but I have gear for that. No excuses!

The first order of the day was to get shorn. My hair was out of control since I did not feel that I should submit my barbers to the illnesses I experienced during January and February. So, this was the soonest I could get in. Last week I did recon, so that was out. Anyway......

I didn't get headed out until after the hair cut and some lunch. Before that I changed something  on the Raleigh Tamland Two. I had gotten a hold of a WTB Pure V saddle from my friend Tony, who I believe got it when he purchased his used Fargo. At any rate, this replaced a fizik saddle that was okay, but it never really felt good. I knew that Pure V's were good on drop bar bikes like the Tamland because I use one on my Black Mountain Cycles "Monster Cross" bike and I love it. So, I figured why fight it by trying anything else, and so I just decided to go with this Pure V for the Tamland.

I also popped on my Lezyne Super GPS and my FitBit watch and set both to track my ride. Okay.......gizmos. Bah! I get why some folks dig them, but for me they are an extra layer of complexity that tell me precisely what I already kind of know anyway. It isn't that hard to figure out how many miles you have ridden and in what time if you think about that with the natural gizmo you were provided with at birth. But maybe I expect too much........

The Tamland Two with the WTB Pure V now mounted.

So since the wind was out of the Northwest I decided to do a loop that took me East and then North out of town. It is a loop I generally never use unless it is early in the Spring. This is due to the fact that it starts out with miles of flat- really flat- terrain. It is good when you aren't sure where you are at with fitness and you just want to get some miles in. On Saturday, the opening stretches were with the mighty tailwind, so it was fairly easy to get settled in before I had to get working and go North.

There was a stretch which was flanked on the South side by very tall Evergreen trees. I happened to notice something moving high up in the sky, coming from behind these trees. It was a magnificent Bald Eagle, soaring across my path diagonally. I thought that was really cool, and my eyes tracked it as it moved to the Northeast, seemingly untouched by the winds which were strong then. Suddenly, I noticed the Bald Eagle had company!

At first I only saw one......

But there were seven in all.

There ended up being seven of them in all. Bald Eagles are not rare by any stretch these days, but it is odd to see them in such numbers in mostly dry, flat territory. I've seen the odd single eagle sitting in an open field at times, but this was a spectacle that I was blessed to be treated to. After a bit of marveling at them, I decided I had better push on.

Here is where I turned North, on Pilot Grove Road.

I turned North and into the head wind on Pilot Grove Road. Thanks to my friend Tony, who lent me a book on early Native American, Pioneer, and settler's trails in the area, I know now that Pilot Grove Road got its name because at the time of the first settlers coming to this area, there was a Native American trail that cut Northwestward through here that used an isolated grove of trees as a "pilot", or guide", to navigate the wide open grasslands of the day.

Of course, no one knows exactly where the grove was, but as I turned North, I would like to think it was along Poyner Creek in that hollow off in the distance where trees line the waterway to this day. I have done some other research into the area, but nothing has turned up and I may never know for certain where the old grove once was.

The last remnants of snow lining the ditch looking South on Pilot Grove Road

The wind was giving no quarter and I was working the bike hard to maintain 10mph. Of course, you cannot hear anything but the roaring of the wind when you are headed directly into it, or nearly so. This is another thing one has to train for because I feel that this wind noise is a natural deterrent to your mental drive to carry on. It wears on you mentally, and it is easy to let yourself get discouraged by that noise. I try to think about other stuff and it works, mostly. That is until your legs ache and belly aches to the point that you must stop to address those needs. That I did. A flattened banana and some water to wash it down and I felt a lot better. Then it was off Westward on East Bennington Road.

I had a plan at this point to tack the wind by going a mile West, then a mile North, and so on till I reached the county line. However, a turn North on Ordaway Road led me to a "T" intersection with a busy paved county road. Bah! A mile West and an intersection with another paved road! Okay, back South to Bennington then, and off West once more. No more pavement!

Crossing Crane Creek on Bennington Road.

Okay, now I was headed back into familiar territory once again. The way Westward didn't seem as arduous as it had been going North, so this was good, although my legs were barking at me. I knew the truncated course and plan was probably going to work out for the best on this day. Too much too soon and I would run the risk of getting sick all over again.

Oh yeah, I found another country church. St. Francis Catholic Church on East Airline Road, just off Pilot Grove Road.

This dike and emergency spillway are a flood protection for North Waterloo. Located near Moline Road and Airline Road intersections.

The Pure V saddle worked great because I never noticed it at all during the almost three hour ride. So, I think I have finally arrived at the two saddles I can ride on gravel bikes now- WTB Pure V and Brooks Cambium C-17's. That took long enough to figure out!

Hopefully this will make for a good base to get up to speed to do a metric century with my teammates for the Gent's Race on April 1st. I don't have much time!

Game Of (Cycling) Thrones

The WTB Pure V- One of my favorite saddles for long days of bicycling

The bicycle saddle has long been a source of contention, frustration, and laser beam focus for cyclists for decades if not for over a century. Of course, it is one of the primary "touch points" of a bicycle. The others being the grips and gloves, then the shoes/pedals, which, by the way, are much easier deals to navigate for any cyclist.

Take for instance the pedal. It basically is only a device for your shoe to push on. You can ride in whatever shoes fit you and are most comfortable, of course, and you already know what size you need. Well..........maybe I assume too much. Let's just agree that there is a well codified system that you can use to find a shoe that fits.

Grips and gloves are also pretty easy things to get figured out. There are ergonomically designed grips and gloves come in sizes which can be fitted to almost any human's paw. This isn't that hard to figure out. Not so with saddles. 

Cambium C-17. My newest favorite saddle.

Until recently we mostly were left to guess what saddle might work by reading marketing hype and squeezing saddles in the shops like we were shopping for fresh produce. Then we learned about "sit bones" but unless you were around a shop with one of those gel infested benches, you had no idea how to measure yours. Maybe it was all too sciency for mere mortals to grasp.

I actually got to sit on one of these benches. It was as if I mistakenly sat on a full diaper. Gross would describe the experience. Isn't there a better way to do this? Then there is the whole weird out with dealing with that part  of your body. I mean, for me- yeah. No big deal. But I could easily see where some folks that need the most help would be the most sensitive about getting fitted.

Ya know, I knew my shoe size and even my glove size when I was a teenager. But I never figured out my "sit bone" width until I was well on into my 40's. Then even when/if you know that, you still have to find the right saddle for the bike you have, the style of riding you do, and how you position yourself on said saddle. It ain't easy, and I wish it were, but I think after about ten years of trying different saddles I found a couple that fit me really well. Brooks and WTB for me, but the stubborn journey I took to discover that maybe would be too daunting for many folks.

I wonder if this is why we have so many "non-cyclists" who have left cycling because they couldn't find the right saddle? Maybe. What do I know. All I can say is that it is still crazy after all these years that we don't stop this silly game of not having a way to figure out the correct saddle for folks, at least in a rudimentary way.

Game Of (Cycling) Thrones

The WTB Pure V- One of my favorite saddles for long days of bicycling

The bicycle saddle has long been a source of contention, frustration, and laser beam focus for cyclists for decades if not for over a century. Of course, it is one of the primary "touch points" of a bicycle. The others being the grips and gloves, then the shoes/pedals, which, by the way, are much easier deals to navigate for any cyclist.

Take for instance the pedal. It basically is only a device for your shoe to push on. You can ride in whatever shoes fit you and are most comfortable, of course, and you already know what size you need. Well..........maybe I assume too much. Let's just agree that there is a well codified system that you can use to find a shoe that fits.

Grips and gloves are also pretty easy things to get figured out. There are ergonomically designed grips and gloves come in sizes which can be fitted to almost any human's paw. This isn't that hard to figure out. Not so with saddles. 

Cambium C-17. My newest favorite saddle.

Until recently we mostly were left to guess what saddle might work by reading marketing hype and squeezing saddles in the shops like we were shopping for fresh produce. Then we learned about "sit bones" but unless you were around a shop with one of those gel infested benches, you had no idea how to measure yours. Maybe it was all too sciency for mere mortals to grasp.

I actually got to sit on one of these benches. It was as if I mistakenly sat on a full diaper. Gross would describe the experience. Isn't there a better way to do this? Then there is the whole weird out with dealing with that part  of your body. I mean, for me- yeah. No big deal. But I could easily see where some folks that need the most help would be the most sensitive about getting fitted.

Ya know, I knew my shoe size and even my glove size when I was a teenager. But I never figured out my "sit bone" width until I was well on into my 40's. Then even when/if you know that, you still have to find the right saddle for the bike you have, the style of riding you do, and how you position yourself on said saddle. It ain't easy, and I wish it were, but I think after about ten years of trying different saddles I found a couple that fit me really well. Brooks and WTB for me, but the stubborn journey I took to discover that maybe would be too daunting for many folks.

I wonder if this is why we have so many "non-cyclists" who have left cycling because they couldn't find the right saddle? Maybe. What do I know. All I can say is that it is still crazy after all these years that we don't stop this silly game of not having a way to figure out the correct saddle for folks, at least in a rudimentary way.

Green Has A Grip

As per yesterday's post, I did get the Big Mama out and ridden yesterday. The Pure V saddle is on it, but other refinements have yet to occur. I couldn't wait though! It was too nice to wait out there, and I knew that Cedar Bend was open again, so I went north and checked it out.

The trails are so dry in most parts of the park that it reminds me of very late summer/early fall when things are rock hard, buff, and there are a few sandy spots. Those conditions prevailed yesterday, along with a healthy amount of duff here and there left over from last fall and winter.

This time of year is great when the trails allow you to experience the woods as things green up. The trees look like they have green fuzz on their branches, and the forest floors are just rife with new underbrush that doesn't look all crazy, and out of control yet.

Sure, there is mud along the lower trail, and yes, I got into it. Like a dang fool! That mud is super sticky! But beyond that, I had a great time and the trails were fast everywhere but on the lower section.

Besides that, my body was working surprisingly well.

The Big Mama was too. Man! That bike just sails over rough trail like it isn't even there. The Manitou and Fox rear damper are working well together and the front to rear balance is spot on.

The Pure V is stellar. Such a great saddle, and I will be getting some more of these. I can sit on the nose to climb comfortably, or slide back and power along the flats. It feels great on my posterior!

I still have to get some decent brakes on it, but this bike is pretty close right now to being perfect for my needs. I did mention swapping drive train parts, but that can wait. It's time to get some spring woods riding in!

Green Has A Grip

As per yesterday's post, I did get the Big Mama out and ridden yesterday. The Pure V saddle is on it, but other refinements have yet to occur. I couldn't wait though! It was too nice to wait out there, and I knew that Cedar Bend was open again, so I went north and checked it out.

The trails are so dry in most parts of the park that it reminds me of very late summer/early fall when things are rock hard, buff, and there are a few sandy spots. Those conditions prevailed yesterday, along with a healthy amount of duff here and there left over from last fall and winter.

This time of year is great when the trails allow you to experience the woods as things green up. The trees look like they have green fuzz on their branches, and the forest floors are just rife with new underbrush that doesn't look all crazy, and out of control yet.

Sure, there is mud along the lower trail, and yes, I got into it. Like a dang fool! That mud is super sticky! But beyond that, I had a great time and the trails were fast everywhere but on the lower section.

Besides that, my body was working surprisingly well.

The Big Mama was too. Man! That bike just sails over rough trail like it isn't even there. The Manitou and Fox rear damper are working well together and the front to rear balance is spot on.

The Pure V is stellar. Such a great saddle, and I will be getting some more of these. I can sit on the nose to climb comfortably, or slide back and power along the flats. It feels great on my posterior!

I still have to get some decent brakes on it, but this bike is pretty close right now to being perfect for my needs. I did mention swapping drive train parts, but that can wait. It's time to get some spring woods riding in!