Not A Stepford Cyclist

One of the reasons I haven't ridden with a club in a long time is my aversion to groupthink.  As often as not, they're riding the same bikes or the same few bikes, and the componentry and accessories tend to be the same, or similar on each club member's bike.  They might even be wearing club jerseys.


No, I have no desire to be a Stepford cyclist.


Seeing everyone riding the same bikes, wheels or other components has no appeal to me.  But, to me, it would be downright creepy if everyone rode the same seat.  That is definitely not an area in which one should be a slave of fashion:

If the Tour de France riders were to use his seat, they never would have to worry about taking l'arret pipi.

Replacing Stolen Booty

If you saw yesterday's post, you noticed that I was on my Le Tour III.  And, a couple of weeks back, I mentioned that the seatpost and seat had been stolen.  The guys at Habitat gave me a seatpost and clamp that had been in one of their used-parts boxes; I installed it with the Terry Butterfly saddle I had on my Miss Mercian.  Someone else is getting the Butterfly; I am going to try a new saddle I saw on sale.

It's made by a company called Gyes.  I think they make the Velo Orange and a few other "own name" saddles.  The one I'm installing on the Le Tour is the Parkside model, which is very similar to the Brooks B67--which, of course, is a B17 with springs.


That means I'll again have all-leather saddles on all of my bikes.  A B17 is perched on Helene, and both Arielle and Tosca sport the narrow versions of the B17.


I'll admit that I'm starting with a certain prejudice:  The Gyes is on my mass-produced, beat-up LeTour (which I've decided to name Marianela), and the Brooks saddles are on my handbuilt Mercians. Although the Gyes has a couple of features that Brooks doesn't (e.g., the flaps of the saddle skirt riveted together underneath the main part of the saddle), I still expect it to be of lower quality and lesser workmanship and not to last as long.  That's another reason I put it on the Le Tour:  If someone takes this saddle, I don't think I'll be as upset as I'd be if someone took one of my Brooks.  


This should be interesting.  I haven't ridden the seat yet, but I expect it to at least by early in the coming week.  

Ex Cathedra: From The Saddle

As much as it pains me to say this, I think that switching from all-leather to “donut” saddles has worked for me.

My gynecologist said as much.  The last time I saw her, some of the tissue near my labia was torn and developed an infection.  This time, I didn’t have such a problem.  Rather, the stinging I felt was a yeast infection.  In addition to a one-dose medication, she prescribed less sugar and more yogurt for me. 

So, in that sense, the Terry Falcon X saddles I installed on Arielle and Tosca have succeeded for me.  I’m also starting to like their shape, which flares more gradually from front to rear than the Brooks saddles or the other nylon-based saddles, like the Fizik Pave (Here's a review of it.)  and Selle Italia Flite, I’ve ridden.  However, I’m still getting re-accustomed to the feel of thin (though dense) padding between a fairly inflexible base and a thin, stretchy leather cover.  I must say, though, that on the longest ride I’ve taken so far on either of those saddles, I didn’t feel sore.

I have installed a Terry Butterfly saddle on the Miss Mercian I’ve been building, which is almost complete.  (I’m waiting for the rack and I think I’m going to put wider tires on it.)  The Butterfly is wider, has a larger cutout in the middle and seems to be a bit more padded.  Therefore, I think it might be better for the Miss Mercian, which I will be riding in a more upright position than I ride my other two Mercians.  Having taken only two very short rides on the new bike, I’m not ready to comment on the Butterfly.

At some point in the future, I’ll say more about both saddles.  By then, I may have decided whether they’re keepers.  

(By the way, the bags you see under both saddles are Bike Burritos.  I highly recommend them.)