perferred and ideal seat postions

[splintersp3]

how do you guys and girls like your seats, up down or neutral ? neutral seems to be most comfertable to me. someone recently told me that angeling up 10-15% can increase power, which i tested and did not find to be true in the slightest

 

[David Suro]

Preferred seat position depends largely on the model of saddle chosen and rider position. Many triathletes prefer to have the nose of the seat lowered to reduce pressure on the frontal area while on the aero bars. Many latter riders prefer to have the seat nose slightly elevated to reduce pressure on the hands since there is a more significant saddle-to-handlebar frop for these riders. Saddles with flat tops are usually most confortable when theyy are positioned level to the ground. saddles with some 'rocker, can be positioned slightly nose up or nose-down, depending on where the rider is positioned on the saddle.

Experimentation is the key to finding optimal saddle placement.

 

[brianf7]

Put the seat where you are comfortable at whatever dissaplin you ride. nose up or down forward or back depends on the indvidual and how long his/her femur is.
Ever noticed were all different.

 

[Bustedknuckle]

how do you guys and girls like your seats, up down or neutral ? neutral seems to be most comfertable to me. someone recently told me that angeling up 10-15% can increase power, which i tested and did not find to be true in the slightest

Fore to aft, level with the ground. 10-15%? ouch!!

 

[ProTour]

Most pros run it level or slightly tilted up in the front, and for good reason. If it's tilted down in the front, it makes it difficult to use your pulling muscles(hamstrings) without sliding off the front constantly.

 

[Rock7586]

Level better when you have to switch bikes you wont have to fuss between them because if it is off a degree or two it will drive you nuts. Litteraly

 

[tubularglue]

i have always leveled my saddles.

seeing nose down makes me laugh
seeing nose up makes me cry
for those who question and wonder why _

 

[TheDude]

level or 1 to 2 degrees nose up. I slide it aft about .5 cm behind the old knee over pedal, but I suppose if I went to a 130 stem I would probably slide it fore by .5 cm.

 

[derailleur]

Most pros run it level or slightly tilted up in the front, and for good reason. If it's tilted down in the front, it makes it difficult to use your pulling muscles(hamstrings) without sliding off the front constantly.

While Alberto Contador was boggling everyone by winning a TT in the TdF over Fabian Cancellara, I was noticing that he kept on munching his saddle - sliding forward with each stroke until he had to shove his **** back.

A slight upward adjustment of the nose would have equilibrated his position and stopped the extra effort of reseating himself, giving him back the energy he needed...to win by an even bigger margin...

That said, if he'd lost that TT, and for want of a TT lost the Tour, you can bet one of Astana's wrenches would have spent the rest of his summer adjusting the saddles on every bicycle in Kazakhstan.

So the moral is, be kind to your mechanics: learn to ride so fast it doesn't matter how your bike is put together.