Those saddles you can get with a cut out down the centre, do they work and stop pain in the nether regions as after a couple of days I get sore down there which is caused by pressure not friction. Alternatively, would dropping the nose of my saddle slightly help?

I have been road cycling for a number of years and tend to find saddles can be very personal.
I do multiday trips on a total ass hatchet of a carbon fibre selle italia that has 0 padding but I find it surprisingly comfortable. I really struggled with one of the selle italia gel comfort saddles - go figure!

A pro bike fitting service may help you find more comfort for longer multi-day trips.

Going back to your question, sorry, I have never tried a cut out saddle.

If the discomfort is centred around what I can best describe as 'your weld' then yes, something with a cut out does seem to help.

Do have a play with your saddle angle too. I lent my bike to someone at the WRT who had to alter the saddle position ... it's taken me since then to fine tune it back to where it was. Even a degree or two may make a big difference.

I'd second the earlier about Selle Italia - my first ever was a flite (the long thin one with no padding) and nothing since (and I've tried quite a few including gel and 'cutaways') has been better. Long-time riding mates have had similar experiences too..

I too find that heavily padded saddles offer less comfort as the length of time riding increases. I also find a narrow saddle much better.

Has anyone experienced the odd phenomenom of a certain model of saddle you've quite happily used for years suddenly becoming an instrument of torture for no apparent reason? After many happy years on Charge Spoons my underneath no longer agrees with them. :?

s8tannorm wrote: Do have a play with your saddle angle too. I lent my bike to someone at the WRT who had to alter the saddle position ... it's taken me since then to fine tune it back to where it was. Even a degree or two may make a big difference.

I completely understand that, I even now notice things like 0.0005 degree angle changes when I popped my seatpost out to clean all the crap off it...and noticed how it wasn't 100% how I left it.

s8tannorm wrote:I too find that heavily padded saddles offer less comfort as the length of time riding increases. I also find a narrow saddle much better.

Has anyone experienced the odd phenomenom of a certain model of saddle you've quite happily used for years suddenly becoming an instrument of torture for no apparent reason? After many happy years on Charge Spoons my underneath no longer agrees with them. :?

I agree with that, I've found padded saddles can be comfy for very short trips, but they're not for anything long distance.
And yes, I used a saddle for years and then it stopped working for me - although I did start doing a lot more miles then.

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So as far as I can tell, reading and hearings lots of opinions, it's all very very personal.

Bear in mind the saddle with the bike setup combo, this will change how you sit on the saddle and how comfortable it is.

Bear in mind the saddle with the bike setup combo, this will change how you sit on the saddle and how comfortable it is.

So true ... sometimes I've noticed that changing hand positions can change how / where I'm sat.

I also remember reading articles about bike set up and 'sit bones' that lead me to adjust the forwards - backwards (if you know what I mean) position of my sadle.
I found that helped with the two problems I was having at the time - lower back pain on longer rides and numbing of my nether reagions.
Moving the saddle backwards on the horizontal plain can strighten your back out and can eleviate the pressure on the parts that contact with the sadle.

Thanks all, will try dropping the nose a bit first, pretty sure I've got fore/aft position correct.