Words and photos by Specialized.com

Thanks to our team of expert Body Geometry fitters and Dr. Roger Minkow, we know more about the human body than we’d care to admit. That said, it’s also the reason our race and rec saddles have transformed the entire experience of riding and racing a bike.

BODY GEOMETRY ERGONOMICS
A hard day in the saddle is often just that—a poorly designed seat causes numbness and sore spots. We work with ergonomics expert Dr. Minkow and our team of Body Geometry fitters to create saddles that provide outstanding comfort and support, all while helping increase blood flow for men and relieve soft tissue pressure for women.
Extensive pressure mapping has given us plenty of clues on comfort. When a rider rolls forward on the nose of the saddle, increased pressure on the pubic region becomes an issue. Innovations like specific grooves and foam cutouts reduce those discomforts. Years of Body Geometry study showed us that women benefit from a wider, hourglass cutout with beveled walls that won’t collapse and pinch sensitive areas.
{Ergonomically designed, scientifically tested}{Gender specific designs}{Higher comfort and lower fatigue}{Extra power and endurance}

TESTING
Correct saddle fit is the fastest way to win comfort on the bike. To achieve this, each of our saddles is designed and tested with our global team of Body Geometry fitters. We’ve taken thousands of measurements to hone in on the best saddle fit. Then we ride, refine and repeat to deliver the perfect saddle. Just ask pro cyclist and “Sprint King” Mark Cavendish. We have the medical data to prove our saddle designs increase blood flow and oxygen levels—two good things to have when you’re riding a bike fast. Without doing the over-share on personal details, we’ve measured blood flow to the penis as men pedal. Those numbers indicate more blood going to the soft tissue. In the short term, that’s less numbness. We’ve found that for women, decreased blood flow can cause urinary and sexual complications. In the search for greater comfort, we used a saddle pressure map equipped with 64 sensors. This feedback showed us how we can optimize saddle design and cutouts to remove pressure from sensitive zones.

Specialized saddles are available in our on-line store.