This will most likely be controversial and I may not be welcomed here. However I’ve just bought a Giant Talon 2 in Dried Matcha.. My plans for the bike involve pathed bike paths for exercise and honestly just to get out and about for my mental health as well!
The saddle in the picture is one I already had from a previous attempt (bmx for nostalgia didn’t go well) it’s not the most comfortable thing so I wondered if anyone had any suggestions to increase its comfort or if I should consider padded shorts?
I’m thinking for the stem if I get one that’s slightly higher and at a 45 degree instead of 90 degree this will help with comfort also.
I’m just a 36yo dude trying to escape from sedentary life of work and home routines.. once I build up some confidence and fitness I might even venture off track into some toddler level tracks 😅
by Rydnhi
10 Comments
My wife has a big ol’ comfy seat on her gravel bike. Use what works for you man!
Get a WTB rocket and some padded bib shorts
From a similar vintage Millenial. Measure your sit bone width and get an appropriate width saddle, not one of those padded monstrosities. And don’t mess with the stem, get high rise handlebars if you want to be more upright
Yeah that’s not a good seat. It’s the opposite of what everyone thinks. Too much padding actually will hurt more.
For your needs i would recommend the Ergon SM pro or the SM sport which both are on sale right now. It has a little padding but minimal, which will be nice for a hardtail and bumps. Alternatively the Ergon Allroad is good but stiffer.
Most importantly you need to measure your sitting bones to get the right size. It makes all the difference or ask your local shop if they can or have test saddles.
Getting a cheap bib shorts is very important, Amazon has decent cheap pairs. Bib shorts are essential.
Also get a helmet.
Was the bike fitted to you? I ride with padded shorts, but the smallest changes in the seat angles yielded noticeable differences in comfort.
Check out the WTB Pure. Its the most comfortable MTB saddle I’ve had, not that I’ve had that many. Pretty affordable too. Padded shorts are still a must, and expect your gooch/ taint to still be sore no matter what. It will stop if you ride at least once a week. Congrats on the new bike. I love the color, especially with the tires
Firstly, good on you that you’re taking some positive steps. Cycling has had a huge impact in my life – mental, physical health benefits, fun, social life, etc. Once you get a few rides under your belt, you can check out local cycling clubs – there’s always some for every type of rider.
For the seat, as another commenter said, usually those bigger padded seats are not great for longer fitness rides. they’re usually more for bikes that are more upright – like a hybrid – and for shorter rides. you move around more on the padded seats – which can lead to chafing or soreness. And your bike is a hardtail mountain bike – that’s supposed to have a more balanced position for the rider. i.e. more weight in the hands than a hybrid, which helps put the rider in the best position for navigating mountain bike trails. You can try using the seat it came with, or upgrade to a more comfortable fitness style seat. Check out “Ergon” – they have some seats that are more comfortable than the one the bike came with but not as padded as the Azur seat you linked. No matter what seat you get, your sitting bones are going to be sore for a bit – probably a few weeks. As you get accustomed to it, the soreness should go away. Even long-time cyclists have occasional soreness.
Also, none of this is permanent. Getting a riser stem and a big, padded seat like the one you sent might be fine as you start riding. Then as you get accustomed to riding or are riding longer distances or if you venture onto singletrack mountain bike trails, you can swap to a lower profile seat and get padded shorts. Bar and stem height is very much personal preference – you may like a higher bar even on singletrack trails or can try out a lower height. Have fun.
I just got an older Talon 2 secondhand, with a lot of nice upgrades. I love it. Padded shorts make a difference for me.
https://preview.redd.it/0123bvbxqd3h1.jpeg?width=1320&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7c70c6346d1c695715dc8e17d82b6d2f17bd6bb1
This is a pic of my old mountable I modified after an accident where I broke my skull, flailed both sides of my rib cage, broke my back and crushed / opened my pelvis.
After 7 months of PT It took me from barely walking, through training steady for 5mo, to riding a hilly northern Michigan organized ride. My only goal was don’t walk hills, this bike helped me do that. It did really suck riding this bike, set up like this, as a mountain bike (as seen here at the dragon trail in Michigan.) On the road it was a great cruiser. I put a BMX stem on it and BMX bars. Swapped out heavy tread tires to 29”x 2.1” Think Slick tires. As bad of shape as I was, we still passed lots of skinnier, healthier people on really expensive mountain, road and gravel bikes walking up the hills.
I rode this bike through the summer then transitioned to a road bike with an adjustable (raised) stem to ride 100k, 100mi and 200mi rides. Now ride my road and mountain bikes with regular stems. Changed everything back to normal on the mountain bike and use it to ride Michigan trails. It’s not a great mountain bike, but I’m a worse mountain biker so it does everything I need it to.
I ride on BiSaddle bike seats because my sit bones are asymmetrical after my accident. These seats are adjustable to your butt’s geometry and are super comfortable. Can usually find them available cheap not even broken in on FB marketplace.
No one should shit on you for making strides to get healthier, if they do, fuck them.