Fizik Aliante - comfortable?

[e-rider]

I currently have a Fizik Arione which is fairly confortable except perhaps on 100+ mile rides!

I've heard that the Fizik Aliante is mega comfy for longer rides but they cost so much money I don't want to risk buying it and finding out it's not!

 

[ColinJ]

Impossible to answer unless you have an identical twin who has ridden 100+ miles on one, in which case - ask them!

Seriously - it is such a personal thing that once you have eliminated obviously nasty or badly made saddles, the only thing you can do is to pick a saddle which is similar to one that you already find comfortable and give it a go.

If you know someone with an Aliante, you could ask nicely if you could borrow it for a long test ride?

 

[e-rider]

well, my brother has one but we live at opposite ends of the country (almost)!

 

[ColinJ]

well, my brother has one but we live at opposite ends of the country (almost)!

Well, unless he is exactly the same weight as you, has exactly the same shape bum as you, wears the same cycling kit as you, is exactly the same level of fitness as you, has the same cycling style as you and rides over identical terrain ... there's not a lot of point in just asking him if his Aliante is comfortable!

Why not make that family visit that you've been putting off and borrow his saddle (or bike) and try it out for yourself?

Failing that, if you could persuade him to lend the saddle to you for a week, it might be worth paying two lots of courier fees to find out for sure if it suited you?

 

[rockyraccoon]

As ColinJ said it is a personal thing. I had the Arione and found it bloody uncomfortable on longer rides. I also have a specialized and a selle italia both cheaper than the Fizik.

Well, after a few "painful" rides I decided to replace it. My Arione saddle was 130mm width. The cheaper specialized was 143mm width. I cannot remember the selle italia width but it was very close to the specialized one.The latest two were very comfortable. No issues whatsoever.

Specialized has a system that makes selection very easy based on the distance of your sit-bones.. (ps: the width of the saddle is not the width of your sit bones). I managed to measure my sit bones using a home-made method (please don't ask!) and based on the specialized chart I ordered a new saddle. The result was that I needed a saddle with 143mm width (no surprises here!). I got one and tried it on several long rides. It is brilliant!.

As mentioned saddle choice is very personal. Try several different saddles and see which one works for you...

 

[smokeysmoo]

+1 for the above, but FWIW the Focus Cayo Pro I had came with one and I never had any issues.

(never rode 100+ though either)

 

[ColinJ]

Comfort definitely varies with fitness level and weight. I did several tough 140 mile rides with an Arione saddle on my bike when I was reasonably fit and had no problems at all. Once I put on weight and lost fitness, I started getting saddle sores again. It's partly because of the extra weight bearing down on the saddle, partly less leg strength taking weight off the saddle, and partly because the my bum changed from muscular to flabby!

 

[Keith Oates]

I have an Arione on the C40 and find it very good but it took a few rides before it became comfortable. However as has been said above the only way to know is try one yourself and unfortunately one ride may not be sufficient to know if it suits you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!