Selle Royal has announced a new range of saddles designed to ergonomically fit both men and women.
In developing the saddles, the company worked with Prof. Bayen from the University of Brussels, who concluded that to ensure the feeding of oxygen to the pudendal nerves and arteries, male saddles should be endued with a 35 mm wide canal.  Female saddles needed a smaller canal of 25 mm to avoid strong compression or squeezing of the centre.
A broad surface around the cavern of this saddle balances the pressure on both sides of the pressure discharge area where external pudendal tissues support parts of the weight.
Shown above is the men’s athletic model, below the womens.  These weigh 440g and 435g respectively, so even being called the “athletic” models, their weight puts them more in the range of comfort saddles.
You can see the difference in channel widths between the men’s and women’s models.  Surprisingly, the Men’s “Moderate”, with more padding, is the lightest at 420g.  Read “more” for pics of the other models and more details…
A broad surface around the cavern of these saddles balances the pressure on both sides of the pressure discharge area where external pudendal tissues support parts of the weight.
Their press release claims three models each, but the website shows four men’s and four women’s. The three models for each sex cater for athletic rides, moderate use and relaxed riding.  There are two “Moderate” models for each gender, one with big bushings at the rear where the rails meet the saddle, and one without (shown above).
There are also “Relaxed” models that have the bushings and even more padding that weigh in around 650g.
The saddles feature waterproof covers that prevent any moisture from getting into the padding, and the center channel vents through to the bottom.  The gel used supposedly doesn’t harden or age to provide consistent support and padding.
