Which Perch ? - Fizik Gobi

Finally, I've found a perch that appears to fit "my" butt better than all earlier incaranations.

Although I've only ridden with it for a dozen-ish rides it's already getting rave reviews, enter the Fizik Gobi. It's quite a pricey little number to buy at UK mrp (£75ish) but they occassionally pop up in the bike classifieds, for mucho less - which is where I sourced mine.

My earlier saddles incl'd a couple of cheap Specialized Body Geometry's and WTB's but none were truely comfortable over a couple of hours riding. With the advent of my new ride I took advice and opted for the WTB Shadow which was a minor improvement but still had me looking for excuses to get out of the saddle. However, it did highlight that it's particular shape was pin pointing a couple of spots on my sit bones which prompted me to investigate alternatives with a slightly different shape. The smooth contours and "hammock" style of the Gobi are now working wonders for me and the flexi wings apparently mould to your particular contours even more over time so my grin should increase as they sag !

The 270g Gobi weighs in a teeny heavier than the Shadow it replaced at 210g.

Verdict; Although cheap, gel filled saddles may look comfortable initially IMO you'd do much better experimenting with different shaped and sized perches and keep the gel to a minimum.

Nor does cheap imply comfortable...