Updated: Dash 9 Saddle Review

Last week I ordered a demo saddle from Dash Cycles and I am stoked to try it out.  I'll post a review as soon as I've had a few days "in the saddle."


10/11/2012 Update:

When I got home from work on the 10th I was surprised to find that my demo saddle had arrived from Dash Cycles.  I quickly opened the box and was shocked by how wide and light the saddle 9 is when you see it in person, because for its length and total "girth" you'd expect it to be heavier.  In fact, I quickly walked over to Angela and asked her to hold it.  She responded "why?" and after a good deal of insistance on my part she finally agreed to hold it.  Her first response was "wow, it's like there is nothing there."

Build Quality:

Beyond the weight of the 9 the second thing you notice is the craftsmanship of the construction and the build quality, which reminds me a lot of the Brooks saddles my father use to ride in the 90's.  Without a doubt this is a hand made saddle, with extra care taken in many places to save weight while ensuring it will stand up to long hours in the saddle.  The leather is perfectly cut, well wrapped, and secured on the underside of the saddle and there is just enough padding when matched with the natural flex of the carbon fiber to give you an indication that this will be a firm, but comfortable ride.






Initial Fitment:

Setup of the Dash 9 was pretty straight forward and my biggest consideration was whether or not to mount it on the forward or back postion on my Cervelo P4 seatpost.  Based on prior readings I set the saddle to match my existing saddle height and setback, and leveled the rails to be parallel to the ground (perfectly level).  Beyond the fact that the saddle looks rather large and wide once mounted on your bike, the initial fitment process went smoothly and I was ready to head out for my first ride in less than 20 minutes.




First ride observations:

When I first threw my leg over my bike and began to pedal through my neighborhood I immediately noticed three things:

  1. This is a firm, but comfortable saddle, and you immediately begin to feel the weight of your body being carried on ischial tuberosities along each side of the region behind your testicles rather than along the "ridge" of muscle/flesh that runs down the center of your crotch.
  2. It is much easier to rotate your hips forward, because the "ridge" of muscle/flesh that runs down the center of your crotch "sits" within the center channel of the saddle.
  3. Given the way you are supported by the saddle, and how easy it is for your hips to rotate, it is almost more comfortable to be positioned in your aerobars that sitting upright on the saddle, which is a first for me in my TT setup.


Traditionally I have always found that when I am within my aero positon my body sits on one side of the "nose of the saddle," but with the Dash 9 you are supported equally on top of the saddle, which provides a firm, but supportive postion for creating power.  After around 20 minutes of riding I realized that my saddle height needed to go up a bit, because I was more relaxed in my postion and able to sit fully on the saddle rather than semi-suspend myself between my saddle and the pads on my aerobars.  I raised my saddle by 5mm and will consider another 5mm adjustment after a few more rides, because I am continuing to relax into the saddle.

Other observations:
  • While the new contact points between my body and the saddle never got sore during the ride, you certainly feel a new sense of pressure and firmness where the two meet.
  • Riding in my aero position is as, if not more, comfortable as riding sitting up.
  • With the added saddle height and hip rotation I am able to get more drive down and through each pedal stroke.  I am hoping to do another power baseline before the end of the demo and will share the results.
More to come as I continue the demo.


10/30/2012 Demo Completion:

Since my last update on the 11th I have been able to complete 7 rides on the Dash 9 and included an end-of-demo power test to evaluate whether or not the additional comfort and hip rotation resulted in additional power.  Before we dive into the before and after results from the power test, I do want to share a few additional comments based on more than 15 hours of riding the Dash 9.


  • It takes time for your body to adjust to carrying your weight on your "sit bones" fully and the duration of the adjustment will be driven by how often you ride your TT bike.  I try to ride my TT bike at least once a week all year long, because it keeps me comfortable in my position and I enjoy the change of pace during the offseason.  If you don't ride your TT bike often you're likely to experience some soreness and/or adaption during each ride as your body "learns" to side on the 9 versus a traditional road or TT saddle.
  • Be ready to "play around" with your saddle position a bit (particularly up, but potentially back as well) when you begin riding a 9, because as you become more comfortable and relaxed in your TT position you are likely to find you will need to adjust your saddle.  I recommend bringing allen wrenches with you during your first few rides to support the adjustment process.
Now, onto the power results!  To begin with, Coach K (Kendra Wenzel) and I decided to try out a two-staged power test in an effort to help isolate whether or not the changes in power were driven by the switch to the Dash 9 or other variables (e.g. additional rest or the by-product of specific training).  Since the season ended for me in late August I have done little to no extended threshold training, so the power tests represent relatively stable fitness considerations.  We choose to do a two-staged test targeting separate 1 and 20 min power readings, and compared the results.  I believe a majority of the differences (particularly in the 20 min values) can be associated with the comfort and hip rotation I experienced while trying out the Dash 9.

Previous Power Records (for reference)
  • 1 min Power:  580 watts
  • 20 min Power:  362 watts
10/6/2012 Test Pre-Dash 9
  • 1 min Power:  580 watts
  • 20 min Power:  319 watts
Link to file:  http://tpks.ws/8YuK

10/20/2012 Test Dash 9
  • 1 min Power:  590 watts
  • 20 min Power:  341 watts
Link to file:  http://tpks.ws/n0As

As you can see from the wattage values listed above I experienced a pretty significant increase in 20 min power (22 watts or 6.9%) between the two tests, which was a little surprising and when matched with the comfort of the Dash 9 has sold me on the saddle.  I am sending back my demo today and will be working with Weston at Dash to get an order rolling.


Pros
Cons
Weight
Comfort
Quality of design and construction
Low-risk and cost demo program
Potential continued adaption period for people who do not ride their TT bikes often

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