The contact points on a bike are the feet, hands and butt. Cyclocross racers are only on the saddle for an hour and much of that time is actually off the saddle. On the other hand, gravel racers are sitting on the saddle for hours on end.
At Interbike 2018 in Reno, we checked out some of the items that could help for both short cyclocross and long gravel days in the saddle.
Today, we look at products from Lizard Skins, SQ Lab and Chamois Butt'r.
Each company is on its own slide. Use the next button to scroll through each.
For more new products from Reno, see our Interbike 2018 archive.
SQ Lab Saddle and Seatpad
On the other end, the rear end, we came across SQ Lab, a German company that concentrates on the cycling touch points.
Most remarkable is the saddle design that is now commonplace. A saddle choice based on sit-bone width measurement was pioneered by SQ Lab in Germany in 2001.
For the SQ Lab fitting process you actually sit on this spiked seat. 2018 Interbike Contact Point Product Round-Up. © C. Lee / Cyclocross Magazine
The system has evolved to include rider activity and position. For example, a high-level racer will lean forward with a balanced profile, while a recreational rider may sit upright more with more weight on the saddle.
The saddles have further evolved to move a small amount naturally with the rider. This is accomplished with an elastomer at the rear rail mount.
SQ Lab’s saddle has a slight rise at the back and a deep central channel. The carbon rail version weighs a claimed 142 grams. 2018 Interbike Contact Point Product Round-Up. © C. Lee / Cyclocross Magazine
You can be fit by an SQ Labs dealer or order direct online with a 30-day fit guarantee.
The SQ Lab 612 Ergowave Active carbon saddle. It has a claimed weight of 142 grams. 2018 Interbike Contact Point Product Round-Up. © C. Lee / Cyclocross Magazine
Adding to the ergonomic advantage is the development of the SQ Lab seat pad. Unlike any other seat pad (aka ‘chamois’) it is thin and very dense. With all the technology applied to the saddle design, some chamois designs introduce pressure points with their diaper-like thickness.
Dense and thin, the SQ labs short pad avoids the compression and bunching that negate the ergonomics of saddle design. 2018 Interbike Contact Point Product Round-Up. © C. Lee / Cyclocross Magazine
We were told that SQ Lab put a lot of thought into reducing pressure and friction when designing the pad. They don’t want to design clothing but had to produce shorts to introduce the pad. Hence, in the U.S. a road style bib short is available. Mountain bike shorts and shorts liners are available with the pad in Europe.
We hope to out the saddle-short combination to test in the near future to see if there is merit to the design.
Click next for more contact point products.
