Keith Jepson, Creative Director, chief rider and head honcho at Max Bikes PR, shares with us his 1st ride experiences using the Cushion Aid Saddle Donut.
I ride a great deal of miles on a variety of different bikes both for work and leisure. My riding ranges from commuting, to being a cycle courier, racing and leisure riding. When I received my Saddle Donut in the post, I was so intrigued.
How can this oddly shaped product improve my riding comfort and performance at such a low cost and with such ease of use? I had read the testimonials and product information and watched the very informative fitting and instructional videos on the website – so now it was time to ride! Fitting the Saddle Donut was so easy, thanks to the easy to use instructions on the packaging and the very useful a fore mentioned videos. So, I fitted 4 on all my regular bikes, the Single Speed, Gravel Bike, Road Bike and my Frankenbike Work Horse. This meant that whatever I was riding, whatever set up, I would be riding using a Saddle Donut and I wanted to see if it would work with different types of saddles and styles of riding!
When I first fitted it, I thought it had an unusual aesthetic and wondered – how could this ‘knobbly’ product improve my performance, comfort and ride position?
It did feel a little weird or different at 1st, but that’s to be expected with anything new… right?
My 1st impressions, were: ‘this feels odd’, but I do feel planted in the bike with the Saddle Donut offering grip and encouraging a dynamic and economic ride position, would this then translate to an improved ergonomic position – only time and miles would tell.
After some time on the saddle you get used to the discreet aesthetic as the black plastic blends with most saddles, it can’t be seen when seated or from distance and it really doesn’t impact on any clean lines of your bike! I started using the Saddle Donut daily on both long and short rides and became really impressed with the comfort and ride position it encouraged.
Positioned directly beneath the sit bones you really feel like you can push into the saddle with confidence giving you additional power and control. It’s grippy, but not so grippy that you can’t move on the saddle should you need to. I know some riders like to ride on the nose for climbing or over the back of the saddle for steep descents and the Saddle Donut does not hinder this movement in any way. I have been using the Cushion Aid Saddle Donut on my race bike with bib shorts and on my city bike in normal clothes, and it performs with both; it really helps you to engage with the bike and ‘ride in the moment.’
Sat in your “neutral” riding position the correctly fitted Saddle Donut offers increased comfort on long rides. I have some big cycling tours, bike packing and adventures planned this year and I can’t wait to use the Saddle Donut.
We have 6 Saddle Donuts fitted on our teams bikes, riding in the club chain gang, riding bike deliveries, commuting and exploring in the hills at the weekend and all the riders have been super impressed at the performance at such a low cost and with such ease of use. You don’t have to change that old favourite saddle, the Saddle Donut simply improves it. We’ve taken off the Saddle Donuts on a couple of bikes after a couple of weeks riding, to get a comparison and to remind us of the ride experience / sensation pre Saddle Donut and the difference is marked… watch this space as we explore further.
At approximately £30 (2022 – US pricing and purchase from the global site) with free shipping in the UK, the Saddle Donut is excellent value and much cheaper than upgrading your saddle. It even gives new life to an old favourite saddle.
Available in Women’s and Men’s, for road use and Women’s and Men’s for Tri / TT bikes,which is longer and different in shape to accommodate different styles of saddles. We tested the Saddle Donut Pro Men’s, which is designed specifically for road use and endurance riding – that said we have ridden all disciplines with it and found it both comfortable and performance enhancing… whether in bibs or normal clothes.
If you’re a rider who spends a good deal of time in the saddle or even a casual rider, the Cushion Aid, Saddle Donut could be a strong choice for you. This is what Cushion Aid say about the Saddle Donut Pro…
Created by a rider who competed in RAAM, the famous “Race Across America” endurance event, the Cushion-Aid SaddleDonut™ is designed to improve comfort for riders spending long hours in the saddle, reduce sliding and prevent saddle sores. Featuring a series of raised, dome-shaped “donuts” designed to cushion a cyclist’s sit bones, the SaddleDonut fits to any cycling or triathlon specific saddle. “Finished in black for a discreet application to any saddle design, using the Cushion-Aid SaddleDonut™ is a low impact and cost efficient way of improving your ride experience,” say Cushion-Aid, who claim the product can be applied and removed without causing damage to the saddle.
Christian Echavarria from Cushion-Aid was inspired to design the SaddleDonut™ after his own painful experience on the Race Across America. “I created the SaddleDonut™ after experiencing significant saddle sores on RAAM,” he explains. “After extensive research, testing and riding we are delighted to offer the Cushion Aid, SaddleDonut™, which we believe significantly improves both comfort and performance on longer rides. It is a new brand of sports performance technology for serious and competitive road cyclists and triathlon athletes. We have incorporated Cushion-Aid’s proprietary Power-Lock Technology™ into our range of products to couple the design characteristics of your favourite saddle with the unique anatomy of your pelvis, thus eliminating micro-sliding during the pedal motion and providing more comfortable contact with the saddle.”
The Saddle Donut is available to buy now priced $39.95 (£30 approx).
Find out more and buy at cushion-aid.com.