The main reason why women's saddles are shorter is that women riding a
"lady's bike", i.e. with an open frame, can slip off the saddle
towards the front more easily and then pull their leg through the
frame. This is the normal set-up here in Germany where the vast
majority of women use this kind of frame for everyday use and leisure
cycling.(Right or wrong of this is not standing to debate here.)
However there is a great disadvantage,too, to women's saddles. Being
shorter the rails are shorter,too and often so short that there is not
really any room to adjust the riding position. This is of course a
great disadvantage and tends to push women very far forward making it
difficult to assume a comfortable pedalling position. It is also, in
my opinion, the origin of the theory that women have longer thighs
than men and need special frames found in any number of books and
magazines. A German frame builder had this investigated in standard
works of anatomy and could find so confirmation of this idea. Once you
then start setting up bikes with suspension seat posts which clamp
further forward than traditional seat posts, riding a lady's bike gets
less and not more comfortable. A pity, all that work!I think the
saddle industry should do some thinking about this, but I have not got
anybody really interested so far.If you are riding in a narrow skirt
you need a Dutch "Roksattel", with no or just a very tiny nose. This
may seem strange to Americans, but if women ever start riding the Koga
Miyatas around town that Sheldon Brown is selling with 8 speed hubs
etc women's saddles will not seem so strange any more.
Sheldon Brown <
[email protected]> wrote in message news:<
[email protected]>...
> Retro Bob wrote:
> >
> >>Why are brooks women's saddles about 30mm shorter than the comparable
> >>men's model ? I understand "wider", but what's behind the "shorter.
> >>I would think that everyone would benefit from shorter... and it might
> >>even reduce the mail "numbness" (careful spelling 
problem.
>
> dianne_1234 wrote:
> >
> > In my experience, on smaller bikes sometimes the nose of the saddle
> > hits the rider's butt when they're standing. I think this is because
> > the smaller frame has less set back. A shorter saddle can help reduce
> > the chance of "butt interference" when out of the saddle.
>
> Interesting theory, could well have some basis.
>
> My own theory is that it has to do with not poking the front of the
> rider's skirt out in an unsightly manner.
>
> Sheldon "Doesn't Usually Ride In A Skirt" Brown
> +-----------------------------------------------------+
> | If the King's English was good enough for Jesus, |
> | it's good enough for me! |
> | -- "Ma" Ferguson, Governor of Texas (circa 1920) |
> +-----------------------------------------------------+
> Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
> Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
> http://harriscyclery.com
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