First Ride - Seat improvement

[MAJOR55]

Took out my newly acquired Softrider for its first ride yesterday. Went to a Park & Ride lot, did some figure eights and tried starting on an incline. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to pick up the basics. After about 45 minutes I was ready to venture out into the local neighborhood and give it a try.
I was very happy at how the bike climbed the inclines, it was a vast improvement over my Rans-V-Rex. I can't wait to try it on some more substantial hills
My only complaint was the meager seat cushion and the pain I was feeling after such a short ride. When I got home, I did move the seat forward and lower the back in hopes of alleviating some of the pain. Has anyone found a better seat cushion for this bike?

 

[Vargas]

I use a 3 cm thick

I use a 3 cm thick Ventisit www.ventisit.nl. I found it more comfortable than the original one, but the main reason I bought it is because I live in a hot climate country.
You can also add some padding/foam to the original seat cushion.
Since the Sofrider is no longer for sale, I am assuming you bought a second hand one. Might be the seat cushion just needs replacement; they don't last forever.

 

[Robert Holler]

Just a note that we do stock

Just a note that we do stock some Ventisits for the Sofrider/Quest. It is not "cushy" necessarily but I like it over the stock cushions and it stays dry.

Robert

 

[MAJOR55]

Ventisit Pad

I have seen a Ventisit pad, but am not very familiar with them. Do they take the place of the foam cushion? Do they provide any support or cushioning or are they mainly for ventilation purposes? Robert, any chance you might have an example when you come up to Seattle for the bike show?

 

[Robert Holler]

I will have a few with me at

I will have a few with me at the Seattle show for sure. It is a bit less of a "cushion" (though it does provide cushioning) but has superior airflow. Plus it is a bit lighter than the stock pads.

Robert

 

[Maria Parker]

ventisit is firmer

I find the Ventisit is firmer than the stock cushions, but I really like it on my S30 and V20. I'll be interested to see if you like it for the SR.

 

[ratz]

Works on the Quest

We have the Ventisit comfort version on all of our Quest 20's and 26's; They are plenty soft in the summer with the suspension and the bike feels more latterly attached to us when we ride. Between the wife and I we have about 1200 miles on the trainer since January; all of that is on a Quest with a Ventisit; no discomfort even with the firmer seat and of course better persperation management. So it certainly works for the Q form factor.... I would expect the same for the SoftRider.

 

[1happyreader]

Ventisit in Orlando

Ventisit in Orlando, on a Sofrider, since Aug-14 cannot even remember what the stock cushions felt like....

wait maybe that's just old age.

Single cushion is certainly less fussy to replace on seat after car transport. +3

And yes there is a right side up,,, tried it the wrong way and it felt bumpy,,,, must have made an impression,,,,haha.

Later,,,, bye

 

[MAJOR55]

Thanks for The Suggestions

It would appear that it's unanimous. I will check out the Ventisit when Robert comes to Seattle.
I did move the seat forward and lower the seat back, then took it out for about twelve miles on a local trail. The new position did help with some of the seat pressure.
As a temporary fix, I did remove the cushy top piece of the stock cushion and added a couple of thin layers of the blue camping mat material. I will see if this helps any. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[super slim]

I have used three  layers of

I have used three layers of 10 mm thick ACS10 Recumbent seat Pads mesh 2.1 m * 0.8m from EMP industrial
http://www.empind.com.au/shop/item/drainage-mesh---acs-10

for $100 (which is enough to make 2.5 sets of seat pads), and installed it inside the standard Cruzbike pad cover. I used 3 layers and the existing high density foam on the seat base to maintain its shape for this small pad, and 4 layers for the seat back for better shock absorbsion.

It has made riding in 40C heat MUCH better, and the pads have not compressed at all after 2 years of riding with my 106 kg light body!

Regards

Super Slim

 

[DaveOBrien]

After my first tour on my Quest 2.0, I found the seat cushion to be too thin/soft for my 215 pounds, and not as comfortable as my old Rans Rocket.

I also wanted more legroom (the boom was almost all the way out), so I solved both problems by adding a slab of closed-cell stiff foam. (It's often sold for kayaking seats here in NZ.)

I used the same velcro-strip setup as the original cushion. Even got the colour matched pretty close. And the price was right for $20 in foam and velcro.

It's much more comfortable now, and the extra "height" of the seat lets me raise the bottom bracket a bit, which is also good.

 

[Charles.Plager]

Hi Dave,

I'm of a similar size and I too find that when sitting upright, the bottom seat isn't padded enough. I think you'll also find that if you can lower the seat angle, you'll also find it a lot more comfortable.

Groovy pictures!

Cheers,
Charles

 

[thwaters]

I'll ditto the lowering of the setback angle on the Softrider, as Charles suggests. It not only seems more comfortable, but it shifts the center of gravity back a little, and helps to streamline a little better. I also seem to fall into a more natural and smoother pedaling rhythm with the seat more reclined. In order to raise the front of the seat bottom, and to give more clearance for getting underseat bags clipped on and off the racks, I also put wood spacers under the seat bottom, raising it one inch.

 

[quickbeam]

It looks like the sofrider bottom seat is more horizontal than the Q100/Q559. Does that make a difference on comfort?