Selle Italia

SLR Team Edition Saddle

Selle Italia is rarely content with making a saddle and keeping the same design for the next several seasons. This quest to continuously improve its designs led the brand to make a few changes to this year's SLR Team Edition Saddle, presumably to make it a more user-friendly experience for those of us who dream of being pros but haven't made it to the team just yet.

One of the major changes from the previous SLR Team Edition is the switch to durable titanium 316 tube rails from the carbon rails used on last year's model, which means you don't necessarily have to use a torque wrench when making fit adjustments — though we'd still recommend it. Paired with the additional padding Selle Italia included this year, the claimed weight of the saddle increases overall from 140g to 175g. Selle Italia must have felt that weight gain was justified; last year's SLR Team Edition was considered plush by SLR standards, but this year's model offers even more cushioning.

Despite the switch to titanium rails, Selle Italia kept the saddle's nylon composite base with a 30% blend of carbon fiber. This composite mash-up provides a balance of support with engineered flex that absorbs road vibrations. The Team Edition includes the same Fibra-Tek cover as last year, which is an easy-to-clean fabric that wears well over long training miles, rain or shine.