Selle Italia Mythos

Price Paid:  $40.00 at Nashbar

Favorite Ride:
UC to La Jolla (commute)

Bike Setup:
Habanero Ti frame with 105 group

Summary:
Excellent saddle, no complains. Although I guess I have a particularly tough butt (haven't found any TERRIBLE saddles, yet), this saddle is definitely very nice, especially for it's weight (<200 grams) I also like the look of the saddle...

Strengths:
Comfortable
Light

Weaknesses:
None really.

Similar Products Used:
Selle Italia Turbo (Very Nice)
Selle Italia Turbomatic 4 (Decent, but heavy)
Bontrager stock saddle (so-so)

Price Paid:  $40.00 at ebay

Summary:
One of my favorite selle Italia seats i have been riding on it for several months now and i ride almost every day so i have kinda come to not notice the pain but if you want comfort stay away from this

Strengths:
small, areo, nice looks not to big or to small

Weaknesses:
not the softess seat ever

Similar Products Used:
selle italia prolink

Favorite Ride:
the one's with no cars

Bike Setup:
•2000 Litespeed Tuscany (no paint!), Campy Record 10, Wound-Up CF threadless fork, Campy Nucleon tubular's and various other wheels.

Summary:
This is for the Mythos Trans Am model, not the regular Mythos.

This saddle takes some getting used to and a short break-in period, but once that's done it's very comfortable. Seemed to be a bit wider to me in the sit bone area than lots of the other saddles I've tried, which fits me well, but not too wide towards the front.

The cut-out area in the rear of the Mythos T.A. and it's suspension works much better for me than the cut-out center of the Max Flite T.A. After a little break-in, the Max Flite T.A. seems to lose it's support ability and I 'sink in' too far in the forward crotch area. (Same with the Koobi: it dips down too far on the front). Combined with the way the suspension works, the M.F.T.A. is just too springy (and noisy).

With the Mythos T.A., each side in the rear 'gives' a little bit with each pedal stroke, which lessens the pressure back there, while there is still enough padding up front to cushion and not cause numbness, yet it's firm enough overall to give support and not bounce you off the bike.

With the other saddles I've mentioned above, most were too narrow (BG Comp & Pro Ti, Coda's, Bonti, Max Flite Gel, etc.) or way too hard (Coda's, Max Flite Gel, etc.) for me on a road bike - even after my butt's gotten used to being in the saddle again.

Also, the quality of construction of the Mythos Trans Am was much better than with any of the Specialized's or the Koobi. I like the overall 'look' of the Mythos T.A. as well, except for the orange "MTS" triangles on the front (I sanded mine off), and the orange stitching on the other areas (I blackened them out). Why not just have a neutral color embroidery that would look good with most bikes, since the rest of the saddle is black & silver? If I'd wanted a clown bike, I'd have bought a Colnago or something.

The Mythos Trans Am is a great saddle for starting the season on when your butt's not ready yet, or for people that just want a more comfortable alternative than some of the torture devices out there passing as a bicycle seat. 5 stars for comfort and fit; 4 for everything else.

Strengths:
•Fairly light for an 'extra padded' -type saddle - mine weighs 274 gr.
•Rear suspension works well.

Weaknesses:
•Don't care for the orange graphics/stitching.
•Price could be a little better than the $75. I paid, but still not too bad.

Similar Products Used:
•Selle Italia Max Flite Gel, Max Flite Trans Am, Specialized BG Sport, Comp (road) and Pro Ti, Koobi Si, Coda Competition and Expert, Bontrager Plus 10 Ti, Terry's, others...

Favorite Ride:
Through the valleys

Bike Setup:
Gardin (Oria ML25 steel)
105 components
Kalloy Uno seatpost

Summary:
(this is for the old Mythos design, not the new Trans Am model)

Well, obviously, this thin little saddle has to 'fit you' or it will more closely resemble the comment one of my co-workers made about the saddle (keep in mind that he's a 350+ pound guy); "That's not a bike seat, that's an enema!"

I digress. (FWIW I'm just under 180 lbs., but with gear and hydration pack probably go just over 180)

The Mythos fit my sit bones quite nicely. Personally, I was pretty surprised at the comfort the saddle offered for its size.

Problems came about last summer (of 1999) when my road biking mileage and seriousness really took off. The more I rode, the stronger I got and the less I stood out of the saddle - the more numbness I got in the nether regions. I probably don't have to go into the other complications that arise in certain non-cycling performance tests, but I feel the effect was far reaching...

No amount of adjustability relieved the problem (I carried along my allen-wrenchs to adjust it toward the end, and I tried pretty much every expected and unexpected combination of position).

The decision, based on wanting to buy only the perfect saddle due to a tight budget, was a tough one that came down to a Koobi and a S.I. Flite Trans Am.

I chose the Flite TA, but I haven't used it enough this year (killer schedule) to really rate it.

I would recommend the Mythos for a lighter race saddle, if one were so inclined, but not as a regular training saddle. Whatever you do, don't make the mistake of wearing shorts with a gel insert with this saddle - (I think) the gel moves toward the rear cut-out hole and becomes pretty much useless. The one time I did ride the bike with gel shorts (nashbar's 8 panel ones) I got numb so fast I had to turn around (for home) in the warm-up phase of my ride.

I still like the saddle for what it is, but I'm not going back to it.

2 stars for value (what happened to flaming chilis?) since it doesn't seem to go on sale like all the Flites have over the years.

4 stars for Overall rating, though I really believe that most saddles are going to evolve away from classic designs and move toward fitting more people more comfortably, quicker (less break in time, less need to adjust the heck out of the positioning), much like the Koobi, Specilaized and Trans Am saddles have become (though even with those we all still have preferences).

Strengths:
Light
Racy looking
Comfortable in some manner, to some degree
What felt like the right amount of padding and firmness
A quality saddle

Weaknesses:
Uncomfortable in 'other' degrees

Similar Products Used:
Selle San Marco Rolls Ti
Selle Italia Flite Trans Am