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Unboxed & Weighed: Dash Cycles’ 111 Gram Strike 9 Road Bike Saddle

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Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

Yes, the title of the post gives away the weight. What it doesn’t tell you is that Dash Cycles built this one up with their reinforced, heavier duty layup.

And it’s still just 111g.

With padding.

Dash Cycles builds their saddles by hand in Colorado, and the Strike 9 is the latest addition to an extensive lineup. You can order them to your liking, picking among various colors for the cover, logo and rails, as well as the amount of padding. They have three different layups depending on body weight, with limits up to 100kg (220lbs). The claimed weight for the standard layup and padding is 115g. Our test model, with the heavier layup, tipped in at just 111g.

So, it’s wicked light, but how ’bout that design?

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

The secret to getting their saddles so light is that they’re made as one piece.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

The 7mm round rails are molded directly into the shell, the entirety of both being carbon fiber.

UPDATE: Measurements are 250mm long by 135mm wide.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

You can just make out a few shades of black and dark blue color in the rails. They’ll also do red, orange, blue and yellow if you want. There’s no extra charge for it, but it adds a couple weeks lead time. All of this handcrafted airyness doesn’t come cheap, though. Retail is $465.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

Once you’re over how light it is, the most dramatic thing about the Strike 9 is the shape. The padding and shape puts what’s typically the rear of most saddles about 1/3 of the way forward from the rear, leaving a mostly useless tail behind where you’d sit. The effect is that you’re sitting pretty far forward on the saddle, and there’s no nose sticking beyond your legs.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

The idea is to provide a full range of hip movement. Monolink saddles have a similar raison d’être, with the single sliding rail allowing for a very slim nose so that it doesn’t interfere with your inner thigh and proper hip rotation. Dash’s Strike 9 simply eliminates the nose.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

I’ve only had a short amount of time on the saddle so far, and it’s going to take a bit of getting used to. Mainly, I’m still trying to get it in the right position. Standard bike fit measurements for reach based on center-of-saddle distances are a little harder to nail down with this one. That said, it hasn’t been uncomfortable, just different.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

The rails are really long at 90mm. That gives you plenty of room for adjustment, but my hunch is most people will end up clamping it near the front of the rails unless they have a post with lots of setback. These pics are at the time of first install, I’ve since moved the saddle back a bit, and it’ll likely go back more soon.

Dash Cycles Strike 9 carbon fiber padded road bike saddle actual weight and details

Close up, the saddle’s pretty unique looking. On the bike, it doesn’t look quite so odd at a distance.

First impressions aren’t bad. It seems to keep pressure off the perineum, which is one of the claimed benefits, but we’ll have to really get the position dialed to tell for sure. Positioned as shown here, I was riding a bit far forward, much like a triathlete tends to, but wasn’t slipping down off the saddle. The absence of a proper nose doesn’t seem to make you fall off the front. We’re putting lots of miles on it under several riders for a full review in the coming months.

 

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24 Comments
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DerHoggz
DerHoggz
11 years ago

So they moved where the sit-bones hit forward, but it doesn’t look like you can get a “normal” setback position on it ?

Robo
Robo
11 years ago

Generally, I’m really skeptical of goofy, oddball stuff like this, but, as someone who tends to sit towards the front of the saddle anyway (I shove all my seats way farther forward than they should be), I’m kind of intrigued…

Bayard
Bayard
11 years ago

Do the Karsashians own this company?

Topmounter
Topmounter
11 years ago

@Bayard – No, they just modeled for it.

RC
RC
11 years ago

ISM Adamo. Best saddle made, now being copied here. That said, these guys really made them light!!!!!!

boroboonie
boroboonie
11 years ago

@Topmounter, where are the pics at?

Who cares how much it weighs it looks totally stupid.

Xris
Xris
11 years ago

I’ve been fortunate enough to see the earlier versions of this saddle. Form and function. Aesthetically it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but damn if it isn’t light and comfy.

harnessgnarness
harnessgnarness
11 years ago

@RC best saddle for you maybe, everyones ass is different

Speedy
Speedy
11 years ago

What are the measurements of this thing? IE…how wide is it where your sit bones rest? I usually ride a 143 or a 155 when it comes to specialized. Narrow saddles have never worked for me, but wider ones with large cutouts seem to get the job done, and this one has me intrigued.

uci
uci
11 years ago

So I guess without the need for UCI-approval it would be like 70g …

Mike C
Mike C
11 years ago

So why not ditch the useless rear 1/3 of the saddle for even more lightness…?

ascar larkinyar
ascar larkinyar
11 years ago

@Mike C that’s what i was thinking. just have a little round patch under your sit bones. ohhhhhh cause then it wouldn’t work, just like this design?

Just Looking
Just Looking
11 years ago

@ascar

There are a couple of reasons off the batt I could think of: 1) Possibly to pass UCI length requirements 2) To allow for more fore/aft saddle adjustment. Look at how short the rails would be if it were just two little “sit bone” sections.

What I would guess though, is that it’s not there for no reason whatsoever. Come on, it’s not like no one is thinking when they’re making stuff.

Alex
11 years ago

Considering the Antares00 is a very comfortable saddle at around 130 grams, that’s a lot of extra $$$ for a few grams.

Jordan Oroshiba
Jordan Oroshiba
11 years ago

The saddle is crazy and all… but what I find noteworthy as well is the bike. First time I’ve seen a Culprit outside of a booth. Review coming in the future?

Jon
Jon
11 years ago

Last pic: Stem *not* slammed

pete
pete
11 years ago

my s-works toupe is 113g and prob 10x more versatile and comfortable than this cobbled together mess. the finish quality looks amateurish w/ all the stray epoxy and ugly joints

Mindless
Mindless
11 years ago

$500 saddles is for a special dumber then usual breed of weight weenies.

Walt
11 years ago

Alex Morgan’s carbon stuff looked better than this 20 years ago.

G
G
11 years ago

Hey @Robo: if you sat at the front of the saddle, wouldn’t that imply that you would slide the saddle back. What you said doesnt make any sense

Robert
Robert
11 years ago

@Pete: Have you actually ridden this saddle? You may want to give one a try before you comment on how “versatile and comfortable” your Toupe is than the Strike.9. Obviously asses are different, but I tested a LOT of saddles (including the Toupe) and this saddle is the most comfortable I have ever ridden. And I’m not sure about you, but when I check out a buddy’s bike (or my own), it’s not often that I grab a flashlight and inspect underneath the saddle – that’s an area you just don’t see when you look at a bike. The area of the saddle that you DO see measures up just fine to your Toupe, I can assure you of that.

@Mindless: This saddle is about $300 more than an Adamo. It weighs about 1/2 a pound less. If your buddy rode Frame X and there was a version of Frame X that performed just as well but cost $300 more, would you be saying the same thing?

I would ride an 800g saddle if that’s what my ass demanded. The fact that this saddle works so well (for me) AND happens to be crazy light, well that’s just a bonus.

You can bash this saddle and Dash all you want despite having never used the product, but Dash allows you to demo their saddles over the course of several weeks and decide if they work for YOU – don’t they deserve a little credit for something that NO ONE (other than Cobb, I believe) else does?

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