# Romin or Toupe?



## ksauers (Sep 3, 2012)

I'm looking for a new saddle. Had a Romin but never a Toupe. Romin wasn't too bad but would like to try a Toupe. How would you compare the 2? I do most of my riding on the hoods. Just pleasure riding,no racing.


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## brianb21 (Jul 21, 2010)

I have never tried the toupe but i do have a Romin and it is the best saddle i have owned. When you find a saddle that works you know! Ride them both and i am sure you will know.


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## Tire Biter (Jul 24, 2012)

brianb21 said:


> I have never tried the toupe but i do have a Romin and it is the best saddle i have owned. When you find a saddle that works you know! Ride them both and i am sure you will know.


I have ridden both hundreds of hours. Romin is my preference.


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## digibud (Oct 26, 2010)

whew! Now that's finally settled.


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## Typetwelve (Jul 1, 2012)

Well...I rode a Toupe 1012 and a Romin last year. I've since bought a Romin EVO.

I did like the Toupe...and some day I may get another(it was on a borrowed 2009 Roubaix). I never found to to be horribly uncomfortable, I did have a few crotch issues, but I'm pretty sure that was based on my fit. I can say that saddle was brutal on the sit bones, I had to "break in" my ass on that saddle and it freaking killed me.

The Romin came on my '12 Tarmac. Again, it is every sensitive to fit. Slightly off and your crotch will be hating life. I really loved the curve to the rear of the saddle...it gives you a serious "digging in" feeling when riding and almost a shelf like feeling when climbing in the saddle. 

I got a fairly good deal on a Romin EVO pro so I decided to give it a shot. The rear ris is even more pronounced and I consider that to be a good thing. It feels very comfortable so far...but that weather has been pure trash so I haven't taken to the road yet on the thing. I have done 2hr trainer sessions and after I was fit professionally...it is very comfortable. We'll see if the road says otherwise this summer. I'm doing my first century this year and if that saddle has any issues...I'm sure they will be front and center after that many hours on the bike.

On a side note...I also added a CG-R seatpost to hush the road chatter a bit. Again...crap weather = no riding so we'll see how the combo rides whenever the temps ride above freezing...


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## purdyd (Jun 18, 2010)

ksauers said:


> I'm looking for a new saddle. Had a Romin but never a Toupe. Romin wasn't too bad but would like to try a Toupe. How would you compare the 2? I do most of my riding on the hoods. Just pleasure riding,no racing.


one note, the 2013 and later toupe is quite a bit different than the earlier toupes

I would like to give the romin evo pro a go sometime


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## new2rd (Aug 8, 2010)

Check with your LBS. Most of them have demo's but if not, I believe that Specialized has a 30 or 60 day return policy. I started with a 143 Romin Evo Expert and my initial impressions were good, but found out months later that it doesn't do well for longer endurance paced rides (for me it was a bit too narrow since it slopes down side to side). I moved to a Toupe Pro 155 which has a much flatter perch and flexes more. This was better than the 143 Romin Evo, but because the saddles are so different, the 155 was a bit too wide in the Toupe. Now I'm trying the 155 Romin Evo Pro and so far so good. Testing out saddles is a real pain in the ass. Some will be a "no go" within 30 minutes of use, others require some more testing. Get a saddle, if it feels alright then get it perfectly adjusted (forward/back and angle). Test it on a variety of conditions that you might experience.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

S-Works Toupé is one of the best saddles Ive ever used. I like it even more then my Selle Italia SLR carbon but I prefer a flatter saddle to that of the curvy Romin.


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## ksauers (Sep 3, 2012)

carbonLORD said:


> S-Works Toupé is one of the best saddles Ive ever used. I like it even more then my Selle Italia SLR carbon but I prefer a flatter saddle to that of the curvy Romin.


Not having a lot of experience with saddles,I m not sure if I would like the flatter Toupe over the curved Romin. 
The Romin I had was a 143 but my suggested size,per Specialized, is a 155. I think I'll try a 143 Toupe and a 155 Romin. Hopefully 1 of those will fit just right.


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## Typetwelve (Jul 1, 2012)

ksauers said:


> Not having a lot of experience with saddles,I m not sure if I would like the flatter Toupe over the curved Romin.
> The Romin I had was a 143 but my suggested size,per Specialized, is a 155. I think I'll try a 143 Toupe and a 155 Romin. Hopefully 1 of those will fit just right.


The "ass-o-meter" says I'm a 155 yet the Toupe, Romin and Romin EVO I've all used have been 143...the only saddle discomfort I've ever had was due to saddle positioning, not width.


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## Pacodog (Sep 5, 2005)

I have 4 Specialized bikes and 3 have Phenom saddles, one had a Toupe but I switched it out.


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## geomel108 (Dec 6, 2011)

I had the Team edition carbon toupe pro in a 143 for a very long time. I enjoyed it and it felt great. The saddle was a huge improvement over the stock rival my allez came with. But as of a few months back I changed my set up to a more aggressive fit and changed my saddle to the 143 team edition carbon romin pro. The romin is my saddle of choice. I feel like it forms to my rear a bit better with it being curvier.


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## msg98 (Oct 27, 2011)

how common is going against the specialized ass-o-meter? is that something that is only matter of comfort of the saddle itself? I used to have romin 143 and was very happy with the saddle while having some other fit issues. i went for the specialized DG fit and one of the recommendations was to go to 155. 155 is lot less comfortable than my old 143, but i'm reluctant to ignore the recommendation on the saddle for fear that it impacts other elements of bike fit/how weight is distributed etc ... and can lead to other, more serious problems. anyone has any thoughts on this? thanks


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## zc1 (Oct 31, 2014)

Pacodog said:


> I have 4 Specialized bikes and 3 have Phenom saddles, one had a Toupe but I switched it out.


This has been my go-to saddle as well. The Toupe was a close second, while the Romin didn't agree with me at all.


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## zc1 (Oct 31, 2014)

msg98 said:


> how common is going against the specialized ass-o-meter? is that something that is only matter of comfort of the saddle itself? I used to have romin 143 and was very happy with the saddle while having some other fit issues. i went for the specialized DG fit and one of the recommendations was to go to 155. 155 is lot less comfortable than my old 143, but i'm reluctant to ignore the recommendation on the saddle for fear that it impacts other elements of bike fit/how weight is distributed etc ... and can lead to other, more serious problems. anyone has any thoughts on this? thanks


Did they try you with all the same settings, but with 143 vs 155 during your fit session? If so, what was the reason given for suggesting the 155 over the 143? Did it have to do with movement or was it strictly just because of the measurement of the distance between your sit bones? If the latter, then I'd say stick with your current 143. The measurement is just a number and represents a good starting point. If you're already accustomed to the 143 and comfortable on it for extended rides, then I'd use that as your litmus test rather than what the memory foam BG fit cushion says. If it was me and I still had the Romin 143 then I would just stick with it and see. If it works, great. If not, then I would consider handing over the cash for a wider one. I'm not a fitter, though, so take my suggestions with a heaping helping of salt.


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