I'm a big fan of PRO saddles. I use the Turnix Performance 132mm with cut-out on my road bike and it's typically good for 2-3 hours without a break or 4-5 hours with a few rest stops. For the record, I'm 184cm tall and about 90kgs with a sit bone width of just under 110mm.

PRO saddles are well made, durable, well priced and readily available. They also, in my opinion, happen to look pretty good. The padding is thin enough to not feel or look bulky, but supportive enough that even larger riders shouldn't bottom out on the shell. You can find PRO's saddle selection guide here PRO Saddle Selector. Each model has three price points, which are determined by the material they are constructed from:

• The Team saddles feature carbon reinforced bases, carbon rails and EVA foam.

• The Performance saddles pair stainless-steel rails, carbon reinforced bases with EVA foam.

• The Sport level saddles match nylon reinforced bases, chromium-molybdenum (CRMO) rails and PU foam.

For more information about choosing a saddle and the factors you need to consider, check out our other blog posts about measuring your sit bones, how your pelvis interacts with the saddle and which saddle characteristics may suit your pelvis.

PRO Turnix

The PRO Turnix saddle is a road saddle designed for a wide variety of riders who prefer balanced pressure distribution thanks to its moderate curvature front to rear and left to right. The rise at the rear of the saddle provides support behind the sit bones while the nose rises ever so slightly to meet the ischiopubic rami. This curvature gently cradles the rider's pelvis without restricting their ability to move fore and aft if they choose to do so. The Turnix is marketed to moderately flexible riders with a mild to moderate amount of anterior or forward pelvic tilt. This is consistent with a moderately aggressive position and up to several centimetres of saddle to bar drop.

The Turnix is available with and without a pressure relieving cut-out and in 132, 142 and 152mm widths. It tapers fairly quickly from the widest point near the rear to the narrowest point near the nose. This means that it provides good thigh clearance for most riders if you choose an appropriate size. It is compatible with all PRO saddle accessories.

PRO Falcon

The Falcon is a road saddle marketed to very flexible riders with a very aggressive position and low torso. This typically implies a lot of anterior or forward pelvic tilt and a significant saddle to bar drop.  The Falcon is completely flat from front to rear and has only the slightest curvature at the rear from left to right. The Falcon allows the rider to move fore and aft freely to optimise their position for climbing, sprinting, descending, etc. In that regard it is very similar to the Selle Italia Flight range of saddles. 

The Falcon is available with and without a pressure relieving cut-out and in 132 and 142mm widths. It tapers quickly from the widest point near the rear to the narrowest point near the nose. This means that, like the Turnix, it provides good thigh clearance for most riders if you choose an appropriate size. It is compatible with all PRO saddle accessories.

PRO Griffon

The Griffon (not pictured above) is a bit of an oddity. It is marketed at riders who are less flexible, which typically implies a fairly upright position with little or no anterior or forward pelvic tilt. This is consistent with no saddle to bar drop or perhaps handlebars raised above the level of the saddle. It has a side profile similar to the Falcon, but with the slightest rise towards the rear, and a rear (left to right) profile similar to the Turnix, but with slightly less curvature. It is available in 142 and 152mm widths and is compatible with all PRO saddle accessories.

It is an oddity because saddles in this class from other manufacturers tend to be heavily curved front to rear with varying amounts of roll-off or curvature at the rear. The theory being that less flexible riders may also be less certain of their ideal pelvic location or less able to achieve it. Rather than use a shape that firmly cradles the rider's pelvis to strongly locate them and prevent movement, the Griffon seems to adopt a different philosophy. Perhaps PRO (a Shimano brand if you weren't already aware) have decided that if the rider wants to move around then let them and provide them with ample 'sittable' area to do so. From the rear all the way to the nose. The entirety of the Griffon's nose section is noticeably wider than both the Turnix and the Falcon.

PRO Stealth

The PRO Stealth has been around for a while and these days is also available in a 'curved' version, which has more rounded front edge on the wings. I expect this is in response to feedback from riders routinely catching the rear of their thighs on the wings due to the very slow taper from rear to nose. In fact, the Stealth is so wide for most of its length that riders tend to gravitate toward the extremely wide nose section. In this regard it is eerily similar to the Specialized Power saddle and it is indeed possible that the two are long lost twins. The Stealth is marketed to riders with an extremely aggressive position who prefer or need to be 'on the rivet' for the majority of their seated time during a ride. It is possible that the (very large) rear of the saddle only exists because UCI rules probably require it or the saddle rails need something to lock into. It is available in 142 and 152mm widths and is compatible with all PRO saddle accessories.

Both the Stealth and Power are early iterations of the now popular short nosed saddles produced by almost all manufacturers. Modern short nosed saddles have evolved to be stubby nosed versions of a more traditional saddle shape. The Stealth, however, remains closer to an old school TT/Triathlon saddle than a road saddle. It has a nose wide enough to subdivide and build a block of flats on and a cut-out you could lose your arm in. I am simultaneously alarmed and amused when 'casual' riders say that it is the most comfortable saddle they've ever ridden and has cured all their ills. Given its traditional target market, a 'casual' rider preferring this saddle to a traditional saddle shape is likely sitting too far forward on the saddle. Probably due to excessive reach to the bars and hoods. A classic case of "it's usually your overall position that's the problem, not the saddle".