So after my saddle misadventures, I went straight from yesterday's ride to a local shop and tried out a couple saddles. I rode an SMP pro for about a half hour and absolutely loved it, but it was too narrow and my sitbones were right on the edge and not happy about it. Found out today that there's a slightly wider model, the Avant, so I bought it, risking a bit over $200, but after yesterday's audition, I'm thinking it's worth the risk.
So, after a week of safe room confinement, Gumballhead seemed ready to try the whole house again. She seemed pretty happy, hanging with us part of the time and under the bed or back in the safe room part of the time. But she is not low walking, has been running and playful, and also hanging out in the windows checking out her domain. So pretty good so far. Debbie took this earlier.
Playing the headline slot with my original band at the Harvest Sun Music Festival tonight. Gonna be 2.5 hours of awesome, followed by no more rehearsals for quite awhile (I need a break!).
Sorry for the delay, in the middle of moving.
My usage will probably be longer rides on pavement but I would prefer a bit more ruggedness. Especially since bat smashing is another one of my goals. My friend has the crosscheck and loves the heck out of it but he's also riding the streets of Boston year round. So based on some more research, I'm open to suggestions. Budget is around $1200-1300.