Fi’zi:k Gobi XM Muzzle saddle

Fi'zi:k Gobi XM Muzzle

Price: £79.99
From: Extra UK
Tested: One month

The Fizik Gobi XM seems to be one of the favoured saddles with many mountain bikers for long days in the saddle. The width and length provide lots of space to get comfortable and manoeuvre around the bike while the ‘Wing Flex’ element allows for less contact with the inner thigh for less restricted pedalling. The magnesium rails of the ‘Muzzle’ version help to keep the weight down to a very reasonable 255 grams.

The ‘Muzzle’ is a revision of the original Gobi XM saddle that comes with a soft rubber bumper which slips over the rear of the saddle and is clipped onto the rails underneath. The idea of the bumper is to protect the rear of the saddle from scuffs and rips, particularly if you have an unscheduled off out on the trail. Good saddles aren’t the cheapest of bike components and anything that helps keep them in one piece is a bonus.

'Muzzle' section helps protect rear of saddle in crashes

However, the rubber that the bumper is made of is rather sticky and it seemed to hang onto the material of my riding gear, whether it be baggy shorts or lycra. On several occasions it felt quite restrictive while moving around on the saddle and, after some descents that involved getting off the back of the saddle, the bumper was completely dislodged and ended up hanging off. The bumper would seem a good method of protecting the saddle without having hard plastic edges on the saddle itself but the sticky material could do without being just as ‘sticky’.