I received the new ISM Breakaway yesterday to review. Like a kid with a new toy I took my Kestrel 4000 review rig & the Breakaway down to the Clydesdale Multisport lab. My first order of business was to remove the fiz:ik Arione TRI2 from the Kestrel. Since I had the saddle off I took a few photos of the seatpost on the 4000. The seatpost allows for 3cm of fore/aft adjustability by sliding along a track at the top of the post. According to Kestrel this allows an effective seat angle ranging from 72-81 degrees. (This is independent of the amount of adjustability of individual saddles.)
Here are a couple of shots of the seatpost (this is without the seat clamp in place):
Kestrel 400 seatpost - full aft adjustment
Kestrel 4000 seatpost - full forward adjustment
Next up was getting the ISM Breakaway mounted. The saddle has a standard rail (some newer saddles don’t…) so I had no problem with basic set up. I then set about adjusting my position without following the guidance that ISM provides. Given my experience I figured that I’d didn’t need the help. After a few times of hopping on & off the bike (on the trainer) I had a pretty good preliminary fit. The saddle felt much more natural than I expected. I figured that, given the design, it would feel like something was missing. Nope, it felt fine. Maybe a bit unusual a first but nothing that would make you feel unstable. I did a short trainer ride and really enjoyed the comfort. I’ll have to put in a bunch more seat time to give the Breakaway a fair review but so far I like it.
After the short trainer session I went back to the computer to read the ISM website a bit. Guess what? I could have saved myself quite a few wrench turns had I watched their installation video and read the setup pdf. There are a few differences in setting yourself up on an ISM saddle and I’d definitely recommend that you watch their video and read the setup instructions.
I wound up lowering my seat height slightly and pointed the nose of the saddle down a bit. (Both of these tips are in the video!) I’m sure that I’ll have to tweak the adjustment a bit more but I think that’s natural with any new saddle. One added bonus is that I was able to get my back a bit flatter than with the stock saddle. As I said, it’ll take some seat time to effectively review the saddle. I’m thinking about taking the Breakaway with me to the 101 mile Gran Fondo San Diego. If 101 miles doesn’t let me decide what I really think of the saddle than nothing will!
Here are a couple shots of the Breakaway and a shot comparing the Breakaway to the fiz:ik:
ISM Adamo Breakaway - side shot
ISM Adamo Breakaway - bird's eye view
ISM Adamo Breakaway & fiz:ik Arione TRI2
Full Disclosure: ISM provided the Breakaway to me at a substantial discount in return for this review. Though I received the saddle at a discount you can expect an honest and objective review.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I would be interested in thigh rub on that new saddle. I have an Arione and already scrape the inside pretty well. And, yes, all muscle:-)
chris
Chris,
I’ll be heading out to the Gran Fondo San Diego on March 5th and I’m taking the ISM with me. So far I haven’t had a chance to put many miles on the saddle. We’re stuck in cold, snowy weather here in PA so my rides have been on the trainer and at a night of roller races.
With that said, I haven’t noticed any thigh rub. I’ll have to put thigh rub into my mental checklist for the 101 miles of the Gran Fondo. I’ll be doing a series of posts from and after the Gran Fondo so keep an eye out. I’ll be sure to do a stand-alone post about the ISM Breakaway.
Thanks for reading!