A couple of folks have asked "Why on Earth do you need two custom seats?" Well.. the easy answer is that, really, I don't.

However, they're there, so why not? I bought the Corbin for Ol' Blackie, my '91 model, and it didn't go with the sale. When I bought the new ST it came equipped with the Travelcade, so there you go. Each seat does have it's good points and bad points;

The Corbin results in a seating position that's roughly 18mm lower than stock. A Good Thing, as it positively affects the bike's handling. It's more comfortable than the stock seat, too, at least over short to medium distances. But over the long haul the bucket design pretty much locks your butt into one position. Not a Good Thing.

The Travelcade is not a bucket design at all, but a bench-style more akin to the stock seat. It does have a rather pronounced bum-stop, but still allows you to shift around while riding - a Very Good Thing on long trips. It has thicker padding, too, including super-soft gel inserts at strategic locations. This results in a riding position that's nearly 40mm taller than the Corbin.. or roughly 20mm higher than stock. This would be a problem for.. err, inseam-challenged riders. But since I'm 6'1-1/2", it's not a real concern for me. It does, however, make a pronounced difference in the feel of the bike's handling. Not in a good way, I might add - the bike feels more nimble and planted with the Corbin's lower seat height, as you'd expect. It's not a huge difference, mind you, and you quickly get used to it. But ride with one for a long period, then swap to the other, and the difference does feel huge, for a while.

The Travelcade's biggest problem, though, lies with the gel inserts. Yes, they're soft as a baby's bottom.. but they also soak up and retain solar heat. In the summer, I find this unacceptable. When I get on the bike for a summertime commute homewards, my butt is still on fire at the end of the 25-mile and roughly 35 minute ride! The Corbin will be hot at first, too - but it will dissipate that heat in less than 5 minutes.

So my usual routine is that I ride with the Corbin in the summer, then switch to the Travelcade in the late fall. It's heat-holding ability actually feels good on a sunny winter day! I'll also swap on the Travelcade for a long summer trip. Though that means that I'm always on the lookout for a shady parking spot at stops, the extra comfort makes it an acceptable trade-off.