Way back in the day, I didn't mess with saddle height in any situations. It didn't matter to me most of the time, so "set it and forget it" reigned supreme in my world. This remained so until sometime just after the turn of the century in Durango. A friend and I set about upon Haflin Canyon and at the top, my saddle finally got dropped for a descent. The revelation that followed enhanced my freakishness on two wheels exponentially, another quantum leap.
Since I was singlespeeding on the regular by this time, an article that had been published in print suggested doing occasional saddle down full rides. This especially made sense for 1x1 because I was standing for most climbing anyway. The revelations within this realm of saddle down were even greater, especially with having it out of the way on climbs that required extra manuevering. Being able to contort and even using the lowered saddle as a guide when ascending turns at speed added much more benefit than even the strength obtained.
Fast forward to present and unless I'm on a lengthy a-technical climb, the saddle stays down. This is true for both of my Mountain Bikes, rigid SS and FS. A good friend and bike shop owner once told me that dropper posts are a "game changer" and suggested I get on board with them. While this may be true for most, it's wholly untrue to me for several reasons and the biggest being that I'm already used to my modus operandi and don't mind stopping to adjust a seatpost manually on occasion. The skills that have been added to my Magic Bag of Tricks are irrevocable and ever-expanding. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
If one is considering an attempt at this, I have only one piece of advice, take your time. In this day and age of people trying to sell the "one size fits all" advice, I'm here to say that is 100% bullshit. This and other suggestions in improving one's skillsets may or may not work for everyone. Even so, taking your time will benefit you in at least two ways. One is that if it's something contrary to you and what you wish to accomplish, you will lessen any chance of injury and not waste too much of your time. Second, if it does work and you heed personal limitations, it will be much more enjoyable to the point where you look forward to the challenge.
Now go ride your bike!
Riders Come and Go, Kooks Accumulate
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