Those who have been riding mountain bikes for a while have undoubtedly heard of KORE. And more than likely there is a story or two starting with “Oh yeah, I wanted that!” Back in the day when I had my Cannondale Super-V the ultimate upgrade at the time over the stock stem was the KORE Elite. Well KORE is coming back (not that they ever left) with some great looking products for this year. The best part is these components won’t require you to take out a loan or file for bankruptcy.
KORE me sent a few 2011 products for testing, including the Distance T-Rail saddle and the All-In-One Race seatpost. I decided to install both on my DH bike – yup, that’s right. I figured if the saddle and seatpost can take the abuse in extreme conditions I know they’re good to go.
KORE Distance T-Rail Saddle
The saddle is made of a durable Polyurethane covering with added polyamide bumpers on the side for increased durability and abrasion resistance. For a measure of added good looks and texture there’s also a debossed KORE logo. The saddle itself features an average foam thickness of super light material about 13mm thick with a slight channel for sensitive areas.
This saddle lends itself nicely to many riding styles thanks to its decent weight (228grams) and size (280mm long and 138mm wide at its widest point). Now what sets the Distance apart from other saddles is the super cool forged and machined T-rail system (available in six colors). Not only do the rails come in six colors, but the Distance saddle also comes in four cover styles (two in white, two in black).
The best selling feature of these rails is the 55mm (2 inches) of saddle adjustment. That in itself can really help with fitting a rider who is in between frame sizes or wants to experiment with seat position. The T-rail also allows the saddle to independently flex, adding additional comfort. Some other saddles of this nature are solid and don’t allow the saddle to flex which often results in a sore experience.
KORE All-In-One Race Seatpost
KORE’s All-In-One Race seatpost is another great product. Not only does it fit the T-rail seat, it also fits other I-beam saddles on the market as well as conventionally-tubed rail saddles. So if you’re not replacing your existing saddle just yet with a shinny new one like KORE’s T-Rail saddle, you can use the adapter on whatever you currently run.
The Race seatpost is made of a stiff, 2014 heat-treated aluminum with a three-forged machined head which has been bonded in place. I decided to go with the zero offset version but if you want there is a 20mm setback version as well. With three popular sizes (27.2, 30.9, 31.6mm) plus a few others this post will be able to fit most popular brands. The shot-peened alloy adds another measure of durability to this post. Coming in at about 205 grams more or less depending how far you cut yours down, this post is not too bad weight-wise.
Installing the post and saddle is a piece of cake and one of the best selling features of the set. Simply loosen the dual bolts a bit and slide the saddle right in place. Setting the position of the saddle as well as setback can all be done at the same time. Everything moves nice and easily; once you have your setting, torque the bolts down evenly to 9Nm and you’re done. I did have one instance where I initially tightened the bolts down and had the saddle move on me. I double checked and found I only had 7Nm on the bolts, so getting the right torque is critical.
Over my time with the saddle I didn’t drop the bike bad enough to actually strike the saddle so I cannot comment on the durability. As far as comfort, for the amount of time my butt actually spends on the saddle I can say it was comfy. Best part though is the creak free operation. Even when I tried to manhandle the saddle to try to get it to creak, it didn’t. Kudos for sure on this design.
Now here’s the good part: you can get the seatpost for about $54.99 and the saddle for another $59.99. Not only do these products perform well on the bike, they’re also very affordable.
I would like to thank KORE for sending up the Distance saddle and the T-rail Race seatpost for review.
