I took the plunge and bought this seat after much debate. I've been riding cycles almost my entire life starting at around 5 or 6 I can't recall. As I got older, I got more into competitive cycling and had more than two dozen different types of seats. Each and everyone takes time to break and some are better than others. Some start out pretty comfortable but after a long ride, it really hurts. Some less if I wear padded shorts plus another layer of padding. But they pretty much all hurt nevertheless. Now here's the Brooks. Rather clunky looking yet very aesthetically pleasing to the eye saddles. First ride about 24 miles, trying to micro-adjust to my bike (Bike Friday Pocket Rocket) but keep sliding back and forth and I feel like I keep slipping forward. So I raise the nose just a bit but then it was too much. This isn't the saddle's fault but rather the seat post design. It feels rock hard even though I had applied the Proofhide overnight. On the second ride, more micro adjustment and lowering the post an mm or two. Still felt like sliding forward a bit so I adjusted the tilt again. But, here's the weird part. The seat still hasn't been broken in and it still feels very hard but I don't feel pain. And my bottom is saying "Hey this is very comfortable, keep riding faster!" My single-gear Bike Friday now feels like a completely different bike.. only much better! On my third ride, I noticed a couple of very important habits that I used to have during my years of cycling. First, I don't stand anymore when anticipating a bump or washboard on the road surface. Actually, I now just enjoy going over them and feeling those imperfections on the road (like vinyl vs. CD?). Also, that last few miles after a ride when you're tired, wow, that feeling of relaxing and just enjoying sitting and pedaling very joyfully! If it's this good and I now only put less than 70+ miles, I can't wait for several hundred or a thousand! Update: So far, I have put over 200 miles on the new Brooks B17 Special saddle. I have applied Proofhide after each ride as well as put Obenauf's Leather Conditioner on the bottom of the saddle. One I noticed was that as soon as I applied the oil underneath saddle using a small brush, the leather quickly became very supple and flexible. On the most recent ride, I immediately noticed how comfortable saddle began to feel even at the beginning of the ride. This did not happen at least towards the end of the ride which was about 20 miles. I also started to notice a slight arch forming on the seat which wasn't there before when it was new (compare the 1st pict which is most recent vs. last picture when it was new). I will continue to do the Proofhide/Obenauf's oil treatment and start to scale back some what down to every other month from hearon. Update (5/27): To date, I have logged over 500 miles on the B17. Without the slightest doubt, as what others have said about this saddle is undeniably true. That is, the more miles you put on, the comfortable it gets. Now I ride fairly briskly on my single gear Bike Friday road bike. Because of this, I think it's breaking-in a lot faster. I already started to see darker spots on the area where my body makes the most contact during the ride. Also I noticed that the saddle, although it's firmer than say Terry's gel saddle, it is way more comfortable yet because it has less give, I tend to put power down on the pedals more efficiently and feels less tired after the run. I also have the B17 with the cutout in the middle which is comfortable, but I think the B17 Special would be my first choice if I had to buy a new one. If you're on the fence about this saddle, don't, by far, this is the most comfortable saddle I've owned to date. Update-7/4: So far I must have put close to 800 miles on the B17 Special. As you can see from the last photo, saddle has begun to take some noticeable form according to physiques. Also notice the discoloration started to occur around the edges. However, the seat is now noticeably more comfortable. I can unanimously say, so far, I am loving this saddle, it makes my daily workout on the Bike Friday a shear heaven!