As a Dutch guy who is a cyclist (racer), I can tell you from experience that riding a bike would cause erectile disfunction for all guys is nothing more than a myth. Sure, it doesn't always feel great (only on the race bike, the beaten-old citybike causes no discomfort at all) but the cycling 'scene' tends to have the long and happy sex-lives talked about and produces more than enough offspring.

As an alternative to the X-seat, you might look at the Moon Saddle, http://www.moonsaddle.com/ . It doesn't have that projection in the front that might be painful in a sudden stop.

I concur, impotence due to cycling is a myth, there is not single statistic to back that up, and cycles are in use for over 100 years. However there are tons of good reasons to go for something different than the existing conventional bicycle seats most of us know.

I weight in at app. 200 kg (440 pounds) an use a Easyseat II v2 to cycle, simply because all other (even expensive Leather) conventional seats with a horn I tried hurt way to much after a few minutes.
Give it a try: http://www.hobsonseats.com

Every review I read of this thing says the same thing, it's comfortable but you sacrifice control of the bike. There's a reason beyond having a place to sit that bike saddles have the pointy bit on the front: being able to control the bike above 10 mph. When you're cornering at above 10 - 15mph part of your control over the bike comes from pressing your thighs against the pointy part of the saddle. So it's great seat if you slow down for every corner, and don't want to be able to ride no-handed.

I agree with Emmanuel - I've also been riding my whole life - both in Canada and Denmark (though not competitively) and haven't had a complaint or disappointment, AND have (made) three kids:)

An important thing to remember - maybe - is that cycling is an activity. Pressure should be distibuted throughout your body- arms, back, legs, feet, bum- all the time- don't just coast on your saddle like you're riding a rolling ski-lift.

I've had one on my touring/commuting road bike for 6 years on and love it. As a woman, I can't comment on the male issues, but its definitely more comfortable not to sit on anatomy that wasn't mean to be sat on ;-)

I bought it because I couldn't find a seat that was comfortable, and I'd tried the skinny ones, the wide ones, and many with holes. I'd just decided to modify a seat by cutting off the entire front when I found the spongywonder/x-seat. It took 2 weeks and a lot of fiddling to get the angle & hight just right (too shallow and it diggs into you butt, too angled and you slide off) and another month to get used to the different balance. I've never slid off from a bump, and it actually seems to have helped my back by improving posture (less curvature in the lower back). It may have also contributed to a nicer shaped rear end :)

The downsides? My rear does get sore on long rides, but its the gluteus maximus rather than the crotch. Also, the edge of the seat is not kind to jeans & pants, and cycling tights do wear out faster.

I suppose the X-seat people can thank Dr. Goldstein for creating an industry that didn't exist. If it wasn't for that quack they'd have no scared customers to sell their monstrosities to.

Really, get a decent pair of shorts and a decent saddle like a Koobi or Specialized Body Geometry if you suffer numbness and try not sitting down all the time.

I completely agree with Shaun:

All you need is a good saddle and proper bike pants (you don't have to wear tights either, you can get shorts, 3/4 pants and even skirts designed for cycling)

Most people who come into our bike shop complaining of soreness/numbness just have their bikes set up wrong.

Well, I've been commuting to work for the past 3 + years (between 9-12 miles each way) and I tried 4 different "regular" bicycle seats including the Specialized Body Geometry" , before stumbling upon the "Hobson Seat" which is another non-horn bike seat.

It's really nice because you can adjust not only the tilt, forward and backward position of the Hobson seat, but also the two pads that your butt bones sit on can be adjusted for how much space is between the two pads.

http://www.hobsonseats.com

I'm surprised to see that no one has mentioned the more radical seat design -- the recumbent seat. People debate upright vs recumbent until they are blue in the face -- don't get sucked in to that. Just try out the widest range of bikes you can get access to, including different upright and recumbent styles, and ride the one that feels the best. It may well be a traditional bike, but if you have a truly open mind, you may surprise yourself -- since riding my recumbent, both my parents have switched! We can ride much longer before anything except our lungs, hearts, and muscles get tired...

I have this seat and I love it. Before getting it, I tried several different style of seats and different adjustments for each. I tend to ride long distances often, and I couldn't find a seat that didn't leave me feeling sore and/or numb at the end of the day. Needless to say, after a strenuous day on the X-seat, I feel totally fine. It's great to know that at the end of a ride I won't be sore this tender (and important) place.

Now, I don't know for sure whether or not a standard bike seat can cause impotence, but the pain perineum pain that everyone is always talking about can't be good for you. I got mine because I figured I may as well be safe (we are talking about our ability to have a sex life here) and, after trying it, thought it was really comfortable. One more thing: there are other nose-less seats like this out there that I've seen, but they are all really low-quality. This X-Seat is built amazingly well -- super high quality materials and it's highly adjustable

I have this seat and I love it. Before getting it, I tried several different style of seats and different adjustments for each. I tend to ride long distances often, and I couldn't find a seat that didn't leave me feeling sore and/or numb at the end of the day. Needless to say, after a strenuous day on the X-seat, I feel totally fine. It's great to know that at the end of a ride I won't be sore this tender (and important) place.

Now, I don't know for sure whether or not a standard bike seat can cause impotence, but the perineum pain that everyone is always talking about can't be good for you. I got my X-Seat because I figured I should be safe (we are talking about our ability to have a sex life here) and, after trying it, thought it was really comfortable. One more thing: there are other nose-less seats like this out there that I've seen, but they are all really low-quality. This X-Seat is built amazingly well -- super high quality materials and it's highly adjustable

I have this seat and 2 of my friends (both men) have it also. I think it's fantastic, more comfortable than anything I've ridden.

And frankly, I think there's a lot of defensiveness coming from the biking community-- denying that bike seats cause impotence is not going to make the problem disappear. It's very real and if you read the studies on the issue they show this conclusively. That doesn't mean anyone needs to quit biking, however. There are solutions and I've found x-seat works very well for me.