Prologo have quickly gained favour in the pro peloton under such notable riders as Fabian Cancellara, Carlos Sastre and Stuart O'Grady. After spending a few months on the company's popular Scratch shape, we can see why.
The Pro T1.4 is an excellent example of a 'saddle-shaped' saddle – that is, one with a well-defined seating position front-to-back plus a slightly domed profile from side to side as opposed to ones that are flatter across the top in both directions like Selle Italia's SLR or Fizik's new Antares.
The contour is decidedly traditional in spite of the modern materials used, and riders accustomed to shapes such as the Selle San Marco Regal or Concor are likely to find it rather agreeable.
In contrast to those flatter saddles that tend to concentrate pressure on the sit bones, the Scratch's more rounded shape tends to distribute pressure a little more evenly across the entire surface of your bum. As long as your hips aren't too wide (the shell measures a fairly narrow 134mm across), pressure on your soft bits isn't excessive though some riders will certainly still prefer less.
Pressure issues aside, the stiff composite shell and firm foam padding towards the rear provide good support for long days on the road and progressively softer padding rear-to-front also means the Scratch is still fairly comfortable when you're on the rivet, too. Though there is no cutout in the nose, Prologo perforate the shell to soften things up even more.
Other nice details include reflective detailing across the rear edge, graduated rails for easy positioning and a rear accessory port for bags and lights.
A few oversights mar an otherwise superb saddle though. Even with titanium rails, our sample was surprisingly heavy at 243g (32g over the claimed weight) and while we appreciate the commodiously long 'sweet spot' offered by the modest fore-aft dip, the synthetic cover is so slippery that it was sometimes hard to maintain the position we wanted.
Aside from that, the Prologo Scratch Pro T1.4 is a good choice for riders seeking a more modern interpretation of a classic shape and the price is reasonable, too.