trainers, everyone's opinion

[moviekindoflife]

so i'm looking to get a trainer, mostly cuz its getting too cold/frozen out to get in good rides outside. also, i'm pretty busy with school, so time doesn't always permit to go out and get in good rides outside, whereas with a trainer i feel like i could at least accomplish something with a free hour or two, no matter what time of day or night it is.

that said i'm curious to see what people think about the range of trainers there are out there. I'm not really looking to spend a lot of money, since i can't imagine riding a trainer is as fun as riding outside. nevertheless, i dont want to buy something that is pure ****, just because it is the cheapest. So if anyone out there has an opinion that would be great.

 

[Sprint2Win]

CycleOps Fluid Squared
I can actually stand on this one and get a good workout, without having to spin like crazy.

http://www.cycle-ops.com/products/fluidsquared.htm

 

[moviekindoflife]

CycleOps Fluid Squared
I can actually stand on this one and get a good workout, without having to spin like crazy.

http://www.cycle-ops.com/products/fluidsquared.htm

this is definitely my first choice, but the price is a little steep....

 

[dgregory57]

this is definitely my first choice, but the price is a little steep....

Similar price point, and similar trainer in ways is the Kurt Kinetic. I have one, and it seems to work well. They claim that it is more leak resistant than other fluid trainers.

I am a heavy rider, so the fact that they say it is OK for a tandem is what sold me on their unit.

It is boring, but if you can do it, I would excpect your rides in the spring to be more fun.

The cheaper trainers tend to have a few weaknesses that came to light in my online searches before I bought. One is noise level (wind trainers are supposed to be pretty noisy) and the other is adjustability. The higher end trainers either adjust based on speed,so you just switch gears on the bike to get more resistance (like the Kurt Kinetic and others). Some you have to get off the bike and adjust, and some have a remote control.

Be sure to get a riser block too, so that you can keep your bike level.

 

[Sprint2Win]

Just curious.
With the Kurt Kinetic, can you stand in your 53/11 and struggle to turn the gear over or do you have to spin at a high cadence to keep up.

I have an older CycleOps and standing in the 53/11 was only a standing high cadence workout. Just got a new one and the resistance is alot higher.
I love it. I can now do standing workouts!!

Is everyone building them with higher resistance now?

Similar price point, and similar trainer in ways is the Kurt Kinetic. I have one, and it seems to work well. They claim that it is more leak resistant than other fluid trainers.

I am a heavy rider, so the fact that they say it is OK for a tandem is what sold me on their unit.

It is boring, but if you can do it, I would excpect your rides in the spring to be more fun.

The cheaper trainers tend to have a few weaknesses that came to light in my online searches before I bought. One is noise level (wind trainers are supposed to be pretty noisy) and the other is adjustability. The higher end trainers either adjust based on speed,so you just switch gears on the bike to get more resistance (like the Kurt Kinetic and others). Some you have to get off the bike and adjust, and some have a remote control.

Be sure to get a riser block too, so that you can keep your bike level.

 

[Bobby Lex]

Trainers are just like any other piece of exercise equipment: a lot of them end up collecting dust and cobwebs in a corner somewhere. So before you spend a lot of money on something you may not use very much I'd recommend getting an entry level one. You can always upgrade in a couple of years after making sure you'll use the thing, and after developing a feel for what features you think are important.

I'm familiar with the linked trainer, and it serves its purpose just fine (you can buy 3 of them for less than the price of 1 CycleOps):

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?...and=&sku=10063&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=

True story: A cycling buddy of mine goes out 2 months ago and buys a trainer because "everyone else" he rides with has one. Then he buys a small t.v., dvd player, fan, training dvds and used 10-speed bike to use as a dedicated trainer-bike. 2 days ago he admits to me he's only been on his trainer once. After 15 minutes he quit and hasn't been back. Simply couldn't stand it.

Not everyone has the fortitude or obessiveness or whatever to be able to sit on a trainer for an hour or two, 2 or 3 or 4 times a week and pedal without getting anywhere and without the scenery ever changing.

Bob

 

[moviekindoflife]

Trainers are just like any other piece of exercise equipment: a lot of them end up collecting dust and cobwebs in a corner somewhere. So before you spend a lot of money on something you may not use very much I'd recommend getting an entry level one. You can always upgrade in a couple of years after making sure you'll use the thing, and after developing a feel for what features you think are important.

I'm familiar with the linked trainer, and it serves its purpose just fine (you can buy 3 of them for less than the price of 1 CycleOps):

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=123&subcategory=1087&brand=&sku=10063&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=

True story: A cycling buddy of mine goes out 2 months ago and buys a trainer because "everyone else" he rides with has one. Then he buys a small t.v., dvd player, fan, training dvds and used 10-speed bike to use as a dedicated trainer-bike. 2 days ago he admits to me he's only been on his trainer once. After 15 minutes he quit and hasn't been back. Simply couldn't stand it.

Not everyone has the fortitude or obessiveness or whatever to be able to sit on a trainer for an hour or two, 2 or 3 or 4 times a week and pedal without getting anywhere and without the scenery ever changing.

Bob

how does that trainer work as far as noise? I'm pretty obsessed with watching tv, so as long as i can hear the tv over the trainer i'm probably gonna be ok with it.

 

[nbfman]

I got a Minoura ALU-R-LW Rim drive. It's compact and light weight. The compact is good if you don't have a lot of space, and the light weight is nice for when you want to move it around with your bike still attached. Also, I heard the steel ones can rust if you live near salt water, as I do. The rim drive is quiet enough that I can watch TV at just slightly raised volumes with no problem. Tire drives are very noisy, especially if you have treads.

 

[Bobby Lex]

how does that trainer work as far as noise? I'm pretty obsessed with watching tv, so as long as i can hear the tv over the trainer i'm probably gonna be ok with it.

My wife uses the trainer in the link I posted, and I've owned a low-end Blackburn for 3 years. I now own a CycleOps which is definitely the quietest of the bunch.

But, the floor fan you'll end up using is likely to be noisier than any trainer, especially if it's running at high speed.

You'll definitely be able to hear your t.v. over that trainer, but it won't be at a normal volume. (I stick a plastic cup in the water bottle holder on my seat-tube, and keep my t.v. remote in the cup so that I can change channels, pause tapes, or change the volume without having to get off my bike).

Bob

 

[frenchyge]

Just curious.
With the Kurt Kinetic, can you stand in your 53/11 and struggle to turn the gear over or do you have to spin at a high cadence to keep up.

I have an older CycleOps and standing in the 53/11 was only a standing high cadence workout. Just got a new one and the resistance is alot higher.
I love it. I can now do standing workouts!!

That depends on your fitness. 25mph on the Kinetic is ~430w, which would be 63rpm on a 53x11. That's not struggling to turn over the cranks, but is harder than most people could ride for more than a minute or two. The Fluid^2 would require that power at ~22.5mph, which would be 57rpm.

Power curves:
http://www.kurtkinetic.com/pdfs/Power_Curves419.pdf?osCsid=7691306fd1b815902b69766ec847f665
http://cycle-ops.com/products/fluidsquared.htm# (go to comparison chart)

That's an important point for the OP. I recently upgraded from a Cycle-Ops Mag trainer to a Kinetic fluid trainer because my fitness level had simply outgrown the resistance on the mag trainer. Sure I can always pedal faster, but when I had to ride over 30mph to get the appropriate power level for a hard interval, it really limited my gear choices and ability to work with different cadences. I suggest you check the power curves for your potential choices if you are a strong rider or plan to use it for hard training.

 

[laffingbilly]

i have a TravelTrac Century Fluid Plus I got from performancebike on sale for $150. i've used cycleops ones before too. just don't see the difference performance-wise.

prefer fluid over magnetic.

 

[Eden]

Trainers are just like any other piece of exercise equipment: a lot of them end up collecting dust and cobwebs in a corner somewhere.

This is true - which is how I got a Cycleops Fluid for $35 from craigslist! (acutally mine was pretty well used - but I posted a "wanted to buy" ad and someone bit. He wanted a new trainer and and had gotten the Cycleops cheap himself so I got a great deal and he got a few bucks to put towards his new trainer) It an older one, but it still works great. In fact, I now use the newer Cycleops magnetic which was my husbands, because my he likes the fluid better. He says it has a lot more resisitance, but either one works for me.