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Bike Trainer Questions
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 2009-08-23 3:39 PM |
Regular 82  New Jersey |  Subject: Bike Trainer QuestionsWith winter - and my birthday - approaching, I was looking into bike trainers, and I have some questions. Background: I'm a complete newbie to everything bike-related - basically, I have a bike in the garage and sometimes I ride with my kids. I am just starting out losing weight and getting fit with plans to compete in a tri next summer. In about 6-8 weeks I plan to start incorporating cycling into my workout schedule. So I do mean I'm a complete newbie!  The idea of a trainer appealed to me for periods of bad weather, or times when I cannot get time to myself to get out for a ride, I could ride in the house while the kids play.I did some online searches, and as a result of that I'm looking at the Kurt Kinetic trainer. My questions: 1. How easy is it to get your bike into and out of the trainer? Is it a simple thing to do, so that it's easy to switch between trainer rides and outdoor rides? Or is it an involved process, so that you should only use the trainer when you expect a long stretch with no outdoor riding? 2. What accessories do I need or would be desirable to use with the trainer? I'm assuming a mat to protect the floor, and a block for the front wheel - anything else? Are there any tools that I need to set up the trainer or put the bike in it? 3. I'm sure once I get into more serious bike workouts, I'll also be looking into getting a bike computer. Does the computer also work when the bike is on the trainer (to measure approx distance, speed)? Thanks for any help! |
| 2009-08-23 4:14 PM in reply to: #2365146 |
| Member 25 | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions mind you I am no expert on this. There are three (i think) types of trainers wind, magnetic, fluid. Typically fluids are the best and most expensive. Wind trainers are very loud. Magnetics are in the middle. I personally have a magnetic. 1. My trainer is a simple swap of the rear skewer to fit the trainer holds. Once the appropriate skewer is in place you lock the rear wheel in and your set to go. 2. Accessories. I use a mat and riser block and usually a DVD to ride to. Although I will ride watching a hockey game too. 3. My computer works but it is attached to the rear wheel. (i have seen some attached to the front wheel.) |
| 2009-08-23 4:39 PM in reply to: #2365146 |
| 71 | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I use a Cyclops Fluid 2 trainer. Very quiet. and a good product for the money. It's also easy to get the bike into and out of the trainer. Just loosen the fly wheel and unlock the skewer clamp and you're ready to go. I just put a towel on the floor to soak up the sweat and use a simple riser block. I use my bike computer but it too has the magnet on the rear wheel. |
| 2009-08-24 9:22 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
Pro 5011 Twin Cities | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions 1. How easy is it to get your bike into and out of the trainer? It takes about 5 seconds. Simple. I move my bikes around all the time. 2. What accessories do I need or would be desirable to use with the trainer? I'm low tech (this is code for CHEAP), I have a towel down on the floor, and a towel over the top tube/headset. For a riser block I use some magazines or a book, depending on which bike I am on. No tools are needed. 3. I'm sure once I get into more serious bike workouts, I'll also be looking into getting a bike computer. Does the computer also work when the bike is on the trainer (to measure approx distance, speed)? You can get a computer that has a rear wheel mount, but honestly, aside from cadence, "speed" and "distance" on a trainer are irrelevant. Use Perceived Effort, an dyou will be fine. But a computer is good to have for outdoor stuff. |
| 2009-08-28 2:39 PM in reply to: #2365146 |
Expert 1743   Glen Burnie, Maryland | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I've been riding for a few years and was looking into a trainer and had all the same questions so thanks for starting this thread. Does anyone have a trainer preference? |
| 2009-08-28 5:28 PM in reply to: #2376974 |
Veteran 812 | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions Everyone seems to simply love the Kurt Kinetics Road Machine. You can't go wrong with one of those. The Cycleops fluid 2 also gets good reviews, though some of their older machines were known to leak. |
| 2009-08-30 8:34 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
Expert 1027 | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I have to agree with the above post. Kurt Kinetic Road Machine is just awesome. Fluid so it is quiet, sealed oil chamber so no leaks. Bright Green... awesome! I would not recommend anything but.All that aside, it takes me about 10-15 seconds to get the bike into the trainer. Over the winter I will be swapping out the skewer to the one it came with to save my normal one. I will also be putting on a Continental trainer tire to keep the miles off my 4000. Right now I have a mat under it, but had it not been free when I purchased the trainer, I would have gone with something else. Any older treadmill mat will work, heck I almost went to our Sam's club and bought some thicker foam matting that looked like puzzle pieces for kids to use under it, think it would have been about 20 bucks, so there are ways to cut costs there. I have left the climbing block for an xmas idea so right now I just stack a few deck boards under the wheel to secure it.I have the Garmin 305, so it mounts on the rear to pick up cadence and speed so this will work for me in the winter while on the trainer. It may be a bit of a pain to move a wired or wireless that normally mounts to the front to the rear, but I have seen people who ride with things mounted on the rear.Some good tv, a movie, or Spinervals help pass the time. |
| 2009-09-01 7:16 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
| Regular 82 New Jersey | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions Thanks everyone for the replies. I have a Kurt Kinetics trainer on its way to me as a birthday present! SCamp, if you're interested in buying one, you might want to check out the deal at ModernBike.com - they have some "open box" ones that were set up for an exercise video and they're selling them for $275 with free shipping. I checked with Kurt Kinetic, and they confirmed that they are eligible for the warranty. That's where I got mine. Here's the link: http://www.modernbike.com/itemgroup.asp?IGPK=2126177938 |
| 2009-09-01 11:04 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
| New user 37 Long Beach--So Cal!!! | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions With the Kurt Kinetics trainer, does it simulate some decent grades? I am going to do the majority of my miles on a trainer and don't want to miss out on hill training... I would second the person that mentioned the trainer bike tire. I have only been on my trainer about 10 short rides and there is noticeable wear to the rear tire. I have my trainer tire on order... |
| 2009-09-01 11:29 AM in reply to: #2382562 |
Pro 5892 , New Hampshire | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions To simulate hills on a fluid trainer, just raise your front wheel to above level, either with making a riser platform out of wood (which is what I did), or a bunch of books, doesn't matter how, as long as you get your wheel up. After a warm up, change to the big chainring in the front and somewhere in the middle in the back. Start out doing a longer session (10-20 minutes) sitting down. Then do intervals where you sit down for a period (could be 3-5 minutes) and standing up for the same time (when you stand, shift up to one gear harder). Repeat this a few times. The tough one is to be in a tough gear (something like a 53-14) continous riding for a few minutes, then to stand up (or sit down works as well) speed up for 1 minute (simulating an attack in the hills), before sitting down again for a few minutes. Do not shift during this entire end part of the session. You will be tired afterwards... not matter how good of a climber you are. |
| 2009-09-01 10:02 PM in reply to: #2365146 |
Master 1690 Metro NY Area | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I too want to get a trainer for the winter and I'm torn between the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine Fluid Trainer and CycleOps Fluid 2 Trainer. They are pretty close in price. Which would you choose? |
| 2009-09-02 4:41 AM in reply to: #2384046 |
Pro 5892 , New Hampshire | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I'm partial since I have the Fluid2 (we actually have two of them.. one for me and one for my wife...). It's really great and especially since it's from CycleOps and we use the PowerTaps also for winter training... we know that the power shown is correct. But either one is really good and you can't go wrong with the Road Machine either... shop around and buy the one you get the best price on of these two. |
| 2009-09-02 8:15 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
Member 65 New Haven, CT | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions Tri365, you rock, man. Thank you for the heads-up on that good deal on the green machine. I work crazy hours, so even if weather is nice i sometimes only have 5 am or 8pm free for training, so hopefully having a trainer will help me keep getting the time on the bike. |
| 2009-09-02 8:31 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
| Modesto, California | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I also like the Cyclops fluid 2, extremely quiet,smooth, I don't have a problem with needing to change my rear tire or having tire wear issues, and I don't know why people waste money on trainer tires when you can buy a generic tire for a third of the price for the same purpose. Bike trainers can be boring, but,they completely rule because they can come in handy when you are crunched for time, you dont have to deal with the weather,dont have to sweat bieng hit by a car, chances of getting hurt are slim, you get a steady workout without having to deal with stoplights! Also I made a platform using a 1/4 plywood cut to fit the size of my Cyclops trainer mat, its sturdy for the trainer and makes getting on and off easy when used on carpet. The mat is a good purechase as it contains workout sweat and is easy to wipe down and stands up to cleat abuse. Edited by nevergivin 2009-09-02 8:35 AM |
| 2009-09-03 10:21 PM in reply to: #2365146 |
Regular 106 Middletown | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions So is the general opinion that either the fluid 2 or the kinetic trainer will be a good purchase? Or is one better received than the other? |
| 2009-09-04 5:15 AM in reply to: #2388740 |
| Regular 82 New Jersey | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions I don't have any first-hand experience to relate - yet - but the reason I went with the Kurt Kinetic is that it is never supposed to leak because there is no opening to the fluid chamber. If you do a Google search, you'll come up with lots of articles that describe it better than I can. |
| 2009-09-04 6:59 AM in reply to: #2365146 |
Master 1811 Nashville, TN | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions i use telephone books to race my front tire until I found a used riser block Just for some other ideas is that you can look into a set of rollers I went from trainer to roller |
| 2009-09-06 7:54 AM in reply to: #2381986 |
| Member 22 Central, Florida | Subject: RE: Bike Trainer Questions Tri365 - 2009-09-01 8:16 AM Thanks everyone for the replies. I have a Kurt Kinetics trainer on its way to me as a birthday present! SCamp, if you're interested in buying one, you might want to check out the deal at ModernBike.com - they have some "open box" ones that were set up for an exercise video and they're selling them for $275 with free shipping. I checked with Kurt Kinetic, and they confirmed that they are eligible for the warranty. That's where I got mine. Here's the link: http://www.modernbike.com/itemgroup.asp?IGPK=2126177938 Tri365, Thanks for the info and tip on the web link. Just ordered one of the out of box deals. Great price. |
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