Author Topic: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?  (Read 3527 times)

zigzag

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Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #25 on: 02 October, 2019, 12:35:52 pm »
i found rollers fairly easy to learn and could ride hands free after a few (less than ten) sessions. i found rollers very good for the recovery spins, nowadays i just spin on a turbo as it is always readily set up. to use rollers i need to put the mat on the floor, rollers on the mat, clean the tyres and check the pressure, bring the fan and laptop over, plug them in - too many little things.

Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #26 on: 02 October, 2019, 12:36:24 pm »
I've been bullied into getting onto Zwift, it does reduce the boredom enough to get me through 45 minutes!   I already had a very simple turbo and a powertap hub, i put a turbo tyre on the wheel and it all set up remarkably easily. 

(I have something like https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/kurt-kinetic-Road-Machine-Cycling-Trainer/274010090003?hash=item3fcc462a13:g:Lz4AAOSww4lddS1l, powertaps are untrendy enough they're regularly < 150 quid on ebay)

zigzag

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Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #27 on: 02 October, 2019, 12:48:25 pm »
(I have something like https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/kurt-kinetic-Road-Machine-Cycling-Trainer/274010090003?hash=item3fcc462a13:g:Lz4AAOSww4lddS1l, powertaps are untrendy enough they're regularly < 150 quid on ebay)

it's more about the reliability of power data, which on powertap hub depends on one bearing that is prone to wearing out. this then causes inaccurate readings.

Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #28 on: 02 October, 2019, 01:06:00 pm »
(I have something like https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/kurt-kinetic-Road-Machine-Cycling-Trainer/274010090003?hash=item3fcc462a13:g:Lz4AAOSww4lddS1l, powertaps are untrendy enough they're regularly < 150 quid on ebay)

it's more about the reliability of power data, which on powertap hub depends on one bearing that is prone to wearing out. this then causes inaccurate readings.
It might also be that people are moving to disk brakes, so lots of old rim braked ones are superfluous.

Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #29 on: 04 October, 2019, 05:47:31 pm »
Rollers require concentration which becomes a sort of "zoned-out" experience very like actually cycling. BUT any distraction such as the front door bell, the phone, the dog barking and the spell is broken and I have to stop or I'll loose focus and start to wobble about. So I'd recommend them if you have a garage or spare room you can take yourself off to, well away from the rest of the world.

Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #30 on: 05 October, 2019, 08:29:03 am »
I had a gym membership for several years and spent 2-3 sessions a week on an exercise bike in the winter. In the summer I rarely visited it at all. Winter 2017 I cancelled the gym and bought a turbo, expecting I'd do more having it at home. In reality I did less and entered 2018 quite unfit.

Last winter I bought a modest smart trainer a tacx flux. First one broke and I got a replacement from Halfords. I got a zwift subscription and it was a revelation. I've never done structured training before, I settled down to quite a disciplined routine, increased my ftp by 40 watts or so. The surprising thing was the improvements from not going flat out. My comfort zone outdoors is 30-50 miles as fast as I can. I rarely do more than an hour and a half, with some of my workouts less than an hour. I didn't think much of the zwift training plans, but I've designed my own workouts. I've tried some of the races, but didn't take to them. However just riding a course, digging deep on the hill climbs and really going for the sprints gives a good varied workout. 

My children used to spend a lot of time playing Mario Kart. I tried occasionally, but never took to it, partly because I wasn't as good as them. Zwift is a bit like Mario Kart for bikes, with some of the same computer game elements, the cartoonish look but also the knowledge it is other real people and not a computer you are playing with / against. 

rogerzilla

  • When n+1 gets out of hand
Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #31 on: 05 October, 2019, 11:09:13 am »
I had a "real" turbo trainer, the type that uses a fan for resistance and sounds like a jet taking off.  It did a pretty good job of simulating on-the-road resistance so, if I could hold a certain gear for 20 mins on the trainer, I could do it on the road.

I now have a Tacx magnetic resistance trainer which I bought for a song (unused) two years ago and it remains unused, because the prospect of sitting on the thing for 40 minutes fills me with such dread that I'd rather go out in the dark and rain.
Hard work sometimes pays off in the end, but laziness ALWAYS pays off NOW.

Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #32 on: 05 October, 2019, 07:59:37 pm »
You can fix the vibration issues with the sorts of rubber mats that halfords sell to cover the garage floor (my turbo was quiet for me, but caused vibration noise in the neighbours house!).
We have those. But the floors are chipboard sheets, I think, and if I'm pushing out 500W @ 120RPM for that sprint jersey I can see my TV screen wobbling.
I blame the lard.


Re: Rollers, Turbo trainers or Smart trainers?
« Reply #33 on: 06 October, 2019, 10:18:40 pm »
You can fix the vibration issues with the sorts of rubber mats that halfords sell to cover the garage floor (my turbo was quiet for me, but caused vibration noise in the neighbours house!).
We have those. But the floors are chipboard sheets, I think, and if I'm pushing out 500W @ 120RPM for that sprint jersey I can see my TV screen wobbling.
I blame the lard.
That's not vibration, that's shaking the house with your awesome power! :)