Road Cycling · Public discussion

indoor trainers

Started by Nathan Otis · · Last activity · 11 posts · 1,530 views

This thread is locked and is currently read-only.

Thread navigation

Jump through the discussion

Go to the original post, the replies on this page, or the latest preserved contribution.

Thread details

What we know about this thread

Original section
Road Cycling
Published
5 January 2004
Last activity
12 January 2004
Original author
Nathan Otis
Posts
11
Discussion status
Public discussion
Total views
1,530
Views / 30 days
0

The navigation and discussion metadata provide context. Posts remain in their original chronological order.

Showing posts 1–11 of 11
Posts remain in their original chronological order.

Text size
  1. Not sure if that's the right word for them but here's what I'm looking to do...

    I have a mtn. bike. It's the only excercise I can stand. Winter in Chicago is not conducive to
    riding (for me).

    The wife want's to buy me a contraption so I can ride indoors.

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better. Thanks. Nathan

  2. Quoted message said:

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better.

    There are indoor trainers and indoor rollers. The trainers support you while you pedal, the rollers
    don't, you have to balance.

    Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    Different kinds of trainers are

    Air, Mag (magentic) and Fluid.

    Folks disagree as to which is best for which purposes, but they all work.

    Your cheapest would likely be a mag trainer.

    Suggest you go to your local bike shop, or to someplace like

    www.nashbar.com

    www.performancebike.com

    www.coloradocyclist

    www.rei.com

    and many other online websites and look at their offerings.

    Preices on the internet will probably run from about $125 - $200 or thereabouts, depending on the
    type, features and if they might be on sale.

    I have a Magna Hypermag, which allows you to be able to change tension with a cable that attaches to
    your bars.

    My wife has Nashbar Mag which has 3 tension adjustments where the trainer attaches to the rear hub.

    In actuality, careful use of the gears and ratios can provide a great variety of resistances,
    speeds, etc.

    Some folks (such as I) use a training video or two such as those put out by

    www.spinerval.com

    Others do not like training videos, and use music, the TV or whatever. I combine a TV show on one TV
    with the video on another running at a low sound. However, I know the routines pretty well by now.

    A video can add a lot of discipline and challenge, IMHO. One thing I do is to vary the tensions from
    time to time. I also use a Heart Rate Monitor to be sure I am in the proper training zones. I also
    use the LifeCycle at the gym for some variety.

    Be forewarned that using an indoor trainer or rollers regularly takes a great amount of discipline
    and is literally boring as H***.

    I have done quite well so far this winter in relation to last. I chart my approximate guesstimate
    mileage each time I use it (almost daily for 45 minutes each day) on an online spreadsheet

    www.activebody.com

    - I am a member of a "team" which helps with motivation a bit.

    Hope this helps. I am sure you will get a wide divergence of answers.

    members.aol.comfoxcondorsrvtns (Colorado rental condo)

    members.aol.comdnvrfox (Family Web Page)

  3. Quoted message said:

    Some folks (such as I) use a training video or two such as those put out by

    www.spinerval.com

    correct that to:

    www.spinervals.com

    members.aol.comfoxcondorsrvtns (Colorado rental condo)

    members.aol.comdnvrfox (Family Web Page)

  4. Quoted message said:

    I have a mtn. bike. It's the only excercise I can stand. Winter in Chicago is not conducive to
    riding (for me).

    The wife want's to buy me a contraption so I can ride indoors.

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better. Thanks. Nathan

    Nathan: Given that it's a mountain bike, which don't have trainer-friendly tires, I'd go for the
    Minoura model that runs off the rim. It can be found for around $150 and has been a pretty reliable
    & popular model, especially for those running knobby tires. It's also a magnetic unit, so it's
    fairly quiet (very important if you wish to stay married).

    Info may be found on this page- minoura.jpindex et.html. Check out the models on the
    right side of the page, in the "rim drive model" column.

    --Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles chainreactionbicycles.comchainreactionbicycles.com

  5. Denver C. Fox said:
    Quoted message said:

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better.

    Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    One question I would have since he specified mountain bike ( I'm a roadie so I don't know): How
    well does a trainer work with mountain bike tires? Any wear problems with either the trainer or the
    rear tire?

    -=Dave=-

  6. In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better.

    There are indoor trainers and indoor rollers. The trainers support you while you pedal, the
    rollers don't, you have to balance.

    Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    Different kinds of trainers are

    Air, Mag (magentic) and Fluid.

    Folks disagree as to which is best for which purposes, but they all work.

    Your cheapest would likely be a mag trainer.

    Suggest you go to your local bike shop, or to someplace like

    www.nashbar.com

    www.performancebike.com

    www.coloradocyclist

    www.rei.com

    and many other online websites and look at their offerings.

    Preices on the internet will probably run from about $125 - $200 or thereabouts, depending on the
    type, features and if they might be on sale.

    I have a Magna Hypermag, which allows you to be able to change tension with a cable that attaches
    to your bars.

    My wife has Nashbar Mag which has 3 tension adjustments where the trainer attaches to the
    rear hub.

    In actuality, careful use of the gears and ratios can provide a great variety of resistances,
    speeds, etc.

    Some folks (such as I) use a training video or two such as those put out by

    www.spinerval.com

    Others do not like training videos, and use music, the TV or whatever. I combine a TV show on
    one TV with the video on another running at a low sound. However, I know the routines pretty
    well by now.

    A video can add a lot of discipline and challenge, IMHO. One thing I do is to vary the tensions
    from time to time. I also use a Heart Rate Monitor to be sure I am in the proper training zones. I
    also use the LifeCycle at the gym for some variety.

    Be forewarned that using an indoor trainer or rollers regularly takes a great amount of discipline
    and is literally boring as H***.

    I usually just sit on the trainer and spin while watching TV. I don't find it any more boring than
    sitting on the couch watching the same show, and I keep an eye on my bike computer to be sure I keep
    the cadence up.

    --
    Dave Kerber Fight spam: remove the ns_ from the return address before replying!

    REAL programmers write self-modifying code.

  7. works fine but without knobby tires.

    --
    mark Outside a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside a dog it is too dark to read - Groucho
    Marx xes out for mail "Dave" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Denver C. Fox said:
    Quoted message said:

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better.

    Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    One question I would have since he specified mountain bike ( I'm a roadie so I don't know): How
    well does a trainer work with mountain bike tires? Any wear problems with either the trainer or
    the rear tire?

    -=Dave=-

  8. This Asstropos person sounds pretty clueless to me. Rollers are good for spinning form, cardio and
    endurance. Power and strength are not gained on rollers. Hammering on a trainer is bad? It will
    cause you to do the same thing on the road? Well, I sure hope so. This person makes it sound like
    you will fricken lose your balance or something when you get back out on the road again. I use a
    tacx I magic trainer as well as a lot of pros and semi pros. The computrainer is a fantastic trainer
    as well. This asstropos person probably isn't fast on the road anyhow. Keep on rolling buddy. I
    wonder how close he has come to a 4 hour solo century? I'll stick to the trainer thankyou. Form can
    be developed on the road. Balance......whatever.

  9. Ok, what about rim drive trainers?
    n.

    "mark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    works fine but without knobby tires.

    --
    mark Outside a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside a dog it is too dark to read - Groucho
    Marx xes out for mail "Dave" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Denver C. Fox said:

    >Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much


    the

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    >better.

    Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    One question I would have since he specified mountain bike ( I'm a roadie so I don't know): How
    well does a trainer work with mountain bike tires? Any wear problems with either the trainer or
    the rear tire?

    -=Dave=-


  10. sorry never used one. My fluid works great for me, road or mountain.

    --
    mark Outside a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside a dog it is too dark to read - Groucho
    Marx xes out for mail "Nathan Otis" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:23nKb.136920$VB2.483656@attbi_s51...

    Quoted message said:

    Ok, what about rim drive trainers?
    n.

    "mark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    works fine but without knobby tires.

    --
    mark Outside a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside a dog it is too dark to read - Groucho
    Marx xes out for mail "Dave" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    Denver C. Fox wrote:
    >>Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much


    the

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    >>better.
    >
    > Sounds like you would probably want a trainer.

    One question I would have since he specified mountain bike ( I'm a roadie so I don't know):
    How well does a trainer work with mountain bike tires? Any wear problems with either the
    trainer or the rear tire?

    -=Dave=-



  11. Wanted to stop by and give thanks to everyone who commented and suggested. I ended up going with a
    Mag trainer from Minoura. The frame is aluminum and seems sturdy. The cable to the remote for
    switching resistance is a bit long so I'll have to remedy that. There was also a small part missing.
    Nothing that effected function too much, but I called the company and they're sending a replacement
    part. Very friendly and helpful.

    Overall the ride is smooth enough (once you get going 🙂 and resistance is close enough to real
    riding that it will serve my purpose. My bike is badly in need of a tune up, so I'm off. Thanks to
    everyone once more.
    n.

    "Nathan Otis" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:C63Kb.57642$I07.234624@attbi_s53...

    Quoted message said:

    Not sure if that's the right word for them but here's what I'm looking to do...

    I have a mtn. bike. It's the only excercise I can stand. Winter in Chicago is not conducive to
    riding (for me).

    The wife want's to buy me a contraption so I can ride indoors.

    Tell me what I need, and if it can be had for about $200... so much the better. Thanks. Nathan

Active in the last 60 minutes

Active in this thread

0 users · 0 guests ·0 bots ·0 total

No signed-in users are active right now.

No known search crawlers active right now.