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Turbo trainers

I know this question has been asked many times before but I would like an up to date answer. I am going to buy a turbo trainer and I have about £150 to spend. Does anyone have any recommendations bearing in mind I want to speed sessions including spriints on it.

thank you for your thoughts

Comments

  • legalbeaglelegalbeagle Posts: 208
    hi there,



    I bought an Elite Crono Mag last year - it was £120 - nice and simple and it works wonders! Good variation of resistance and easy to fit the bike to.



    Happy shopping!
  • TommiTriTommiTri Posts: 879
    Hi,

    I have had a bit of experience with a few different trainers. I can personally recommend the Tacx sirius soft gel. Its what I'm currently using, I have used a few mag and fluid trainers and this one is the best for the money, from wiggle it only costs about 115, but feels so much more expensive! and its really quiet!
  • I've had a Tacx sirius soft gel for a couple of months and, when I have got round to using it, it does exactly what I want it to. It has alot of adjustability for different power capabilities (low in my case) and is quite quiet.



    However, it was a swine to put together. I had to bend the frame out and in again, as well as remove welding burrs, to accommodate the mag properly. Had I bought it in a shop and not on-line, at that stage it probably would have been returned quickly with a stern face.



    Now I'm quite happy with it.
  • gaterz1981gaterz1981 Posts: 233
    Get rollers, i find they are great encouragement to go out on the road more as they so bloody dangerous!!
  • treefrogtreefrog Posts: 1,242
    To para-phrase Angus Young from AC/DC .....

    Reporter : "Angus you have 10 albums out and some say they sound the same?"

    Angus : "You're wrong - We've 11 albums out.... and they're all the bloody same"

    So with turbo trainers they're all the same!

  • KiwiPaulKiwiPaul Posts: 46
    I use a CycleOps Fluid 2 and it works a treat - another deal from Wiggle bought it in just over £100. It's the only one I've ever used so don't know any better, but it feels nice and consistent. It's pretty stable too so whether going hard in a sprint or standing up for a hill it feels good.
  • grant1974grant1974 Posts: 262
    I too have a CycleOps Fluid 2, great bit of kit.



    One question I would be asking myself if I was you, why am I buying a turbo trainer at the start of summer?



    A turbo trainer is no replacement for the open road...
  • ashthetashashthetash Posts: 164
    One question I would be asking myself if I was you, why am I buying a turbo trainer at the start of summer?


    Strangely enough I have just started thinking about a turbo trainer. I have always been a bit weak at warming up as well as I should. I am thinking that if I have a turbo trainer am I more likely to take the time to warm up properly before heading out for a run/ride?



    I can't be sure but if I can get hold of a cheap turbo trainer I can't see that trying it would do any harm.
  • grant1974grant1974 Posts: 262
    Sorry mate I didn't mean it to sound so negative, I was just thinking you may not get that much use out of it during summer, and thus if it was me, I would wait until winter...
  • TesseractTesseract Posts: 280
    I don't know how much use a turbo would be for a warm up, unless you have a couple of bikes? I've a CycleOps Fluid 2 and you need to change the rear spindle to fit the bike on (I'd also recommend a turbo specific tyre). Unless you're a whizz with changes by the time you get your bike ready for the road you'll be cooled down again.



    Having said that, it's great for sprint sessions (no getting slowed down by stupid cars), or for days when the weather is just too bad to hit the road.
  • TommiTriTommiTri Posts: 879
    Tesseract is right, unless you want to chew up tires and vibrate your house to bits a turbo specific tryre is essential, mine is the continental one. works an absolute treat. But cos its made of super hard compound is an absolute bugger to get on an off. for the last part of getting it on I have to heat it over a radiator, otherwise there is no way if it going over the rim, woteva tools you throw at it.



    But even though it is summer i think a turbo is an excellent buy. I live in the middle of leeds, and the road can get really fustrating sometimes, with all the cars and buses. So i find it great for doing a good fast paced, and more importantly consistant paced workout. It also helps with one leg drills, etc, which you cant really do on the road, and ive found its improved the smoothness of my cadence, which has translated into greater power and efficiency. well worth 100 beans in my book.
  • pacmanpacman Posts: 109
    One of the draw-backs of turbos is that you're not getting the skills of cycling - but this is a real benefit - you don't have to concentrate that hard. Just pop the bike up on it, use a hrm to make sure you're putting in the effort and with the champions league on the spare TV - 2 hour workout without missing the footie - magic!

    I got the tacx sirius and agree with notifitsraining that is was a bit of a stuggle to get it together but well worth the investment.
  • ashthetashashthetash Posts: 164
    I don't know how much use a turbo would be for a warm up, unless you have a couple of bikes? I've a CycleOps Fluid 2 and you need to change the rear spindle to fit the bike on (I'd also recommend a turbo specific tyre). Unless you're a whizz with changes by the time you get your bike ready for the road you'll be cooled down again.


    The plan is that the winter hack for cycling to work can go on the turbo trainer and I'll cycle to work along the tow path on the MTB. Might have to give the dedicated turbo tyre some consideration though.
  • PC67PC67 Posts: 101
    I've also been toying with the idea of a turbo, just for the simlicity of being able to do an hours workout without having to get to somewhere you can cycle freely.



    However, my gym is only 50 yards from the house and the exercise bikes there are always free. How transferable is, for example, a tough 50-60 minute interval session on a gym bike (not a spinning bike) to proper cycling?



    I'm "between jobs" at the moment so haven't been doing my daily bike commute for about 8 weeks now. I've done tons of running but have let "real" cycling drop. However I have been doing regular interval sessions on the gym bike, seeing how far I can get in either 50 or 60 minutes at a set level (16) using the same programme (random). My heart rate is always in the 145-174 range and I try to do 5 mins tough, 3 mins recover and over again.



    My legs feel it, my heart and lungs feel it and I sweat like mad. Surely this is good TT practice?? I know it doesn't exactly replicate my bike - I'll start riding properly again this week just to get more mileage done.



    I'd love to hear informed opinion on this.
  • TommiTriTommiTri Posts: 879
    my personal opinion is stay away from the gym bike.

    my reasons are

    1. gym bikes put you in a more up-right position with hands higher etc, i dont think this is good, as you are using your leg and hip muscles differently to how you would in aero or normal road bike position.



    2. you cant clip in, so you cant scrape back and roll over like you would pedaling normally, therefore you will be pushing down alot more to maintain power, not only will you tire your quads quicker than usual you will be going back to how you pedaled before you learnt how to pedal properly! so this may translate to when your on the bike.



    Overall i think a turbo is a much better bet. save the gym for resistance training and the rower only, using the bike and treadmill breeds poor technique.



    Tommy
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