Hammer

Bike Trainer Buying Guide

bike-trainer-buyers-guide-i As winter approaches and the sun disappears from the evening sky earlier and earlier, most cyclists quickly realize that they have two choices; go into hybernation for the winter or invest a few bucks in a quality bike trainer. You don't need to give up everything you worked so hard to gain over the summer cycling season and you can both maintain and improve your fitness over the winter months. If you're hankering to be the hammer in your riding group come spring, then maybe you need to consider checking out a bicycle trainer.

What's that you say? You're confused by all the choices available in the bicycle trainer market? We completely understand as the differences between a Mag trainer or a Wind trainer can be rather confusing. Add to that your friend raving about their Kinetic trainer and who knows where to begin! We get it, we're not that bright either but we've put in the time to do the research for you. So sit back and check out our bicycle trainer buyers guide and find out which trainer is the best choice for you.

Why Buy a Bike Trainer?

"Why" you ask? Because pedaling your butt off all summer only to watch yourself get fat again over the winter is not good for you, that's why. The answer.... a bicycle trainer. In the world of bicycle trainers, it's always daylight out and the temperature is quite reasonable, just about room temperature in fact and the only wind chill you are going to have to suffer will be from whatever fan you train on yourself to keep cool.

Ok sure, the scenery might not be that great on a bike trainer but you can always spice it up with your DVR or even some DVDs designed specifically for trainers. Ride along with Lance through the French countryside or maybe pick up a training DVD and ride while being yelled at by a guy wearing way too tight shorts and having a decidedly sadistic little attitude. Your choices are endless.

So have we convinced you yet that you simply must have one of these trainers? Just maybe you are not yet sure which bike trainer is right for you? Well have no fear little trooper, keep reading.

What Bike Trainer is Best for Me?

Great question..... and pay attention now because here is where it starts getting good.

Wind Trainer

Cycleops_wind_trainer Breaking wind has new meaning when you start talking about wind trainers and if you're a complete and total cheapskate, then this might be the perfect trainer for you. Ok it's cheap, but does it work? Well a wind trainer is one of the more simple designs available in the trainer market and basically you simply pedal your little heart out, which in turn spins a fan. This fan creates resistance and that is where the work out comes from, very basic and easy to understand.

The downside to a wind trainer is that they are VERY noisy. In fact they are the noisiest of ALL trainers. How bad can it be you ask? Well noise is very subjective but let's say it's going to be louder than you imagined that it would be but not so loud that your ears will bleed...well at least not much anyways. You can get a decent workout from a wind trainer but they will not feel like you are riding on the road but rather more like an exercise bike at the gym.

Wind Trainers Summary
Pro: Economical and effective.
Con: Very noisy, poor simulation of real riding.
Best Choice: CycleOps - High quality company that utilizes technology to minimize noise using die cast zinc fan blades. This flywheel is heavier than most and improves the ride quality but still not as good as other trainers. The best choice in the wind trainer market in our opinion even though it is not the least expensive wind trainer available.

Magnetic Trainers

magnetic_trainer The next trainer up the ladder on the way to the bicycle trainer hall of fame is the Mag trainer which is short for Magnetic Bicycle trainer. As the more astute might have already ascertained, these bicycle trainers are designed around a series of magnets that create the resistance rather than a fan working against the wind. Why this design is considered better than the wind trainers is that first of all, they are much quieter than a wind trainer, but then again so is a 747 Boeing so that isn't saying much. Seriously though, these trainers are definitely quieter and they offer more features than the typical wind trainer.

Most Mag trainers will allow some sort of resistance variation, meaning you can set it to tailor your workout to vary from mild to hard core. The cheapy models will have the resistance on the flywheel so you need to get off the bike to change it, which stinks. A few bucks more and the resistance controls can be made from the cockpit of the bike via some kind of cable, which is a far better setup. The last thing you need to do when you are drafting off Lance down the backside of some French mountain is to have to get off to adjust your "dial." That's not sexy.

The best Magnetic trainers will feature what is called variable resistance, which basically means that the ride effort will get progressively more difficult the faster you pedal. This is a big improvement over the cheaper models and starts to approach the actual ride quality that you will feel while riding on the road. It's not there but it's much improved over the wind trainer.

Magnetic Trainers Summary
Pro: Variable Resistance, Moderate Price
Con: Still won't give the Ride Quality some want
Best Choice: CycleOps Mag Trainer - We're going with the Cyclops again here as a good recommendation in this category. CycleOps is a high quality company and they produce great stuff. You can buy cheaper Mag trainers but it would be hard pressed to find a better one.

Fluid Trainers

Sorry but a fluid trainer does not involve a 6 pack of your favorite suds but rather this bicycle trainer use some sort of fluid in a confined space that creates a hydraulic resistance. There are a lot of benefits to a fluid trainer, not the least of which is that they are typically the most quiet and smooth bike trainers available.

Your typical Fluid bicycle trainer uses a liquid silicone to create the resistance. The silicone is inside the drive wheel and silicone, by it's nature, gets thicker as it gets hot. The thicker the silicone gets then the more resistance is created. Simple physics for the brainiacs that invented this design but all I know is that these trainers are usually considered to be some of the best out there. They are quieter and provide a much more realistic feel that can very closely simulate true road conditions if the design is right.

Most fluid trainers offer some sort of variable resistance and when you combine the variable resistance with the quiet operation with the excellent ride quality then it's easy to see why many consider the Fluid bicycle trainer to be the best choice when it comes to bike trainers.

Fluid Trainers Summary
Pro: Excellent Feel, Quiet
Con: Cheaper models may leak. Spend the money and get a good one.
Best Choice: Kurt Kinetic Pro Trainer - Head and shoulders above the competition in our opinion. The Kurt Kinetic series of trainers are hands down some of the best on the market and is the one that we personally own for ourselves. The Kurt Kinetic Pro will give you excellent road feel, a superb workout and it will NOT leak. Nuff said.

Bike Trainer Summary

Whether you love them or hate them, bicycle trainers are a necessary evil when it's 30 degrees outside and it is dark an hour before you even get out of work. A bicycle trainer will let you not only maintain your fitness but if utilized properly you could develop into a hammer before spring. All from the comfort of your own home, no cars, no flats, no dogs....just you and Lance.

No matter which bike trainer that you decide to go with, the best bicycle trainer is one that you will use, feel good about and get your money's worth in return for a set of piston like legs and lungs that won't quit.

Ok..now that we've educated you...it's time to run off into the world and find yourself a killer deal on a bicycle trainer that is meant for you. Check out the listings below, these are some of the absolute best deals and lowest prices we could find online at the time of this writing.