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review
Training - misc
CycleOps Climbing riser blockCycleops climbing block

CycleOps Climbing riser block

7
by John Whittington
UPDATED Thu, Oct 15, 2015 04:24

First Published Oct 19, 2012

9
£17.99

VERDICT:

7
10
If you use your trainer a lot and want to ensure your position is correct, the Climbing Block is a worthwhile buy
Weight: 
816g
Contact: 
www.paligap.cc
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The Climbing Riser Block from CycleOps is a neat way to bring your bike up to the natural riding level and also beyond, to simulate riding up a hill when you're using a turbo trainer… even if it's not a CycleOps one.

With the rear wheel raised off the ground when using a turbo, the bike is on a negative gradient, affecting your weight distribution and possibly the way you engage your muscles. If you think about it, you are going to have to be providing some form of reaction force to stop yourself sliding forward.

Another benefit of removing your front wheel from the floor is the prevention of skid marks. In my experience, lever arch folders are a good method of raising your bike but CycleOps want to do things properly.

The simple injection moulded design does leave me wondering what the markup is on a thing like this. It is good and sturdy though, so you can feel like your £18 has gone somewhere.

The triangular design is intersected by three grooves through the middle of edge; your tyre sits in the groove. The grooves do vary in depth slightly but there are no markings to suggest levels and I can't say I noticed much difference between them, you will probably just end up slotting your bike in whichever is closest.

To achieve a climbing gradient you do in fact need two blocks, stacked, making the name slightly ambiguous; one block simply brings the bike level.

It does its job well - far better than a lever arch folder. The deep grooves hold the front wheel in place and ridges on the base grip the floor.

We didn't have two to try stacking but I imagine it would be much of the same.

I did feel a lot more comfortable and natural on the bike using the block, meaning one less excuse for not using the turbo trainer.

Verdict

If you use your trainer a lot and want to ensure your position is correct, the Climbing Block is a worthwhile buy. Correct riding position makes for a much more natural and productive training session. While you may be able to prop you bike up by other means, this removes the faff and ensures the same level each time the bike is setup. For that, it is probably worth it to most.

road.cc test report

Make and model: CycleOps Climbing riser block

Size tested: n/a

Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It's an accessory for rear wheel mounted trainers, to bring the bike up to the normal riding level.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

For a stable, worry-free ride in any rear-mounted trainer.

Unique 3-level design lets you select the level of difficulty.

Stack two blocks to simulate climbing workouts.

Injection-molded construction is virtually indestructible.

Use 2 blocks for 12 different adjustment levels. Patents issued and pending

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

It is a simple simple plastic construction but that's all that's needed really; it's simple and sturdy.

Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10

Better than my usual stack of books by a long shot.

Rate the product for durability:
 
8/10

It's strong, I can't see you breaking it even if you wanted.

Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
 
8/10
Rate the product for comfort, if applicable:
 
9/10

Certainly improves trainer ride comfort.

Rate the product for value:
 
5/10

Another £18 to consider when buying a turbo might mean many will over look this. I think the value is in the fact that it makes riding the thing much better, so in turn you'll get more value from you turbo trainer!

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

As intended. It isn't a 'climbing' block though, unless you buy two.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The ease of bring my bike up to the correct level and how sturdy it was.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The different level groves are negligible and it isn't a climbing block without another to stack.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.

Would you consider buying the product? Yes.

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 23  Height: 184cm  Weight: 66kg

I usually ride: Orbea Onix (Carbon) - Summer, Orbea Asphalt (Alu) - Winter  My best bike is: Orbea Alma G10

I've been riding for: Under 5 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Semi pro

I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, time trialling, cyclo cross, club rides, mtb,

 

CycleOps Climbing riser block

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9 comments

Avatar
Sadly Biggins | 12 years ago
0 likes

The price seems a bit steep as the review and others have said, especially if you want to buy two. My Tacx came with a front wheel block to level and then I just stick old books under it if I want to simulate climbing. I might upgrade to some bricks if I can justify the expense though.

Avatar
stever | 12 years ago
0 likes

Thanks for the tip, I will upgrade from 'bit of wood' to brick. One with a nice frog 1

Avatar
arrieredupeleton | 12 years ago
0 likes

I might raid the kids' Lego collection. The possibilities are endless...

Avatar
WolfieSmith | 12 years ago
0 likes

A brick's good.

Avatar
ragtag | 12 years ago
0 likes

I've got a brick.. handy indentation in it too.

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pj | 12 years ago
0 likes

telephone directory. that was in the days when i had a turbo, before i stuck the fucking useless bastard thing on the ebay.

Avatar
TheBigMong | 12 years ago
0 likes

I have two of these blocks. I agree it's a bit annoying that you have to use *two* of them to get anything more than a degree or two of inclination. But when you have two of them, the cool thing is that you can get a very wide array of inclines, since they stack 3 different ways for coarse adjustment (spooned/nested for slight incline, spooned but offset for moderate incline, or back-to-back for serious climbing) plus the 3 different depth slots for fine tuning.

The three different slots also help if you are spinning on carpet, as the rear end of the bike will sink in quite a bit more than the front.

Avatar
Cooks | 12 years ago
0 likes

I got a riser block free from argos. Loads of them there were, by the front door.

Avatar
solentine | 12 years ago
0 likes

Stick with a book, you can read it as well!

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