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Indoor bike training solutions?
Looking for a decent fairly cheap solution for my Mrs and I to train on indoors through the winter. Had a turbo in the past but ultimately she couldn’t be bothered with the faff involved of swapping bikes over etc. I've tried a few cheap exercise bikes and they have been pretty terrible, there are a million cheap spin bikes available, but it a bit of a gamble without trying one first and ideally would like one without a manual tensioner but that may too much of an ask. Looking for something as close to actual biking as possible, budget wise I’d maybe push to £500 if it was ideal. Any suggestions welcomed!
If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.
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8 comments
Cheers for the ideas, we're both vastly different sizes so the one bike idea probably wouldn't be a goer unless it had a vast range of adjustment.
The two turbo's is a good one, most of those on the halfords site are out of stock but I could pick a basic one for the mrs bike and get a better one for me!
If you've got space you could get 2 of these
https://www.halfords.com/cycling/turbo-trainers/smart-turbo-trainers/eli...
Works with zwift etc very similar to the Quobo reviewed by Shane Miller 3/4 yrs ago. Not the quietest but good enough unless you're pumping out huge power numbers. Must be about the cheapest fully automatic smart trainer about. (The tacx flow can be bought for a similar price too)
The solution to the faff of swapping bikes over on a turbo... is to have a bike that lives on the turbo, though obviously this assumes you're approximately the same size.
Doesn't even have to be a road bike, any old hybrid with 29er wheels will fit 700c tyres, I did Zwift this way (using a dumb trainer, cadence sensor, and a basic old laptop too) for a couple of years. If it's hard to find a complete bike at the moment you can get away without the front wheel and/or forks if you can knock up a simple 'support' with some bits of wood.
https://www.aldi.co.uk/bikemate-grey-indoor-bike-trainer/p/801743395225000
I saw someone with 3 of these on a trolley coming out of Aldi this morning, only a few minutes after opening. Everything I've had from Aldi has been good for what it is, so don't write this off! Not interested myself, as I live in a good quiet area for cycling in the hills, and I can generally wait for the rain to stop.
As close to actual biking as possible and you're looking at rollers. They're not that difficult to master and no changes to the bike required. You could change the rear to a training tyre and probably should have sweat protection, but that's it. You should be able to get a good set for a couple of hundred quid. https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Elite-Arion-Mag-Parabolic-Resistance-Rollers_48...
It starts getting difficult or more expensive if you want to connect to Zwift or Strava or whatever, but those things don't interest me.
Yeah I've used rollers before but my Mrs isn't a confident rider and is scared by them.
I still get the occasional wobble to wake me up. I just can't stand fixed turbo trainers, haven't got the cash (desire to spend) for a flexible turbo trainer and the faffing around wouldn't motivate me to ride them anyway. Depending where you are, I've got an old knackered (noisy) set here (Chester), ready for collection. She could use them to have a try if she has no experience without the cost of buying.
Ah cheers for the offer, I'm up in Glasgow. I'm the opposite actually, much prefer just getting on something static and spin away