Wahoo have launched their first smart bike, named simply the Kickr Bike, at Eurobike this morning. It retains the flywheel that appears on their Kickr smart trainers, is designed to fit any rider and you can even replicate the shifting of your preferred drivetrain with the smart controls.
Offering maximum customisation and a realistic ride feel, Wahoo made the Kickr Bike because they recognised we don't always want to be transferring our outdoor bikes on and off the trainer; so they've gone to great lengths to ensure it can be adjusted to your measurements quickly and easily. Using the Wahoo App, you can access a bike fit guide to generate a perfect fit based off either measurements from a pro fit system such as Retul, or you can simply upload a photo of your bike and the app works it out for you: "training time doesn’t become configuration time", say Wahoo.
It's a five-point adjustment system, and the custom crankset also has five built in selectable lengths from 165mm to 175mm. The cockpit controls can be set up to match the gearing system of your choice (Shimano, Campagnolo, SRAM), and there is a brake system so you can experience controlling your speed just like on the road. You can customise chainrings and rear cog 'sizes' to match the ones on your outdoor bike, and there are algorithms built into the pedalling designed to feel like you're genuinely shifting.
There is even integrated grade simulation (first seen from Wahoo on their Kickr Climb designed to work with a smart trainer) that tilts the bike up or down on hills or descents respectively. Of course it's all compatible with your favourite third-party training apps such as Zwift, The Sufferfest, Trainerroad and more.
Wahoo's CEO Mike Saturnia says the Kickr bike represents the "next generation" of indoor smart training: "It is the ultimate product for discerning, data-driven athletes who are ready for a feature-rich, top-quality, responsive, dedicated indoor bike as the new cornerstone of their fitness.”
Want one? That'll be $3,499 (we don't have prices in pounds yet) and shipping dates are set at October in the US and early 2020 in Europe. The price point makes it one of the spendiest indoor trainers for personal use we've seen, but the impressive features might just make it worth splashing out for.
We'll have a video interview with Wahoo CEO Chip Hawkins coming soon, and of course will be looking to get one in for testing in the coming weeks...
After cobbling together a few hundred quid during his student days off the back of a hard winter selling hats (long story), Jack bought his first road bike at the age of 20 and has been hooked ever since. He joined road.cc in 2017 having previously being Staff Writer at 220 Triathlon magazine, and reports on all things tech as well as editing road.cc's live blog. He is also the news editor of our electric-powered sister site eBikeTips. Jack's preferred events are time trials, sportives, triathlons and pogo sticking (the latter being another long story), and on Sunday afternoons he can often be found on an M5 service station indulging in his favourite post-race meal of 20 chicken nuggets, a sausage roll, caramel shortbread and a large strawberry milkshake.