Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits

Mar 25, 20 11:16

Post #1 of 17 (2628 views)

I am starting to think about a new road bike (or maybe looking at bikes all day during stay at home orders make you just assume you are buying one). Right now I have an Specialized Allez that I really like, built up with Red and all the good stuff #aluminati.
As I look upon this vast world of new bike goodness, part of me keeps coming back to "if I do ~80% of my road riding indoors, what is the point of an aero, or light or compliant road frame?
And before people get on the riding indoors that much is lame train, I am not a 100% indoor person, but when I ride outside, I split my time between road, tt, gravel or MTB depending on the time of year, where when I ride indoors, I am almost always on my road bike.
So the question is, has your bike selection changed at all as a result of the amount of indoor training you do? Or do you still want all the goodies even if they are connected to a trainer a large amount of the time?

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 11:23

Post #2 of 17 (2614 views)

Yup, I have a dedicated trainer bike now. Older Allez with 10spd Force. Works great and takes 80%+ of my mileage with parts that are inexpensive to replace

Save my road/tri/mtb/cx bikes for outdoor riding and never have to worry about swapping on/off of the KICKR

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [indianacyclist] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 13:00

Post #3 of 17 (2535 views)

I have been getting close to doing this, My problem is I am too much of a data nerd and I am not sure I trust the power numbers from my trainer, so the trainer bike would also need a PM, I FULLY realize how ridiculous this is.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 13:07

Post #4 of 17 (2521 views)

I'm in the market for bike #5 and it will be an all road/gravel type. But I was already a huge indoor rider and started exploring before the pandemic. The only thing that's happened as a result of the virus is that a couple gravel rides I was thinking of doing were cancelled and I'm holding off on a purchase hoping the prices will go down.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 13:23

Post #5 of 17 (2505 views)

for indoor interval sessions i bought a wahoo kickr bike. i wanted a dedicated indoor setup and the kickr bike reviews were stellar so i said to heck with it and bought it... the thing is fantastic.

for outdoor, i have my "old" (only 3 years old) roubaix that i like. as far as fancy wheels, aero frame, i couldnt care less. all i care about for the roadie is something that is as comfortable as can be to soak up the road and something i can do longer workouts on and watch my wattage. really if im riding a brick outside and only going 15mph i dont care, as long as im hitting my wattage for my workouts.

THAT SAID, i very much want one of the new roubaix bikes... the orange over grey paint scheme one in particular.

80/20 Endurance Ambassador

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 13:51

Post #6 of 17 (2470 views)

Already have a bike I'm happy with - 2008 Cervelo P2c with my own budget-friendly upgrades as well as a solid entry-level 2010 Giant Defy road bike aluminum frame. Use a Kickr gen 1 at home a lot, I ride over 85% of my bike miles on it.

I will say that my direct-drive trainer is the most important piece of it all. I don't care as much about the bikes themselves, so long as the race bike can be put on the trainer and isn't too hard to maintain.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 14:46

Post #7 of 17 (2429 views)

I ride a 20 year old Eddy merckx mx leader with downtube shifters on my rollers indoors. I take it outside occasionally, but mostly ride my mtb or cross bike outside. It's nice having the dedicated indoor bike and a rusty, bent, dented old steel bike has no resale, so I just use it. Plus it's comfortable.

Last edited by: jroden: Mar 25, 20 14:46

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 15:08

Post #8 of 17 (2397 views)

For me.....I’m usually riding indoors around November thru March before I head outdoors....98% outdoors when it’s warm.
Still bought what I wanted for a new road bike, my only difference was instead of selling my old bike for some $$, kept a decent bike (Cervelo S2 wi DA Di2) as a dedicated trainer bike.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 19:29

Post #9 of 17 (2296 views)

Just curious, why do some people have a dedicated bike just for an indoor trainer? And it seems like if they do, its a road bike. Wouldn't it be better to train in what you race in? And I'm guessing there's a lot of triathletes here, how can you practice staying in aero? Also bikefit? Would that be an issue too? Assuming bikes would have a different set up. Me? for both indoor and outdoor, I use the same bike.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [RSoquena725] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 19:43

Post #10 of 17 (2281 views)

I can’t speak for everyone, but I have a dedicated bike for the trainer because of the sweat and potential for subsequent corrosion, even though I have the headset covered and the towel that looks like a giant thong from the headset down the top tube. I keep my race bike in my car or at work. Don’t have to adjust the rear derailleur after pulling the bike off the kickr. Get on the trainer first thing in the morning. All little things, but they seem to make it mentally easier to ride more. Fit is the same on both +/- a mm or 2.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [RSoquena725] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 19:51

Post #11 of 17 (2276 views)

RSoquena725 wrote:

Just curious, why do some people have a dedicated bike just for an indoor trainer? And it seems like if they do, its a road bike. Wouldn't it be better to train in what you race in? And I'm guessing there's a lot of triathletes here, how can you practice staying in aero? Also bikefit? Would that be an issue too? Assuming bikes would have a different set up. Me? for both indoor and outdoor, I use the same bike.

I have a Felt IA 10 which has horizontal dropouts. So getting it on and off the kickr is a little more tedious than vertical dropouts. That said, it stays on the trainer 90% of the time for the reasons you stated. I want most of my mileage on that bike. My road bike is the outside bike.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [RSoquena725] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 20:32

Post #12 of 17 (2248 views)

RSoquena725 wrote:

Just curious, why do some people have a dedicated bike just for an indoor trainer? And it seems like if they do, its a road bike. Wouldn't it be better to train in what you race in? And I'm guessing there's a lot of triathletes here, how can you practice staying in aero? Also bikefit? Would that be an issue too? Assuming bikes would have a different set up. Me? for both indoor and outdoor, I use the same bike.

If you ride a road bike most of the time with hip angle closed up like on a TT bike, its really easy to swap between bikes. My hip anble on my road bike in the drops is a bit tighter than on my TT bike which is a bit tighter than road bike on hoods. So road bike intervals in drops and then going to the TT bike feels pretty easy as its more open a hip angle.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [triflorida] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 20:39

Post #13 of 17 (2243 views)

triflorida wrote:

I can’t speak for everyone, but I have a dedicated bike for the trainer because of the sweat and potential for subsequent corrosion, even though I have the headset covered and the towel that looks like a giant thong from the headset down the top tube. I keep my race bike in my car or at work. Don’t have to adjust the rear derailleur after pulling the bike off the kickr. Get on the trainer first thing in the morning. All little things, but they seem to make it mentally easier to ride more. Fit is the same on both +/- a mm or 2.

^^^^This.

I use an old 9spd roadie I had sitting around. The convenience factor is easy to minimize, but becomes quite important in practice. If I didn't have that bike, I'd probably have gotten a cheap, used, 105 alum-framed one off Craigslist.

Also, not having to worry about the sweat corrosion of my nice race bike is key. Also swapped out the saddle for the trainer bike to an Adamo (much heavier than the Romin Evo I had, but better suited for long trainer sessions).

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 25, 20 22:15

Post #14 of 17 (2211 views)

Count me as a "no". I buy bikes to ride them outdoors.

It isnt that i dont ride indoors - i spent 3 years where i did maybe 10 rides outside, total. But there were other circumstances around that, and it wasnt by choice. If it got to the point that riding indoors would be my default riding state, i would just quit cycling (and actually, i did take a year and a half off the bike after those 3 years of mostly indoor riding). Luckily, i live somewhere i can ride outdoors all year.

That said, after upgrading my road bikes recently, I am likely get a dedicated indoor trainer bike for the 1-2 workouts a week i do indoors. Was thinking of a Kickr Bike but it is easier to just buy another Kickr Core and 2 cheap-ass 11 speed bikes than 1 Kickr Bike where both my wife and i have to keep swapping settings and saddle.

--
Those who are slower than me suck.
Those who are faster than me dope

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [RSoquena725] [ In reply to ]

Mar 26, 20 3:04

Post #15 of 17 (2145 views)

RSoquena725 wrote:

Just curious, why do some people have a dedicated bike just for an indoor trainer? And it seems like if they do, its a road bike. Wouldn't it be better to train in what you race in? And I'm guessing there's a lot of triathletes here, how can you practice staying in aero? Also bikefit? Would that be an issue too? Assuming bikes would have a different set up. Me? for both indoor and outdoor, I use the same bike.

I think some people don’t like putting their nice try bike on a trainer. I have a few friends like this.
And then only other bike is a road bike. Hence the setup. Also some find the race bike is more comfortable than the road bike on the trainer (I tell them to train like you race, on a tri bike).

Myself, I have my old P2 on the trainer which was retired a few years back. It’s setup to the same fitting coordinates as my outdoor bike.

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 26, 20 4:25

Post #16 of 17 (2110 views)

I have 2 bikes, a cyclocross bike, and my road/tri bike (Cannondale Slice with drop bars and clip ons) My funds for new bikes is limited, but I think my next one will be a dedicated trainer bike. Maybe a Wahoo Kickr bike. I think it’s a worthwhile investment since I spend half the year inside.

Right now I have a ghetto Zwift set up, old Cycleops fluid trainer with Garmin speed and cadence sensors, so to upgrade to a smart direct drive I’m looking at $1000-2000 CDN, may as well invest a little more and have a dedicated indoor bike.

https://trigeek1969.blogspot.ca

Re: Has indoor training changed your bike buying habits [Eroc43] [ In reply to ]

Mar 26, 20 4:53

Post #17 of 17 (2081 views)

We just got a Peloton (used, not full price) and love it. It's a lot heavier than a bike on a trainer so when you stand up it stays put. My wife and kids all use it nearly every day. My 10 year old even likes the sleep meditations. There are compromises compared to using the power meter on my regular bike but overall this has proven to be a great solution.

One side effect that I love from this is the road bike is always ready to go. No extracting it from the trainer and replacing the wheel. I was using a special trainer tire and it left brightly colored flakes all over the rear triangle. I wasn't going to tear up my conti GPs on the trainer. Not now though. Pump the tires and off you go.

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