Questions on the Cycleops Pro 300PT

Triathlon Forum
1

I’m looking at possibly buying a Pro 300PT, but before I even bother proposing this to my wife, I have a few questions that I was hoping some users could answer for me.

  1. Is it quiet? How does the noise level compare with a computrainer or rollers? I want to pitch this as something that will let me train at home with minimal disruption to her or our soon-to-arrive baby. The indoor trainer is kinda noisy and she needs to crank up to tv if she’s watching while i’m riding. I’m hoping it will be something in which she just needs to bump up the volume a couple notches.

  2. Is it easy to move? I see that it has wheels but does the weight make it a total pain in the arse to move? This will probably live in our dining room, but I’ll need to move it every once and a while when people come over.

  3. Can you really tune this to your position on your tri bike?

Thanks!

2

  1. It is quieter than a trainer. The resistance is from 2 felt pads against the flywheel. You still have drive chain noise, but it is certainly quieter than any other trainer I have owned.

  2. It is east to move as long as you are not going up and down stairs. The wheels are large and roll well an carpet.

  3. You can pretty much get to any adjustment with one exception, the standard crank arm length is 172.5 and I ride 175 mm crank arms. You can hit pretty much any stack and reach mixture with this. I’m 6’4 and have no problem dialing in my geometry. It looks like you could fit a small frame just as easily. The one exception may be the arm pads. If you ran them extremely narrow you may not be able to duplicate your position.

3

Thanks for the input. Are you have happy customer? Do you think it’s helped you improve as a rider?

4

I ride mine daily for the past 2 yrs. I can hear movies better with the Pro300 then on anything else. Spin class has the same bike so I drag my entire seatpost and computer to class (prefer my own seat and angle and at 5am no way am I awake enough to get that right).

Dialing in the setup to your bike is cake. The seat it comes with is too cushy but it was easy to put on my own.

The only problem I have seen with the ProPTs is slippage of the seatpost - it hasn’t happened at my house, but depending on which bike I use in class my post doesn’t match up and the whole seat slides down in a short time. You shouldn’t have this problem if you keep your seatpost with your bike - but I think overtime the part might need to be rigged - I’m pleased mine has lasted 2 yrs with very little maintenance. I’ve also seen guys in class simulating climbing out of the saddle and obviously putting too much pressure down on the handlebars and the whole bars dropping forward (if you ride right - gentle to the touch all legs no arms, this shouldn’t happen).

I think I’ve gotten stronger. I’ve only been outside a handful of times over the last 18 mths due to a severe neck injury - the PT was the only thing I was able to use that didn’t set off my vertigo. Rides outside are typically in the 8-18 hr range and have not been any problem via skipping all the short stuff on the road - just haven’t tried the mountains yet. Speed wise significantly faster than when I was doing all road (probablly training more).

Strongly considering buying one for my sister :slight_smile: I like it that much.

5

Would you say the Pro 300PT is quieter than a normal spin bike? I know I might be splitting hairs here, but I don’t want to give my wife a false impression on the noise level…

6

No, I don’t think it is quieter. It is about the same as a LeMond Rev Master. That being said, it is easily quieter than the fan I use to keep me cool.

7

I would say yes. I think your fan to cool you off (or your heater if you are heat training) will be louder. I don’t even have to adjust the volume on my tv when I jump on the bike. The bike is very smooth.

If possible, do you have anyone that lives close to you, or even your local bike store that she could go see it in person? I don’t know if she rides, but one of my favorite features is the fact you can set up multiple users. I use this feature for different types of training - but she could have her own program setting.

Previous spin bikes in my house - Schwinn something (now at my sisters), Johnny G’s (liked it, but nothing compares to the Pro300), then of course tons of trainers I managed to fry. This is the only thing that has lived up to my abuse - and the neighbors have never complained. I do admit to jumping on my treadmill (adjoining walls) at 1am when they decide to crank their rap (kinda like a pavlov dog reaction it appears to be working), but I couldn’t have the same result with my spin bike, way too quiet.

8

Thanks for the input. Are you have happy customer? Do you think it’s helped you improve as a rider?

Yes to both. I think it is easily the best indoor power training unit available. It saves ware on your bike and you do not have to set the thing up and take it down. The huge fly wheel gives you a very realistic spin up feel. The exclusion of a freewheel helps your pedaling technique. It is perfect for intervals as it is stout enough to pedal out of the saddle and finally, it is ideal for testing. I can think of no better way to test FTP in a repeatable manner than with the 300 PT. My only complaint as a bicycle road racer is that I can’t raise the front end to simulate climbing. 3 of my team mates have purchased them on my recommendation and they all rave about them. For anyone with time constraints or faced with winter training, this will take away any excuses to miss training. Also, the head unit is much better than the regular powertap as you can view a lot more information.