Hey i’m debating wether i should buy a Trainer or Rollers. i already have a trainer and would like something else to get my wife to train with me.
I currently have a Balckburn Mag trainer. I am looking at TACX rollers. Will i get as good of a workout with the rollers? is the resistance hard enough?
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0009W7250/103-9962583-9436642?v=glance
I got myself a set of rollers last year in addition to my mag trainer. I’d say that if you can only train on one, a mag/wind trainer is the way to go. If you’re not always going to be working out together than I’d say go with the rollers. If you look you can probably get them used. I got mine used, and swore that they were busted when I first tried them… but after a while I got better, and they are quite enjoyable. Not necessarly a high resistance workout, but good for endurance, technique and more interesting than being on a mag trainer.
Anyway, my $0.02 is go with rollers.
You’ll get a better workout with rollers. You will need to recruit more muscles for balance since the only thing keeping you up is the angular momentum of your wheels. I think you can adjust the resistance but if not changing gears will suffice.
do rollers wear tires simillar to the trainer?
is the cheap model i suggested worth it or should i spend some more $$$?
thanks
i just got rollers and love them. will make you a much better rider–smooth and efficient. 
what type did you get?
A word of warning. Once you get on rollers, you might never go back to a stationary trainer. I got my Kreitler rollers, and my cyclops trainer has been on semipermanent loan to a friend. I’ve done 2+ hour sessions on the kreitlers, without too much boredom, while after 45 mins on a trainer, i want to shoot myself. Get the rollers, get the roller, get the rollers. The workout on the rollers should be hard enough, and if not, there are tricks you can do to increase the reistance like lower tire pressure, put a towel under one of the drums that lightly rubs one of the roller drums (this one really increases the resistance), or get a resistance unit (i know Kreitler makes one).
your bike handling skills will get much better too (less twitchy). You’ll be able to ride a road paint line dead on straight for miles after riding rollers for a bit. Learning to ride them only takes a few sessions… kinda like learning to ride a bike.
Kreitlers are supposed to be the best, but i’ve heard that other brands make decent rollers. Btw, rollers with smaller diameter drums have higher resistance.
get the rollers.
Depends what you want to use them for.
YOu can sustain longer workouts with a trainer, and you’d don’t have to focus as much.
Rollers increase balance/handling skill, but am I not sure they are better fo fitness.
Honestly, I bought rollers b/c everyone siad they were better than a trainer for indoor riding. I bought a trainer a week later and have used the trainer a ton. I use the rollers very little. have found that regular outdoor riding gives me the handling skills I need.
I would go with the trainer, personally.
As another poster mentioned, you may find you love the rollers so much that you abandon the trainer altogether. I did that over the winter this year. I did tons of LONG roller workouts. It’s much easier to go longer on the rollers than on the trainer. And it truly helps your form and efficiency.
Funny thing was, when I got out on the road this Spring, I’d lost the power to get out of the saddle and jam over the smaller hills … something I’d been rather famous for here locally. I could sit and spin up and over hills all day, but I had previously been able to hop out of the saddle and hammer over stuff almost effortlessly, and at far higher speed than sitting and spinning.
So I swore of the rollers for a while and stayed outside and worked on my power more. Now things are finally coming back together.
I think the rollers are a great workout … but they’re very one-dimensional. I think you really need to mix them with road work and a trainer if you can.
Also, if you’re talking about riding a tri-bike on them … well, getting down on your bars will be quite an experience for you.
I’ve heard good things about the Tacx rollers, but haven’t tried them. I have Kreitlers. They’re simply awesome.
Bob C.
I have both a Cyclops 2 trainer and Kreitler rollers. I used them both exclusively last year through the Wisconsin winter.
For endurance (long, steady) workouts, I would use the rollers. For high intensity workouts I would use the trainer. The trainer is also necessary for some technique drills, like the one-legged drill.
It does take a while to get comfortable on rollers (and you’ll fall off a few times), but I think having both tools in your arsenal is a good idea. You and your wife can switch off if you’re always training together.
i got kreitler’s.
I think Mark Twain said your quote, not Abe, but I could be wrong. just fyi.
I find it interesting what some people have said about long rides on the rollers. I personally find rollers very taxing mentally. I think after 2 hours I would be brain dead. I have to concentrate the whole time or I am going down. They definitely helped me learn to ride in a straight line. I have both, use the rollers for technique and and easy spin days, trainer for hard workouts.
I brought this back because I am now in the same position. Winter is coming to Michigan and I will soon need to train indoors. To roller or not to roller, and what kind of fluid trainer if not to roller.
I would like to train in my aero bars to maintain power and flexability in aero position. Does this mean that I should start with the fluid trainer?
I have both rollers and a trainer. I use them both quite often. I bought them both used for the price of a new trainer and would be lost with out either one.
Rick
ROLLERS…only way to go !!!.
BigSky-
Get rollers. When you first start to use them set them up in a door way (so you have the door jam on either side of you) when you start to move to one side you can put out your arm and brace yourself. They are similar to riding a wheelie, don’t stop pedaling or you will lose momentum and slide to one side.
Have fun and get the rollers.
What should one look to pay for a nice set of rollers? I had several people telling me at my last race that there was a lot of room for improvement in my stroke and that rollers would help me out substantially. Plus I’m in the mountains, snow season is quickly approaching, and I don’t have a decent trainer or rollers.
Just be patient and order the Free Motion rollers w/resistance and increased stability from Inside Ride. You won’t regret it.
They will change the way you train.
You’ll get a better workout with rollers. You will need to recruit more muscles for balance since the only thing keeping you up is the angular momentum of your wheels. I think you can adjust the resistance but if not changing gears will suffice.
i agree. 15 minutes on rollers and you know you’re doing work. they are fun and translate so much better to the road in terms of smoothness, handling skills, etc. just too many benefits to ignore.