dmanthree

Yes, another around London. As others have said, Zwift and a smart trainer is a game changer for indoor riding. It's no longer a death sentence for me. I've taken five rides on Zwift so far and I like it. Going for a two hour ride Saturday.

ddub

Zwift London. Group training ride.

kcblair

Five times a week. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). Got my tablet mounted to handle bars and use GCN's videos.KB.

TCR Rider

I did an FTP builder workout in London on Zwift today. Nice doing speed work with other riders to work with. Indoor riding has sure come a long way from Spinnervals on the fluid trainer to training in ERG mode on the Tacx Neo.
Yes winter in the northeast still sucks just not as much.

PaddleFoot

Yes, Winter does not seem so bad now that I can ride whenever I want. KickR was best purchase of 2017!

Did not really feel it yesterday and rode about 28 miles. The cleat change I made days ago, while helping my cadence, has rendered my Cambium 17 seat un-rideable due to the now constant rubber creaking. "C-17" stands for "Creak Seventeen". What a shame... a century seat that I can no longer enjoy using. Any adjustments I try only ruin my hand pressure as my seat position is spot on. I've tried all I know to stop the creaking and internet says the same exact thing. It will be loud music until I find another seat I can go far on. Will also move my Sutra onto the KickR to complete upgrades to the Wheelhouse. B-17 is nice and quiet!

Don't forget that all of us that ride a lot this winter will need new chains.

Carbonfiberboy 

Just an hour of VT1 on the rollers. It starts to get old at about 50 minutes. Always a little harder than I remember it being. Out on the road around here, one never does exactly the same thing for more than a couple minutes.

everyman07

I did about 10 miles on the Madonna del Ghisallo, then hopped over to the Rheinradveg for a long cool down - and never left Pennsylvania!

I know a lot of guys are into the Zwift thing but I don't like the video game look. I use a Tacx Neo with the Tacx Real Life Videos which lets you ride some of the most scenic routes out there.

PaddleFoot

Hi everyman07,

Are the videos shaky? I did try looking into the video route as a change of pace, but I simply cannot watch a shaky video and I did not see a way to demo it. For me, Zwift is kind of like a white noise and the fact that I might encounter a friend keeps it dynamic. I saw my first celebrity - Romain Grosjean rode by as I was stopped on a hill side. Formula 1 is the only sport I follow, other than cycling now.

I finished the week at over 300 miles. Wow(!). I took my Wheelhouse off the KickR and put the Sutra on. I still have two weeks before upgrade parts arrive but the WH chain is toast. I will never wash the original lube out of a chain ever again. The Sutra is so smooth and a joy to ride. Cleat position rule "all the way back' has been debunked for me. No trouble at all doing up to 100 rpm.

everyman07

The Tacx films are pretty stable. I think many of them are shot from a car/specialty vehicle. Other ones that work with the Tacx software like RealLifeVideos (dot) de can be a little bumpy from time to time but are mostly pretty smooth. Some of the RealLifeVideos that are more gravel/mountain bike oriented get kind of shaky - too much so for my taste.

The Tacx films are the best I've found so far. Good camera work. Excellent choice and variety of locations.

A lot of folks like VeloReality. I didn't like the interface as much and already paid for the Tacx software. The nice thing about VeloReality is you don't pay for software just the videos.

All are way better than the old watching YouTube while biking which was so shaky I couldn't do it and if you have a smart trainer it gets harder (uphill) and easier (down) with the film.

berner

It's been in the single digits around here, then warm so that snow began to melt, then cold again with large perilous,frozen areas to slip and slid on. So I mounted the bike on the trainer two days ago and yep, I hated it just as I did last year. Did 5 minutes yesterday and this morning and trying to work up to 6 minutes.

Barrettscv 

I had some geeky fun with my Rouvy App on my iPad and my Tacx Flux trainer.

Rouvy will use a virtual route as a training session and will provide road routes from numerous locations famous for cycling. In addition, the App allows a route to be uploaded from Garmin and other GPS powered devices. I uploaded several routes I had personality ridden in 2017. These included gravel event rides with dozens of steep climbs.

When using the GPS routes on Rouvy while training, the route is displayed on a map and the slope is displayed in percent along with heart-rate, speed, power in watts and distance.

These features really make the time on the trainer entertaining and my fitness is improving during winter time.

jimjim58

5 degrees F and ice covered roads this morning so Zwifting around London sounded pretty good, finally getting back into it after hernia repair surgery about 5-1/2 weeks ago.

https://www.strava.com/activities/13...774eb6dceebbb9

Machoman121

The Wahoo Kickr with Zwift has been a game changer for me. I've always been just a grinder.... but with Zwift I've learnt to cycle harder and faster. My regular cycling partner noticed the improvement in my cycling fitness and strength. I have noticed it too. I'm an indoor cycling convert 100% now.

Even though I live 50 metres from really good cycling bike paths that doesn't mean you can cycle when you like. The Kickr lets me ride 24/7 with the intensity that's good for my fitness.

Machka 

Did you use the indoor trainer today?

Nope. Much too much trainer riding lately. Today was a lovely day, so I rode outside.

Gerry221

Was finally convinced by my buddy to give Zwift a try.....it nearly killed me!!!!


I so underestimated it. After 10 miles I was gasping for air and legs were like jelly. Had to stop. I've done another 10 miles since, which was a bit better. Think it will improve my fitness and cardio no end! So, 10 miles every night for me while weather bad....

reverborama

I have a Fuji Supreme that does permanent duty on a trainer in the basement. I climbed on for the first time this winter and watched a couple of episodes of the Simpsons I've been saving up. I'll ride a couple of times a week when I don't feel like going outside. I do have a fatbike and a Nishiki with 32mm studs for the winter so I can pretty much do whatever I think I have time for. If I only have 30 minutes or so, it's a lot easier to jump on the trainer.

PaddleFoot

That is funny, Gerry221!

Be sure to calibrate your power source properly and experiment with gradient to affect your pedaling.

Take a look at technology in the world today and you will see that smart trainers are the future for the winter months. A true game changer for me. I am on a reduced mileage week, but I still ride for enjoyment and I am at 800 miles for the month. Possible outdoor ride today, but only if safe.

Tajue17

what are some of the nicer trainers and are there styles better than others,,, like say the roller versions were the bike is free standing "while pedaling" or the ones that lock in?

ericy

The first question is, do you want/need a smart trainer (where the computer can control the resistance)? Very nice for Zwift/TrainerRoad/Sufferfest. If you are just watching TV while riding, then it probably doesn't matter.

Tajue17

don't need anything super high tech or top of the line I'm just getting some pedaling in during the single digit frigid temps,,,, I was more concerned with do I need to remove the back wheel or can I just lift the bike onto the rollers,,, is there a more popular trainer for just basic cycling.

Barrettscv 

An interesting online article: Yorkshire granddad who rides 2,500 miles a year in his shed urges people to get cycling | Calendar - ITV News

Nachoman

monument.jpg by Nacho Neal, on Flickr
Yes! Even though it was a beautiful morning, I couldn't do my sunday morning hill repeats!

ddub

Zwift Fondo this AM. That was tough.

TCR Rider

I agree and I only did the Medio Glad I swapped out my cassette from a 12-25 to a 12-28 on Friday.

Carbonfiberboy 

Heck no! It's Sunday so we went and rode our guts out in 45° and showers.