Anyone here use an indoor trainer? I am planning to get the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine next week. The reviewes I read rate it highly. Any comments/suggestions?

http://www.kurtkinetic.com/

 Hmm, I recently broke an arm, anyone know of a safe one to use on a p2sl

I need to stay in shape.

My first broken bone,

I never knew it made you so hungry
 

Kurt is good, I have one, but make sure it comes with the "small cone cup" I bought mine second hand without one and the large cup that goes round the lever side of the QR skewer won't fit in the ornate drop outs of my R3SL, P2C or Giant TCR C0, or it goes in. but I'm not sure I'd want to sit on it as it looks like it will damage the frame. (that's somewhat limiting then :-( )

 I'm now struggling to get hold of one - so if anyone knows of somewhere that does Kurt spares (preferably in Aus) please let me know.....

I own one. They're fantastic. Second the advice about the cone cup... Although customer service is great and they will send you any spare accessories quickly and free of charge.

They're not completely "silent" but solid and well built. Also no frills and will get the job done... 

Call or email Kurt, their customer service is awesome. I had another small conecup in my hands in about a week and a half after telling them that the deep slotted one was too much for my P2C. 

 True story, the engineer behind the Kurt Kinetic is the same one who designed the cyclops trainer. The cyclops were having trouble with leaking, due to an inherent design flaw using an o-ring. He then designed the KK and patented it, sold the patent on the cyclops, who just added an extra o-ring.

 Brilliant design, it cannot leak, I've been using mine now for three seasons. The newer ones have a bigger flywheel. Bigger flywheels are better for a road feel.
 

What kind of damage would a indoor trainer cause to your bike? I have used them for years and have never had a problem.

How often would you say you use yours in a month and for how long at a stretch? 

McLovin:

 True story, the engineer behind the Kurt Kinetic is the same one who designed the cyclops trainer. The cyclops were having trouble with leaking, due to an inherent design flaw using an o-ring. He then designed the KK and patented it, sold the patent on the cyclops, who just added an extra o-ring.

 Brilliant design, it cannot leak, I've been using mine now for three seasons. The newer ones have a bigger flywheel. Bigger flywheels are better for a road feel.
 

An indoor trainer will not cause damage to a bike, the forces are minor compared to riding on the road. 

I ride 5 days/wk, 1-2hrs/day all winter (jan-march) on Spinervals DVDs -that's 53X12 sprints and 155 rpm spinning in easy gears. It's hardly boring, unless you just spin around 100rpm straight in an easy gear watching TV, which is common, and useless.

Local spinning classes are great for housewives, but unless you have a high-level group, they are weak sauce for road riders. Plus, you never get proper bike fit and spinning is about weight loss, not cycling performance.

 Three tips: 1. buy a large fan, 2. use  a trainer-specific tire. Continental or Tacx make them, ~$40. 3. Buy training DVDs (Spinervals, Carmichael), they are nice because they are calibrated and they will boost fitness -allow you to compare to riders at many levels, but they are HARD.  Some are set to real rides outdoors. Also, Kurt's are calibrated with power to speed, so you can calculate power output -download the charts from Kurt website.

 If you are really using a trainer properly, you will shred a road tire in about an hour. Road tires are not designed for the heat of the roller. Trainer tires last a long time.
 

For what its worth..  My LBS (Cervelo dealer) recommended i stay away from an indoor trainer with the exception of "rollers".  his reasoning is that the torque placed on the carbon fib./resin while riding on a stationary trianer could compromise the frame.  true or untrue just the fact he mentioned it with utmost seriousness, for me, its better to be safe than sorry as these bikes are hella expensive and the last thing i want to do is blow it up on a trainer.  Rollers on the other hand are an entirely different animal ie unwanted accelerations through the living room wall.. 

im not trying to start anything, just relaying an opinion!

thanks guys..

I am about to buy a Kurt Kinetic Road Machine (it was a close call between that and the CycleOps Fluid 2) and I see that they have a relatively inexpensive power computer available! Does anyone use them? How accurate are they?

The alternative power meters are way out of my current budget!

BriKins13:

Call or email Kurt, their customer service is awesome. I had another small conecup in my hands in about a week and a half after telling them that the deep slotted one was too much for my P2C. 

I will try again, I got an almost instant response out of the main Kurt Customer Service when I asked last time, but nothing from the Aus distributor they put me onto (multiple mail delivery failures).

That was a while ago though so maybe they have a new distributor....?

ogoode:

For what its worth..  My LBS (Cervelo dealer) recommended i stay away from an indoor trainer with the exception of "rollers".  his reasoning is that the torque placed on the carbon fib./resin while riding on a stationary trianer could compromise the frame.  true or untrue just the fact he mentioned it with utmost seriousness, for me, its better to be safe than sorry as these bikes are hella expensive and the last thing i want to do is blow it up on a trainer.  Rollers on the other hand are an entirely different animal ie unwanted accelerations through the living room wall.. 

im not trying to start anything, just relaying an opinion!

thanks guys..

If you want an excellent set of rollers that really simulate road work, try these

http://www.insideride.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15&Itemid=36