Back in the eighties I trained for months one winter on rollers and ended up doing a 10ml sprint in 12mins with an average speed of 43mph, was mega fit then, I repeated this a couple of times only, it’s was tough, still riding hard at 63, been a pro mech 36 yrs loved the setup and tech , still love the pain. Well done you two.
I got rid of my Wahoo kickr for some E-Motion rollers- they are so much more fun and feel like you're actually riding rather than grinding as they sit on a floating chassis. The E-Motion can link to Zwift if you want with variable resistance and I'm sure other brands do too.
I used rollers with a track bike when I was younger. It was excellent for leg speed drills--learning to spin 190+ rpm without bouncing is something you can only learn on rollers.
I think at times rollers are seen as a counter tech training solution in the face of expensive trainers that do everything except peddle the bike. Like a fixie, a roller is the simple old school option that sets up in a couple minutes and doesn't require a dedicated rig. It's not the answer to all training, but it's a simple solution for people looking to train indoors or have limited floor space.
How come everybody says "You cannot train on rollers as good as on a trainer" theese days? Does everyone except of me has 400W threshold? I sincerely doubt that. If your bike has a powermeter on it you can do 90% of what you do on that smart trainer on the most basic rollers. The only things you lose are sprint training and erg mode
rollers are an awesome training tool. i turned my old tackx rollers into free motion. i installed a mag resistance unit. I can do out of the saddle sprints with power outputs approaching 1200w (wide soft tires for this). way more fun than a stationary unit
@@Conor_Ryan Inside Ride makes a fabulous product, the e-motion rollers. A friend uses them with their smart resistance unit to Zwift. If you search "free motion rollers" their are lots of ideas and plans. I had an old set of tackx rollers that came with a mag resistance unit. i took apart the mag unit and added some neodymium magnets for extra resistance. I drilled and tapped holes in the legs for skateboard wheels and built a wooden track out of pallet lumber. two springs and hooks and voila, a reasonable but not as pretty facsimile
Every bike should have a bell but they are often ignored or not heard. Whistle a tune and you get noticed every time, I get mostly “thanks”, even a few laughs.
I think the rollers are great to mix in during the winter months to break up the static smart trainer usage. Will hit the rollers on the days that I just need to do a quick 30 minute recovery spin and they keep your core engaged. Nice warm up spin as well prior to doing some weight lifting work.
Also, I would say that the dropper post is the single most significant piece of tech in the last 20 years. Ahead of any suspension tech, carbon advancements, electronic shifting, whatever. It changed mountain biking fundamentally. I don't think enduro could exist as a category without the dropper post. The difference in the way that bikes can be built now compared to when I started riding is undergirded almost entirely by the existence of the dropper. (That said, I don't use one on my CX/gravel bike, but they're still underrated overall. I agree that they should exist for all bike categories.)
Ive been riding mtb without one for 33 years. And Im going just as fast as everybody else. Actually only one time in last 5 years have I thought I needed one. Just isnt a big deal for me.
@@johndef5075 I rode without one for decades, too. I rode XC bikes but I also had a Norco VPS-3. It completely changed how I ride and how I consider bikes. Being able to drop the seat means I can rail harder on the downhills but I never have any trouble climbing--it was always a big compromise. Seriously, try it out. I can't say enough good things. And even if you don't ride with one, I think that it's just factually undeniable that bikes are designed with them in mind and they've changed how manufacturers produce bikes.
I hear this completely. I've said, if I had to choose one thing about new MTB's, be it, brakes, geo, good suspension, 29" wheels, wide bars etc., I'd choose a dropper post. They are transformative in how you ride a bike, and in making descents safer. And I am predominantly a roadie. On a gravel bike, they would be great too for really sketchy descents.
I have rollers that include an adjustable resistance unit, so what’s lacking here when compared with a trainer that doesn’t require the rider to balance? Am I missing something?
Bells are classy AF. I avoid riding with people who shout or whistle but if after ringing and the person still doesnt react or hold a line then shouting is deserved.
Traditional free spinning rollers are rubbish, but rollers with resistance - like Elite Quick Motion are super. The only limitation is that they cannot be used for sprinting, but otherwise I can use them for my winter time indoor training at any power level I need. The riding feel is so much more natural that riding the backwheel type of trainers which do feel like riding a wooden horse.
I always fall on my rollers. I pull them out thinking this is the year I'm riding rollers. A roller crash is quite painful. I think I might be done with them
With a MTB background: If I’m in a situation of missing a dropper post with my GB, I immediately know that I’m on the wrong bike. It’s no fun to ride a trail with a GB.
Jimmy, don't forget about us fat bastards with only 1 bicycle. I use my bicycle every day for cycling to work, for shopping, to do longer distances, bikepacking etc., it's used constantly and for everything. The amount of additional work to plug it into a turbo greatly outweights the benefits of the turbo. Also having to use additional apps or devices makes the thing unnecessarily complicated. With rollers I just jump on, monitor my heartrate on my phone, listen to a podcast, and jump off when I need to. Obviously it's not as good of a workout as with a turbo, but to me a suboptimal "workout" is better than no "workout".
IMHO Rollers are excellent training tool, they really just son’t work on short intervals like under a minute, other everything should know the gear and cadence they need to hit a target power on their bike+roller combo! Also they don’t allow you to be lazy like wheel off trainer and are better for your body as well!
Bells are absolutely underrated. I'm in a very urban environment and far too many people are riding, walking, or running with earbuds or headphones. Yelling just doesn't work. I nice loud bell can be heard from farther away for those who aren't auditorially distracted, and can pierce through the music or podcast for those who are distracted. And, as for how I ring it: a couple dings from far off to see if I get a reaction, slightly more frequent dings as I get closer until I get a reaction, and then ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding... as I'm coming upon the person until I get a reaction.
Back in the eighties I trained for months one winter on rollers and ended up doing a 10ml sprint in 12mins with an average speed of 43mph, was mega fit then, I repeated this a couple of times only, it’s was tough, still riding hard at 63, been a pro mech 36 yrs loved the setup and tech , still love the pain. Well done you two.
I got rid of my Wahoo kickr for some E-Motion rollers- they are so much more fun and feel like you're actually riding rather than grinding as they sit on a floating chassis. The E-Motion can link to Zwift if you want with variable resistance and I'm sure other brands do too.
Second that! People who put down rollers have never tried inside ride rollers. They rule!
I used rollers with a track bike when I was younger. It was excellent for leg speed drills--learning to spin 190+ rpm without bouncing is something you can only learn on rollers.
I think at times rollers are seen as a counter tech training solution in the face of expensive trainers that do everything except peddle the bike. Like a fixie, a roller is the simple old school option that sets up in a couple minutes and doesn't require a dedicated rig. It's not the answer to all training, but it's a simple solution for people looking to train indoors or have limited floor space.
How come everybody says "You cannot train on rollers as good as on a trainer" theese days? Does everyone except of me has 400W threshold? I sincerely doubt that. If your bike has a powermeter on it you can do 90% of what you do on that smart trainer on the most basic rollers. The only things you lose are sprint training and erg mode
Ah, the ole "I don't get on with them" excuse. Translation; I can't use rollers (hehe)
Walkers often retort 'wheres your bell?' but get affronted when you use it. Cant win.
I give them my standard retort “Hope you don’t get clobbered by an EV then” - That usually makes them go quiet!
rollers are an awesome training tool. i turned my old tackx rollers into free motion. i installed a mag resistance unit. I can do out of the saddle sprints with power outputs approaching 1200w (wide soft tires for this). way more fun than a stationary unit
That sounds great. Do you have any information posted on how to create this? Would love to try that out. Thank you
@@Conor_Ryan Inside Ride makes a fabulous product, the e-motion rollers. A friend uses them with their smart resistance unit to Zwift. If you search "free motion rollers" their are lots of ideas and plans. I had an old set of tackx rollers that came with a mag resistance unit. i took apart the mag unit and added some neodymium magnets for extra resistance.
I drilled and tapped holes in the legs for skateboard wheels and built a wooden track out of pallet lumber. two springs and hooks and voila, a reasonable but not as pretty facsimile
Saying rollers are rubbish is an egotistical statement. I did a 100km on a roller, and that has helped me significantly.
Every bike should have a bell but they are often ignored or not heard. Whistle a tune and you get noticed every time, I get mostly “thanks”, even a few laughs.
Squeaky disc brakes are the best warning. People jump out of the way immediately each and every time.
When my disc brakes get wet EVERYONE hears when I coming up behind them and start braking-it’s a truly offensive noise-I personally HATE it.
I think the rollers are great to mix in during the winter months to break up the static smart trainer usage. Will hit the rollers on the days that I just need to do a quick 30 minute recovery spin and they keep your core engaged. Nice warm up spin as well prior to doing some weight lifting work.
Also, I would say that the dropper post is the single most significant piece of tech in the last 20 years. Ahead of any suspension tech, carbon advancements, electronic shifting, whatever. It changed mountain biking fundamentally. I don't think enduro could exist as a category without the dropper post. The difference in the way that bikes can be built now compared to when I started riding is undergirded almost entirely by the existence of the dropper. (That said, I don't use one on my CX/gravel bike, but they're still underrated overall. I agree that they should exist for all bike categories.)
Ive been riding mtb without one for 33 years. And Im going just as fast as everybody else. Actually only one time in last 5 years have I thought I needed one. Just isnt a big deal for me.
@@johndef5075 I rode without one for decades, too. I rode XC bikes but I also had a Norco VPS-3. It completely changed how I ride and how I consider bikes. Being able to drop the seat means I can rail harder on the downhills but I never have any trouble climbing--it was always a big compromise. Seriously, try it out. I can't say enough good things. And even if you don't ride with one, I think that it's just factually undeniable that bikes are designed with them in mind and they've changed how manufacturers produce bikes.
I hear this completely. I've said, if I had to choose one thing about new MTB's, be it, brakes, geo, good suspension, 29" wheels, wide bars etc., I'd choose a dropper post. They are transformative in how you ride a bike, and in making descents safer. And I am predominantly a roadie. On a gravel bike, they would be great too for really sketchy descents.
I have rollers that include an adjustable resistance unit, so what’s lacking here when compared with a trainer that doesn’t require the rider to balance? Am I missing something?
I have a bell on all of my bikes-but because I have hearing damage I can’t hear them myself-but thankfully other people can.
Bells are classy AF. I avoid riding with people who shout or whistle but if after ringing and the person still doesnt react or hold a line then shouting is deserved.
Traditional free spinning rollers are rubbish, but rollers with resistance - like Elite Quick Motion are super. The only limitation is that they cannot be used for sprinting, but otherwise I can use them for my winter time indoor training at any power level I need. The riding feel is so much more natural that riding the backwheel type of trainers which do feel like riding a wooden horse.
I’m starting to think the other guy is just a troll
I always fall on my rollers. I pull them out thinking this is the year I'm riding rollers. A roller crash is quite painful. I think I might be done with them
With a MTB background: If I’m in a situation of missing a dropper post with my GB, I immediately know that I’m on the wrong bike. It’s no fun to ride a trail with a GB.
Rollers are not about getting fit, they help with core strength, your cadence and bike handling skills. So some of the criticism isn't valid.
Jimmy, don't forget about us fat bastards with only 1 bicycle. I use my bicycle every day for cycling to work, for shopping, to do longer distances, bikepacking etc., it's used constantly and for everything. The amount of additional work to plug it into a turbo greatly outweights the benefits of the turbo. Also having to use additional apps or devices makes the thing unnecessarily complicated. With rollers I just jump on, monitor my heartrate on my phone, listen to a podcast, and jump off when I need to. Obviously it's not as good of a workout as with a turbo, but to me a suboptimal "workout" is better than no "workout".
Triathlon skills? Isn't that an oxymoron?
IMHO Rollers are excellent training tool, they really just son’t work on short intervals like under a minute, other everything should know the gear and cadence they need to hit a target power on their bike+roller combo! Also they don’t allow you to be lazy like wheel off trainer and are better for your body as well!
You've quickly turned into the channel thats just a grumpy south african's opinion of random things, I'll give you a miss from now on thanks.
Bells are absolutely underrated. I'm in a very urban environment and far too many people are riding, walking, or running with earbuds or headphones. Yelling just doesn't work. I nice loud bell can be heard from farther away for those who aren't auditorially distracted, and can pierce through the music or podcast for those who are distracted. And, as for how I ring it: a couple dings from far off to see if I get a reaction, slightly more frequent dings as I get closer until I get a reaction, and then ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding... as I'm coming upon the person until I get a reaction.
I find that bells yield a defensive response. Walkers often retort 'where's your bell' but seem to be affronted when you use it.
@@bikeman123 That's why I ring it from afar at first; that way it is more muted and sounds less threatening.
Rollers don't give you any resistance and are dangerous.
So, you don't talk about why you don't like rollers, you just say you don't like them.
Garbage opinion.