Anyone use a fluid trainer with power?
05-31-09, 02:31 PM
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05-31-09, 05:41 PM
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Doubt it would be very accurate. I have the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine, which is a great trainer. They have a published power curve and an add on watt meter but it doesn't correlate very well with my Powertap.
05-31-09, 05:42 PM
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Kurt Kinetics used to make a watts computer designed to work with their trainers.
It only shows current watt output. No memory, high, low. Just what you are doing at the moment. You can still find them on ebay, but they won't last long. Supposedly
KK is coming out with an improved watts computer, but they've been saying it for a couple years, I think they got stuck.
But it is an excellent trainer, and would get the job done.
It only shows current watt output. No memory, high, low. Just what you are doing at the moment. You can still find them on ebay, but they won't last long. Supposedly
KK is coming out with an improved watts computer, but they've been saying it for a couple years, I think they got stuck.
But it is an excellent trainer, and would get the job done.
05-31-09, 05:44 PM
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What did you notice about it, compared to the Powertap?
05-31-09, 06:41 PM
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Yep I bought that last winter. The trainer itself is great, but I found the computer unit to be pretty useless. I don't think the power reading is very accurate; it fluctuates wildly, but it works. The trainer itself is very quiet and smooth. IMHO, get the non-computer version and just use your cyclocomputer/HRM as an indicator of how hard you're working.
05-31-09, 06:49 PM
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Dude, you live in S. Florida, and it's summer time. Now is not the time to be thinking about a trainer.
Seriously.
Trainer intervals suck. They're mentally taxing. You're stuck in a room with box fans blowing on you and suffering badly. They're something you should only be doing when you have no way of doing the work outside.
Go ride outside and bump this thread in November when the sun sets earlier and you're reduced to indoor work.
Ken
ps - Are you doing Stuart? It's a shame we won't have the Dickenson State Park race in Hobe Sound, but I'll be at the downtown crit on Saturday.
pps - When I'm relegated to indoor work, I use a fluid trainer with known power curves (cyclops fluid 2), and shoot for targets (speed = xx wattage) for my vo2max and 20' intervals, but now is not the time of year to be thinking about that sort of torture.
Seriously.
Trainer intervals suck. They're mentally taxing. You're stuck in a room with box fans blowing on you and suffering badly. They're something you should only be doing when you have no way of doing the work outside.
Go ride outside and bump this thread in November when the sun sets earlier and you're reduced to indoor work.
Ken
ps - Are you doing Stuart? It's a shame we won't have the Dickenson State Park race in Hobe Sound, but I'll be at the downtown crit on Saturday.
pps - When I'm relegated to indoor work, I use a fluid trainer with known power curves (cyclops fluid 2), and shoot for targets (speed = xx wattage) for my vo2max and 20' intervals, but now is not the time of year to be thinking about that sort of torture.
05-31-09, 06:59 PM
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06-01-09, 05:54 AM
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Didn't catch you living in Fl. Why do you need the trainer? I would save up for a PM if you really need to know the numbers?
06-01-09, 06:50 AM
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06-01-09, 07:23 AM
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Dude, I grew up in Miami. If you're unhappy with the weather, wait 15 minutes. 
But OK, I'll give you that one a little bit.. I did a bunch of 20' intervals on the trainer a week and a half-ago because of the rain, but it's not ideal this time of year. I had to use a movie with Jessica Alba playing a pole dancer to get through it.
You should probably own a trainer, they're great for warmups for a crit, and those wintertime workouts. But don't try to base a training program on them in the summer. I'd probably suggest going with a KK (Kurt Kinetic) or cyclops fluid2 and then grabbing copies of the known power curve.
But OK, I'll give you that one a little bit.. I did a bunch of 20' intervals on the trainer a week and a half-ago because of the rain, but it's not ideal this time of year. I had to use a movie with Jessica Alba playing a pole dancer to get through it.
You should probably own a trainer, they're great for warmups for a crit, and those wintertime workouts. But don't try to base a training program on them in the summer. I'd probably suggest going with a KK (Kurt Kinetic) or cyclops fluid2 and then grabbing copies of the known power curve.
06-01-09, 08:08 AM
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Dude, I grew up in Miami. If you're unhappy with the weather, wait 15 minutes.
But OK, I'll give you that one a little bit.. I did a bunch of 20' intervals on the trainer a week and a half-ago because of the rain, but it's not ideal this time of year. I had to use a movie with Jessica Alba playing a pole dancer to get through it.
You should probably own a trainer, they're great for warmups for a crit, and those wintertime workouts. But don't try to base a training program on them in the summer. I'd probably suggest going with a KK (Kurt Kinetic) or cyclops fluid2 and then grabbing copies of the known power curve.
But OK, I'll give you that one a little bit.. I did a bunch of 20' intervals on the trainer a week and a half-ago because of the rain, but it's not ideal this time of year. I had to use a movie with Jessica Alba playing a pole dancer to get through it.
You should probably own a trainer, they're great for warmups for a crit, and those wintertime workouts. But don't try to base a training program on them in the summer. I'd probably suggest going with a KK (Kurt Kinetic) or cyclops fluid2 and then grabbing copies of the known power curve.
Most of my training is on the road / track, I just use the indoor options when those are not convenient.
I like the idea of a trainer that shows power so I can do power tests every few weeks.
06-01-09, 12:15 PM
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You'd probably be better off just getting a decent trainer, and when you have the cash buy the powermeter you want.
06-03-09, 04:46 PM
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estimated power is right.
The computer asks you to enter your weight + the bike.
The wire from the resistance unit that goes to the computer is used only to calculate speed. it has a magnet on the flywheel to trigger it.
The computer adjusts the power estimate based on the resistance level that goes from 1 to 5.
Position one is supposed to be zero elevation simulation, the rest are all slightly higher grades as you turn the knob to indexed numbers.
I suppose that I could check the calibration at zero elevation based on a known power / speed / weight formula.
A 68 kilogram (150 lb) rider traveling on an 8.6 kg (19 lb) bike at 20 mph in on flat ground in with no wind requires about 177 W.
ps: the nashbar power fluid trainer reads 190 watts with a 169 lb weight setting @ 20 mph.
So the power difference from the above estimate of 177w is 13 watts.
The computer asks you to enter your weight + the bike.
The wire from the resistance unit that goes to the computer is used only to calculate speed. it has a magnet on the flywheel to trigger it.
The computer adjusts the power estimate based on the resistance level that goes from 1 to 5.
Position one is supposed to be zero elevation simulation, the rest are all slightly higher grades as you turn the knob to indexed numbers.
I suppose that I could check the calibration at zero elevation based on a known power / speed / weight formula.
A 68 kilogram (150 lb) rider traveling on an 8.6 kg (19 lb) bike at 20 mph in on flat ground in with no wind requires about 177 W.
ps: the nashbar power fluid trainer reads 190 watts with a 169 lb weight setting @ 20 mph.
So the power difference from the above estimate of 177w is 13 watts.
Last edited by fordfasterr; 06-03-09 at 05:20 PM.
06-03-09, 05:36 PM
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I have a Spinervals DVD where the riders are shown using Powertaps. Their wattage displays bounce within a 25-40 wattage range just as much as the KK computer does.
06-04-09, 06:23 AM
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still, just a calculated value .. I'll do a 10 minute FTP test on it after my recovery week is through =)
