Originally Posted by
davester
They used to sell retainers (i.e. big U-hooks that went around the seat post) to prevent serious crashes. I personally wouldn't ride rollers without something like that..
Yup - you can actually see one in use in
Breaking Away during the scene in which Dave is riding rollers in the rain at the car dealership.
I have a set of Kreitlers with alloy drums (I think they're the smaller 3.5"). Probably used them a dozen times. Like @
repechage, it took me a few rides to get comfortable shifting and I never, ever tried no-hands. Best advice I got was to concentrate on a point on the opposite wall, about 4' from the deck. Worked great!
I never rode them enough to know if they had any effect on my smoothness. I got bored really quick. For warmups, I suppose they are okay, but for any real workout, not so much. I think they're best used for developing a smooth pedal stroke, but I prefer to be on a rolling road for that stuff.
Having said all that, I still have my rollers. I should get them out and see if they're still boring to ride
DD