Originally Posted by
Prowler
I’ve read about (but have no experience with) larger diameter rollers being easier to turn (less pedaling force) than smaller diameter rollers. IOW harder workouts on smaller diameter rollers. So maybe Crown’s idea used that for self centering, encouraging rider to stay centered as it’s easier. THAT seems counter-intuitive. Something that’s supposed to train the rider for excellent bike handling skills takes away the need to have excellent bike handling skills.
And those roller experts in the film take their product to a trade show for people to see and try out but they have no mounting blocks nor anything to hold onto while getting on their product. Interviewer must hold on to the flimsy low curtain wall between booths. Huh? I’d walk right on by.
I’ll stick with my vintage 4” Kreitler rollers. Killer certified.
Killer was the name of the little dog Kreitler carried in the pocket of his shop apron, I believe, as shown in early ads.
I bought my first set of rollers around 1975, branded Rolltrac [sp.; might have been Rolltrack]. Extremely rare; can't find any trace of them on the internet. Sold them as soon as Racermate issued their first bike trainer stand (with hamster cage wind resistance).
Maybe rollers do help refine your pedaling smoothness a bit, for whatever it's worth, although that wasn't why they were invented. Anyway, studies have shown that professional cyclists have a choppier pedaling style than amateurs, probably reflecting the difference in average power output, which suggests that pedaling smoothness is likely somewhat overrated.
I've seen photos of early-20th-century rollers whose cylinders must have been two feet in diameter. Here are some whose diameter might have been around 10 inches.