Roller vs Trainers
 

Do rollers offer any resistance? Or are they just for working on form?

I have rollers and a trainer. Trainers offer more resistance on a less natural platform. That being said, I am only now getting to the point where I wish the rollers had more resistance - my avg speed on a 30-40 mile hilly ride is about 17-18 mph. Judge for yourself how that compares to you.

Also, many roller set ups have wind resistance add-ons so you can have the best of both worlds: a high resistance roller that forces you to think about spinning, balance and holding a steady line.

What about these any good?

Kreitlers are the gold standard, and are priced accordingly.

I have the aluminum rollers made by these guys:

http://www.sportcrafters.com/welcometop.htm

I have had absolutely no problem with these, so you should consider them as well. I bought mine from Nashbar, but they don't sell them anymore. The owner is very responsive re how the resistance unit works, so I'm sure he'd answer any additional questions you might have.

I use rollers 3.5 inch aluminum cycleops, they are great all the way through the gears. Yes it is true that the resistance is not the same as on the road, that is not their intended purpose...

The purpose is to...
1. Work on form, including ability to hold a line
2. Base Training, lower HR and resistance
3. Feel natural, like being on the road.

They are great for sprint training because you can do spin ups in a really high gear and simulate the action required. Now you can not standup and hammer away but they force you to be smooth at really high (over 130) RPMs and that translates to better sprints. I like them to warm up also because I can use the race wheels on them (no major tire wear) and I get into the feel of riding. Fluid, magnetic and air resistance trainers just feel well unnatural.

Trainers are great for environments in which you need full resistance of the road for advanced training (i.e. intervals, full intensity sprints). They are also good for longer rides because you do not have to worry so much about always being in perfect form... good or bad. Rollers take alot of attention and riding inside attention after about 60 minutes goes away and you fall.

Hmmm...
I've got my vote for rollers > trainers..
How often you gonna cruise in 100 rpm @ 53/11 on rollers for 3 hours?
Sides... all those precious balancing muscles stay intact during training inside vs. a trainer...
BUT.. If power is your main objective... trainer..

Good luck w/ your choice
-Peter

Well nashbar has those rollers for cheap, and I got a trainer for my birthday....its not very good..cheapo 100US thing but it gets the job done...should I worry bout my back tire?

If you're worried, pick up a crappy set of tires for the rollers and/or a cheap skewer for your rear wheel if you're getting a trainer. I still have the stock Hutchinsons that came with my R700 before I swapped out for the Michelin Pro Race 2's I have on now and will be using those over the winter.

I just scored a deal on a pair of Kreitler DynoLytes with 3" drums that I can't wait to try.

Trust me, you are not going to be cruising in a 53-11 at 100 RPMs for 3 hours... the equivilant to that is pushing maybe a 53-15 or so for 3 hours, it is not like there is NO resistance... I can last about 30 seconds in a 53-11 on the rollers doing a spin up...

And it is possable to go anaerobic on rollers.

I got a trainer and I kinda like it... You can do climbing intervalz.. A big plus IMHO...

I did not like the trainer at all. It is in the basement with the crickets and they don't like it either. I will be doing research on rollers, however, I know the Krietlers are the best, I just can't afford them. :rolleyes:

Trainer.
I can crank up a tv show or a movie, get my exercise and
enjoy the show. I am going to try Spinervals this winter. Their computer does watts, which is the latest trick in training.

http://www.kurtkinetic.com/roadmachine.php

is there any way to add resistance to rollers? like with stationary bikes, they have a felt or likewise material pad that presses up against the spinning steel disc in order to give it more friction. i don't have them yet but i've tried a friends, and thought of a way to provide a bit more resistance. i was thinking of taking a very small piece of carpet, like 2x6-8 inches, wrapping it around one of the rollers with a nylon belt, and attaching the other end to my bed frame. then, move the rollers away (the entire unit, obviously) until the belt is taught, and providing friction.

does this make sense? think of it like a belt drive wheel on an engine, but the belt it is supposed to spin does not spin with the wheel.

Kreitler makes a headwind unit for their rollers. I can tell you it's a damn good workout.

Excellent. my58 - you've helped me make my decision..
Rollers it is!

Some rollers offer resistance and therefore can give you a good workout but most don't come with this option. I only used rollers in the winter time to keep my legs ticking over and to keep good technique.

For an indoor power workout it's trainer's all the way, doing intervals etc. without having to worry about your line and simply focus on your workout.

Some rollers are also built with modular technology so you can change drums for higher resistance.

Do you know which manufacturers?

Kreitler :D

get a spinner

Cycle-ops alu have an optional resistance with 5 settings for the rollers. Does anyone have this I'm considering it for mine cost around $89 US for the part.

Large rollers (>= 4 inch diameter) give low resistance.
Small rollers (2.5 - 3.5 inches) give higher resistance.
The resistance is also highly dependent on tire pressure, low pressure = high resistance, high pressure = lower resistance.
These variables in cunjunction with your bike's gears give you a very wide range of resistances without an additional resistance unit.

I have a set of Kreitler Rollers with the killer head unit(fan) and it is a great work out. Much smoother than my old mag trainer. With the fan unit, you adjust the size of the air inlet to increase or decrease the resistance. There are also 3 pulleys that also change the fan speed. In addition the fan blows cooling air directly back onto your face as an added bonus. I have the fork mount for the days I do not want to worry about balancing on it or the wife wants to spin.

this has been dead for 4 years but its the first thing that came up when i googled trainers vs. rollers. my question is, will i be able to get my heart rate up and shed some pounds in the off season on rollers? like, i understand that theyre more for working on form and spinning, but is it a good workout?

My new rollers will be here Tuesday.