Computrainer - thoughts & experiences

[yakstone]

I am considering picking up a computrainer but before kicking down the cash I wanted to check in with those of you that have gone this route for winter / indoor training.
Thanks,
Dave

[PoppaWheelie]

I like mine, but not as much as riding outside.

Works well, the Erg videos are great. Using the ergometer makes it possible to get an ok workout while watching TV since you can't really slack off.

If you get one and don't have a dedicated trainer bike, get a head unit stand (Racermate sells one...just a mic stand with a fitting at the top) so you can keep all the wiring separate from the bike. Set up this way I can have my bike on/off the trainer in under 5 minutes.

I haven't updated my software in years, so I can't comment on the new batch of HD Erg videos or any of the recent RaceMate updates. FWIW I HATE the RacerMate "race the little digital man" thing....it makes me dizzy. The old software runs well and is very stable. I haven't had issues with the power unit overheating, but then again I don't do the big climb workouts...I tend to use it for base (ErgVideos) or intervals (ergometer mode).

[OTB]

It is good for an indoor trainer, but I'm preferring to ride outside these days. I like the ergometer mode, and in computrainer mode, there are a lot of routes you can download to keep it interesting. Can sell you mine if you want.

[dekindy]

I used a Computrainer at a studio this Fall. Only used it as a power meter in conjunction with a structured workout plan. Did not experience videos although I did do one course for about 30 minutes and was impressed with the resistance changes corresponding to the profile on the screen. All the advantages of training with power, solid hardware and software that has the longest track record by far. But is not cutting edge even with recent software upgrades and will rapidly get further behind companies with excellent reputations are bringing new products to market.

I have been researching this extensively and although it is not out yet, the Wahoo Kickr appears to be the virtual reality trainer of the future. Remove the rear wheel so you do not have the rear wheel issue and the trainer is open source so third parties will be able to actually develop applications and directly control the trainer. TrainerRoad.com has been working with Kickr for the last year so will have third party applications right of the gate and others should follow as soon as the trainer gains popularity. Also appears to be less expensive. Due out soon.

DCRainMaker.com is the authority on reviewing these products and has very thorough, detailed and voluminous reviews on his site. I would review his material thoroughly before making a decision.

[gavingould]

have spent time on them at training facilities, doing both structured workouts and courses with several other users all at once. have no experience with the videos...

for me, training at home, i wouldn't get one. the functionality isn't all that much more than my current trainer + Quarq/HRM and an interval timer. seems like a pretty locked down system too as far as software and the like, i'm not sure how difficult or possible it would be to make your own courses from say a GPS file of a ride or race.

what i am interested in though is the upcoming Kickr from Wahoo Fitness (http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2012/08/first-look-at-wahoo-fitness-kickr.html), which apparently are still a few weeks out from release.
^above poster beat me to it... but piggybacking on that, let's say you follow a pro rider on Strava - you could virtually 'do' the same ride they did.
supposedly retail $995 US.

[gone]

I live in the frozen north (Wisconsin) and riding outside in -20 isn't my idea of a good time. I have a Computrainer, a set of Inside Ride rollers and a Kurt Kinetic. Over the course of a winter in this godforsakenwasteland, I use them all. Plus, I ride outside whenever I can (single digit is my limit).

What I like about the CT as compared to the others:

The spinscan. I try to use the winter to focus on my pedal stroke and between spinscan rides on the CT and riding on the rollers I usually exit the winter with a better, more even stroke than I had when I started.
The data. It'll make you crazy with watts, heart rate, spinscan data, etc. If you're at all anal(ytic) you can feed your inner geek until you go crazy.
A great way to do structured workouts. Want to do interval progressions at 200 watts, 250 watts, 300 watts, 350 watts, etc., until you puke? No problem.
The real course videos are actually pretty decent. I have IM Wisconsin and my wife and I were driving back from Illinois and decided to take some secondary roads. We were driving along and I said "I've been here before". Turns out I'd never actually been there - it was just on the IM Wisconsin route and I'd "ridden" it before.

The downsides? It's silly expensive. If you're thinking it'll turn riding inside into a joy you're being delusional though it does give you something else to focus on besides how miserable you are.

I'm glad I have it. If I didn't I'd probably buy it again. Variety is the spice of life and anything that changes things up in the winter is a plus in my book. Worth it? You decide.

[dekindy]

Up to date information is that Wahoo Kickr is 6 weeks from landing but if I understand correctly they will begin taking preorders in 2 weeks after they are loaded on the boat.

[scrubadub]

Seems like Computrainers are pretty bomb-proof, although I had problems keeping the one I was using (someone else's) properly calibrated. But given the company's slow rate of development, I think they are about to lose the market to the Wahoo Kickr. I'm pretty sure my next trainer will the Wahoo - I like their open approach and suspect it will win out.

If nothing else, wait until the Wahoo unit comes out and used Computrainers start popping up.

[shovelhd]

I have used them in training sessions with others and when I was fitted. If you have a power meter, that part is redundant, although the CT will do left/right power and your power meter may not. The erg function is what makes it stand apart from any other trainer that you can use your own bicycle on. All fluid trainers force you to keep the power on at tempo and above, but the CT erg function actually "kicks" you to not slack off. How much value that is for training is debatable.

I do structured training to a plan, so TrainerRoad and Kickr aren't of any value to me.

[djg21]

I am considering picking up a computrainer but before kicking down the cash I wanted to check in with those of you that have gone this route for winter / indoor training.
Thanks,
Dave

Love mine. I've been using the RM1 software for about a year as a beta tester, and it is slick. I primarily use a real course video - the Lake Placid course - or Ergvideos. The 3d is good too, and the smart pacers are cool.

You likely won't have a problem, but make sure your video card and PC are adequate. Go to the computrainer forum and you should find out pretty quickly.

Once you get it, build a stand for it like this:
http://www.computrainer.com/dnloads/raceplatform.pdf

The stand really stabilizes the Computrainer, and having the controller unit off the bars makes it easy to swap bikes on and off the trainer.

The only problem I encountered is now my wife wants one!

[djg21]

Seems like Computrainers are pretty bomb-proof, although I had problems keeping the one I was using (someone else's) properly calibrated. But given the company's slow rate of development, I think they are about to lose the market to the Wahoo Kickr. I'm pretty sure my next trainer will the Wahoo - I like their open approach and suspect it will win out.

If nothing else, wait until the Wahoo unit comes out and used Computrainers start popping up.

Keep the CT resistance unit powered all the time. Once you have set the press-on force and calibrated, just pump up your tires to the same pressure for each ride. This will be pretty close and you needn't worry about recalibrating when you get back on your bike. You then can recalibrate during the course of your ride when everything is very warm. Of course, this presumes you have a dedicated trainer bike or leave your bike on the trainer.

[gavingould]

not sure how the Computrainer does L/R power since torque/watts is measured at the wheel - must be estimated with the spinscan function thingy? never used that either in my training sessions.

i usually do fairly structured workouts currently, but as i've only got a normal trainer, it's all manual (and i am free to slack off)
the option to do courses would break up the monotony and encourage me to spend more time on the thing, and work harder.

[happycampyer]

not sure how the Computrainer does L/R power since torque/watts is measured at the wheel - must be estimated with the spinscan function thingy? never used that either in my training sessions.It knows which crankarm is under force because the cadence sensor is one one side. That's also how it knows which side is which for the spinscan.

I tend to use the coaching software more than the "3D" courses (with interval workouts that can be created in notepad), and will watch videos or the morning news as a means of distraction.

[shovelhd]

I may have misstated, re: L/R power. What I remember it doing was power balance in percentage, i.e. L 49% R 51%. I don't remember if it showed actual left and right watts.

[scrubadub]

Keep the CT resistance unit powered all the time. Once you have set the press-on force and calibrated, just pump up your tires to the same pressure for each ride. This will be pretty close and you needn't worry about recalibrating when you get back on your bike. You then can recalibrate during the course of your ride when everything is very warm. Of course, this presumes you have a dedicated trainer bike or leave your bike on the trainer.

Good tip, although I was using this at a studio so this wasn't an option. I wouldn't have cared since I had a powermeter on the bike already but it was penalizing me in the races against the other people in the studio :mad:

[djg21]

Good tip, although I was using this at a studio so this wasn't an option. I wouldn't have cared since I had a powermeter on the bike already but it was penalizing me in the races against the other people in the studio :mad:

I have an old wired powertap on my trainer bike. I find the power readings of the powertap and the Computrainer are often divergent. The Computrainer most frequently reports a higher number. I don't really care -- the PT is coming off my trainer bike, and I will rely entirely on the CT. When I get outside, I'll retest on my wireless PT to get a new baseline.

One thing I've noticed with the Ergvideos is that I have to set my Threshold much lower to get good intervals. The Ergvideo stuff works in "Erg Mode." In other words, it sets the resistance in wattage at the wheel. If I set it up at what my threshold tests outside, I get bogged down during my trainer intervals, spinning at less than 80 RPM. If I set it below my threshold 20-30 watts lower, I can ride at 90+ RPM and put out power greater than that at which my threshold is set. This is especially true when doing long intervals.

The Ergvideos are really good!

[malcolm]

Computrainer with erg video is the best indoor trainer I've ever used period

[dekindy]

Leaving the unit turned on would not assure calibration unless you verify tire pressure every time you ride and to do that you are going to have to release tension on the resistance unit.

I found that if I had 100 psi pressure and turned the tensioning knob 1.25 turns calibration was very consistent and did not require me to dismount and adjust tension. After a couple of sessions it should be easy to determine what works for your particular combination. At least that was my experience and this worked for several units at the studio.

[Tom]

Kickr looks great but being able to create courses from DeLorme topo software for the Computrainer is what will push me in that direction eventually unless Kickr figures out that not everybody uses Strava, Garmin or GoPro.

[gavingould]

i guess we'll see who wins out, an open system with the possibility of many players providing different functionality, or the closed system with slow careful development. there's certainly room for both. plus Tacx as a weirdo third option for computerized training. it's like Apple/Microsoft/Linux, something for everyone.

will be very interesting to see what apps and functionality will truly be available for Kickr when the product is in consumers' hands. the demo stuff from Eurobike looked cool, but who knows how fully baked it is.

[djg21]

Leaving the unit turned on would not assure calibration unless you verify tire pressure every time you ride and to do that you are going to have to release tension on the resistance unit.

I found that if I had 100 psi pressure and turned the tensioning knob 1.25 turns calibration was very consistent and did not require me to dismount and adjust tension. After a couple of sessions it should be easy to determine what works for your particular combination. At least that was my experience and this worked for several units at the studio.

My calibration varies about 0.02 from day to day. I pumped my tire to 110lbs, set press on force and calibrated. Every day I get on the trainer, I pump tire to 110lbs. I recalibrate during the course of my ride, but I'm initially close. I've been doing this for a long time. I guess we're agreeing.

[54ny77]

They can be an expensive dust collector.

[roydyates]

I like mine, but not as much as riding outside...


+1 exactly

Last winter, I put the tandem on the trainer and rode with my wife. It may sound goofy but it worked fine. She liked it better than riding the tandem outside.

[tpalmer]

will be very interesting to see what apps and functionality will truly be available for Kickr when the product is in consumers' hands. the demo stuff from Eurobike looked cool, but who knows how fully baked it is.

The Wahoo Kickr (http://www.wahoofitness.com/KICKRPowerTrainer) is shipping and is pretty damn awesome. Lots of software support coming and there's some good stuff out there already.