I just wanted to see if this was as great as all the internet forums said it would be. It wasn't going to be a hard workout, just enough to maintain a shred of consistency and see how this trainer handled.
My only other experience with a bike trainer is a basic Giant magnetic trainer I bought three years ago and died on me in March. Well....it's not entirely dead because it still works but it's so dang loud now that it drives me nuts.
So, first impressions:
1. WOW! It's QUIET! Sounds like a little hiss coming from the tires. Very nice.
2. It's smooth. Not that the other trainer was jerky or anything "not smooth," it's just that this one feels smooth.
3. I won't be able to "beat" this trainer. On the old magnetic trainer, I had cranked down the tension as much as possible with the tension clicked as high as possible, and I could still spin-out on the highest gear when I tried hard enough (and I'm a very average to below average bicyclist). I tried spinning out on the Kurt Kinetic fluid trainer in a big but not the biggest gear, and I laughed at myself! Yeah, that won't be happening anytime soon. And I doubt I'll ever need to buy the extra Kurt Kinetic 12-Pound Pro Flywheel
to get some extra resistance. 4. And because of that above experience, I now understand the progressive resistance. I had read about it and understood in a logical, thinking manner what it was, but I couldn't picture or internally sense what it was. Once I got on and tried cranking up the RPM in a high gear, that internal sense was crystal clear about what progressive resistance is (and I like it!).
5. I'm loving the life-time warranty. Having just killed a bike trainer and feeling like I got screwed because it lasted only three years, the lifetime warranty is very important to me.
6. Quite easy to get the bike on and off the trainer. For some reason, it was such a hassle to get the bike on and off the old trainer, taking literally at least a minute and maybe closer to two minutes to line everything up. On this Kurt Kinetic, it lines up and clamps-in in a about fifteen seconds, probably closer to ten if I timed it. It really is that smooth and fast.
7. I think I'm going to get the Kinetic Power Computer *Wired
computer to train with power. For $50-$70, it's definitely the poor man's power meter. And it doesn't even really measure the power...it calculates it based on math formulas for an "average rider," according to the web site. As long as it is a consistent reading, I can live with that because it doesn't read power correctly when off the trainer. I just need it for an objective data point to see if I'm improving and to use some of the training-with-power-principles during the winter. I won't be needing the version that comes with a heart rate monitor and is wireless....Kinetic Power Computer *Wireless Analog
.8. The free Spinnervals DVD that comes with purchase? I already have it. Bummer. I was hoping for one of the TT training videos but got the 27.0 Threshhold and Suffer Fest.
I can't compare this to a CycleOps equivalent trainer, which was the competition when I was looking around for this new trainer, because I still haven't ridden a CycleOps. I went with the Kurt Kinetic because of the gut feel and the only thing that CycleOps was clearly better on was the ability to maintain consistency of the tire resistance by way of a snap-in piece instead of a manual crank. I figured I can just count the number of cranks each time I take the bike off and then tighten it that many cranks when it goes back on.
Pretty sure I'll be liking this purchase for many years. It's as rock solid durable as one could imagine.
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