So I got a bike trainer for Christmas!
It’s a Giant Mag 2 trainer. It’s a weird experience. The resistance is adjustable but it doesn’t seem to go high enough for my liking. I do sweat after awhile but it doesn’t seem very hard. I guess the point is simply to spin with minimal resistance. This isn’t, as I had thought, a replacement for a spin class. The level of resistance is completely different. It also seems like I have to use a pretty high gear because the resistance at lower gears isn’t enough to keep the spin steady.
Overall, it’s better than riding in the rain but not as satisfying as a real ride or spin class. These contraptions are also expensive.
December 27, 2009 at 10:55 am
Merry Christmas to you and your family. Keep up the training and we can come up with a bike event. Thanks for all that you do for the city.
December 28, 2009 at 11:25 am
UPDATE: The thing isn’t as bad as I thought. I took it back to the bike shop and they have the same model setup there on a Specialized all carbon TT bike. I tried that setup and it kicked my butt so I brought my trainer in there with the same result. Turns out that there was an adjustment bolt that I thought was tight but it was mis-aligned. When I thought it was tight, it was simply bound on the threads. Whole different world now!
December 28, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Andy,
How much was the trainer? I am thinking about purchasing one.
-Kipp
December 28, 2009 at 1:37 pm
It’s this one: http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-US/partsaccessories/product/1293/30767/
If the link gets mangled, that translates to the the Giant Cyclotron Mag II trainer. It was right around $200. The fluid ones that are about $50+ more are supposed to have a smoother resistance that increases as speed increases. I find the mag trainer to be pretty smooth and the resistance is now at the point where I can wear myself out if I so desire…:)