Let's talk trainers!

[Karma007]

Hay ladies! Haven't been about much- we bought a house! It was a Short Sale, and took 6 months of nail biting and a Hail Mary at the end. The GOOD news is, the extra space is wonderful, and leaves me with room for some new toys. I'm debating between an exercise bike or a trainer. (I have rollers already, but want something a little different).

I'm interested in a trainer, but am a little confused about the ease of use. Do you have to change out your rear wheel every time you use it? Is it a total inconvenience? Often my decision to ride in vs out is made minutes before i leave the house or stay in, so I'm wondering how complicated the whole thing is.

[LivetoRide]

I just leave my regular real wheel on my bike (stock wheelset) but my friends who have upgraded wheelsets will swap their rear wheel back to the stock wheel or another designated "trainer wheel" for riding inside. They usually swap back to their other wheel if they're able to ride the road bikes outside in the winter at all but that's their choice.

I do put an old tire on my bike for riding inside and then just leave it on for the entire winter.

[Becky]

I'm a wheel swapper, mostly because I'm lazy and don't want to change tires.

I like the look of the Lemond Direct drive trainers- no wheel or tire to mess with. However, I have no idea how expensive they are....