Trainers

[roadie gal]

I have the Kurt Kinetic fluid trainer, too. I agree with what everyone else has said. It's quiet and stable. Apparently they also have very good customer service if there is a problem.

My only complaint (and it's really my problem more than the trainer's) is that there isn't a tension adjustment on the trainer. With my old one I had it set so I could match Coach Troy's gearing. The Kurt is a bit harder than my dialed-down old one, so I have to down-gear from what Coach Troy suggests. It makes me feel like a weenie.

[Norse]

CycleOps Fluid trainer. Love it - good road simulation and it is very quiet. Also, excellent customer service.

I don't have any cyclo-core dvd's. A couple of CTS (Carmichael's) videos, which are pretty good, and a stable of the evil Coach Troy, which I love to hate and a couple of Bike-O-Visions with pretty CA scenery - I usually listen to my MP3 when using those.

I have never noticed any problem with my bike frame taking any abuse on the trainer, but I do have a rear wheel set-up that allows me to just change wheel instead of having to put on a beat-up slick every time I want to use it. I bought a used wheel that has the same rear cassette as my road bike, put a crappy old slick tire on it, and I just put that wheel on when the bike is on the trainer, sparing my lovely Conti Grand Prixs from the trainer and saving me the effort of swapping out tires every time.

[fidlfreek]

+1 for the CycleOps Fluid 2. Plus, you can get one off ebay (new, with a full warranty) for a little over $200.

http://www.thesufferfest.com/ has awesome real riding videos that put you in a crit or road race and then give you awesome instructions about accelerating, heart rate zone, etc.

Oh, and its free! And there are great links to other spinning resources (like audio podcasts of fast trance music etc)

[ZenSojourner]

I don't know what to think about the training tapes, I've typically never done that well with exercise videos and the like. Except for the original Buns of Steel tape, the rest of them looked more like dance choreography and even with the remote to stop and rewind I could never keep up with any of that. So I'm not sure how I would do with a BIKE exercise video, LOL!

Georgena Terry absolutely swears by the cyclo-core stuff but that's all I know about it.

I never thought I'd get a trainer, but I'm in a position where I really can't get out to ride much and I'm going to hell in a handbasket as a result. Maybe a trainer would help.

[wildeny]

I just bought CycleOps Fluid2 in April. I only tried it three times for now. It's true that riding on a trainer is quite boring, but this can help me in checking my riding position & pedaling etc and in trying some interval intensity training. Besides, it would be helpful during the raining season (coming soon).

[Crankin]

I've had the Kurt Kinetic Fluid Trainer for 3 years. It's a trainer, what can I say? It's pretty quiet, though.
I also have the Cyclo-Core program. I bought it 3 years ago, when my husband dropped his gym membership, so we decided to do it together in the winter, even though I still went to spin class. I found the weight training stuff very difficult and I am not in bad shape.I bought the intermediate level program. We lowered the weight levels to do it. The core stuff and yoga is challenging, but good. I use it all of the time, still, for when i don't want to go to the gym. What I didn't realize was the cycling part is NOT on the DVDs. It's just a written program of drills, etc. you follow. There is one yoga/spin class on DVD, but that's it. So, if you are looking for visual stimulation, this is not the program for you, unless it has changed.