mountain bikes and Trainers

[ColleenT]

i am wondering if mountain bikes are ok with trainers. i would like to ride in the house, and my bike is sort of a MB/road bike. it has chunky tires. not smooth ones. will this be a problem with a trainer?

[madisongrrl]

You need to use a slick for your rear wheel.

[ColleenT]

ok... What's a slick?

[chickwhorips]

a slick tire is one that is compeletly smooth. it will be as wide as your normal mtb tire, but only without the "knobs".

i put my mtb on the trainer all the time in the winter. i haven't had any problems with it at all. the only thing is changing out the back tire to the slick one.

[ColleenT]

ok, thanks. i'll go to the Bike store and see if i can get one.

[velogirl]

Actually, you don't have to use slicks on a trainer. I use a standard cycleops fluid trainer to warm-up for both mtn bike and cyclocross races -- with my knobby tires -- and it works just fine. And if you ever go to a mtn bike race, you'll hear the buzz/whir of every rider there warming up on their trainer (with knobbies).

Slicks will be quieter, and some folks will say they give you a more consistent feel, but knobbies work just fine too.

BTW, there are certain styles of trainers made just for mtn bikes. They have a rim-driven flywheel. This eliminates the need to swap tires if you don't want to use knobbies on your regular trainer.