Turbo or Rollers

Paul057

I'm getting ready for winter (sorry if this is a depressing thread) and i'm looking to get some form of indoor trainer that i can use in the garage when the weather is poor outside. I'm hoping to enter my first race next year so i'm looking at doing a bit more focused training (intervals/sprints etc) over the winter.
Can anyone direct me as to the pro's and con's of rollers and a turbo? I have never used either, but i seem to remember reading somewhere (probably on here) that rollers improve your balance and don't need a different tyre for the back wheel. Is that right?

thecrofter

http://easycycling.com/?p=3716

I've no experience of either, but here's an item I read the other day. I suppose lots of people are having the same thoughts, with the onset of winter.

bilirubin

Hi Paul,

This subject has been done to death on here so if you use the seach facility you will find some useful gems to get you on your way.

I have never used rollers but I do use a turbo in the winter which is also in my garage. I use a Cycleops Jet Fluid Pro and its the nuts. Smooth, quiet and as near to riding on the road as I have ever experienced on a turbo.

If you go the Turbo route get yourself a dedicated turbo tyre fitted on the back as they last longer. I have a spare wheel with an identical cassette fitted so I just swap the rear wheel over depending on if I am going out or staying in on the turbo.

Last but not least treat yourself to a fan and a few DVDs from www.thesufferfest.com and you are good to go.

Monty Dog

Rollers are best if you want to work on your pedalling style, technique and cadence.
Turbo for developing your endurance threshold and high-intensity efforts. You can do sprints on rollers but it requires a greater degree of skill. Turbos are generally more flexible. My advice would be to go with something with both HR and power output readings e.g. Tacx Flow or latest model - you can wind the load right off if you want to high-cadence drills or wind it right up to simulate high-load or threshold efforts.

DavidJB

Or use a Garmin 500 on a turbo to get faux speed / cadence and HR

fluff.

Or a cheap wired computer to the back wheel, and whatever HR monitor is handy.

I'd borrow a set of rollers for a few days if you were thinking about going that route, some folks really can't get on with them and a £100+ is alot to throw at something you won't use.

Paul057

Thanks for the advice. It looks like i'll go for a turbo after reading the replies and having a look at that link. Now just to decide which one? Ideally i'm looking to spen less than £100 and i don't mind having second hand, but i definately need adjustable resistance