Rollers,any tips as they stupid hard to use.

elderone
elderone Posts: 1,410
edited May 2013 in Road beginners
I got some rollers today (monday) and after setting them up had a quick go and although I didn,t produce a you been framed vid scenario,I couldn,t use them without hanging onto the side.They just want to throw you on your aRse at the slightest sniff of wobble.
So any tips for getting used to them or actually having both hands on the bars be a start. :shock:
Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori

Comments

  • danlikesbikes
    danlikesbikes Posts: 3,898
    They do get easier honestly, try not to look at the wheel but eyes forward as if your on the road & think about trying to pedal as smooth as you can.

    As for getting used to them no easy way other than practice but you will soon find after a couple of sessions you feel a lot more comfortable on them.
    Pain hurts much less if its topped off with beating your mates to top of a climb.
  • TheHound
    TheHound Posts: 284
    Practice makes perfect as with everything else.

    Hold onto something to start with and slowly take your hand off. Try not to make any sudden jerky movements. Everything you do needs to be smooth and considered. I also find it easier to pedal in a harder gear. If the pedals are just spinning you bounce all over.

    And get yourself a fan.
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  • Tom Dean
    Tom Dean Posts: 1,723
    Make sure they are set up correctly according to your bike's wheelbase, it makes a huge difference to the handling.
  • team47b
    team47b Posts: 6,424
    get a front wheel replacement T bar? :D
    my isetta is a 300cc bike
  • ashleydwsmith
    ashleydwsmith Posts: 693
    So glad you posted this, I bought some tacx ones and tried using and my god they are evil.

    Keep looking at the front wheel to make sure its in the roller width.
  • smidsy
    smidsy Posts: 5,273
    Set up in a hall or doorway (so you can reach both sides). Use this to steady yourself and gradually take you hands off (1 at a time) and onto the bars.

    Look ahead (not down) and pick a point to focus on (to help keep you straight/vertical).

    You will be changing gear and all sorts in no time.
    Yellow is the new Black.
  • elderone
    elderone Posts: 1,410
    thanks chaps,will have another go tonight.It is all set up fine and I dont really want a Tbar as I may as well stay with the turbo.Door way sounds better than a kitchen side so will try that.
    There is a totty on utube on rollers making an omlette and makes it look so easy.The rollers not the egg based food btw.
    Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori
  • logitech208
    logitech208 Posts: 167
    Took me a good few goes before I could let go of the door frame, only had one big crash where I flew off the side, I got to confident and tried watching TV at the same time. :D

    Can now ride them no problem can happily reach down and remove bottle and drink from it and go no handed, I found the key to riding them is speed don't try and go slow the faster you go the more stable you will become.

    You will get really hot on them so a large fan and open window is a must.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    elderone wrote:
    thanks chaps,will have another go tonight.It is all set up fine and I dont really want a Tbar as I may as well stay with the turbo.Door way sounds better than a kitchen side so will try that.
    There is a totty on utube on rollers making an omlette and makes it look so easy.The rollers not the egg based food btw.

    Disappointing video that one. Playback's speeded up for most of it, and the pan's nowhere near hot enough to cook a decent omelette. She's got it on the hob for 10 minutes.
  • johnboy183
    johnboy183 Posts: 832
    Sorry but I'm showing off. Well no perhaps not me but my 6 yr old is

    http://youtu.be/b6d8WjGAHWY

    Promise you he was doing this after only 30 seconds. He is far more accomplished now including standing up pedalling and then coasting to a halt before starting again. I hate him and his skills! :mrgreen::cry:
  • elderone
    elderone Posts: 1,410
    Nice little vid,im off to get the grand childs little bike,obviously need to start small lol.

    Keel66,hardly noticed her cooking tbh.
    Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori
  • denniskwok
    denniskwok Posts: 339
    I bought some rollers for Christmas and within 5mins I was away and running, with minimal wobbles. One good tip so far is the one saying to go faster, as the faster you go, the bigger the stabilising gyroscopic effect of your wheels. Use of a doorway or a chair either side of you is also good advice.

    One good tip I found when starting out, was to try and keep your weight towards the rear of the bike and off the bars as much as you can. Do this by slightly arching your back as though you want to stick your bum out and imagine you're rotating your hips forwards. It worked for me.

    Stick with the rollers, as they teach you how to pedal much smoother and more efficiently.
  • rgliniany
    rgliniany Posts: 753
    the best tip i was told when starting out on the rollers was this.............

    hold your handlebars as close to the stem as possible.....the wider you have your hands on the bars the easier it is to twist the wheel on the rollers.... worked for me to get the feel of the floating sensation and understand the limits i could move the bars to...... 5 minutes in i was on the hoods..... thankyou unknown tipster from one of the hundreds of pages i read through :D

    have fun!!
    It's a boy , It's a boy , I Shouted Running Into The Street With Tears Running Down My Face.....

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  • tlw1
    tlw1 Posts: 21,831
    some good tips above, the one for me at the start was to have a step of some sort to get on & off.
  • johnboy183
    johnboy183 Posts: 832
    Aside from showing off with the vid, I posted it to show that riding rollers is mainly in the mind as far as I'm concerned. That is you ride on the road without giving any thought to falling off or wobbling. Riding the rollers is just a road made stationary. If you can get over the fear of falling or worse, damaging something in the kitchen, then after a couple of minutes riding they should be straight forward. Having said that it took me a while to feel reasonably confident on them. My boy on the other hand had wanted to ride them for ever but it was only when his bigger bike arrived, that he was able to do it. Yes he wobbled a few times as you can see, but very quickly he was riding for 30 mins at a time without coming off sideways. Yes I stood by to catch but that's was more about my worries for him and the furniture than him needing me there. So a touch of ignorance and a desire to do it helped him. Us adults want to do it but think too much about the consequences so are not as relaxed.
    As ever lots of good advice above especially with a step to help you get on and off. Just be aware though of your pedal catching the step and making you wobble.
  • Mindermast
    Mindermast Posts: 124
    I wonder why people keep trying rollers these days, might be the rain...

    After reading a similar thread in another forum, I tried mine again, getting much better now!

    I set it up next to a wall and noticed, that I can stand on the frame safely, which helps getting onto the bike. Then I used my right elbow against the wall for balance.

    One keyword for me was "relax!". During the first attempts, my arms and shoulders were extremely stiff and my hands tried to squeeze balance out of the handlebar. When I started to relax, it got much better and I could relax even more. After a while, I was able to change positions on the handlebar and switch gears, not using my elbow at all.

    Then I remembered, that it is fairly easy to stick to a very small path - white line or so - on the road and wondered why this was so much harder on the roller. So far, I was focussing on the handle bar or on the front roll. I switched to the carpet in front of the front wheel, just like riding on the road and it got easier again.

    I still have trouble during the first moments, but once I got rolling, it only takes a bit more concentration than riding on the road.

    By the way, all these horrible stories about running off the rollers, into the TV set or whatever, can't be true. I got off the roller at 60 Km/h and moved forward by as little as 5 cm.
  • skyd0g
    skyd0g Posts: 2,540
    DON'T grab a handful of brake if the doorbell rings, you'll be spat out backwards. Apparently. :shock:
    Cycling weakly