Living in Wisconsin, biking outdoors during the winter months is essentially impossible. I say essentially, because I do know a few cycling enthusiasts (pronounced "crackpots") who bike year round. Two concerns come to mind, from my perspective. Warmth and safety. Some drivers seem quite incapable of avoiding cyclists in the best of conditions. I'd rather not put their skills to the test on icy roads during a snowstorm. Having my body and bike leveled by a car would be counterproductive to Ironman training.
So, it was off to the LBS, today. By way of the barber shop. Since my regular barber is putting in fewer hours (pronounced "getting old"), I'm unable to make consistent visits. That means submitting myself to the less desirable ministrations of the "chain" hair cuttery. Today's decision was made by the relative proximity of that shop to a sporting goods store that carries bike equipment.
That store did have the CycleOps Mag+ trainer I was seeking, and getting it there would save me a trip to my main LBS. Only two issues. First, no accessories, and my wife wanted the adaptor for other bikes. Second, no discount. While I was unsure if the other store would give a discount, I at least wanted to find the other components needed.
A quick trip over to my main source for all things bike, and a bit of help proved very beneficial. First, they discussed the bikes we would be using on the trainer, and determined we wouldn't need any extra components. They also had the supports for the front wheel, and assembled the trainer at no cost. And they DID apply a discount (for my tri club). That resulted in the total cost of the trainer, assembly, and wheel support being less than the cost of the actual trainer. And to top it off, CycleOps has been throwing a CTS time trial power intervals DVD in with each trainer.
I am now READY for winter. Mrs. Pol is excited, and I heard the words any cycling enthusiast loves to hear. "Why don't we just store the bikes in the basement." Nirvana.
Well, there's a trainer sitting next to me, and a bike just begging to test it out...
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4 comments:
Sweet deal!!!
Good stuff. My only suggestion, never get caught doing a simple ride of spinning for over a long duration. Boredom barely describes it, so try to have a plan to mix it up a bit with your gears and resistance level (if it has it). The DVD's are great, I even went to the extent of writing up some Flash programs that run off my laptop to help in this regard.
nice work!!!
and. duuuuuude. i'm getting a trainer here in about a month or so as well. i don't know how they work though.. i barely know what the ARE, so... i'm sure my LBS visit will go much less smoothly, but..
cyber high five buddy. trainers = you get to feel all biker dorkish.
and in our world... thats a *good* thing!
IronPol,
Trainer will be your best friend in wintertime.
One note. Make sure u put a carpet/towel under your bike. You will sweat a lot on the trainer. I even put a towel on my bike top tube so the sweat won't destroy the bike.
Second note. Make sure u have a lot of good movies/videos u wanna watch. That's when I catch up on shows I don't see when i train outodoor.
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