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Top ten reasons to enjoy riding inside


Road Runner

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Riding inside isn't so bad.  It can be boring but it has its advantages.

 

My own personal top ten reasons to enjoy riding inside:

 

1.  No cars and/or dogs trying to kill or maim you.  

2.  No chance of crashing for any reason, even your own stupidty (as I have done several times).  

3.  No stop signs, street lights or other traffic related crap to deal with.

4.  Ideal climate.

5.  TV or radio is available.

6.  Bathroom breaks are a breeze.

7.  Plenty of fluids and other refreshments are readily at hand.

8.  No chance of dangerous objects, obscene gestures and/or obscene language being hurled at you.

9.  No need to wear a helmet or any other apparel except bike shorts and shoes.

10.  You can ride at any time of the day or night.

 

I generally ride inside from mid-December until mid-March.

  

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I take exception to #2. I crashed on my rollers three times, the worst in February of this year. I injured my left knee and was off the bike for a month. I am now afraid to get back on the rollers and will build several bars around it before I attempt them again. For now I am using the regular trainer.

Whatever possessed you to ride on rollers?  Did some slick LBS guy sell you on that idea?  Stick with the trainer and sell your rollers on ebay.  Problem solved.  

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When I did ride them I felt more like I was riding a bike. I had to pay attention and use balance. I think the attention past is what got me the third time. I fell so hard it was like someone pushed me off. I think I swerved too hard to the side.


I will ride them again, but not sure when.

You've fallen three times and you plan to ride them again?  Why?  Just because you want the practice of balancing a bike?  You have all the rest of the year outdoors for that. Riding on a trainer allows you to concentrate on your cadence and total power output.  This is of more importance than just being able to balance a bike on rollers and is 100 times safer.  

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1.  No cars and/or dogs trying to kill or maim you.  

2.  No chance of crashing for any reason, even your own stupidty (as I have done several times).  

3.  No stop signs, street lights or other traffic related crap to deal with.

4.  Ideal climate.

5.  TV or radio is available.

6.  Bathroom breaks are a breeze.

7.  Plenty of fluids and other refreshments are readily at hand.

8.  No chance of dangerous objects, obscene gestures and/or obscene language being hurled at you.

9.  No need to wear a helmet or any other apparel except bike shorts and shoes.

10.  You can ride at any time of the day or night.

 

 

#1 My dog barks at me… she hates the sound of my tire spinning on my rollers.

#2 I have fallen off the rollers before.. it hurts

#4 yes it is warm, but I like it a little cooler when I ride. Fans are nice!

#6 It is harder to piss in a bottle as you spin your tires then to piss anywhere on the side of the road :) (NO PISSING ON THE FLOORS.. even the rules for the dogs)

#8 The wife always yells obscene language at me

#9 Naked is the way to ride ! :)

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Well, I spent a pile of money on them too. I don't want to be one of those losers who buys them for a thousand dollars and sells them for $50 in near new condition. In the training class I go to the coach rides them as do 2 - 3 of the people in the class. The coach kills he. He's riding (the whole 2 hours) talking, adjusting the music to his left, adjusting lights / fans on the wall behind him and doing the one leg drills. He has nothing to hold on to either except a cart on wheels to his left.

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 I think I swerved too hard to the side.


I will ride them again, but not sure when.

 

I've found the best way (for me) to ride rollers is never to 'steer' while riding them.  Steering is too gross (large) a movement for rollers.  When steering, or turning the handlebar, one needs to put into motion the arms, hands, handlebar, fork, wheel, and tire and move all of that mass precisely and quickly.  And then stop it e.x.a.c.t.l.y. to reposition the bike on the rollers - without overshooting.  I found that frustrating to ride rollers that way.

 

Instead, simply shift from side to side what weight you place on the bars, and do it by decreasing the pressure on one side or the other.  Or looking at it another way, by lifting up or pushing down with your hands. You don't need to shift much at all. The movement you make is much more subtle and you're putting far less mass into motion.  I find it's much faster to react by slightly shifting pressure on the handlebar than it is to try to gauge exactly how much I need to turn it.  Based on shifting weight, the bike will move left/right across the rollers in much smaller increments.  You can still take a header off the rollers, though.

 

Mastering rollers is worth the effort, on the assumption you don't maim yourself in the process.  They dramatically improved my form and bike handling skills.  Perhaps if you're unlike me and have considerable cycling skills and talent to start with then your improvement might not be so noticeable.

 

Here's a fun test:  Ride through a puddle on a road.  After clearing the puddle make your best effort to ride as smoothly and as straight as you can.  Then look back at the trail your tires left on the dry pavement between you and the puddle.  I confess the trail I leave still wobbles some, but not nearly as much as others I ride with who don't take advantage of riding rollers.

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I take exception to #2. I crashed on my rollers three times, the worst in February of this year. I injured my left knee and was off the bike for a month. I am now afraid to get back on the rollers and will build several bars around it before I attempt them again. For now I am using the regular trainer.

 

Fer shure!  I put my rollers in a doorway in the basement. If/WHEN I fall, I have the opportunity to catch myself by throwing out an arm to the short wall space in the doorway. Generally works ok. But the wall is concrete, and I smashed my wrist on the corner once. Later that day I noticed a nice lump on my wrist. Not too bad, but still .....

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Mastering rollers is worth the effort, on the assumption you don't maim yourself in the process.  They dramatically improved my form and bike handling skills.  Perhaps if you're unlike me and have considerable cycling skills and talent to start with then your improvement might not be so noticeable.

 

 

Ha!! Definite possibility of maiming oneself!!  But very true about improving bike handling skills. I noticed a big difference this summer after hitting the rollers (not too much) during the winter months.

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Well, I spent a pile of money on them too. I don't want to be one of those losers who buys them for a thousand dollars and sells them for $50 in near new condition. In the training class I go to the coach rides them as do 2 - 3 of the people in the class. The coach kills he. He's riding (the whole 2 hours) talking, adjusting the music to his left, adjusting lights / fans on the wall behind him and doing the one leg drills. He has nothing to hold on to either except a cart on wheels to his left.

 

Coach sucks.   :P

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#2 I have fallen off the rollers before.. it hurts

#9 Naked is the way to ride ! :)

in regard to #2, you suck. JK, I would never attempt to ride rollers for that reason.

in regard to #9, abso-freaking-lutely. Which begs the question, why isn't there naked spinning. There's naked yoga.

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