Want to enter the world of indoor training or upgrade your current set-up? We test eight options for a range of budgets…
WORDS JACK SEXTY
BUYER’S GUIDE
For many triathletes, a turbo trainer is essential. Sophisticated trainers allow us to do efficient sessions out of the cold and away from traffic, with training apps like Zwift making time pass and fitness increase without getting bored. When choosing yours, it’s important to consider goals, budget and your set-up. If you only dabble in the great indoors, aren’t particularly competitive and don’t have a dedicated training space, consider budget smart trainers to track power numbers reasonably accurately, or a ‘dumb’ trainer that just provides resistance. You could get started for under £300, and considerably less if you choose the latter.
Spend £1,000 or more on a latest generation smart trainer, and it’ll be highly accurate, calibrate itself, and may even move for an even more realistic experience. Deluxe trainers are heavy, though, so are best for those with a permanent ‘pain cave’.
7Here’s a selection of the best trainers, with options to suit all budgets.
WAHOO KICKR MOVE
£1,399.99 Wahoo’s newest smart trainer is essentially a Kickr on rails. For your extra £300 you get a new base providing 20cm of fore-aft motion, which Wahoo claims is ‘a more realistic riding experience than ever before’. It also provides some lateral movement, although some of this is via Wahoo’s ‘AXIS feet’, which come in two sizes depending on your weight. Speaking of weight, the extra gubbins make the Kickr Move a hefty 29kg. You’ll need a dedicated training space, ideally on the ground floor, and even with the ergonomic handle it’s a beast to carry.
In terms of specification and features, everything else on the Move is the same as Wahoo’s excellent Kickr: virtually silent operation, built-in Wi-Fi for faster connection, +/-1% power accuracy, 2,200 watts max power output and 20% max gradient simulation are some of the highlights. If your love for Wahoo products (and bank balance) extends further, you can accessorise with the Kickr Climb (£529.99) for real-time gradient simulation, and the Kickr Headwind smart fan (£229.99) for blasts of air to match your effort. It’s an impressive ecosystem.
Once in position, setting up is easy as you just need to fold out the legs and fit the Axis feet. An 11-speed cassette comes pre-installed, which can be swapped out, and there are adaptors to fit most bikes. There’s very little
