1 i would not compare, but VP seems super off… i mean really very off… how am I supposed to find my zones? ftp test?
2 ok, will do
3 how can i put smooth tires on a cyclocross? are there even such tires?
1 i would not compare, but VP seems super off… i mean really very off… how am I supposed to find my zones? ftp test?
2 ok, will do
3 how can i put smooth tires on a cyclocross? are there even such tires?
You are using a tire that is most likely very different from whatever TR used to create the Virtual Power curve for the rollers. They probably use a 25-28mm slick road tire. Your tire has way more rubber and is likely wider, all of which will make a noticeable difference in rolling resistance, that is super important for Virtual Power. You’ve changed the most influential variable in a big way. I’d never expect that tire to be lose at all to what they used.
Your bike has 700c wheels. It will accept a wide range of road tire sizes and such. You have to decide if swapping tires makes sense for your needs and timing of having the bike on the rollers vs riding outside. Always compromise unless you can have a dedicated indoor or smooth tire bike.
i have 28-622 28x1.10 700x28c tires. what would you recommend?
700 x 28 and cheap if you want something that still is good for use outside and on the rollers. There are many options, but here are just a few to give you an idea.
very well, thanks.
1 I ordered new, smooth tires
2 I will do an ftp test once i have received the tires
3 will I then be really able to do all the workouts on TR the way I was used to do on my Kickr (except ERG)?
I am not sure how I will hold up to an actual TR workout looking at all the sweat I have already produced in barely 10min on the roller… on resistance level 1… i still dont get how this could exhaust me that much as I am used to some strain actually.
I am using the Nero rollers for my indoor workouts and love it. The power that it reads is not accurate though as well. I pair up my bike PM (Assioma Duo) and ride in resistance mode for the most part but you can ride ERG and have the program read off the pedals and adjust at the rollers to ensure proper power. The benefits of rollers is worth it.
I always found that virtual power using the speed sensor to be extremely limited and inaccurate. I got the Misuro B+ and used it to feed information to My E Trainer and other software and it was fair but not totally accurate. Then I went the Assioma route before I got the Nero. Power was more accurate in software. Also, Nero is very close but not as steady on the read-outs possibly due to smoothing or setting.
Also, until you get used to rollers, I think the anxiety has something to do with the effort it takes as well. I would get exhausted because I was trying too hard. When I relaxed and started riding smoother I was able to generate the power and effort I was trying to achieve as a normal ride. Not so much the first week though.
New tyres will make a huge difference, don’t forget to enter the correct wheel circumference in Trainerroad, not sure, but that may have had something to do with your power being off.
This will help…BikeCalc.com - How to calculate Bicycle Wheel Size
Also, don’t dismiss virtual power, once you have an estimate of your virtual FTP all your workouts will have the same benefit as using a power meter. ie. they will still hurt!
You never know…
I’m not sure, but it sounds like your expectations are a bit high.
Rollers are great as long as you know the limitations. They have a high rolling resistance, so even at the lowest setting, you will be climbing a 1-2% grade. That’s why you are over-exerting and also why the rollers can’t coast like your kickr does. Smooth, high pressure tires help, but are still not a full solution. You can also choose an easier gear for the recovery segments of your workout, but the lower you go the less stable the rollers become. At a minimum, you’ll be working the gears to get a decent wattage range, and power meter is about the only way to get accurate wattage from a manual roller.
With practice, you can do a lot on rollers, but until you become more proficient on them, you may miss riding your Kickr
It’s all a matter of perspective. One of the things I love about rollers is ease of use. I can grab any one of my road bikes and jump on the rollers without messing with wheels. I’m not a huge believer in the riding skills aspect, I’d call it a minor benefit unless you spend very little time outside. The real reason I love training on rollers (10+ years) is that I just like riding my bike and I don’t get that same sensation on a trainer.
Full agreement!!!
Tangential, but I find it much easier to warm-up for races on rollers. Compact Krietlers take up less space in car than a trainer. But the big benefit is I set up the bike, check tire pressures, zero the PM and then just warm up. No fiddling with rear wheels.
For time trials running expensive tires, you don’t want to wear them out on a wheel-on trainer. Depending on drop out design, a wheel-off unit or changing wheels to use a wheel-on trainer can be fiddly. I also want to warm up and get to the line asap not stop and fart around with kit.
Rollers pretty much rule the world when you give it full consideration (ducking - LOL)
RE the Tacx video…
If you look closely at the position of the rollers on the tiled floor, it seems that it is closer to the glass door for the mount and dismount, but in the middle of the video between :14 and :19 seconds the rollers are a few inches further away from the door.
So… yeah, real. But also not real. A bit staged it seems.
sorry folks, somehow I dont get it right.
I am quite ok in balancing already, wow would not have believed it: one hand, hands free, drinking… it is ok.
But:
I tried a ramp test just out of curiosity, put the Quick Motion first on Resistance Level 1… could not get any Virtual Watts at all out of it… then on Resistance Level 2…
but after 7 min in I am totally wrecked… I am barely able to push the Virtual Power beyond 100 Watts, not to talk about even reaching the targets I am supposed to reach… 150… 160…
On my Kickr I have an ftp of 240… and last mostly far close to the 25 min mark…
On the roller? no chance? I am sweating and draining, pulse 150+ already couple of minutes in.
I checked the wheel circumfence, put some air in the tires… what do I do wrong?!
Make sure are using the same (or TR specific) settings between the app and rollers. A mismatch will lead to greater differences in VP.
thanks - i took care of that.
so…how come?
I switched my bike back to the kickr… easily 150-190W at 130-140bpm… quiet, no noise.
The first three minutes are on the QM rollers
thereafter on the Kickr.
The kickr feels super easy compared to the stress and sweat I experienced on the QM
What is wrong? is it the QM? faulty?
Personally, I would not even mess with virtual power. A friend trains with TR using virtual power and his FTP is like 130 watts.
He was very happy when I told him that we were putting out 130 watts just soft pedaling on a group ride and that his real FTP should be north of 200 watts.
If you wanted to do rollers I would think about getting a real power meter. You can use it as well with a Kickr and get better accuracy and consistency.
true… i did not habe high hopes in VP anyway… even these habe been disappointed
I am still wondering how is it possible then that even on low gear with resistance Level 1 on the Rollers I am draining and barely able to get the wheels moving?
And: they are so loud… ok, it might be my tires but riding a CX I dont really want to put slicks on.
It’s because your VP number is too low. When the ramp test starts, the first step is supposed to be easy, something like half your ftp (I don’t know exactly, but the start and the step sizes are calculated from your ftp). Because your ftp is 240W in TR, the test asks you to do eg 120W. But when the virtual power reads 120W, you might be doing 200W or whatever already. So the ramp test starts too hard and you can’t do more than a few minutes.
If you want to test with your current setup (and then retest with new tyres), manually set your ftp in TR to something low before the test, so it starts easy. Afterwards, you should have a somewhat ‘correct’ VP ftp for your current setup.