Now that it is warming up in Michigan I want to take my long rides outside, but still do the rest of my TR rides on my trainer. My issues is I only have 1 set of rims/tires for my bike. It currently has a trainer tire as I have a Kinetic trainer.
My current plan is to take the trainer tire off Friday night and put the regular tire on for my Saturday morning long ride. Then take the regular tire off and put the trainer tire back on for my Monday workout.
Will I damage anything by repeatedly taking the tire on and off?
Nah you’ll be fine. I did this for a couple weeks while I only had one bike. It’s good practice for flats. Where you riding in Michigan? I’m always looking for new routes!
Being a local MI man myself, let me tell you there is an easier way that will save you a lot of hassle. Find the cheapest rim and cassette (used or new) and keep the trainer tire on that rim. This way it only takes a couple minutes to swap out the entire wheel instead of taking the tire on and off. Being in MI, one day might be great weather while the next is raining, snowing or whatever. Plus, mid week may be beautiful outside and you may want to jump outside for your z2/recovery ride. Swapping tires all the time is just another obstacle in your training schedule. I did this all last year with my MTB and my wheel on Kickr Snap. It works great. You’re going to start going mad if your’re constantly swapping out tires instead of just getting a quick workout in.
Using the outside tire inside is fine. I like to wipe mine down with a rag and some alcohol to remove any debris and dirt from the tire (and minimize risking damage to the roller on the trainer).
A spare wheel/tire/cassette is nice if you find some cheap stuff to keep it affordable.
Good points above. For a long time I used my outdoor tire in the indoor trainer with (mostly) no issues. If your outdoor tire is a race-ready supple/fragile/expensive tire I wouldn’t. Panaracer gravel king 32 has been on for over a year and I would still use it outside. I only use trainer pressure of 75 max, so that might have something to do with longevity. Extralight Compass tire, not as good. Fast tread wear, outdoor punctures (may be coincidental), and they cost 2x the Panaracers. Won’t do that again.
@flyinryan I am in GR, so 100% of my runs are on the kent county and white pine trails. For my long rides I basically get on the farm roads and head out towards holland.
I do not have expensive tires. I have the stock tires on them and I only paid ~$800 for my road bike, so I doubt the tires are worth much. I have a spare rim/cassette I was going to use from a parts bike and the cassette is all rust so I scrapped that idea this morning(it was a $200 walmart bike so not heart broken). I think I will just put my stock tire on the trainer for the summer and once it gets too harsh for outdoor riding in the fall I will put the trainer tire back on since it will be parked on the trainer for the next 4 - 5 months.