I’d like to make my Kickr more closely track my Stages power meter.
Are there any free/cheap trainer control options for this? Is there a feature in the Wahoo app?
Do you mean powermatch? TrainerDay and TR can do this, the input power source comes from the PM and the resistance is controlled by the trainer.
No on Power Match. I don’t use TR plans so I wouldn’t want to pay $20/month to control my Wahoo.
Also, I don’t want to match power. I want to do some tests, and then adjust the power output of my Kickr to match another power meter. That power meter would be on a different bike and not on the trainer.
I’m currently using the Wahoo app but I don’t see an offset feature.
The Wahoo app lacks any offset feature. Most other training and trainer control apps that I know also lack that feature.
The most common place I’ve heard of that feature is in actual power meter apps like the 4iiii and Favero options. Sadly, Stages doesn’t seem to offer that from what I see.
I think Golden Cheetah may offer an option, but have never dug into it to know for sure.
I will add, that the typical offset option may be of limited use. That’s because it’s entirely likely that the delta between 2 devices may be such that it is a given wattage or percentage different at one power level with a different delta at other levels. This relates to the slope of the 2 devices. It may be that a given power wattage offset only works at one given level. Or even a percentage offset may have similar issues. It’s all quite messy really and takes some decent testing to find the case between any devices.
2 Likes
Ah OK. My experience is that its only in the handful of watts between my pedals and my direct drive trainer. Drivetrain losses basically.
Consider yourself lucky. Many, MANY users around here have 2 or more devices that are much further apart.
You could dual record and compare the 2 files, then just use the +/- to manually offset indoor workouts.
Yep, you can adjust power in Golden Cheetah by percentage and/or fixed value.
2 Likes
Ive no idea about Wahoo but Elite has its own powermatch software, its no where near as good as TR’s. Elite’s software was really laggy and under read power at higher cadences when I last used it. I think I’d just ignore the KickR and go off your stages.
Unless they’re off the wall different (which in my limited experience has been virtual power v real power), does it really matter that much? When I have dual recorded, my 4iii’s have been margin of error to my turbo (even allowing different recording points).
I genuinely ask, how big a difference is really enough to justify being worried? Power match is a great feature, but for me, unless I’m missing massive gainz, there’s still more value of power outside and a permanently set up trainer bike inside!
Until you do some extensive testing, you just don’t know how apart two power meters are. I tested my Tacx Vortex and found it to be off by as much as 50 watts in some scenarios.
To date, I’ve just been training by the Stages power inside and out. I’m building a new bike though and was thinking of moving that Stages to the new bike but keeping the old bike permanently on the Kickr.
My Kickr seems to have a weird personality so I can’t say I trust it’s power that much. Some days it seems 10-20 watts low compared to my Stages. Some days it seems pretty close. Other days, my Kickr goes crazy and there’s not enough resistance to the pedals and I have to go into the app and set it to a +2 or +3 to get enough resistance for a workout.
What I’d like is a bone simple app with an offset and +/- resistance buttons. I wonder how many hours it would take me to program that? I did a lot of programming like 20 years ago but I’m guessing that it would take me 100 hours to just get up to speed on trainer control programming.
I’m pretty sure trainerday (free) will do that. The paid version is only a few $/£ a month as well.
1 Like