Greetings everyone. After 10 years of faithful service, my Kinetic Rock and Roll dumb trainer is finally giving up the ghost. Time for a new trainer.
I’ve got a Powertap hub training wheel as my training powermeter, and a Quarq as a backup, on the same trainer-specific bike. So, I don’t need a smart trainer with power nor am I that interested in grade/road sim/feel riding on Zwift…however…
What IS imperative is a trainer with some sort of side to side motion like the Kinetic. I do 90% of my training indoors, up to 3.5-4 hour ride and don’t think the back/core could take the lack of motion. I can’t find any new dumb trainer that has this feature, and it seems (though I may be wrong) the Wahoo Kicker Move and the Tax Neo motion plate systems (Neo 3M; Neo 2T) are the best options for this.
Am I missing any other options for motion trainers (dumb or smart) with movement feature? If not, any preference between the Wahoo or Tacx? (Tacx Neo 2t can be had for $999 now with free motion plates rebate)
As a start, you might also consider a rocker plate, which would add the side-to-side motion it sounds like you’re looking for. (Personally, I’m not a big fan of the fore/aft movement, but I find the side-to-side critical.) Additionally, I think you should definitely consider a smart trainer, like the Kickr, Neo 2T (skip the 3M, as it is quite costly without, IMO, much added benefit), or even some of the lesser models. If you’re doing strictly ERG workouts on the trainer it may not make much difference, but if you just want to do a virtual ride (SIM mode), having a smart trainer makes it much more enjoyable (for me, at least). The deal on the Neo 2T right now is pretty decent. While this is certainly a ‘premium’ trainer, mine (actually a Neo 2) has over 50k miles on it and it still going strong.
I just got one of these for my Kickr Core and it’s worth every penny! And on that note…my Kickr Core has been running strong for 6 years and now they’re almost half the price they were when I bought mine.
Just to share it directly, I have a lengthy list of Rocker Plate makers that sell in regions around the world. There are plenty in the US, which is what I guess is the relevant region here.
So you can look at far more trainers than the Tacx Neo line and the Wahoo Kickr Move. I honestly don’t consider either of those great from a motion perspective, especially when compared to the Kinetic Rock & Roll trainers.
I’d recommend a Wahoo Kickr Core then add the InsideRide E-Flex Plus to make a combo that is better than, and nearly the same price (or less) as the ones you mentioned above. But many other rocker plates give similar function of the R&R while allowing you to pick any trainer you’d like. Perhaps an odd recommendation is to find a used Kinetic Road Machine (the rigid one) and use it on a rocker plate. That is if you still like the performance of their fluid resistance and don’t want a smart trainer.
Here is one of my first rockers where I did precisely that.
PS, I should have opened with this, but if it’s the resistance unit of your R&R that died, you can also pick up a used Road Machine trainer and just install that on your R&R frame. But if the actual R&R part died (like their failed weld/tube connection that is common), it may still be time for a totally new unit.
Echoing this. I rode the wahoo kickr v6 stationary for a year and added the e flex plus about a month ago. I didn’t mind the stationary at all, but spend a lot of time on the trainer so thought I might enjoy the options.
Very impressed with the e flex plus build quality and motions. Surpassed expectations, and I see little to no areas for improvement.
The kickr v6 is the only platform I’ve ever used, but it has just been flawless. Perfect connectivity to devices, functions, erg, etc. as long as it stays reliable, I don’t see any features I’m missing that would improve the ride quality.
I was going to say the same thing as this. I came from years of using first a Kinetic Road machine and then the Rock and Roll, and moved to a Kickr V5 and rocker plate.
The rocker plate is great and does everything that the Rock and Roll did. The Kickr is fine. It works and hasn’t given me any trouble yet, but being an 15+ veteran of using dumb trainers, I am just not sold on a smart trainer. I don’t care for erg mode, and the feel of my Kickr doesn’t match up to the feel of the Kinetic trainers. I still have a old Rigid Kinetic trainer that I plan to use if/when my Kickr kicks the bucket.
