CycleOps Mag Indoor Bicycle Trainer

I just finished my first ride on my mag trainer. This is my first trainer and it gave me a decent workout for the hour I rode it. The only negative that I have is the noise. This being my first trainer I have nothing to compare the noise to.

Nice, well built product, works well as advertised. I did not find it noisy. It is difficult to use without the front wheel block which costs extra.

I've owned this for about two weeks, and have used it several times already. Assembly took about 20 minutes and was very easy. In the two weeks I've had this, I agree that using it is noisy, but I believe it is due to the tread on my mountain bike tire. I'm going to try switching to a smoother road tread to see if the noise decreases. Either way, I'm very happy to have bought this as I've already lost weight and am able to ride for a longer time at a higher speed than I was with the first few uses.

I recommend buying a block for the front wheel, too. Not for balance, but to level the height of the front wheel with that of the back wheel.

This has to be one of the best investments I've made, makes Wisconsin winters easier to deal with. It's smooth, quite, a snap to use and I still have plenty have resistance to grow into. Also came with a very nice training video that will challenge you. In fact I think I will order more of these training videos. 5stars from me...I'm no novice I have years of biking under my belt, road and mountain. Get it!!

A trainer is better if it closely replicates an actual cycling experience. Hence, the graduating complexity and cost of fan, magnetic and fluid drive trainers. The more you pay, the closer the experience is to replicating the inertia of what happens in a real ride. You want the trainer to feel as if it takes more exertion to get up to speed, but also want it to "coast", when you stop pedaling. This trainer is a mag drive, and does a good overall job, but doesn't coast well. I find myself pedaling all the time, as if I were hill climbing. That's OK for getting exercise, but not good for getting in a sustained ride. Those brief periods of coasting help the muscles recover and allow longer ride time. I could stop entirely for short periods, but that's not how I want to ride. I do use the gears to vary pedaling speed, but can't use the high gear and standing to vary the working muscles enough on the trainer; the resistance doesn't go high enough for that. I haven't tried a fluid drive, so don't know if it would be much better. I suggest trying a trainer somewhere before buying. All said and done, I would probably buy this same trainer again, as it is solidly built and with a smooth tire on the bike, quiet enough. Now, if someone put a 20 lb weight on the spinner...