kickr + kinomap or?

[Bill C]

bit of background before i launch into my query

I've mentioned in other posts that i am suffering with arthritis in my knee's and it's limiting my cycling,
it is bad enough to have given me a bakers cyst which ruptured and i ended up with an elephants leg
i was on crutches for months and had to attend outpatients at the time for physio (been off the road off and on for nearly three years, apart from short unloaded rides)
long story short I'm over it and the bakers cyst hasn't refilled but after it causing so much pain and makeing it so i could barely walk let alone cycle i'm vary wary of doing anything to set it off again
i have been told that cycling is good for my knee's (i knew that but nice for a physio to confirm) but don't want to just jump on the bike ride miles and hurt myself again probably stranding myself miles from home and in serious pain
so i have bought a kickr core thinking i can build up my muscles and get my knees back working and if they start to play up just stop and put kettle on and feet up rather than hurt myself as i would if out in the middle of nowhere and having to push myself to get home
i have tried the kickr out with one of my Thorns all setup for me but without using any software, i'm now in the position i want to use it's smart features and link it up to the tinterweb so onto my question

is anyone on here using a kickr/smart trainer and if so what software are you using and why?
I'm leaning toward Kinomap as i can then ride real routes starting off with easy rides and build up as my confidence in my knee's comes back, i am not competitive not really into group rides or training also with Kinomap apparently i can ride a route with a gps camera and upload it to their server and they will convert it into a map so that i can do my local rides but indoors on the trainer i thought this would give me more motivation than just riding routes i'll never do in real life
i know my cycle touring days are probably over so intend to get either a vw crafter l4h2 or equivalent sprinter then i can get my motorbike one of my xTc's and hopefully a kayak in and  still leave enough room to sleep eat n have a porta potti, the idea is to be able to drive somewhere park up and go for a day ride and at the end of the day have some home comforts

so can i have your software recommendations please

[John Saxby]

Hi Bill,

Sorry to hear about your knee & leg problems -- hope you're able to work around them.

Best I can do is offer a recommendation two steps removed for Zwift software - a friend-of-a-friend uses it regularly.  Its routes include famous passes, TdF stages, and the like, as well as more local routes.

I don't know if Zwift allows its users to upload their own routes recorded via Garmin or a smartphone.

That's a limited response, I know, but I hope that tidbit is useful.

(I've started using a Cyclops trainer 'cos my arthritic hips now drastically limit the skating and X-country skiing I can do.  The trainer is OK, certainly better than nothing at all during the winter, but I've found that a session of +/- 35 minutes of varying speeds/resistance works best.  Much beyond that & I start to get bored.  So, I use the trainer mainly as a very good sweaty warmup for other flexibility and weight-bearing exercises.)

Good luck!

[Danneaux]

...I've found that a session of +/- 35 minutes of varying speeds/resistance works best.  Much beyond that & I start to get bored.

John and Bill...

I use rollers with a resistance wheel for my foul-weather workouts. To help alleviate boredom I listen to podcasts or watch "foreign" (non-English speaking) movies and TV series with captions on so noise isn't a problem. Most movies last roughly 90-120min and most TV series episodes go from 45min to 90min.

It is amazing how time flies once you get into the plot. Doing so while balancing in rollers is a bit of a challenge but builds those multi-tasking skills!

If you spend much time with the bike on an indoor trainer, I would suggest fitting it with a top tube sweat protector. Most look like a triangle of absorbent terry clothing toweling that stretched between the handlebars and the seatpost using elastic, velcro or straps and click-fasteners to attach and remove in seconds. Usual cost is less than USD$10 from Amazon or eBay and surely helps prevent corrosion on the frame.

Best,

Dan.

[John Saxby]

Thanks, Dan.  Good suggestion, esp for the podcasts.  I do have some toweling, which came with Dave's trainer last summer.

Have set up my Eclipse as the trainer bike, using a 700 x32 Bontrager slick that I bought Down Unda a few years ago.  Works just fine, protects the tread on my precious 700 x 35 M'thon Supremes.

Cheers,  J.

[mickeg]

Have not gotten around to setting up the trainer for this winter yet, should have done that last month.  A large beach towel is on the floor under the trainer to catch anything.

I do not get my heart rate up as much on a trainer as I do on a bike on the road or trail, do not sweat much.  But the pedestal mounted fan a few feet in front of it might be the reason I do not sweat much.

Sometimes I watch tv, use noise canceling headphones on a long cord for that.

Several years ago a neighbor put an 80s vintage Bianchi mixte frame hybrid bike out with the trash.  I saw it, was in good shape so I decided to walk it home about a half mile thinking I would donate it to a bike charity.  But by the time I got it home I decided it would serve as a good trainer bike so I kept it.  The bottom bracket (cup and cone) did not feel right, the retainer that held the ball bearings in place was mangled, so now have loose balls in it on the drive side.  Needed a much taller seatpost but that was all it needed, it must have been stored indoors.  Very low mileage and in great shape.

Back to the topic of this post, I do not use any software on it.  I just have a heart rate monitor and that is it.

[mickeg]

I saw the headline for this article so I just had to take a look and see how much stuff some of the people that use indoor trainers a lot have.  I am not buying any of it.  I have enough.
https://www.velonews.com/gallery/bluetooth-switches-ice-suits-double-power-meters-and-other-details-of-a-pro-zwifters-set-up/

I described my setup above, I also have a vintage Nordic Track machine next to it, photo attached.  Probably the most important thing in the photo is the pedestal mounted fan.  And the vintage Silca pump to keep the rear tire aired up.

It is not clear in the photo but I have a reading stand on the handlebars.  I put my old B17 on the bike.

[PH]

Ouch!  Hope you find a solution that helps, it's not something I have any experience of.
I ride in a group with someone who has a medical condition that can mean he needs to cut the ride short.  He bought a folder a couple of years ago and has gained a decent knowledge of the regional train services and taxi firms.  Not ideal of course, but it does mitigate the idea you expressed about being stuck somewhere or struggling to get home.
Anyway, good luck.

[Bill C]

thanks for the replies
John i'll give zwift a try, i have to convert my garage into a training room, i have loads of free weights and a multigym from years ago (an old york 2001) that i recently re-cabled
,i can't use the multigym or the kickr indoors as i have 20 cat's running feral around the house, well not feral but they are into everything and i have nightmares about hurting one in the multigym or in the chain of the kickr,
i used to prefer doing my strength exercise before cycling for some reason i could easily do a full session on the weights and mulltigym and then go out and do 20/30 miles on the bike but if i went out on the bike first i didn't want to get on the weights when i got home, no idea why but found it suited me that way round

 Dan i'll get myself a couple of the sweat catchers have seen them on ebay and they are quite reasonably priced, i did look at rollers but i haven't ever tried them and could see me coming off and slamming into a wall  probably never happens but with my luck i'd be the first in history to hospitalise myself on an indoor bike

mickeg
thanks for the link, i don't want to be throwing loads of money at the cycle trainer, i have the kickr a good box fan, a suitable old computer and android box already plus i have a decent sized  tv i can repurpose for the display, my garage has large axial fans fitted from when i used it for spraying my bikes so I'm well sorted for ventilation, i have just never got around to sorting it all out and connected to  the interweb
i used to have an exercise bike but hated it as it was uncomfortable and apart from sitting and turning pedals it was nothing like cycling more a chore than a pleasure so ditched it

PH i have a Dahon Jack folding frame i bought years ago plus the el  bolso bag for it but never got around to building it up, i'm going to keep my eye out for a Dahon tournado, i saw one for sale awhile back but had no real need of it at the time either that or a ritchey breakaway frame, had thought about getting my xtc chopped in half and having s&s couplings fitted but that seemed a bit extreme
there are a few taxi firms that have larger vans for disabled/wheelchair users so i could call one of them out at a push, but as you say a folder would be better as it would mean buses are an option

so zwift and kinomap to try out, sufferfest is out as the name alone puts the wind up me as i have suffered enough already

[Lonerider]

Sufferfest is no more! It has evolved, it's now part of Wahoo Systm and compatible with the Kickr Core.

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/products/wahoo-systm-absorbs-the-sufferfest-into-a-new-more-corporate-app-and-you-should-absolutely-check-it-out

[Bill C]

thanks lonerider
 i had no idea it was bought out by wahoo, looks far to athlete based for an old fart like me, all i got from their site was a really basic app that just shows speed distance and such like when i registered the core,
thankfully most of the different apps/programs let you try them out for a couple of weeks just there are so many and i've never used any, only ever fitted a speedo on one bike i have a shiny new cateye adventure somewhere that i never got around to fitting i'll have to dig that out, screen was a lot smaller than i expected and didn't think i'd be able to read it with out putting on a pair of readers
I've got to start using the time tool on google search as the results/reviews i have been reading are a year or two out of date
love the user name btw