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Average Rating
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4.57/5
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# of Reviews
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51
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MSRP
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$ 330.00
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Weight
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More Products from Kurt
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Description:- Super quiet ride - watch TV, videos, or play the stereo at normal levels.
- Patented, sealed (leak proof) fluid resistance unit for silky smooth ride.
- Speed sensitive resistance unit automatically adjusts the difficulty level.
- Resistance levels from 20 watts (5 MPH) to 2,500 watts (50 MPH).
- Easy bike attachment / removal with the Quick Release Level Lock.
- Trainer folds in half for easy transport and off season storage.
- Industrial quality frame with lifetime warranty.
- Precision made in the U.S.A.
- Patented Small Wheel Adapter enables use of bikes with wheels from 16" O.D..
- The first recumbent friendly fluid resistance trainer.
- The first BMX friendly fluid resistance trainer.
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Submitted by
Erik
a Cross Country Rider
from underhill ctr
Date Reviewed: March 21, 2008 | | Favoriate Trail: | the one i'm riding | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$285.00 | | Purchased At: | gotta ride bikes | | Strengths: | [this is for the kinetic pro: 2007 bright green w/6 lbs flywheel] easy set up and take down, ez-pz assembly, well built i believe right here in th good ol' US of a, relatively quiet. it works like it was advertised; get on bike, pedal, makes me sweat and breathe hard | | Weaknesses: | none so far as i can tell except...i use my older mtn bike with 44/34/24 and 11-22 gearing. when i stand up the unit does not provide enough resistance. if you were to use road bike w 50+ teeth on chainring, you would get enough. anyways sitting and pushing my 44/11 @115rpm for 90 sec intervals keeps me puffing | | Similar Products Used: | none, this is my first home trainer | | Bike Setup: | wheels...seat...brakes...yup, its set up | | Bottom Line: | life time no matter what kind of warranty even against stupid human tricks...which i've been known to do. machine is simple, few moving parts to break, it has improved my riding endurance over the last 4 months during this winter, i'm 10 lbs lighter than i was. IF you want a capable no frills machine to keep you bike fit and in shape and hit the trails/mtn/road ready to go, get it. not quite the same as on the road or trail but for $285 it will get you there | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jeff
a Weekend Warrior
from Northern Utah
Date Reviewed: April 1, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$425.00 | | Purchased At: | LBS | | Strengths: | Easy to set up. Sturdy. Fairly Quiet. Provides for a good indoor workout. | | Weaknesses: | The "rock n roll" is too stiff to really help you improve balance as advertised. | | Similar Products Used: | None. | | Bike Setup: | GT Avalanche Expert. | | Bottom Line: | This is another review of the "Rock n Roll" Pro unit. As far as a trainer goes I think it is an excellent machine. I can get a great workout with it. I am sweating in about 5 to 10 minutes. Plenty of resistance. Fairly quiet. Sturdy and very well built.
But as for the "rock n roll" action to help you improve balance is a bit misleading in my opinion. It does allow for some side to side motion but in my opinion it is way too tight. I personally feel as though I get no balancing training or benefit from this unit whatsoever. But that is my only complaint. Oh and I guess that I paid extra for the rock n roll motion.
This is a very good unit. I think it should be priced the same as the regular trainer though as it really does not provide any extra benefits. If I would have been able to demo units I am sure I would have purchased the Pro Trainer instead and saved approximately $150. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
dave zwart
a Cross Country Rider
from Milwaukee, WI
Date Reviewed: December 31, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | Tested or demo'ed only | | Price Paid: |
$408.00 | | Purchased At: | Brand's Bike Shop New York | | Strengths: | This is actually a review of the Kurt Kinetic Rock and Roll trainer. The unit was surprisingly sturdy and didn't sway uncontrollably as I expected. It was quiet. Setup was easy. | | Weaknesses: | My wife bought it for me for Christmas. The pins mounting for the support arms were difficult to install as the holes were drilled too small. I had to bust out the hammer to drive them in. I had to use a drift to persuade them out so it won't disassemble easily. I tried to use it and found that my heels smack the mounting system. I wear a size 14 US shoe and the "quick release" lever on the trainer was strategically placed such that I couldn't miss it. If it was flipped to the other side it might have had clearance. Granted, there probably aren't alot of people who will have this problem - but it still stinks!! We sent it back to the store for a refund. We're out shipping costs there and back. | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bike Setup: | I tried all my bikes - I can't use it!! | | Bottom Line: | I can't use it because my feet are too big. I couldn't find any shops that carry it so I had no chance to try it. If you have smaller feet, a fairly large area to use it, you'll like it. Not easy to move around due to it's size and weight. I wish it would have worked out for me. I'll rate this as "good" because it's a nice product - just not for us out of the 95 percentile in body size. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Don
a Cross Country Rider
from Ontario Canada
Date Reviewed: December 18, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$275.00 | | Purchased At: | ebay | | Strengths: | This a great trainer for the money. Quiet, smooth, and about as good as it gets for a realistic feel with a trainer under $300. I particularly like the wide leg stance which adds stability for those intense sessions and the adjustable legs get the bike down to a more natural position without the need for a front wheel riser block. The big 2 1/8 roller wheel is easier on tires but don't be putting on your expensive skins. All trainers are hard on tires. This one is just less so than the rest and a lot less than some. Probably the biggy with this trainer is it's lifetime warranty. All sealed construction combined with a 'leak free' gaurantee was a big part of my decision to purchase this particular trainer.
| | Weaknesses: | I'd like to see some kind of rubberized coating on the cone cups that slip over the skewer. It'd be gentler on the skewer and where it seats up to the frame however I may be nit picking a bit here. I ended up pulling my own skewer out and replacing it with the cheapie supplied with the unit.
| | Similar Products Used: | Some cheap magnetic trainers which were inferior to the feel and construction of this unit. The CycleOps Fluid 2 trainer that felt great but stories of fluid leaks made me hesitant with this unit.
| | Bike Setup: | Hardtail | | Bottom Line: | For about $300, a great trainer for the serious rider looking to maintain or improve thier fitness level in the off season. That said be ready to invest a few more dollars for some training videos if your sessions are mostly done training alone. The hard truth is trainers are the ultimate time machine. Fifteen minutes can seem like an hour and if you don't have something to motivate you the novelty will wear off and the workouts will diminish. TV or music will only help to pass the time.. not ramp up the level of your training. Training videos can maintain or even improve your fitness level. I invested in a few Spinervals DVDs and it's made all the difference. At around $30 a dvd these videos are not cheap but they DO motivate.
Bottom line.. A great trainer but be prepared to spend some more dollars on training videos to make it really worth the money.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ed Stock
a Weekend Warrior
from Anchorage, AK, USA
Date Reviewed: October 23, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | Resurrection Pass | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$299.00 | | Purchased At: | REI | | Strengths: | This is an incredibly smooth trainer, with minimal noise. It's stable when you stand on the pedals and the resistance does seem pretty realistically tied to the increase in speed. The warranty is as good as it gets, although I hope I never have to take advantage of it. I think I saw a posted review on this or some other site that said the resistance unit had only a five-year warranty, but I verified with the company that currently (October 2006) every part of the trainer is covered for the original buyer's lifetime. That'd be pretty amazing, if the company is still around when I'm 70. I'm counting on the "no leak" guarantee to be reliable, because I've got the bike set up in my spare bedroom and I really don't want to have to try to get fluid stains out of the carpet...
It feels like everything in this trainer is made of durable materials. It really is simple to set up and adjust, and it comes with a pretty straightforward set of instructions. | | Weaknesses: | I really don't see any weeknesses with it, although it would be great if there was such a thing as a truly silent trainer. I suppose if I wanted absolutely maximum quiet I'd just buy a high-end dedicated exercise bike like they have at good gyms, but then I'd have to find someplace to store it in the spring and summer. The price on this product - as well as most of the decent trainers - seems a little high, but when I looked at some of the ones selling for $100 less I realized that maybe there's a jump in quality with the increase in price. | | Similar Products Used: | I tried out one of the Minoura magnetic trainers as well as a CycleOps Fluid 2 at a bike store. The magnetic trainer seemed to have a strange feel to it, and I wasn't really crazy about the variable resistance attachment. The CycleOps felt great, but I've read enough reviews to think that I'd rather not risk the fluid leaks. I really would have loved to try a 1upUSA trainer, but they don't sell in retail stores and they also don't offer free shipping to Alaska (we get that from every store in the lower 48 - no free shipping to AK or Hawaii). The stores here in town are all staffed by biking enthusiasts who have tried a number of brands of trainers, and the Kinetic was the one that was recommended by a staff person in each of the three stores where I shopped. (One person told me that if money was no object he'd go to the high end CycleOps model, but below $300 the consensus was that the Kurt Kinetic was the choice.) | | Bike Setup: | A kind of cheap Specialized lightweight frame with street tires and virtually nothing aftermarket. | | Bottom Line: | We get a lot of ice that sticks around for the entire winter on the roads and sidewalks, and I just don't trust studded bike tires enough to ride outdoors between November and April. A lot of people who are fair weather cyclists tend to just put the bike in the garage and call it a year when the first frost hits in September.
In other winters I've gone to the gym and used the exercise bikes, but this winter I didn't feel like spending the time it takes to drive to the gym, wait for a bike during peak times, etc. I've started using the Kinetic about 3 nights a week, since we still have dry pavement (no snow yet). Once the snow comes, though, I'll probably be training on it four or five times a week, because I'm trying to increase my cardio and leg strength for some long distance backcountry snowshoeing this winter. Although the trainer makes a little bit of rumble/hum when I really get going, my upstairs neighbor in the condo where I live hasn't mentioned the sound transmitting into her unit. I listen to music with headphones, but I think I'd be able to listen to music or watch TV at normal volume without them. All in all, I'm really happy I bought this trainer. Maybe there are others out there that are as good as this - or better - at the same price, but I don't care too much about that since this one does everything I could ask of it, seems to be made as solid as a tank, and has a great warranty behind it. I should probably mention that I bought it at REI instead of a local bike shop for one reason: even if the manufacturer doesn't want to back the warranty up, REI has a no-questions-asked return policy, even 2 or 3 years after you buy something. As I said, I hope I never have to find out how good the warranty is. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tony O'Neill
a
from Indianapolis, IN
Date Reviewed: January 6, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | Nebo Ridge, Story IN/Black Mountain NC | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$275.00 | | Purchased At: | Circle City Cyling | | Strengths: | Road Machine is Sturdy, solid and wellbuild | | Weaknesses: | it is not single track | | Similar Products Used: | Cyclops and Minoura | | Bike Setup: | Blur XC/Fisher Hardtail | | Bottom Line: | Midwest anti-depressant! Easy set up and ready to get going. Put a slick on your rear and you will keep your hearing.
The ride is amazingly similiar to you true gear ratios eliminating the need for a remote control of the tension. It is like SPV technology it senses and reacts to the the cadence and gear ratios.
If you are like me and hate losing 4 months of consistent riding this is your answer too. I am already feeling better and have only ridden a handful of times!
Good job Kurt! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Cristof
a Cross Country Rider
from Los Angles
Date Reviewed: April 13, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | From Website | | Strengths: | -Well built...an understatement.
-ordered the road machine, bigger flywheel
-very comparable to riding on the road. | | Weaknesses: | -did not come with front wheel riser, but easily remedied by buying one for $15, easier on arms.
-noisier than I thought, but still can watch TV, no problem | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bottom Line: | This trainer has been fantastic--no regrets.
Highly recommend it for someone trying to fill in the gaps between actual outings. Resistance prgressive using your own bike gears. Using it with my old road bike. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Aaron
a Weekend Warrior
from Melrose, MA, USA
Date Reviewed: February 10, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | Analytic Cycling | | Strengths: | - Easy to Setup
- Stable
- Solid road feel
- No issues riding out of the saddle | | Weaknesses: | - It is possible to strip the tightening-knob threads when adjusting the tension against the rear wheel. | | Similar Products Used: | Cycle Ops Fluid 2 (hers) | | Bike Setup: | mine - Bianchi mtn
hers - REI hybrid | | Bottom Line: | We were looking for a way to train / ride consistently during the winter, in an attempt to be ready to hit the ground running come spring. Bought the KK Road Trainer after reading about it on many web sites including this one and the KK web site. I am delighted by the machine and it's ease-of-use. My fiancée saw it and decided that she needed one as well but she wanted something a little different so that we could both train indoors this winter. Hence the COF2. I managed to strip the threads on the tightening knob on my KK road trainer after about 2 weeks of use. Called Kurt Kinetic and they shipped a replacement part, no questions asked. We have been training 4-5 days per week now and I have lost 10 lbs of my winter insulation. Excellent side effect. The customer service reps at Kurt Kinetic are very pleasant to deal with. The road trainer is the best trainer that I have ever used. I would highly recommend this to anyone who is serious about their indoor riding. I'm convinced that you get your money's worth with this one. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Doug
a Weekend Warrior
from Calgary Alberta
Date Reviewed: February 1, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | Powderface trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$375.00 | | Purchased At: | The Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Very Stable, great roadlike feel, consistent tension | | Weaknesses: | Not as quiet as the Fluid2, tension knob not as positive as Fluid2, Canadian distributor plays dirty pool | | Similar Products Used: | 1upUSA, Cyclops Fluid2, Tacx Flow | | Bike Setup: | Rocky Mountain Rail | | Bottom Line: | I have posted earlier with my 1upUSA experience--they do have great customer service and did fully refund purchase price and freight.
I have been through two Fluid2 units: both of then got harder to pedal after 20 minutes of hard use. I have heard for other bike shops that is a common fault with them.
The Kurt road machine has been great so far. It makes more noise than the Fluid2, but has no issues with tension increase when it heats up. It is the most stable of the four units I have used.
I read some reports that this unit included a training video\DVD--mine did not.
I was about to buy this unit from www.lifestylesport.com and asked our Canadian distributor Vellend Tech why lifstylesport sold the same unit for $190 less. Their response was to get Kurt to stop lifestylesport from shipping to Canada.
I give a 1 for the value for the extra $190 I had to pay because I couldn't buy it from the US.
A great product for those who can pay fair market price! | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jim
a Weekend Warrior
from Maine
Date Reviewed: January 25, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | technical singletrack | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$285.00 | | Purchased At: | online | | Strengths: | Industrial grade construction | | Weaknesses: | none | | Similar Products Used: | Exercycle at Gold's | | Bike Setup: | Spinner is an old Diamondback Topanga, playbikes are:
03 Heckler, Turner Burner, and new Turner 5 Spot | | Bottom Line: | This is the first home use trainer I've tried/owned. IMHO they aren't built any better than this. Easily locks the bike in with enormous threaded rods on both sides for centering. Quick release of bike for those who use bike for actual riding too. Smooth and quiet. Resistance is "acceptable". That is, I don't ride enuff asphalt to know what a trainer should feel like, hey, this really ain't about realism, it's about pain.
I did a trememdous amount of research and almost bought cheaper, but you truly get what you pay for and I'd rather be happy with my $300 purchase than doubtful of my $200 purchase. In simple terms, this is the heaviest home trainer made, that says something about the content. If you value quality merchandise, you will be happy with the Kurt. Buy one and be happy. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
David
a Racer
from Shawnee, KS, US
Date Reviewed: November 18, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Strengths: | - Smooth.
- Realistic road feel in term of resistance.
- Bigger roller: no squeaking tire.
- Centering the wheel can be done from either side.
- So far no leak (better coupling mechanism)
- Stable and sturdy for interval work-out
- Quiter relative to magnetic or wind unit
- Came with Spinerval video of your choice (highly recommend this video, btw). | | Weaknesses: | - This is a heavy unit (mine is Road Kinetic model with bigger fly-wheel); transporting it to races can be a hassle.
- Mounting and dismounting the bike is ever so slightly more involved than say Cyclops trainer.
- More expensive relative to other brands with similar features
- Plastic bolt came loose after several use; but red loc-tite easily solved that. | | Similar Products Used: | I used to ride a mag trainer that I bought 8 years ago. The movement is very choppy but the trainer uses old magnetic technology and the roller diameter is small so the tire squeeks a lot. I heard today's mag trainer is much smoother, but I don't have any experience with the latest model yet.
I also have a roller (Kreitler poly-lytes) that I like very much for recovery or spinning high rpm work-out, but can't use it for interval training.
Here's my experience on some of the other trainers:
1) Cylops Wind Trainer: Rode it for 30 min and it's very smooth and has realistic resistance, but very noisy even when I tried it outside. The least expensive trainer, however.
2) Cyclops Fluid 2: rode it for 45 min every Saturday for about a month. Like it very much. Smooth movement, no squeeking tire. Easy quick release action making mounting and dismounting quick. Centering the wheel can be done from one side only (I don't think this is a big deal at all). However, I can see where one can overtighten the clamp just because it's more of a hassle to loosen the screw from the other side. The resistance ramps up more quickly compared to a wind trainer or Kurt Kinetics.
| | Bike Setup: | Road bike | | Bottom Line: | Before buying the unit the folks at Kurt Kinetics answered anything I wanted to know about their trainer. When I finally bought it the unit did have one glitch regarding plastic knob on the axle retainer that came loose after several use. The people at Kurt Kinetic quickly resolved the issue by sending me a replacement bolts and knob even after I told them I had fixed the problem with red loc-tite.
After using it for almost a year, the trainer is still going strong. More importantly the fluid resistance never leaked!!
Kurt Kinetic is a very responsive, pleasant and honest company to deal with.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a Racer
from Raymond, MN, USA
Date Reviewed: November 3, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | Kurt factory | | Strengths: | Very smooth and quiet. Built like a tank. Solid. | | Weaknesses: | None yet. | | Similar Products Used: | This was my first and only trainer I foresee myself purchasing. | | Bike Setup: | Cervelo P2K triathlon bike | | Bottom Line: | This trainer and company are wonderful. Customer service is unsurpassed. Beth was one of the best customer service people I've ever worked with, and was extremely helpful. I was able to take a tour of the manufacturing facility and was impressed. I had a few questions after setup of the unit, and they were answered very promptly. Overall, I have been extremely satisified with the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine and every bit as satisified with Kurt Kinetic as a company. They treat their customers right. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Pieter Thole
a Racer
from Amsterdam
Date Reviewed: September 18, 2003 | | Favoriate Trail: | Marmotte | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$290.00 | | Purchased At: | Kurt | | Strengths: | 30 km/hr on the trainer is same resistance as 30km/hr on the road, as is for 35, 40 etc. Frame is more stable than Elite and Tacx. Fluid is best and this is best fluid concept I have seen so far. | | Weaknesses: | Frame looks a bit bulky. | | Similar Products Used: | Elite Volare Fluid, Tacx Swing, Minoura ?? | | Bike Setup: | Santos 02, Ultegra, Ritchey WCS. | | Bottom Line: | I wanted to buy the best and had to go to the States to get it after having bought an Elite Fluid and a Tacx Swing and having tested some other trainers. It looks at first that resistance is not that much in the beginning but as soon as you get going you will find out it is enough. Look at the power tap output on the website. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Harold
a Racer
from Bolingbrook
Date Reviewed: December 12, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | Any smooth road less traveled | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | Kurt Kinetic Website | | Strengths: | Sturdy construction. Durability, smoothness, and quietness. | | Weaknesses: | None | | Similar Products Used: | Blackburn Mag Trainer | | Bike Setup: | Cervelo TT Bike w/Ultegra 42/53 rings | | Bottom Line: | As a follow up to last year's posting, I've come full circle. I repeat that this trainer is the best on the market hands down. I logged about 1100 miles last winter and hit spring with a bang! The fluid chamber provides tar road smoothness along with enough resistance to challange all riders...err...except for LANCE. Drop the bucks on this trainer and suprise your buddies in the spring! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Cole
a Racer
from Seattle, WA
Date Reviewed: October 9, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Tested or demo'ed only | | Strengths: | Looks to be built like a tank. | | Weaknesses: | No ability to adjust level of resistance. I'm an amatuer racer with very strong legs, and didn't find this trainer to offer enough resistance, even when the bike was shifted to the most difficult gear setting. | | Bike Setup: | Lemond Chambery 2001 | | Bottom Line: | Looks to be a solidly built trainer, but I didn't find this trainer to offer anywhere near the level of resistance that a good professional racing trainer would offer. I tried and bought a Tacx CycleForce Swing trainer instead. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Greg
a Cross Country Rider
from Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Date Reviewed: September 20, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | RAGBRAI | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | http://www.kurtkinetic.com/ | | Strengths: | I've found this to be a quiet, solid, and stable trainer. I opted for the heavy duty flywheel and am quite pleased with the resistance levels and smoothness. | | Similar Products Used: | I tried a friend's CycleOps Fluid2 Trainer, but it has a history of fluid leaks and doesn't feel as smooth. | | Bike Setup: | Trek 2000 | | Bottom Line: | I ride this trainer every early morning and love it. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brian
a Weekend Warrior
from Fox River Grove, IL
Date Reviewed: April 2, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$315.00 | | Purchased At: | AnalyticCycle.com | | Strengths: | Solidly built, very quiet, easy to set up, shipped directly from Kurk and arrived within 2 1/2 days. | | Weaknesses: | Color is grey - bike is blue. Well you can't have everything. Others say cost, I'd say that I got what I paid for....quality! | | Similar Products Used: | Tested Cycleops mag and fluid trainers both of which were available locally. I purchased the Road Machine largely because of the great reviews on this site. | | Bike Setup: | Trek 300 | | Bottom Line: | I purchased this online through Analytic Cycle.com. Customer service was great and the price was right. Go ahead and get a front wheel riser. It's more comfortable. I got the Cycleops for 19.99. It's better than a couple blocks of wood under the tire. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kurt Lloyd
a Weekend Warrior
from Roseville
Date Reviewed: March 12, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | mostly street at home--anything in Tahoe when I visit my folks | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$350.00 | | Purchased At: | don't know--gift from my wife | | Strengths: | perfectly convenient for my schedule, strong, solid, easy, durable--but again CONVENIENT for my nuts schedule... | | Weaknesses: | no product weaknesses | | Similar Products Used: | the road machine is my first and most likely last | | Bike Setup: | Stumpjumper M4/Time Attack | | Bottom Line: | I'm a respiratory therapist that works in the er and icu from 7p-7a three random days per week. I'm an avid skiier, bodybuilder and sprint tri athlete and keep this schedule even on my off days to maintain consistency in sleep habbits, training and energy levels. I have designed/built a home gym which includes this piece of equipment. It is absolutely perfect for me. Athletes that are serious only buy products that are made like this. This thing likes to be used and so far doesn't show any signs of quiting in the least. Nothing beats riding outside when you can, but this machine is ideal for keeping in top shape when you can't. I highly recommend the road machine to anyone serious into their own physical fitness. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
JHunter
a Weekend Warrior
from Sunnyvale, CA
Date Reviewed: February 27, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Awesome customer support, quiet operation, easy setup, stable | | Weaknesses: | None | | Bike Setup: | Bianchi Eros | | Bottom Line: | This is a followup to my previous review on a leaking Kurt Kinetic standard-model trainer. I called Kurt Kinetic's customer service line and even though I had bought the unit (nib) from a third-party, the very friendly customer service agent shipped out a replacement resistance unit the next day. They even paid for the return shipment of the leaking unit. KK did not have to do any of this, as the warranty is non-tranferrable, but clearly they stand behind their products and their customers. You can't ask for any better service than this.
The new unit works perfectly, quiet and smooth with much more than enough available resistance to beat me into the ground. Highly recommended, although you might also want to consider Kurt Kinetic's top-of-the-line Road Machine for even more realistic road feel. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
JHunter
a Weekend Warrior
from Sunnyvale, CA
Date Reviewed: January 25, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Very stable base, quiet operation, easy setup | | Weaknesses: | Leaked after first use! | | Bike Setup: | Bianchi | | Bottom Line: | After reading the on-again, off-again problems with CycleOps fluid trainers, I decided to spring the extra money for the reliability of the Kurt Kinetic trainer. This unit is very solid and apparently well-engineered. Putting it together was a snap as is installing the bike. In use, it's quiet enough that I can ride it and watch the tube down the hall from my sleeping family without waking anyone. The resistance range will be more than I'll ever need.
Another success story, right? Wrong, at least for now. While putting the trainer away after my first ride, I noticed a very small bit of fluid at the bottom of the resistance unit. Thought (well, hoped, actually) that it might just be some leftover oil from machining the parts, or something other than the dreaded leak. I put some paper underneath and checked it before my next ride and, sure enough, a very small amount of leakage. Still, I hoped that maybe, just maybe, this happens the first time you use the trainer and gave it another go. This time there was no question - clearly the resistance unit is leaking.
I'm sure that Kurt will fix it, and will report back on their customer service, but until then it's 1 Flamin' Chili time. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Erik Carlson
a Cross Country Rider
from West Hollywood, CA USA
Date Reviewed: January 8, 2002 | | Favoriate Trail: | Chilao | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$349.00 | | Purchased At: | Their website | | Strengths: | Quiet, STRONG, just like ridding uphill. | | Weaknesses: | None | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bike Setup: | Trek STP 400 | | Bottom Line: | Rocks. It's amazingly sturdy and stable. I splurged for the mroe expensive one with the larger wheel too. Why not? Who's going to travel with their bike AND a stand? I made this purchase because I was interested in burning calories in a pre-breakfast workout on nonriding days. WELL that didn't work, because I'm having a huge feud w/my neighbors below, and can't risk them complaining about the noise at 6am (these hollywood types don't get out of bed until the drugs wear off) and it's not as quiet as I hoped, but I don't think it's possible to make one as quiet as I would need in this building at that hour, what with shifting gears and a spinning tire. But I come home for lunch, pop in one of the Spinnervals tapes (Suffer-0Rama and No SSlackers Allowed) and kick butt. And what I've found is that my REAL riding has improved. Something I never would have expected. Great product. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Stock Camper
a Cross Country Rider
from West Coast
Date Reviewed: November 25, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$299.00 | | Purchased At: | Kinetic | | Strengths: | Quiet. Rock solid. Gentle on tires. | | Weaknesses: | Can't think of one. | | Bike Setup: | Cannondale R800. Trek Y. | | Bottom Line: | Serious quality. I use this pig with Netathlon software (never heard of it -- check out www.netathlon.com -- the only way to spend a winter) and it truly rocks. Serious construction. Built like a rock. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Michael Magnatta
a Cross Country Rider
from Bay Shore, NY, USA
Date Reviewed: November 24, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | any w/o frickin' horses | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | Kurt Online | | Strengths: | Design, contruction, performance, adjustability, comprehensive manual, great customer service, everything!!! | | Weaknesses: | Absolutely none. | | Similar Products Used: | Cyclops II. | | Bike Setup: | Trek 6700, Can Creak post, Easton Flatboys/Time ATAC. | | Bottom Line: | This trainer is awesome. Way, way overbuilt, perfect design execution, someone actually thought about what qualities should go into a fluid trainer AND the followed through.
At first, I was put off by the price, but after five minutes on it I was convinced that it's worth every dollar (maybe more).
I purchased a Cyclops II unit prior to this purchase, it arrived with the frame separated in two as a result of crappy welds. BIG mistake.
Oh yeah, anyone who says this is a carbon copy of the Cyclops unit lives out there where the trollies don't stop. Everything is different between the two units; the Kurt unit has a real flywheel, adjustable legs, humongous cooling fins, quality finish, etc... Get one before the winter sets in.
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Submitted by
Harold
a Racer
from Bolingbrook, IL, USA
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | Open Country Roads | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | Manufacturers Website | | Strengths: | Smooth road-like feel and extended coast-down. Very durable and stable. | | Weaknesses: | None. | | Similar Products Used: | Blackburn Mag Trainer | | Bike Setup: | Cervelo TT geometry | | Bottom Line: | As a competitive triathlete and family man, most of my workouts must be finished by 7:00 am. Thus, cooler temps and later sunrises require me to use a trainer from mid September to mid March. This is the best trainer on the market hands down. The broad based construction remains stable even when hammering 53x12 gear. Spend the xtra $ for the larger flywheel. It more closely mimics that "road feel". The fluid resistance is extremly smooth and
highly highly challenging. Interestingly, I found that I need to use a smaller gear with this trainer than with my Mag trainer due to the increased resistance.
I honestly don't recommend this trainer for beginners. You need more biking experience to appreciate the $340 price tag. The seasoned biker, however, will thoroughly enjoy this product for many years. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jake
a
from Minnesota
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Does everything advertised. Built to oulive me. I tried the Fluid 2 but thought that the Kinetic was more stable + the quick release was a nice feature. I opted for the heavy duty fly-wheel. Definitly the way to go. If you get the Spinervals version you get a video thrown in & the price is the same. | | Weaknesses: | I haven't found any. | | Similar Products Used: | Tried the CycleOps Fluid 2. | | Bike Setup: | 2001 Trek 2200 with Rolf wheels & skewers. It would work with these skewers but rather than chance chewing them up I just slip in a cheap skewer (that the bike shop also threw in just to ease my mind). Take's less than 30 seconds to set up even with changing skewers. | | Bottom Line: | This trainer is built to last. I expect to ride it till I'm eighty! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matt Popp
a Cross Country Rider
from Dayton OH, USA
Date Reviewed: October 26, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | Outdoors someplace, obviously :) | | Duration Product Used: | Tested or demo'ed only | | Price Paid: |
$340.00 | | Purchased At: | KurtKinetic.com | | Strengths: | About the same as everyone else says. | | Weaknesses: | Doesn't fit my bike! I ride a softride roading with Ultegra throughout and the standard cone doesn't fit my skewer, not even close. I called and talked to Kurt, send them a digital picture of my skewer, as well as the link to Shimano's website outlining the specs on the skewers, and they proceeded to send me the exact same cone that is already on the unit. | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bike Setup: | 2000 Softride Roadwing, Ultegra Components throughout (triple) | | Bottom Line: | Sure would be nice if it fit my bike. Kurt says they sent me the only one they have. I find this hard to beleive that they are the 'Official trainer of USA Cycling' and it can't fit a darn Shimano skewer. The 105/Ultegra/Dura-Ace have the larger rear Skewer. Maybe this trainer would work if I rode a $200 walmart bike. Kurt supposedly has to 'engineer' a cone to fit my skewer, which I think is rediculous.
Anyone else have Shimano components (2000 model year or newer) and this work for them?
Gets 2 stars. I would give it a 0 but my fiance` likes the feel of it since it fits her bike, which is a Giant OCR-3.
I will re-review it if they can make it fit my bike and I ride it for a few hundred miles. | | Value Rating: |
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