One of the most popular brands is the Tacx, which allows users to bolt the frame from their normal street or road bike into a specially designed cradle – the cradle fits the bike, wheels included, into an electromagnetic system that is able to mimic the action of wheel on road with 100% accuracy. Without anyone having to get wet or weave through the inevitable city traffic. The Tacx flow turbo trainer, which is Tacx’s best selling trainer, stores neatly when not in use, looks great and is fully programmable to mimic normal and endurance gradients. The Flow records and delivers the four parameters of aerobic and endurance training via a sleek handlebar mounted counter: heart rate, power, speed and pedalling frequency. Because the trainer works using an electromagnetic brake (which delivers the traction required on the back wheel to successfully mimic cycling), it is able to measure, in watts, the amount of kinetic power a user is delivering: a great way to keep track of your progress from zero to hero.
The Tacx turbo trainer isn’t the only item on the market – it is, though, surely the best looking. Even having one in your lounge will make you feel fitter by just staring at it every now and then. Tacx have very sensibly decided to make their whole range of indoor bike trainers look like something out of a sort of Scandinavian fashion version of the film Tron – with the result that anyone using them feels healthy and modern before they’ve even started pedalling. Bizarrely, the average price of the Tacx machines is no different to, say, the price tag of an Elite turbo trainer (which, despite its futuristic name, has rather unfortunately opted for the kind of Dayglo industrial mechanics look that went out in 1985. Ah well. The Elite is supposed to be very good – so if it’s substance over style you’re looking for, maybe that’s your best bet.
