Fundamentally, nothing in a CompuTrainer changes over years of operation so there is little to affect its short or longterm repeatability. Pez: It makes a lot of sense that repeatability is a major issue, since measuring power gains (or losses) can only be valid against a baseline standard that never changes and that can be referred to as long as the athlete is training and tracking their progress – which could be for many years or even a lifetime… Why is CT so repeatable over the years?Ĭhuck: CompuTrainer’s laboratory standard repeatability is traceable to its proprietary Eddy Current Brake design its unique, extremely robust mechanical construction its use of the highest quality mechanical and electronic components, and our attention to maintaining close control of dimensional tolerances. Remember magazine ads? Here’s one from the late 1980’s – and check out the “big” players in the indoor trainer marketplace. In commercial MultiRider studios it is not unusual for CT’s to operate for 7-8 years of heavy use. I know of athletes who use their CT’s continually for 5, 10, 15, and even 20 years. Cyclists and triathletes who use CT to track their performance over many years, even decades, report gains into middle age and a reduction in subsequent declines. This outstanding result makes CompuTrainer particularly well suited to studies of performance improvement over time. Annual CT performance measurements at the Peak Centre for Human Performance in Ottawa, Canada, have confirmed that CompuTrainer repeatability is within +/- 1% for upwards of 5 years. When referring to repeatability it’s also important to consider the time period involved. No other electronic trainer meets this standard. In the ACSM study a representative group of CompuTrainers demonstrated repeatability of 0.8%, better than the 1.0% level considered essential to qualify for serious sports science use. Its accuracy & repeatability have been substantiated in peer reviewed laboratory studies published in scientific journals like the American College of Sports Medicine and the International Sports Medicine Journal. That means that it has highest accuracy, the highest repeatability, and the longest life of any trainer on the market. Pez: You refer to CompuTrainer as the Gold Standard – so what are CompuTrainer’s strongest attributes, and why does it deserve such a lofty accolade?Ĭhuck: When we refer to CompuTrainer as “The Gold Standard” it’s because it provides the best technical performance of any electronic trainer on the market. By varying the electrical current to the electro-magnets it would be possible to vary the load generated so that the user experiences both low noise AND realistic loads – the ideal combination.īy varying the load electronically it was possible for CompuTrainer to accurately simulate the loads that a rider experiences on the road based on all the relevant variables – the weight of his body and bike, the road grade, the bike speed, and the wind speed. The idea was to utilize electro-magnets instead of the fixed magnets used in the magnetic trainer. It was in response to the rapidly rising popularity of the “low noise” magnetic trainer that RacerMate conceived the CompuTrainer – this was in 1986. Within a few years RacerMate was manufacturing more than 25,000 wind trainers annually. At the time this was a remarkable improvement in indoor bike training which the cycling public was quick to take advantage of. But most importantly, the load that it generated was essentially identical to the wind load that a cyclist experiences when riding on the road at any speed. The Wind Trainer required no special skill and could be used by anyone who wanted to train indoors. At that time the only device for indoor bike training was rollers whose use was restricted (as it still is today) to cyclists with advanced cycling skills who can balance on the rollers without crashing. The initial purpose of RacerMate was to commercialize the world’s first Bicycle Wind Trainer which RacerMate’s president, Wilfried Baatz, had invented. PEZ: How did RacerMate get started, and how was the CompuTrainer invented?Ĭhuck: RacerMate was formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of FloScan Instrument Company, Inc., of Seattle, WA in 1975. So I suggested we tee up this interview so Chuck could tell us why CompuTrainer is the most accurate and reliable trainer there is.
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