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CycleOps Science: Flywheels

Ever wonder how our CycleOps indoor bike trainers work? What makes them unique over other brands like Kurt Kinetic, Tacx or Wahoo Fitness? Easy. It all comes down to science.

And this week we're taking a closer look at flywheels.



Ever wonder how our CycleOps indoor bike trainers work? What makes them unique over other brands like Kurt Kinetic, Tacx or Wahoo Fitness? Easy. It all comes down to science.

And this week we're taking a closer look at flywheels.

Lesson 2: Flywheels

When it comes to creating a real-road feel on a turbo trainer, the flywheel is key. The flywheel creates the inertia while our resistance units create, well - the resistance.

Flywheel
Flywheel

Trainers of the past had epically heavy flywheels. It was once believed that the heavier the flywheel, the more realistic the ride. However, a full-weight flywheel is incredibly heavy to transport and offers minimal inertia due to the wasted weight near the center.

Each of our flywheels are optimized to perfectly match the resistance unit on the specific CycleOps trainer in question. With the ideal flywheel/resistance unit pairing, the trainer provides the right level of inertia and are lighter to transport. Plus, each CycleOps flywheel is precision balanced by removing material from the flywheel to ensure correct balance and offer our signature real-road feel.

Want to learn more? Take a look at our full line of indoor trainers. And if you're ready to bring your inside ride to life, add in our CycleOps VirtualTraining software.