Any tips on how to use this thing?
I've been using my Slocum windtrainer and decided to give these rollers a shot.
I had both my kids on either side of me to help stabelize me and I still can't imagine being able to ride this thing.
The front wheel sits right on the top of the front roller and the rear is nestled between two rollers.
I got off the bike after a little over two miles to give my hands a break. They were so cramped up from holding on for dear life.
I tried focusing about 5ft ahead instead of looking at the front tire. It seemed to help some.
Thanks in advance for some help

Do a search on this - lots of tips. in short-
-Don't give up - keep at it and if a few days it will seem more natural.
-Focus further out than five feet. I look at a wall at eye level
-If you can get in a door way. When i started, I set up so that my right arm/shoulder was against the door trim and i even put a chair with the back toward me on my right side. Again, don't give up.

The only time that I've ever actually fallen was when I was starting and I tried to carry on a conversation...now I can watch TV...some people can do things like answer the phone but I don't know how they do it.

I like to mix up my indoor work between the rollers and the trainer....need the variety and they offer very different workouts.

just like riding on the road, the faster you go, the more the bike wants to stay up and head in a straight line. Get your speed up above 20mph, preferably above 25.

place the rollers in a doorway or place it by a wall. I use the closet doors in a bedroom in my basement. If I start to seriously lose my balance I just either put out a hand or elbow and it will steady me.

What's your roller size? If they are super skinny ala hotdogs, then it will be much harder. Relax your upper body and no death grip on the handle bars. Just light pressure on the handlebars. Also make sure the rollers are set up correctly for the wheelbase of your bike. The front roller should be slightly ahead of the axle of your front wheel.

In short time, your can listen to the TV, watch some of it and be able to get drinks from your bottles. My goal is to ride no hands by the end of the indoor roller season. :)

ScubaD

My rollers are Very Old. I got them from a friend of mine. He used them in the 80's. I replaced the belt and they seem to work. Kind of a spongey feel though. The rollers are 4" and the unit weighs about 30lbs. Not the pettiest thing but I want to gain some better riding technique and I thought the rollers would help me with that.
Thanks for the info

Make sure the drum length is properly adjusted for your bike's wheelbase... if it is too short, the bike will just want to jump out.

How do I do that?
The front wheel sits on top of the front roller. The front fork is about an inch or so foward.
Does this sound close?

How do I do that? The front wheel sits on top of the front roller. The front fork is about an inch or so foward. Does this sound close?

3 hours ago, scubad said "The front roller should be slightly ahead of the axle of your front wheel." Typically, there are a series of holes for the front roller axle, or perhaps a way to slide the side rails forward and back. I have no idea what you mean when you say "The front fork is about an inch or so foward." Are you talking about the hub axle? There's no way the hub axle/fork tips can be an inch forward and the tire be sitting directly on top of the front roller.

BTW, the fact that you are having trouble riding the rollers (assuming your front wheel is not way off) is a clear message about how much you can gain by getting comfortable with riding them.

1) Make sure that your axle is somewhere between dead on top and 1" or so behind the front roller. Hang a string, necklace, plumb bob, just about whatever will hang straight to help you check.

2) get in a doorway so your shoulders hit the door casing. That's probably more near the middle of the rollers than you'd first guess.

3) Relax. Getting all tight, "hanging on for dear life" is what is making you need to hang on for dear life. You need quick, subtle movements to make this thing work, and white-knuckle grips are the opposite of quick and subtle.

4) Choose a relatively high gear that you can still spin smoothly. Slow wheels are the enemy, and so are jerky movements and pedal mashing.

5) Give it time, but not all at once. Your first experience sounds pretty typical. Next time, you'll see a glimmer of hope. The time after, you'll have a couple of several-minute episodes where you don't touch anything that isn't the bike. A couple of weeks from now, you'll be riding along happily for as long as you choose. This is true whether these early sessions are minutes or hours long - it takes a certain number of tries to make this happen, and really long 'tries' don't seem to help all that much.

Sorry, I don't have any tips to offer though I do applaud you for being braver than me.

Just wanted to say that I saw a video about a year ago (sorry I don't have a link) of a guy who could ride rollers one-legged and no hands. Oh, and he made the video himself and narrated over it while riding. Impressive.

Kerry,
I'm sorry I meant front axle. I looked at it again and it is just past the edge of the front roller so the tire sits on top of the roller. Maybe slightly foward. I don't think its going to matter much. I'll just keep trying it and focus on being relaxed. My speed was 19mph for what I did in about 10 min or so.
Is the "spongey" feel normal? My tires are at 100psi. And it doesn't feel like the road at all.
I'm thinking its just something that I have to get use to. I mean right now I really stink at this thing.
Thanks for the help all

For what it's worth, it matters very much that you have the axle of the wheel slightly behind the axle/top of the roller. If you have the bike axle ahead of the center of the roller, you are making it much, much harder on yourself, and it could have something to do with that 'spongey' feel, as the bike will want to surge some if the axle is forward on the roller.

Good to know Danl1
I do some adjusting tomorrow
Thanks

Just wanted to say that I saw a video about a year ago (sorry I don't have a link) of a guy who could ride rollers one-legged and no hands. Oh, and he made the video himself and narrated over it while riding. Impressive.

I saw that video too, and immediately set up and tried it in my dorm room. I could already ride no-handed, and after falling off a couple times I nailed it. It makes for a pretty good way to show off when other people are around.

Biggest advice for rollers is to just commit to it. Don't think about falling off, think about staying on and really, really commit to it. If you fall, oh well. I promise falling off is not that bad. Pretty soon you'll be sitting up to take your jersey off after a cold ride outside while riding the rollers.

i finally made the switch to rollers. i love them, a much harder workout since you have to pay attention. within 30 minutes i was able to really get my speed up. just need to get past the fear of riding them feels so wrong. like others have said, the faster the better. yes i have fallen a few times, but its not near as bad as i thought it would be. this is the one i bought from performance
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=19548&subcategory_ID=4121

Funny story about the rollers: I have an older set with coated wooden drums, and I tend to build up a lot of static electricity on it. I occasionally have to touch the ceiling of my apartment just so my hair will fall back down. Anyway, yesterday I got bored and decided to play some Nintendo 64 while riding them (Goldeneye, to be specific). Once I got settled in, I started playing while riding no-handed. I got used to the motion on the screen after a few close calls, and played for about 5 minutes before my controller gave me a pretty bad static shock and my TV turned off. I thought I'd fried something, but luckily I didn't. I'll let that be a lesson to me.

Place rollers in a hallway; gives you 2 walls for recovery.
Puchase child's step stool to assist in mounting and dismounting.
Focus on objects 15-20 FT dead ahead (you don't drive your car by looking 5ft ahead of the hood)

For me it works best spinning at high RPMs and big ringing it, like shawndoggy said it's about how fast the wheels are spinning that keep you upright. It took me a few tries and I finally got it can now ride comfortably without white nuckles BUT still to this day I can't ride them for too long without having numbess since to me it's impossible to get off the saddle while pedaling.
What helped me was playing around while riding: trying to get the water bottle a few times, scratch an itch or whatever that got my hands away from the handlebars which makes you work on the balancing act.
I did see the video too and I have to say that I'm able to one leg it without hands but after scaring the crap out of me a few times, but I did it.

Liveonedge, if you have Kreitlers, get the headwind unit; the extra resistance will relieve the pressure on your taint.

I love my rollers, yes they are harder to master but far less boring then a trainer.

Liveonedge, if you have Kreitlers, get the headwind unit; the extra resistance will relieve the pressure on your taint.
Good to know! I have the Minoura rollers which I can't seem to find a headwind attachment for. 'Should have spent the extra cash up front for the Kreitlers...:mad2:

Good to know! I have the Minoura rollers which I can't seem to find a headwind attachment for.

Just run your tires a little softer. That will add a lot of drag. If they are too small to let out any pressure, get bigger tires and run them soft.