Wahoo Fitness  KICKR Smart Trainer - 2021

Easy, prompt purchase at REI. After logging 500 miles on a dumb, wheel on trainer I upgraded to the Kickr direct drive. The Kickr is expensive but outstanding in every way. The ride experience is close to IRL. The fly wheel is smooth, grade changes are smooth, and Bluetooth connections are fast and steady. Setup and mounting my bike was fast and easy. The Zwift experience is more enjoyable with the Kickr. I should have upgraded sooner.

I have ridden my racing bike over 75k in the past 35 years. In winter, I generally have just commuted to work on my alternate bike. Spring rolls around, and it's time to get outdoors and regaining fitness again. Each year, it seems a bit harder to get back into shape. But no more. This Wahoo Kickr replicates outdoor training like I never thought possible. (I'd used a Mag Trainer in the past, very infrequently). This is the real deal, I ride for "20 miles" and get off my bike (my regular outdoor bike) and I feel like I've actually ridden 20 miles. In the six weeks I've owned this, I've logged 400 miles. It comes with an 11-speed cassette, but I replaced that with a 9-speed (for my '98 LeMond Zurich), and it works great. Part of the actual joy of riding this thing is I subscribed to Zwift, added a 24" monitor and Chromecast, and screenshare my simulation app to the monitor. When the road starts to climb, you'll feel the resistance increase automatically. I've ridden in London, NYC, Yorkshire, France. The simulation makes it highly engaging, and the Kickr makes it all seamless. No more ride cancellations due to poor road conditions, darkness, or whatever. My wife and I often ride together (we bought two of these), and often "meet up" with my brother online. In a single sitting, we've ridden up to 40 miles (with stretch break in the middle, simulating the coffee shop stop!). Highly recommended, best cycling investment I've made in years, maybe ever. This means when we turn to outdoor riding, on day one we can do a 50-60 miler, versus building up to that for June or July.

I originally purchased a Tacx Neo 2t but returned it for this. I use this along with Zwift and so far its been great. Its quiet and the power changes are smooth unlike the Neo 2t where the power applies hard and can stop you in your tracks if you start to slow down your cadence. As far as the axis feet I can't really feel much movement.

I am able to download ANY "Ride With GPS" route that I've only dreamed of riding. Additionally, if I miss a group ride, no probs...I'll ride it on my trainer. Funny thing is a ride on the trainer is actually harder because you still have to pedal on the downhills; whereas you just coast down on the actual ride...but oh well! Quick and easy mount/dismount.

Really happy with this purchase - I upgraded from a much cheaper wheel on trainer and the difference is night and day. Sturdy, dependable, ride feels so much more realistic and is about a billion times quieter. I use it mostly for training with zwift - about 4-5 hours a week minimum. No complaints!

After 3-4 winter seasons of using a wheel-on trainer, there were a few aspects that grew old on me - mostly the noise & wheel slip. After hearing that direct-drive trainers are much better I decided to go with a KICKR since I've heard nothing but good about it. And I agree with all that goodness - it is silent so I can easily use the Discord app to chat while riding & there's also no noise to bother the wife with upstairs. The response & ERG control are amazingly good/smooth/steady/quick-to-respond compared the old wheel-on trainer. Wish I would have looked past the cost & gotten a KICKR years ago to avoid all the small annoyances with the cheaper option I had been riding.

I used these Kickrs in a Training Center pre-pandemic and loved them. Bought the Snap with the little money I had but glad I could finally upgrade to this unit. Be vary careful not to hit the rear drum fly-wheel as it will cause a loud grinding noise. We say this problem with the training center because of rider's carelessness. But the fact that Wahoo couldn't be bethored to throw in the $15 dollar front wheel riser block that came with the cheaper Snap model, into their premium product, is kind of a slap in the face. Hence the two stars.

I bought this to replace a four-year-old Elite Drivo that was becoming annoyingly noisy. Setting up the KICKR and mounting my bike was easy, and connecting to Zwift on an iMac was flawless. I was pleasantly surprised to discover how stable it is while riding. I was skeptical about reviews that said the KICKR is a quiet trainer, but they proved to be accurate. Drivetrain noise is about all you will hear.

I'm a middle-aged mom and an "avid" cyclist. But by "avid" I mean "want to do it all the time, but don't have time to do it enough." In the winter my riding schedule is erratic to non-existent and my fitness tanks. I had been using a dumb trainer for a few years and was skeptical that buying a smart trainer would make a difference. I was wrong. I'm less than a month into ownership and have ridden over 300 miles on this thing. Set-up took 10 minutes (I'm not handy, btw) and I've never once had a connectivity issue. I did a TON of research on other smart trainers and also the [insert famous indoor bike that everyone has] and decided that a KICKR from REI was the best machine and safest bet (hello, 1 year return policy). If you identify as a cyclist, stop looking. This is the one.

I hate riding inside, it’s was so boring till I bought a Kickr. Great device and construction is excellent. I was surprised how solid the unit is when I get out of the saddle to climb or sprint. Well worth the money and nice to ride my frame rather than a stationary bike that doesn’t fit properly. The wheel off setup is quiet and a nice feature. I miss outdoors, this makes covid more tolerable.