im new to cycling. Last sept (2018) bought a Wattbike Atom and started training toward a Century in May, the bike came soon after.
The thought of completing 160km on two wheels propelled by my biomechanical efforts was completely daunting. i set an arbitrary 6 hour target for this first closed road event. During the training journey i often felt that this was going to be an ambitious target.
9 months later with some satisfying increases (and less satisfying decreases) in FTP ~190W to 270W - i completed the 100 mile course in 5h29m. 
Im a fairly big chap - 6ā3ā 190cm, 100kg at start, now around 93kg. Running wasnāt working for me. TrainerRoad has been the catalyst for my entry into cycling, my enjoyment of cycling and my increasing competitiveness, not ignoring the fact that i smashed my target time for the sportive.
So I just want to say a big thanks to TR, and the support from the few questions iāve asked here.
7 Likes
Excellent!
(Out of curiosity, Birmingham Velo?)
That is excellent. Well done. I am thinking of getting an Atom as well. Any thoughts on it?
I have nothing to compare it to - not used a smart trainer with bicycle. However, I am very happy with the Atom and donāt regret the purchase. No hassle compared with other indoor trainers. Unless you have a dedicated frame to attach for indoor work you would regularly have to reassemble your road bike. No worries about corrosion from sweat on your headset, front mech, etc Communicates well with TR app, occasionally during warm up the signal to increase the resistance doesnāt get through so Iāve had to reset on couple of occasions 1 min or so into ride.
I use in ERG mode and havenāt much experience of changing the gears using the synthetic shifting buttons I did a few Zwift sessions using resistance and the gears changed fine, not quite as direct as a mechanical system but fine if thats what you need.
A few minor gripes - saddle pretty uncomfortable and a fiddle to get the correct angle. It is sufficiently adjustable - saddle height, saddle fore/aft, saddle angle, reach, stack ht but switching between two users could be easier. It came with standard pedals and clips, donāt know why they couldnāt offer a clipless option which surely 100% of their target market would use.
Another plus is that the aerobar attachment doubles up as a holder for your iPad either for entertainment or your TR workout or even both, no need for a lap top table/wall mounts etc. Im using an old iPad dedicated to the Atom which works well.
That is good to know. Thanks. Interesting about the peddles. The website says it comes with flat peddles and clipped peddles are Ā£38. Do you have the race seat of the comfy seat?
I have never had a trainer either and I donāt want to keep swapping the bike on and off. I want a hassle free setup and this seems a good fit for me, as it was for you. Thanks again.
I donāt think they offered clipless when I purchased though I see they now offer a dual-sided pedal with SPD/Keo - I would like a dual SPD/SPD-SL. I have the Wattbike āracingā saddle though I notice they offer Fizik too. My road bike has a Fizik Aliante R3 which I find very comfortable - little to zero numbness. For me the Wattbike saddle must be several degrees nose down to avoid excessive numbness which then puts pressure on the wrists and shoulders.
