Of late, the trainer sometimes doesn’t drop to the lower power for some time after an interval. This is exactly the same setup in all ways I’ve been using for about 5 years and it was not a problem years ago on pre-AI TR and now on Systm, Rouvy, and Zwift. It’s a Saris smart trainer, ANT+ dongle hanging below the trainer desk on a 1 meter extension, Windows laptop. The hardware and physical setup is all the same. Here’s a pic. Also getting some power drops at low power. It’s not a huge deal, but a little distressing when expected relief after a hard interval.
I had my fair share of those with my Hammer & H2 trainers back in the day on TR. I can’t think of an instance I had that with either of my Kickr’s or my Neo, so it may well be trainer related if that anecdote has any relevance.
Funny thing is I haven’t had this using TR some years ago, or currently with other apps. I’m not sure what might be going on, but one thing I could try is switching to BT and see if there’s any difference.
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Good thought on the comms switch. I used ANT+ exclusively back then. I know I had some data dropouts with my Neo (different problem) and in discussion with TR about the issue they pointed to ANT+ as a likely root cause. I have been on BLE with my prior Kickr and DirectConnect with the current one so both of those could be skipping the issue due to that difference.
I do remember how pissed I’d get at times when this happened on the tail of some rather nasty intervals, that ended with plenty of 4-letter words 
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I’m on a Saris H3 and I get this sometimes. I use Bluetooth exclusively.
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I also have an H3, but drop outs are pretty rare. Not a fan when they happen but it’s infrequent enough to not make me consider a new trainer.
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It could be the trainer, but as I said, I haven’t gotten them on any other app in the past 4 years, incl TR years ago. I see it only in TR since I started back in Nov. and only in maybe 15% of workouts, but it happened twice in that workout that I posted the pic from.
Can we assume you’ve updated all software and drivers, eliminated potential interference, and checked hardware for damage or wear?
Good questions. I’m usually pretty good at that but I just checked. Trainer firmware is current. Ant+ dongle driver is current. I did find I had a BIOS update pending so I just did that. Setup wise, locations, computer, ANT+ dongle, WIFI, and anything else that might be relevant and that I can think of have been unchanged for the past 3 years. I’ve been recording the workouts separately with Assioma Duo pedals and the power tracks with in a few Watts with the pedals being a few what’s higher as might be expected. So, might the BIOS update fix it? IDK as it had been working with other apps.
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As @mcneese.chad, +1 on the idea to try BLE instead of ANT+. Sometimes, that simple switch fixes the issue!
Some other ideas:
- Try unplugging your trainer for at least 10 minutes if it has been a while (ideally, we recommend keeping it unplugged between every workout). Doing so can help clear out bad data that’s gotten stuck in the trainer by allowing it to fully reset.
- Similarly, try restarting your laptop if you haven’t in a bit.
- This is a more common issue with BLE, but it could still be worth a shot – check any other devices (especially those with ANT+ capabilities, such as nearby phones or other computers) to ensure that they’re not trying to “steal” the connection away from your trainer. If your trainer is trying to connect to other nearby devices, go ahead and disconnect from them and maybe even try putting those other devices on airplane mode while you train.
Hope these suggestions help – let us know how you get on with it and feel free to reach back out if the issue persists so we can keep cracking away at it!
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Good ideas:
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My trainer is always disconnected from power when off. I connect power a few minutes before my workout.
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My lap top is off when I move it from my office to my trainer desk just before a workout. I boot it up for the workout.
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I was using my Garmin to record the workout separately using my power pedals. I’ve removed the pedals from the bike on the trainer and will not be using the Garmin, so we’ll see if this makes a difference.
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Hey there,
I’ve been experiencing „issues“ with ERG mode lately (exactly the powermatch feature), which started about 2-3 weeks ago. As I’ve been using TrainerRoad consistently for the past 5 years, averaging 5-7 workouts per week, I have a solid experience for comparison.
So, now, at the beginning of my workouts, the powermatch reacts much more slowly than before. Previously, it took about 10 to 20 seconds to balance the power readings between my external powermeter and the trainer. However, this time has now increased from 30 seconds up to 1 minute. During the start of the workout, the balanced reading from the external powermeter and trainer tends to overshoot the target by about 20-30 watts. Then, after approximately 40 seconds, everything balances out.
I feel this change (reaching the balance) in the trainer’s behaviour. I’m using a Tacx Neo 2T and a Stages left-crank powermeter.
While it’s not a major issue since everything eventually balances out (although slightly later than before), the delayed response from powermatch is noticeably different from what I experienced previously.
Since I’ve been using everything the same way almost every day for 5 years, all software (including the trainer) is constantly up-to-date, then any “oddities” caused by me or my home network/setup are ruled out.
PS - same technique as @Saddlesaur mentioned before: the trainer is turned off when not training, the computer is off, etc.
Hey there,
Sorry we missed this one – please reach out to support@trainerroad.com if you’re still having these issues and we can help you out!