Like the Wattbike we tested recently, the Kettler Ergorace is more than just a home trainer for keeping your fitness levels up over winter.
For a start there’s the credit crunch-busting price tag and the fact that you’ve got to plug it in to get the most from it.
As you’d expect from a German-manufactured device, though, the build quality is first rate. The Ergorace’s computer kit is from fellow German outfit Siemens and also has a reassuringly durable feel.
So, just what does this heavyweight home trainer do, then? As you’d expect it measures your speed, distance covered, your energy consumption and power output. You can also gear your training to producing a specific power output.
In addition to this, the Ergorace comes with 48 training programmes, with more downloadable from www.kettlerdirect.co.uk There are warm-up and warm-down modes and you can store your personal data in the computer’s memory so you can measure your performance over time.
You can measure your heart rate using either an ear clip (which is included) or a Polar chest belt (not included). Probably the most handy thing it does is to allow you to train by riding to a measured power output from 25-600 watts, which you can raise in five watt increments. It also means you could do RAMP tests on it.
It’s easy to use, the 18kg flywheel runs exceptionally smoothly and the tribars mean you’re not limited to a single riding position.
And while it may not have all the features of the dearer Wattbike – and as the power output isn’t directly comparable to SRM’s Powercranks, it may not be such a good a choice for professional riders – it does score over the Wattbike in one very important area, which may be just as much an issue in the home or the gym: the Ergorace is much, much quieter in use.
It’s a heavy piece of kit, though one person can manoeuvre it quite easily on its two small wheels. And if you’re a heavyweight rider, don’t worry – this can cope with up to 130kg in weight.
Ultimately the Ergorace is probably more suited to the professional gym than the home user, but if you are looking for a high-spec and very quiet trainer, this does the job very well, at a price.