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Overview

STPicture020-sm The chassis of the Super Trainer is a large, custom-manufactured treadmill designed specifically for cycling. The belt runs over a bed of 80 precision, high-speed aluminum rollers. The rider’s bicycle is connected to a computer-controlled tractive resistance unit, which comes pre-loaded with 20 course profiles but is easily programmed by the user with their own customized rides.

Inside Ride’s patent-pending technology – based on dynamic tractive resistance – enables the rider to self-regulate speed and power output by simulating the real-world forces that one encounters on the road or trail, such as wind, rolling resistance, acceleration and gravity. This is accomplished through the use of a nylon tether, which attaches the computerized resistance unit to the seat post. The design allows full range of motion for both rider and bicycle – you won’t even know it is there.

No special skill is required to ride the Super Trainer, either seated or standing. But, unlike rollers and stationary trainers, the treadmill concept allows for an accurate, physics-based simulation of steering and balancing. The tether system permits realistic and motivational forward motion during acceleration (even to power levels exceeding 1200 watts) as well as natural dropping back during recovery. In addition, the fore/aft float accommodates realistic bicycle position shifts as the rider stands to climb. The treadmill also elevates up to grades of 16% that will challenge even the strongest riders.

Safety Features

Safety devices have been integrated into the trainer to protect the rider. A light beam surrounds the entire unit. When a rider veers too far in any direction and breaks the infrared beam, the belt stops almost instantly. The belt goes from 25 mph to a complete stop in less than 3 feet. Safety rails with cable-activated shutoffs are also easily triggered by the rider during either controlled or panic stops. With normal use, the Inside Ride Super Trainer is as safe – or safer – than riding outdoors.

Specifications

*80 precision rollers underneath the belt spin at 15,000RPM
*Weight - 900lb.
*Minimum floorspace required - 5' X 12 '
*Electrical requirements - 220 volt, 20 amp.
*Top speed - 27.8 mph.
*Maximum grade - 16.3%

Research at CU Boulder

Soon after the debut of the Super Trainer in October 2003, Allen Lim - a PhD candidate in the Department of Integrative Physiology at CU Boulder's Applied Exercise Science Laboratory - became interested in using the treadmill for his research. Allen is well-known in the cycling industry for his expertise in analyzing power data in cyclists and research into cycling-specific physiology.
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Because the Super Trainer is such a revolutionary concept, it sometimes takes the authority and knowledge of a true expert to understand its potential. Allen has understood this from the start. Below is an excerpt from a research contract between CU Boulder and Inside Ride.

“Although we have a good understanding of the power profiles and resistive forces associated with competitive cycling, the physiological responses associated with competition have never been measured directly. This is because the power fluctuations and course profiles associated with outdoor cycling are extremely difficult to replicate in the laboratory with available stationary trainers or ergo meters. The development of this treadmill is a potential solution to simulating cycling in the laboratory…and a logical next step towards understanding the true physiological response to road cycling.”

Dr. Allen Lim has recently graduated from CU Boulder with his PhD in Integrative Physiology.

More pictures of Super Trainer at CU Boulder

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A Message from Inside Ride

It's been a long process, but the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted us a patent (No. 7,604,575) for the floating roller design!

Foreign patents are pending.

For those not familiar with patents, this essentially means the US Patent Office has determined that the floating rollers have not been previously known anywhere in the world. When you consider how many people there are on planet Earth, it's a major accomplishment to come up with something truly "new".

The Patent Office checks far and wide for anything and everything that has been built, or even just described, to ride a bike on (you would be surprised how many devices have been thought of...and how few of them actually work ). Patents serve an important function because without them there is no reliable way to buy or sell ideas, or to prevent others from stealing your inventions. Therefore, when it issues, you must protect your patent or you risk losing the ability to defend it.

Keeping this in mind, WE ARE OBLIGATED TO INFORM EVERYONE THAT IT IS NOT LEGAL TO BUILD YOUR OWN SET OF EMOTION ROLLERS WITHOUT OUR PERMISSION. EVEN FOR YOUR PERSONAL USE.

That may sound a little heavy handed, but as the floating rollers have become more popular, we're seeing more homemade rollers showing up on the Internet. That's pretty blatant and leads us to believe that these folks are just having a good time, but are ill-informed about the rules. Just to be clear...it's not that we are worried about losing sales to the D.I.Y. crowd. In fact, home-built rollers have made believers out of many who were at first skeptics, and when they realized the practical limits of homemade rollers, they bought the real thing. Our aim is simply to comply with the requirements set forth by the patent office. Nothing Personal

On a similar topic, we would like to announce that we have licensed, to ELITE of Italy, the rights to manufacture a similar E-motion roller for sale worldwide except USA and Canada. The agreement stipulates that once Elite has brought their roller to market, we will no longer sell our version outside of North America. This arrangement suits us well because we were too busy making rollers for USA and Canada and could barely handle the additional International customers. Besides, the shipping of individual rollers overseas can be expensive. We feel the partnership with Elite will better serve customers outside North America.