About five months ago, I was hit on my road bike in NYC and suffered a severe spinal cord injury. I am recovering and purchased a Zwift Ride bike to help with my recovery. My problem is that the Zwift ride bike has a free hub that simulates a traditional road bike. I was hoping this bike worked more like a traditional exercise bike that has a good deal of resistance when you pedal backwards. Due to my injury when I pedal this bike, my spasticity causes me to slightly engage the free hub on every pedal revolution. With a traditional exercise bike there is enough resistance when pedaling backwards to overcome this. Any advice on how I can eliminate the free hub ?
There is a fixed gear adapter for Wahoo trainers that will prevent freewheeling. As far as I know this is the only product on the market designed for that purpose: Wahoo KICKR Fixed-Gear Adapter – Velobike
However there are a couple problems with the idea of using it with the Zwift Ride:
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If the gear is fixed (no freewheeling) it may cause the chain tensioner on the frame to disengage. Unlike a track bike which has a horizontal dropout designed to adjust the distance between the cog and chainring for optimal chain tension, the Zwift Ride has a spring loaded tensioner for that purpose, and it expects that the chain will move backwards freely.
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The fixed gear adapter I linked above comes with a 10mm bolt-on axle like you would use with a track bike. The Zwift Ride uses a 12x142mm thru-axle. Can that adapter be made to work with a thru-axle? That’s a question for the manufacturer, but it might work.
I think you might be stuck with the design of the bike as it is. If you’re within the 30 day return period you could send it back and get a spin bike instead. Alternately you might sell the Ride frame, keep the trainer, and put a track bike on the trainer using one of those Velobike adapters. That would be a better quality system than most spin bikes, but it would be a bit of a project to build it.
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Hi @Theodore_Hoerr welcome to Zwift forums and Zwift more generally.
Shuji at Zwift HQ here. We worked really hard to make the Zwift Ride frame + trainer combo one that suits a great range of indoor cyclists’ needs but there are use cases where it’s not ideal,
As Paul mentions, there are possible modifications you could make to a smart trainer, but locking down a part that’s designed to coast freely comes with downsides for the equipment and potential physical risks to you. I see you’ve contacted our Support Team already - please respond to Daniel’s response, so they can process your return.
I will add that Zwift supports some brands of indoor exercise bikes that may suit your needs and allow you to enjoy Zwift during your recovery. Hope this helps!