KOM Rocker Plate rocks your pain cave 13° with floating indoor trainer platform

Written by Jessie-May Morgan Jan 04, 2021 4:58 a.m. ET

kom rocker plate platform for indoor training turbo trainer

Support us! Bikerumor may earn a small commission from affiliate links in this article. Learn More

Better known for their Garmin and Wahoo mounts, KOM Cycling have entered the pain cave, developing the Rocker Plate to decrease discomfort during turbo training sessions. A 13° total side-to-side tilt is said to allow for more natural movement, akin to how you might experience riding on the road. At $449.99, the KOM Rocker Plate is over half the price of some of its competitors. Thus, we reckon it’s worth a closer look.

KOM Rocker Plate Trainer Platform

KOM Cycling claim that the horizontal movement offered by the Rocker Plate decreases static pressure to your joints, creating a more comfortable immersive indoor cycling
experience. If you are comfortable for longer you may find you have the ability to increase the duration of your turbo training sessions.

The Rocker Plate consists of two Lauan plywood boards connected by rubber isolation mounts. The isolation mounts are often used in industry to damp vibrations generated by motors, reducing the amount transferred to a vehicle chassis (and the humans within it).

Unlike other (more expensive) rocking trainer platforms like the Saris MP1 that offer fore-aft movement too, the KOM Rocker Plate only allows for side-to-side movement. However, it does offer marginally more side-to-side movement; 6.5° as compared to the MP1’s 6°.

Looking at the Wahoo KICKR smart trainer, you may well be thinking that the AXIS feet upgrade would be a much cheaper option at just $79.99. However, it is worth noting that these offer just 5° of tuneable sideways movement.

How do the isolation mounts work?

These thick rubber pucks have threaded interfaces on both sides that act like a flexible beam between the plates, allow for a rocking motion when they flex. KOM Cycling say the isolation mounts provide a nominal amount of spring force to help return the plates to level.

Inflatable balls also sit between the plates on both sides to help return them parallel with one another. The pressure in these balls can be adjusted to fine tune the ride feel. The lower the pressure, the more you’ll have to engage your core to move the bike underneath you.

Other rocking trainer platforms use a metal rod that runs along the length of the rocker plate that pivots on pillow bearings. KOM Cycling say they preferred the simplicity, reduced weight and ease of maintenance offered by the isolation mounts.

KOM Rocker Plate Size, Weight & Compatibility

kom cycling rocker plate indoor trainer platform with trek road bike mounted to wahoo fitness kickr smart trainer — The KOM Rocker Plate comes with five velcro straps that secure the trainer and front wheel to the platform

The KOM Rocker Plate weighs a claimed 42lbs, with the following platform dimensions:

Length: 64″
Width: 34.5″ (Widest), 11.5″ (Narrowest)
Height: 3.75″

It has a maximum weight capacity of 425lbs. Compatibility should only be limited by the width of the platform itself. KOM Cycling confirm it works with indoor trainers from Saris, Wahoo, Tacx and Elite.

Pricing & Availability

The KOM Rocker Plate is shipping from the US as of January 14th. Pre-order one now for $449.99, either direct or from Amazon (with free shipping). Each Rocker Plate comes with five velcro straps, two inflatable balls, a ball inflator pump and a level tool for installation.

KOMCycling.com

Jessie-May Morgan

1,362 articles

Jessie-May Morgan is the UK & Ireland Tech Editor of Bikerumor. She has been writing about Mountain Bike Riding and Racing, and all its weird and wonderful technology for 4 years. Prior to that, she was an Intern at the Mountain Bike Center of Scotland, and a Mountain Bike Coach and Leader in the Tweed Valley.

Based in Innerleithen, Scotland, Jessie-May can often be seen riding the Glentress Trail Center, and its neighboring Enduro and Downhill Tracks. She regularly competes in Enduro at a national level, and has recently competed on the World Stage at a handful of Enduro World Series events.

For Bikerumor, Jessie-May is testing the latest mountain bikes, equipment and kit, letting readers know what’s hot and what’s not.

For context, she weighs 60kg and stands at 5ft 4″ tall (163cm).

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

12 Comments

Oldest

Newest Most Voted

Inline Feedbacks

View all comments

Steven

3 years ago

Selfmade for 100$.

Dustin

3 years ago

I think the side angle comparison needs correcting. 13deg. Sounds like the total left and right tilt if you add both sides from the neutral position. The Saris MP1 leans 6 deg to each side so if you were to compare that it would be 13deg vs 12deg.

Author

Jessie-May Morgan

3 years ago

Reply to Dustin

Thanks for catching that, Dustin. You are correct, it tilts 13 degrees in total.

Astro Kraken

3 years ago

I’ll buy two whole beers and a sandwich to whoever comes out with a rocker plate that mimics real world riding instead of tilting the wrong direction.

Chader

3 years ago

Great to see yet another option in the world of rocker plates. For clarity, this KOM Cycling rocker plate is a re-branded product from the RideNow company. They made their original plate quite a while ago but didn’t seem to sell many beyond their local areas.

It was then marketed under LifeLine name and sold by Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles in the UK. They even ran a sale a while back that lead to the LifeLine rocker being purchased around the world for a great price.

This KOM Cycling version gets different color setup, but appears to retain the same function as the RideNow and LifeLine versions.

These have reviewed well with the notable exception that some riders (especially those new to rocker plates) find the inner location for the leveling spring balls to be too narrow, which leads to a very loose feel. We’ve recommended that those riders move the balls further from the pivot and towards the edge of the plate, if they need more support. Other than that, these seem to be good for a vibration mount design.

I’m happy to answer any questions about rockers here or in my Rocker Plate FB group.

John Flack

3 years ago

Has anyone used a rocker + Wahoo’s AXIS feet? JW if the side-to-side is compounded…

Chader

3 years ago

Reply to John Flack

In most cases, the trainer will be strapped or clamped to the top deck of the rocker plate. As such, that limits the potential motion from the Axis feet. Even if you allow it to move, the amount of motion is rather low, and force required to activate the Axis feet is rather high compared to many rocker plate setups. As such, the rocker will move well before the Axis feet even start to move.

This will be similar to using a Tacx Neo trainer on a rocker plate. The Neo has “flex” built in and it is comparable to the Axis feet on the Kickr. In the case of the Neo, they are stiff enough (like the Axis feet) that the Neo frame doesn’t move much once mounted on a rocker.

The only exception is when someone uses very stiff leveling spring settings on the rocker, or a “simple rocker” like pure foam blocks and such. Those devices with firm and minimal movement may still activate the trainer motion in the Axis feet or Neo frame.

John Bestman

3 years ago

I made my own rocker plate, which is nearly identical to this one. Once the pressure is adjusted properly, it works just as it would in real life. If the pressure is too high, then it works the opposite.

Kieselguhr Kid

3 years ago

I was going to post the same thing. A sheet of plywood, a few tennis balls, and an afternoon.

Colorado Chris

3 years ago

can you put a wahoo climb on these or is that just too dangerous?

benito

3 years ago

Dropping just shy of 5 bills on something like this is steep, even if it’s less than others on the market. That being said, I’m super impressed with mine. I honestly didn’t expect such an instant improvement in comfort and reduced joint fatigue.

One issue has been getting the air volumes right, as my Saris H3 has more weight to one side from how the flywheel is positioned. So there’s some trial and error but I’ve been pretty darn happy.

I don’t have the tools for a homemade/ghetto setup, but if that’s as effective, awesome – although you’d have to experiment with number and placement of the tennis balls, where something like this you can easily adjust the air volume. Either way, for me some sort of cushion/rocker has made a huge difference in making indoor training less unbearable.