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Introduction
Over the past few years airbikes have grown in popularity – thanks in no small part to CrossFit! They are easy to learn, simple to use and massively capable of building a crazy strong cardio engine!
Today I’m looking at one the UK manufacturers latest offering – the Bulldog Gear Airbike 3.0.
At a glance…
- An airbike is a simple to use yet versatile cardio fitness tool
- They can be used for HIIT or LISS training
- Bulldog are a UK company that have a great bike for sale
- Their bike undercuts the main competitor by around £100
- Check it out right now here
What is an airbike?
An airbike is a cardio tool modelled on a stationary bike but with the addition of handles that can be cranked back and fourth to assist with the movement. Both the pedals and handles drive a huge fan which sits where a front wheel would normally be.
Having handles to crank means an airbike gives a much more involved full body cardio workout than a stationary bike, or turbo trainer.
By driving a fan a couple of cool things happen –
- Infinite resistance without having gears – as your crank away the resistance increases naturally with the physics of air resistance. There is no distraction of gears – just pure focus on working that cardio engine.
- Fan creates airflow – by spinning up the fan you create some wind in your training environment. If you use (or have used) a turbo trainer indoors you will know it gets pretty stale in a garage gym when spinning away! A fan bike creates a fresh flow of air which is awesome when pushing it!
Can I use an airbike for LISS, as well as HIIT?
An airbike offers a great way to build your cardio fitness regardless of how you train. They have been around for decades – in fact doctors would often recommend them as a low impact was to perform light intensity training for older people!
A far cry from the crazy high intensity interval training they are commonly used for today! The rise in HIIT training on air bikes has been driven by CrossFit and the ‘box’ gym environment where circuit training is really popular.
What this means is that an airbike is an awesome way to get your LISS training as well as HIIT.
Personally I use my bike roughly half and half for high and low intensity work. This might seem like a cop out, but my general fitness training approach at the moment prescribes 1x HIIT and 1x LISS session per week.
Over the years I have done numerous LISS and HIIT sessions and I love the bike for either approach to training.
Bulldog Gear Airbike 3.0
Bulldog, as you likely know, are a pretty awesome company in the UK that create decent gym equipment for commercial or home gym use. Think of a UK based equivalent of Rogue and you are not too far from the truth!
Bulldog have had an airbike in their range for some time, but truth be told the specification wasn’t quite what I was looking for
That is, until the 3.0 was announced.
Following the Rogue Echo bike and the surge of interest in this modality of training Bulldog have really sharpened their pencils (and possibly found the tracing paper…) and taken a quantum leap forward with their latest bike.
What got me excited:
- Belt drive – older bikes are usually chain drive. While this is perfectly fine, it is old technology these days. Belts are much quieter (hint – amazing for home use!), offer a more intuitive drive with instant acceleration / deceleration vs the inherent lag in a chain system and virtually maintenance free.
- Weight – at 57kg the new air bike is a beefcake! For something that we thrash around on pretty aggressively I feel much better on a stout, heavy piece of equipment than some of the older designs which are more fragile. This really pushed me towards a new device over something second hand.
- Looks – Just look at it. While it obviously looks very similar to the Rogue Echo bike, having something look similar to something that is gorgeous is no bad thing…
- Price – the pricing is unbelievably competitive. It undercuts the Rogue by around £100 like-for-like (kindly Bulldog throw in all their accessories)
Side of the bike shows how overbuilt it is! Tank! Front angle: Love this view Rear view: stable yet thin enough to tuck away Front view: Fan enclosure visible Pedal box is rock solid Adjustable seat: Plenty of options Wind guard: I was initially sceptical but I’ve REALLY enjoyed having this on Rear handle: Very easy to grab and use Wheels at the front: Easy to move around with wheels and rear handle Close up: Robust build quality Saddle is big and heavily padded Pegs are metal, knurled and rotate Handles are really nice – comfortable foam-sequencing coating and a fantastic diameter Console has all the required program options & data outputs
Bulldog Gear vs Rogue Echo Bike
The Bulldog and the Rogue have a remarkable amount in common – they are more similar than they are different, in fact.
I’ve pulled a quick comparison together here:
| Bulldog Gear Airbike 3.0 | Rogue Echo Bike | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 57kg | 58kg |
| Drive | Belt | Belt |
| Compatible with heart rate monitor | Yes | Yes (if T31C coded) |
| Console functions | Distance Speed Pace Calories Watts RPM Heart Rate Programmable intervals & time | Distance Speed Pace Calories Watts RPM Heart RateProgrammable intervals & time |
| Adjustment | 8x height settings 5x lateral settings | 8x height settings 5x lateral settings |
| Handle & wheels | Yes | Wheels No dedicated handle |
| Wind guard | Included | Additional cost (around £25) |
| Water bottle | Included | Additional cost (around £8) |
| Warranty | Frame for 5 years Parts for 1 year | 2 years |
| Price | £850 | £942 (using Post Office FX rates) 1012 Euros (including VAT, delivery, wind guard & bottle holder) |
| Ships from | UK | Belgium |
| Best for | UK purchasers conscious of potential Brexit issues for shipping / returns Those looking for quality at the best price | Crossfit Games competitors who need the competition equipment Those who value to Rogue brand |
| Check them out now | Click here to get the latest price | Click here to get the latest price |
Final thoughts
To conclude my Bulldog Airbike 3.0 review I would say that they have really pulled it out of the bag and delivered an awesome product!
The prior bike was just not quite up there with the Rogue, but this latest version is nearly identical, while undercutting it on price. This is great to see from a UK manufacturer and long may it continue.
What’s not to like?