So this is a particularly stupid post but I’m going to post it anyway.
Anyone got any ideas on how to improve my bike handling skills during the off season / winter without riding my bike outside?
I don’t mind the cold (okay maybe a bit!) but I still have some recovery to do on aspects of injuries sustained last year (and I don’t want to crash and put me back). What can I do in the safety of the inside that would help?
What about like a balance board?
Also, joking but not entirely joking, try fatbiking! If/when you crash it’s just in snow. 
And it’s fantastic for your bike handling, because the surface is always changing and you’re always reacting.
Good Idea on the balance board, I have one anyway from my recuperation but I’m sure I can do some other exercises on it.
I’m not sure you realize how cleverly I seem to be able to injure myself on a bike these days. I bet I can injure myself somehow in soft snow 
I should get the old fat bike out. It has been neglected and needs a good service but If I take it easier that is probably safe (famous last words). The tricky parts always seem to be transitioning from the nice trails to the more heavily trafficed areas. Thankfully I do have studded tires.
Have you considered trying the KWCA Mountain Bike Skills Arena? I haven’t been since it was started a couple of years ago and I’m not sure how many adults attend, but it is a good way to ride on a non-stationary bike indoors in the winter. And closer than JoyRide 150.
Otherwise I’d suggest signing up for the WCC Zwift Racing league to get some good threshold riding in
Bike rollers!
Well you could still crash indoors with them - but no one will (need to) know 
Some nice ideas there! Keep them coming.
I’m struggling already to get my wife to allow me to ride gravel next year so I think the MTB would cause some marital issues. Unless I can ride it in a one of those inflatable bubble things
The rollers is a good idea. I have never tried them. I’m not sure I would want to use them for hard efforts though. How much do folk suggest they need to be used per session to improve bike handling?
Sadly the Zwift timing doesn’t work for me. In the off season I tend to ride right after work then it frees up the rest of the evening for family stuff. I then have some brownie points that I burn riding in the summer. I’m also annoying between Zwift grades so either go the lower group and the workout isn’t really hard enough or I go up a group and blow up halfway though. Trainer Road for the win for me in terms of fitness.
Definitely rollers. There are countless examples of people becoming much better at bike handling from riding rollers.
It’s tough to put a ‘time’ to them but I limit my time on rollers to no more than 45-60min at a time (sometimes less) as it is tough to get out of the saddle (you’ll be able to one day!) and your butt will appreciate the time constraint.
Wrt “hard efforts” …that too will come with time. Track sprinters will easily hit rpms in the 160-200rpm range but this, also, comes with time/practice.
Bonus…rollers always appear on online market places for much cheaper than any smart trainer!
If you go this route, let me know and I can provide some pointers. I have been using rollers since 1989 or 1990?
The best thing for skills is riding outside. Kevin’s suggestion of fat bikes isn’t a terrible idea assuming there is snow and not a ton of ice.
Rollers are also good (between a doorway), but it seems you are are reasonable competent rider that has had more then your fair share of bad luck.
I’d look at more of a long term approach. Most of us are guilty of just riding because its more fun then working on skills. In the summer, crit practice really helps but I’ve found for me its the offroad riding really helps with skills. slowing down things when they go wrong. I corner significantly faster now then when I was racing on the road its largely just happened by riding relatively slow behind kids.
I would avoid KWCA indoor skills. Polished concrete isn’t the best place to learn and there have been several significant injuries. Fine for kids but us adults not so much.
If you have the time and they happen I’d look at Ana’s MTB skills, Thursday CX and crit practice in the summer. It doesn’t happen overnight but I know I’ve avoided a couple of big crashes the last couple of years that I wouldn’t have 5 years ago.
Kidding…but not kidding.
Cross Country Skiing. Go as fast or slow as you want. Walk if you have too.
The balance, the strength, the core, the uneven surfaces, uphills, downhills, different strides, techniques. And hey…you get to work those scrawny things call arms.
Having a strong core and being agile on varying surfaces translates across sports.
A.
Lots of good suggestions here.
I do think about cross country skiing. However, every time I get serious about getting kitted out the snow vanishes. I do wonder how many years of good snow we are going to get (this year being the exception!). I do alpine ski but then they create their own.
I have been eyeing up some rollers for years too. I don’t think they would replace my trainer ( it is nice to have a stable platform for when I just want to work the legs and pay attention to the TV) hence the question on how much time I need to get balance benefit improvements ( I would use both). Do they wear the tires out like the old wheel on trainers? I might actually have an old trainer tire if needed.
I keep promising Mark I’ll come out to the CX practice each year so maybe this is the year assuming I can keep my bones together.
The balance board is a great idea. I’ve bought and sold rollers more than I want to admit. It gets really boring. I’ve had basic ones to resistance ones, each time I sell them lol.
We took up XC skiing and find it works the small muscles well. Like foot movement and coordination.
Something else you could consider is strength training. Working on cycling specific functional strength exercises could help with stability on the bike and would pair well with other suggestions above.
Strength training is certainly happening. I have put on a fair bit of muscle so far on orders from my physio. I think I’ll be slower on the bike but hopefully more cushioning if I do hit the deck
I started doing this program and it seems pretty decent and cheap: Dynamic Cyclist | Mobility - Strength - Injury Prevention. It was one of those Facebook ads so I didn’t have high hopes but so far I like it. Just been doing the hip injury rehab program ( which I have nearly completed) and I’ll transition to fully body afterwards
Oliver you don’t need to put a lot of initial time on rollers - trust me if you’ve never ridden on them it’ll take a bit before you can actually do a “session” - then it’ll start to become easy - and by that point your core skills and reactions will definitely have improved.
I actually prefer riding rollers to the turbo trainer, except I can’t do long sessions on them (an hour max).
Rollers have very little tire wear - I wouldn’t use race tires on them, but any normal tire will be totally fine
Similar experience as @CraigM and @WillA
Rollers ARE fun. Super simple set up. You have to concentrate lightly, and it’s all about balance and smooth pedalling (you can hear if you are mashing).
They are indispensable for warm up at the track. And those KWYCA kids and WCC Trackies like @TommyB can spin those things up to crazy RPM and eventually ride with no hands while eating and texting in their sleep. I’d say they have elevated bike handling skills as a result of rollers.
This thread is inspiring me to go pull them out and try them today. Last time I was on them was with @Bopper at track nationals.
@Oliver_Smith, maybe this will be the year you come out to cross practice.
As others have said, anything that strengthens your core and gets you to improve your balance. I like rollers for short recovery spins or warming up.
Alain mentioned xc skiing, and it does your core and balance wonders while also having fun. If you commit to buying the gear, which is relatively cheap compared to bikes, then you have it and can take advantage when the snow falls.
The idea of a fat bike isn’t terrible (although not as good as cross country skis!). Practice does make perfect so at the end of the day you do just need to play around on a bike to get those all important handling skills.
You have the most important thing, motivation. Hope to see you out having fun no matter the activity.
Thanks for the advice folks. Going to keep my eyes peeled for some rollers in Kijiji. Pulled my fat bike off the rack to give it the once over. I need some parts which I have ordered. Hopefully there will still be some snow when they eventually come in.
Ice skating will use all kinds of muscles you didn’t know you had and balance is crucial lol. A used pair can be pretty cheap from play it again sports.
I do Pilates that works on balance, core strengthening and overall strengthening.
When I was looking for similar advice, I got a couple of recommendations to do Judo/martial arts to learn to fall better.
There’s a Ki Aikido class downtown Kitchener that’s part of the Active Kitchener programs. I wanted to do it but between scheduled vacation and getting COVID… I’m missing majority of the classes so I had to get a refund. 
(I don’t see it on the site anymore but you should ask because the instruction seem to be more learn-at-your-own-pace.)
