Indoor training has come a long way since the days of popping your bike on a wheel-on magnetic trainer and grabbing a stop watch (and HRM if you were fancy!).
The new JetBlack Victory smart trainer, which ships with Zwift’s virtual-shifting Cog and Click combo, is about as far from the bad old days as it gets, packing a shopping list of features into a neat package at a price point that’s hard to beat.
We’ve been testing one out along with the supporting accessories, and while indoor training is as sweaty, painful, and miserable as ever, the JetBlack Victory at least makes it as hassle-free as possible.
We’ve also been testing the JetBlack Trainer Table, Mat, Fan, and Smart Turn Block alongside the trainer.
JetBlack Victory Key Details
Connectivity | Bluetooth FTMS, WiFi, ANT+, USB-C
Max power | 1800w
Max gradient | 16%
Accuracy/Response | ± 2.0% accuracy with 10Hz Race Mode
Freehubs | Shimano HG and XDr compatible (XDr available aftermarket)
Axle Standards | Quick Release and Thru Axle Adaptors (142 and 148mm)
Unit Weight | 16.9kg
Other Features | Bluetooth device bridging, Auto spindown calibration, Proprietary electromagnetic drive, Carry handle
Zwift Protocol | Compatible with virtual shifting via included Zwift Cog and Click
The Victory’s design is simple and user-friendly, with the JetBlack signature orange grip tape on the handle a nice touch.
A feature-crammed package
The JetBlack Victory’s specification reads like a wish list of indoor trainer features, ticking just about every box you could ask for.
On the connectivity front, the inclusion of both WiFi and Bluetooth bridging capability is a huge plus for us. Bluetooth dropouts that leave your avatar standing stationary on the Watopia roadside while the rest of the bunch races away have been a regular and frustrating feature of virtual racing for years.
Connecting multiple devices – trainer, heart rate monitor, headphones etc – to your laptop or tablet can overwhelm its Bluetooth capacity, leading to dropouts. Workarounds like using ANT+ dongles for some sensors and your phone to connect via Zwift companion can help, but don’t always solve the problem.
The Zwift Cog makes the Victory trainer compatible with pretty much any 8-13 speed setup, without the annoyance of changing cassettes.
The JetBlack Victory solves this by connecting to WiFi directly, acting more like a third Zwift interface (along with your computer and phone’s Companion App) and bypassing the requirement to connect to your device. On top of that, your HRM and Smart Turn block can connect to the trainer via Bluetooth, which acts as a bridge for their signals.
This leaves your computer free to manage just the Bluetooth signal from the Click virtual shifter, and your headphones or other ancillary device, eliminating the overload that causes the dropouts.
Speaking of virtual shifting, that’s the other key feature here. The Victory ships with the Zwift Cog and Click. We’ve covered the details of the Cog and Click before when we looked at Wahoo’s Kickr Core Zwift One, so we won’t go into too much detail here.
The Cog is adjustable to ensure a perfect chainline, contributing to a quiet and efficient ride.
While the Cog and Click require you to have a Zwift subscription to make the most of the virtual shifting (for now), there are two big positives: eliminating shift noise, and multi-bike compatibility. The Zwift Cog will work with any 8-12 speed groupset officially, and in our experience, also works with 13 speed setups from Campagnolo and SRAM.
Combined with the Victory’s hub axle adapters, it’s possible to use the same trainer for multiple bikes with different gearing and axle configurations without any additional parts. If you’re sharing the trainer in a household, or are doing event-specific training on a different bike to usual (say, your 12-speed MTB instead of your usual 11-speed hard rubbish trainer bike), this means seamless transition without swapping cassettes or freehubs.
The Cog features plastic shields to stop your chain from dropping off if you accidentally shift your derailleur. The window indicator shows the alignment setting.
Beyond those major features, the Victory is a user-friendly design, with things like the super-responsive Race Mode, ± 2.0% accuracy and automatic spindown calibration making it reliable and hassle-free. A carry handle neatly finished with bright orange bar tape makes it easy to move around, though it takes up a bit more space to store than its close competitor, the Wahoo Kickr Core, which features a folding leg.
In the saddle
In use, the JetBlack Victory is an easy-to-live-with companion. Structually, the wide legs and ~17kg heft mean it’s stable and sturdy, with no sense of rocking or walking, even during max power efforts.
The WiFi and Bluetooth bridging connectivity is an absolute blessing in disguise for someone who has battled ill-timed and frustrating dropouts for years using an older Kickr Core in combination with MacBook, AirPods and iOS Zwift Companion app.
One of the great things about indoor training is that when it’s miserable winter weather outside, you don’t have to get your bike muddy. Apparently, Andy didn’t get the memo.
It’s also noticeably quieter in use than the old Kickr, in large part thanks to the Zwift Cog and its virtual shifting, which eliminates the noisy clunking of a derailleur shifting down a cassette echoing through the house.
The virtual shifting itself is rather impressive. With the included Click buttons, shifting is sequential according to the setup chosen in Zwift – with no capacity to mimic a front derailleur. Zwift has recently released V2 Click controllers that are now a pair, and integrate the game-style control pads of the existing Play controllers. These V2 Click controllers now allow a SRAM-style setup which can mimic a front derailleur shift by pressing both + and – gear shifts simultaneously.
It took us a bit of trial and error to find a natural-feeling position for the Click shifter on a drop bar.
Nevertheless, in sequential mode, the virtual shifting is responsive and feels fairly natural through the cranks, with the responsive Victory trainer taking care of quick changes in resistance to mimic steps in gearing.
The Click controller itself though is fairly unrefined, and can take a bit of finesse to position in a way that feels natural to use. On flat bars, it’s a bit easier to orient in an intuitive thumb-shifter position, but on drop bars, it is a bit fiddly.
Ultimately, we found we preferred it on the front of the bend where the buttons could be comfortably pressed with middle and ring fingers while in both the hoods or drops.
The full monty – Victory trainer with Trainer Mat, Table, Fan, and Smart Turn Block.
Supporting Accessories
We’ve also been testing the JetBlack Smart Turn block ($169.99 AUD), Trainer Table ($199.99 AUD), Trainer Fan ($199.99 AUD), and Trainer Mat ($99.99 AUD) with the Victory trainer. If you really wanted to go all-in on the indoor experience, the brand also offers a rocker plate to bring a more realistic ride feel to your spare room.
While the accessories aren’t essential for getting the most out of the Victory trainer, and cheaper alternatives exist – like putting your laptop on the ironing board or getting a box fan from the big green shed – they do support the indoor training experience, are well-designed and excecuted.
The Table is a tidy fold-away solution if you don’t have space for a permanent trainer setup, and are using a laptop or tablet to run Zwift.
The Trainer Mat helps protect your floor and makes it easy to clean up the litres of sweat you’re going to drip everywhere. The Table gives you a convenient place for your tablet or laptop (if that’s your setup of choice), includes a clever integrated upright holder for your phone to keep Zwift Companion and your powerups at your fingertips, and has ample real estate for your fan remote and bidon too.
The Smart Turn Block levels your front wheel and provides turning functionality in Zwift, while also freeing up a bit of front wheel movement so you don’t feel so rigidly locked in position. Personally, the virtual turning didn’t add much to my trainer experience, but a little bit of movement up front and the front wheel lift were comfortable additions.
The Smart Turn Block raises the front wheel and provides virtual turning functionality in Zwift.
The Fan features 4 speeds, controllable by remote or the large up and down buttons.
It moves a lot of air, but it’s pretty bulky, and we would have liked if it could be more easily angled upwards more for close positioning in small spaces.
The Trainer Fan moves a whole lot of air – which you need when you’re sitting still – with four fan speeds to keep you and your trainer cool and dry. You can adjust the fan angle by flipping the rear legs, but we would have liked to see it able to be angled more steeply upwards, for training in more confined spaces.
It’s also a fair bit of money for a fan when there are other compact and high-velocity options out there that aren’t made by bike companies.
Flow’s Verdict
The JetBlack Victory is hard to beat from a value standpoint. At $849.00 AUD, it’s $50 cheaper than its most natural competitor, the Wahoo Kickr Core Zwift One; which lacks the WiFi connectivity that is such a key part of what makes the Victory great to live with.
As to the trainer accessories, it’s more up to you as to whether you see value. The Table, or the smaller Tray (which connects to your computer mount and is enough to hold a phone and a couple of gels), are a positive addition if you don’t have space for a permanent trainer setup. While the Fan and Mat are both quality items, there are cheaper generic alternatives that can do much the same job.
At the end of the day, if you’re after a smart trainer and you’re attracted to the Zwift Cog and Click setup, the JetBlack Victory is hard to go past.