The Tacx Alpine is a $1,100 gradient simulator for your Garmin smart bike trainer

Cycling season may have only just started, but that’s not stopping Garmin from looking ahead to when all the roadies need to take their bikes indoors. On Tuesday, the company announced the Tacx Alpine, an indoor gradient simulator for its family of NEO smart trainers. The accessory can replicate inclines of up to 25 percent and declines of up to -10 percent, with adjustments made either manually through a built-in control panel or automatically when using the device with a compatible apps like Zwift and Garmin’s own Tacx Training software.

In those same apps, the Tacx Alpine also allows for real-time virtual steering adjustments. Naturally, Garmin Connect support is also included for stat tracking and more. In short, the Tacx Alpine is designed for those who want spice up their off-season training since pedaling a road bike on an indoor trainer is about the most boring thing ...