I know that you riders hate me right now, but let me try to explain my situation better.
I have tried trainers in the past. I have purchased two CycleOps in my life. First was a wind-resistance one with a fan. It was inexpensive, but loud as hell and I really could not use it in my apartment at night. This was before I was married. A few years later, I got one of the gel CycleOps and it was much better. I rode a Specialized Allez Elite on it. After running in college, I thought I might get into cycling, but I just never had a chance to devote any serious time to it. I am envious of you cyclists who can pull off long rides. I just found that getting in two 45 minute runs daily and a longrun on the weekend kept me very fit and was rather easy to fit into daily life.
Now I am on the brink of 40 and cannot do doubles anymore. Maybe once a week. I am feeling more beat up after hard efforts and need to cross train for fitness. I am super type A and I am either going to work out or be on Xanax. Working out has always been good to me, and I would like to keep it going throughout my 40s. I have gained some weight over the past year due to work being more demanding, lots of sitting in meetings, travel, and feeling lucky to get 7 miles in a day. In my youth, it was nothing to lace them up at 10pm and head out the door. Now it is next to impossible. My wife doesn't let me do it, for one. She can't sleep if I am out running late and she yells at me if I have already run that day and need another run. She is a runner, too, but thinks I am stupid. I am.
I would get on a trainer and watch NetFlix or listen to music, though. And she would like to have one of these in the house.
Lastly, the reason I am so set on a spinner over a real bike is that there is NO WAY IN HADES my wife is going to let me keep a trainer in the house. I do not have a garage, we have an open carport. She would let me have one of these on a proper mat in our sunroom, and I think she'd actually use it.
Way TL;DR, but you cyclists deserved a response. By the way, I called a friend who cycles and he agrees with you about the road bike and trainer and called me an inappropriate name for thinking about a Peloton. I will talk to the boss tonight and make a decision. I am liking the CL-5 or whatever it is called from Life Fitness.