Zwift Team Time Trial, Thursday

Hard, but enjoyable. Struggled over the boardwalk/Sandy bit. Thought we nailed both climbs, and nicely dropped one clinger on the second KOM. Even better was Ben beating that Spanish guy to the post. Class.

Cheers guys. Really enjoyed that. We did get tangled up on the last hill and then couldn’t really separate it. I think that last team just went straight into our draft and didn’t let a gap open as we caught them quite easy. Rest of it was really good though I thought - we went up the reverse KOM really well as a team and a good pace. Got quite a few segment PBs so we set a really good pace.

I don’t know if the issue with the overtakes was that we didn’t have anyone with a 300w+ ftp to really open the gap. Think we all hit our limit getting past but then couldn’t break the draft.

Anyway 283w NP so a good threshold workout for me - couldn’t have given a lot more.

Thanks everyone on MoreSTW. I really enjoyed that. I think I was a bit eager out the blocks but we rode a tight group until those Scottish lads tangled with us. I agree. I expected them to fall back. The commissaire would have given them a penalty in a real event I think. I was close to FTP so either running into good form or the Kickr Core needed a calibration. Hope it is the former not the latter.

Very pleased I signed up now and just about to crack open that beer. It was hard work but very enjoyable all the same. I wasn’t sure what the decision was at the end re. going for it or rolling in and chose a daft time to grab my towel for a face wipe. Lost the wheel and couldn’t get back on again so hope that didn’t have a knock on effect to those behind me. Thanks everyone.

Thanks for the ride, I was out of position when we pushed past that team and got caught up with their leading rider - they definitely sped up as we passed, took a big effort to escape them and get on the back and then we were straight into the hill as they then caught back up. Very bad form from them, they never left more than a 5m gap. I was on the rivet anyway and had little left to give, so dropping out was the right thing. I cruised in 3 mins late, cramping up.

I've been under power lately, my w/kg is bottom of the group, despite power being mid group - Jack has got the whole family on a big calorie deficit diet since xmas, so hopefully that will pick up as the kgs go back down to pre xmas level.

I do hope that Zwift, when the fix the ZP team tag issue with a proper team allocation method and a proper TTT start also fix the interaction with other teams. The game already knows that some bikes (TT) can't draft. It seems a small step to make teams not be able to draft each other either. Interfering with other teams would then be a thing of the past. We can only dream.

Results are in - we got 46:31 so only really lost a couple of seconds due to the split up caused by that other team. We also came 59th out of 299 which is a pretty good result really.

Team STW got 43:59 and came in 132 out of 336.

@drew not an issue - I think everyone gave it their all to get past that team. I was pushing 330w for over a minute to try and keep some momentum as we passed and we didn't separate. These things happen. It prob only cost us a few seconds

@haloric apologies on that - it is so hard to judge when to go for it but when they speed up it is even worse!

That WRTL website is a little 'busy' isn't it? Do you have to register to see the full results? I agree with @haloric - the team identification issue would solve a lot of problems. Let's face it, Zwift really need a proper staggered start TTT set up. Oh, and I think that other team should be penalised on their mis-matching jerseys if nothing else. We looked the business:)

they definitely sped up as we passed

Do you have to register to see the full results?

Do you have to register to see the full results?

You can, I’ve never bothered signing up. At the bottom of the TTT page you’ll see the full results, but not in individual classes. So you’ll have to sift through 800 odd teams to find your result...pretty easy if you know roughly what your time was.

If you do register and log in the search feature works surpassingly well. Type in 'STW' and it brings up both teams.

I've put two entries in for next week. (Now I've finally stopped laughing at @robbo1234biking for imposing a no-socks uniform requirement on @slowpuncheur)

Enter category A here: https://www.zwift.com/events/view/1550562

It's listed as just the one lap of Tick Tock, which will be a blisteringly brief outing. We did two laps (riding in the premier league no less...) as a latte team in 52 minutes in the Summer. So we're looking at sub 30 and possibly sub 25 in frappe.

I don't fully grasp the real story about the significance of watts v w/kg on the flat in zwift. I realise that pure watts matter more on this course than elsewhere, but I don't believe they are the whole story. Big C's don't routinely outride smaller A's even on tick tock. BUT I know some of us Bs (e.g. @w00dster) sometimes feel like they are slower on the flat and we have C's (e.g. @robbo1234biking) who can push big watts. Express your preferences, and I'll do my best to shuffle riders where appropriate to best match them into teams. And any high watts lurkers, this might be your week to join (back) in.

Entered. No preference to what team.
I do find flats harder, but I’m also rubbish at hiding in the pack.
My FTP is 260, for a shorter ride (20 to 30 mins) I’d probably be able to put out 280 to 290 watts. That’s about 4.2 or 4.3 w/kg.
The difficulty in a TTT is that the guys on the front will be pulling in excess of 300 watts on the flat, for a shorter one Phil will be pulling in excess of 350 watts!! So I’m effectively just pack fodder in the flat races as I can’t contribute.
I’m generally going over FTP for the duration of the TTT, then having to put in another 30 watts to do some work on the front is a killer.
Hope that doesn’t sound like a winge as its not intended to be, and I absolutely love it, really pushes me to work harder. I just feel for Phil who ends up doing the majority of the work.

It might be still be 2 laps @savoyad someone has asked for clarification on the Facebook page. Either way I am in - no preference for teams - whatever works best for everyone.

I noticed drew went with no socks but didn’t get a chance to check slowpuncheur!

@w00dster think you have entered as your daughter!

That doubt about the single lap is why I hedged slightly with "listed as". It's showing the 2 lap records as well. But these things often are right to start with even when they seem weird (the alpe and double-bologna weren't jokes for example!). And I can see the case for a very fast very short event occasionally.

No @w00dster it really doesn't sound like a winge at all. It's as much about how you feel about it (which I can't know without asking) as your actual power measurements (which I can!). I'll play with the combinations when I see who rides.

We could put out quite the "accidentally-entered family members" team one week.

I think you'll find my shins were properly furnished!

https://imgur.com/fVIStIK

I wasn't buying the no sock thing. Nice Tri @robbo1234biking;)

Anyway, count me in for next week. One for the rouleurs so not as good for me as the last one but I'll chip in where I can.

accidentally-entered family members

Sounds like a very niche sex tape or an episode of Jeremy Kyle.

You took that screenshot specifically in case you were questioned on it didn’t you @slowpuncheur?!

I'm so gullible, embarrassingly so for a 63 yr old. Please don't tell the others 🤫

The team I ride for (WKG) have confirmed it’s a two lapper. Gutted I can’t race it (I’ll be at work) a flat race suits me. Our team managed to get a slot in the Platinum League last night for the first time, we did 39:36, coming 17th in the platinum league (out of 81) and 31st overall out of 873 teams. Considering we don’t have many lightweight riders (5 of us are 75kg + ) it was a good result. Thankfully we didn’t have any draft issues with other teams (we thought we’d be cannon fodder for the big guns and get swamped 😂)

Hi all. We're sitting on 5 entries for next week (well, we will be once @w00dster gets his accounts in order...).

Now confirmed as TWO laps of tick tock, so 36km of flat riding. Thursday, 7.40pm.

All riders enter category A here: https://www.zwift.com/events/view/1550562

I don't know why but I always think Tick Tock is route where you just do laps of the flat dessert portion. I forget it goes round under the sea as well.

I did it as a race between Xmas and New Year after doing the PRL full and did it in 54 mins so should be about 50 mins depending on team composition etc.

How does this work to ride, enter a are you just allocated a team?

I've entered, but I reckon I'll be hiding in the group more this week if its flat!!

Hi @karnali - just enter cat A (they are used as start pens rather than watts categories for this event) via the link above and I'll post proper details, including the two teams assuming we have that many riders, later in the week.

Thanks

Entered don'tind which team I slow down and share my terrible drafting skills with, I watch for instructions on changing tag etc later in week. If you end up with too many riders I'm happy to not race

I'm in too.

Still a couple of places left for 2 laps of tick tock tomorrow.

Grab them here, category A: https://www.zwift.com/events/view/1550562

I'll post teams, tags, start delays, practical info etc at lunchtime.

I’m in!

I've registered for the race this evening.

Ok, details for this evening.
2 laps of Tick Tock

Team STW, tag (STW), discord TTT (STW)
Delay 4 mins so in the pen by 19:40 and off at 19:44:00
@benman
@phil56
@paino
@yanboss
@munkeymadness
@robbo1234biking - change your tag
@karnali - change your rider name tag in zwiftpower to (STW), see link below

MoreSTW, tag (MoreSTW), discord TTT (MoreSTW)
Delay 6 mins so in the pen by 19:40 and off at 19:46:00
@woodster - change your tag
@drew
@trolo1234
@slowpuncheur
@haloric
jack
@mbs
@zilog6128

- to change tag for this event, go to settings, top right here: https://www.zwiftpower.com/events.php?zid=1550562 and enter the whole name (not just the tag!) in the rider name field.
- discord server invite: https://discord.gg/wGmGVWBZ
- dress up as a bumblebee. ride a road bike. aero rules today if you are a frame/wheel changer.
- the start procedure is weird. when it says GO! you MUST NOT GO! Instead, stop pedalling (you must stay at zero watts) for the team's "start delay". There will be a countdown over discord. THEN you can go.

@karnali pay attention to the start procedure. it's a bit weird, and first time out it's easy to either shoot off too soon and find yourself alone or just riding with all the other premature departures, or miss your team's slot and get left behind. If you are on discord, it'll be called out as a countdown. If comms fail for any reason, go at 19:44:00 and you should find yourself in a reassuring swarm of bumblebees.

(Edit - the time I originally typed was wrong. oops. This version, 19:44:00 is correct)

Thanks Savoyad - tag has been updated

Thanks tag updated, accepted discord link, hopefully i won't have same zwift issues as tuesday night, start procedure noted, hopefully I can be of help to the team and not just get shelled out the back.

Why am I so nervous!!!!

Don’t worry @karnali you are a fast rider and Phil will keep you on the straight and narrow. There isn’t anything to catch you out on this course really. Spend the first 10-15 mins getting used to the draft and working in the group as it is easy to tire yourself trying to get to the front and contribute by putting big efforts in. When you get used to dynamics you learn when to push and when to hold back.

Thanks all - that was a great ride this evening. That course is pretty tough - it may be flat but that means it is flat out continuously. The double pass was a thing of beauty! So lucky it didn’t go wrong. I think the two teams were so focussed on each other they didn’t clock us coming so it was a bit of a surprise when we went past them both!

@karnali great ride for your first outing. Hope you enjoyed it and will be back for more suffering next week.

Not sure my VO2 Max workout will be as successful in the morning after that!

51.53 for STW and 53:01 for MoreSTW.
Apologies to MoreSTW for the overtake on the last climb through the tunnel. In hindsight should have waited until we got to the top of the climb.

Yes thanks for organising and shouting through my headphones Phil, didn't have the ability to switch off mute and reply when you did the everyone ok checks. Flat is my nemesis! I was in a world of pain at 14km and was counting down the kms to 1 lap, thinking if I drop off the back after a lap that's not too bad, then just managed to hang on for another 5k each time. Enjoyed 2nd lap more. I think, I'm not 100% so won't be there in the morning Robbo, going to have a few gentle days, should be back next week though for more torture Tues and Thurs.

No worries @w00dster. We were on a roll at the time and had 2 clean passes previous to that. Thanks for driving it on. I certainly felt like I emptied the tank. Shame @haloric and Jack had IT issues. We did really well with 6.

That was quite the shitstorm for Jack and I.

After the event had started and 3 mins to go Jack tried to leave the pairing screen on Apple TV to be ready to launch, might have fumbled it, because the app minimised, and then the ATV was not having it. Normally ATV rock solid honest Robbo !.

I was trying to provide fatherly inspirational words of encouragement as you can imagine, to no avail, whilst as our launch time approached I gave the countdown, not convinced anyone heard it anyway and I launched - but was all alone - no other riders, not even a rider list.

Comms over discord was similarly poor, gave it up as a bad job after a lonely first 1k.

Rode the 4th tour de zwift stage to a similar level of pain.

Another update from Zwift coming down the sewer tonight, be ready.

Another great outing for both teams. Tried to stay second wheel for as much as possible tonight, although had to hide in the pack now and again to recharge my batteries. That double pass was quality, think you’re right Robbo, they didn’t know we were coming at all! I think the first team on the road thought we were cheating by riding together, just a well timed double pass!
@karnali I find the best method with discord is to change the voice setting to push to talk. That way you should be muted until you press the on screen button.

It was another great performance from Team STW - again we pretty much stayed locked together from start to finish. I think we passed four teams, and did really well when we caught two of them together. Great effort guys, and well done Martin on your first TTT

@haloric - I was really happy with ATV last night and on this mornings rides. Once you get used to the remote is seems to have the stability and graphics of the iPad but on a big screen and without the issues with a laptop. Frees up the household laptop as well at weekends and using a phone for typing input is easy as is the companion app. Will see how it goes over the weekend doing the TdZ rides.

I think my fan was too noisy for the microphone on my headset though as once I turned it down people could hear me. Not an issue when riding with STW as I don't need to talk to much but might need to use the other headset if I am riding with MoreSTW.

Team STW came 343 in GC out of out of 933 teams (211 in Frappe)
Team MoreSTW came in 451 in GC out of 933 teams (275 in Frappe)

How come both teams were in Frappe? I thought one should be in Latte

Oh and when does the flat white category come in?

Enjoyed the TTT last night. Thanks all particularly Phil for pulling us around. I should probably have done a bit more on the front. I still have some issues with discord on phone. Chews through the battery and drops out. Will try through ipad next time.

@robbo. I use ATV. Generally very stable. I do however hate the remote, particularly when sweaty. Only issue I have is I need to use companion app to link my 3 BT connections (trainer, cadence and HRM). If the iPad (companion) app drops connection for even a microsecond zwift is still running but your power etc goes to zero. Often very difficult to reconnect particularly using the bl88dy ATV remote. If only ATV could take 3 BT connections would be near perfect. Or I need to update my kicr to a new one with built in cadence sensor.

How come both teams were in Frappe? I thought one should be in Latte

We have lots of B(+) now. It'll usually mean one frappe and one latte, but two frappe is always a possibility with our breakdown. So there was a frappe+latte selection available yesterday, but I paid a little more attention to pure watts than to w/kg (or coffee class) than normal because of the nature of the course (amongst other things), and that meant we ended up with two frappes. Conversely there will be weeks where (e.g.) I sense a chance to smash it in latte and coffee class dominates, or w/kg is all that matter.

There will usually be one team obviously faster on paper than the other. But the intention behind my selection approach is that the Bs in the slower team, particularly those that move often between the teams, shouldn't see themselves as being demoted / riding down / having aspersions cast on their form. They just need to do a different job there... Basically I'm trying to keep it a worthwhile enterprise for everyone involved, make sure everyone's preferences are satisfied at least a lot of the time, and select lineups which all being well are capable of riding to the end together.

I'm pretty reliant on your write ups on here to keep me in touch with the detail now I'm riding elsewhere. (I'm still enjoying it, but to be clear if a feeling develops that it would be better for someone actually riding to handle the admin, selection etc OR if I'm getting stuff wrong through detachment just tell me.)

The move to earlier entries (brace yourself @mbs!) when the new WTRL system kicks in will mean rosters available earlier each week which in turn will create more opportunity (if you want to take it!) for teams to plan tactics, roles, approach in advance each week.

@munkeymadness Guys can you lot stop tagging me in these posts! My user name is robbo but you mean robbo1234biking! Very interesting but... 🙂

Thanks for the explanation @savoyad. It's an unenviable task. I'm glad you explained as I thought it was my mistake as I forgot to tell you I was bumped to B Cat after Tuesday STW Race. In terms of feedback I feel I am contributing to the team but watching @wOOdster last night at close quarters, I realise that I would be better off taking a turn then resting at the back and coming through again rather than sitting 2/3/4th wheel most of the time and only taking short turns.

Oh and when does the flat white category come in?

?! A flat white is not a coffee any self respecting Italian would let pass his or her lips! That comment is worthy of demotion to the Mellow Birds category @robbo1234biking:)

?! A flat white is not a coffee any self respecting Italian would let pass his or her lips! That comment is worthy of demotion to the Mellow Birds category

True - however a flat white is better than a latte or a frappe. I will never get to espresso class!

Sorry Robbo if people keep tagging you wrong!

You are doing a great job as far as I am concerned Savoyad - I forgot that you are limited to how many of each cat you can have in a class.

I used my Direto with in-built cadence last night but it was all over the place with cadence as high as 170rpm! I used the companion app this morning and didn't find any issues and I dropped in and out a couple of times but will see how it goes. My wi-fi is pretty stable and I will hard wire in the ATV. There is no perfect solution with Zwift unfortunately but I definitely find the apple ones more stable. The iPad was too small but ATV should bridge that gap and is relatively cheap.

(IME) Direto cadence is basically garbage data. But that's made me realise I don't value the cadence data that highly anyway. Which leads me to wonder: @munkeymadness if you bin cadence, even if only for TTT rides, does that leave enough bluetooth connections on your ATV to pair directly and get some extra stability?

Cadence is a bit like HR when you are in a race. It is what it is and if you focus on it too much you likely wont be performing as well as you can. If I ride my MTB (one day I will again!) I don't use any of that data I just ride what is in front of me. When training it is more useful and with ERG mode a wildly fluctuating cadence will cause the power to respond strangely.

To be honest I think I am starting to focus on power too much as well. If I look at the graph at the bottom I might go easier because I think I have been in the red too much. If I turn it off my body will do what it can without being influenced by my mind!

If you don't already, I'd get that graph turned off in races if I were you. A lot of pro roadies don't like seeing their power live. Most just want to know how fast they're going (because we are big kids) and how long until the end or specific points on the parcours. I think the graph helps you ride to your FTP but that's not going to help on a 30 min to 1 hour all out effort.

Yeh will do this from now on. I always had it on because I wanted it on for the workouts and would forget to turn it off but turns out it turns on automatically for workouts so you can leave it off the rest of the time.

@munkeymadness

If only ATV could take 3 BT connections would be near perfect.

Have you looked at 4iiii’s Viiiiva ANT+ to Bluetooth Smart Bridge & HRM?

This looks to have good reviews and looks like it would combine well with ATV

That was quite the shitstorm for Jack and I.

Really enjoyed the ride with MoreSTW... probably the easiest course in terms of sticking together but we did really well! Was dreading the 3rd pass we made as was starting to get fatigued by that point, and sometimes we have a habit of going after the team in front as soon as we can see them - which is way too early as by the time we get to them I've often got little left for the necessary extra push! But this time we just crept up gradually until we could see the skidmarks in their bibs, THEN went for it... absolutely perfect and actually felt very little effort!

Fell apart right at the end... again we crept up on the team for the final pass but no-one actually shouted "GO" which is possibly why Martin got left behind!! I think we probably could have stayed in front of them as we had a 2s gap but we decided to wait for Martin to catch up (which allowed them to catch up as well!) He didn't get back on in the end, after we noticed his power drop off we went for it although it was too late by then! (not that it really matters anyway!)

Have you looked at 4iiii’s Viiiiva ANT+ to Bluetooth Smart Bridge & HRM?

This looks to have good reviews and looks like it would combine well with ATV

Zilog, I did say go on that final overtake, but it might not have been understandable, I may not have unmuted even as I was starting to puff a bit by the time we caught them. We got past them cleanly but because the kicker out of the tunnel came so close to the overtake I think Martin got caught by some of the leaders from their group. His power was about 2.5 to 2.8 W/kg while we did the climb at 5 W/kg down to about 3.5 W/kg. I do think in hindsight it would have been better to get out of the tunnel and do a clean overtake on the flat, live and learn.
Looking at my zwift companion power details we seemed to wait for about 3 minutes humming and harring about what to do. From 46:20 to 49:30 I’m coasting at about 200 watts (approx 70 watts lower than the rest of the ride). Possibly lost about 30 seconds by my incredibly rough estimation.
By the way you put in a huge turn mid way through the ride, sitting at 4.5 W/kg, when I went to relieve you from the front was a real effort to get past you!
I really enjoyed riding with MoreSTW, completely different challenge than with STW. I tried to ride as much as I could on the front, on the flat I was just above my FTP, so approx 275 watts (4.1 W/kg). Seemed to work well with you guys also coming through and keeping the pace up.
Robbo, in case you read this, I have a new FTP of 266.

Cheers w00dster will update it.

Zilog I have found it fine in my limited use so far. I used the companion app this morning but my turbo is about 4m from my router and in the same room so the wireless is pretty good. I think you can have issues if you don't have a good wifi signal which may be the case if you are out in the garage. I think Zwift is just very sensitive to wifi drop outs.

Apart from that I like it - quick to load and set up ready for a ride. Graphics are far superior to my laptop as well and I guess I would have to spend quite a bit of money to get a similar level of graphics from a laptop.

Unless you have a bottomless pit of money I think any zwift set up is going to have compromises.

Zilog, I did say go on that final overtake, but it might not have been understandable, I may not have unmuted even as I was starting to puff a bit by the time we caught them.

Also last night only 1 person (not sure who it was!) I could hear reliably, they were clear as a bell, everyone else was really muffled & often I couldn't hear what was being said. Short of everyone upgrading to Jabra headsets which is a bit much to expect though, I don't really know what could be done about that.

Looking at my zwift companion power details we seemed to wait for about 3 minutes humming and harring about what to do. From 46:20 to 49:30 I’m coasting at about 200 watts (approx 70 watts lower than the rest of the ride). Possibly lost about 30 seconds by my incredibly rough estimation.

By the way you put in a huge turn mid way through the ride, sitting at 4.5 W/kg, when I went to relieve you from the front was a real effort to get past you!

Always a good ride & a great workout with the TTT, it definitely motivates me to try harder than any of the individual races including the Tues one! Shame we had Hal & son drop out at the start, I think with 8 strong riders we would have monstered through that last team 😃

I think you can have issues if you don’t have a good wifi signal which may be the case if you are out in the garage. I think Zwift is just very sensitive to wifi drop outs.

I don't *think* any of Jack or my issues were WiFi dropouts - both he and I were streaming music and didn't get any dropouts, although that can buffer, and our signal is strong, and 100MB download.

His issue was not a bluetooth dropout either, because he was warming up in the pairing screen and could see his numbers changing. His issue was possibly an issue with the godamn stupid remote, as he tried to leave the pairing screen nothing happened - the game froze, and in further attempts to wake it, we made it minimised, but it would still not leave the pairing screen. Zwift was locked up - in a tight loop or broken error handler. We restarted Zwift and ran a normal TDZ event without drama.

I put this down to Zwift's shitty handling of errors/events - as programmer this it what is says to me. However it is sus that two minutes later I also had an event on my macbook as described - everyone was there in the pen up until the moment of 'go' and then I was on my own. The only way to know for sure is to have a monitor running, which I may do as I have some raspberry pi's doing nothing useful.

It's the first time I've had an issue on the macbook (top of the line pro). The only other issue I've ever had with the ATV is not presenting the 'join' button to a meeting event that I am entered for, requiring session restarts until it appears, and sometimes getting left on the start line in a meeting and watching everyone else ride off. This is also not ATV specific as far as I have read, or a wifi issue - because my client is getting data about the race, but not letting me start - even though its giving me power numbers so is paired with the trainer.

If you need more BT connections to Zwift then you can do it through the companion - I do this for the sterzo when needed and it works fine. I have a ANT+ dongle, maybe I'll try it for the Lulz, I'm also going to hard wire the ATV for the lulz.

This week it will be 2 laps of Richmond UCI, 32km in total. So like that Tuesday night race before Christmas but more cooperative. 2 teams are entered.

Enter category A here: https://www.zwift.com/events/view/1596293

Forgot to sign up - thanks for the reminder! Tough course that one. We did it back in November I think.

signed up! This is actually one of my favourite courses; the hill is steep but very short which seems to suit me as you can hit it like a sprint interval!

Hill (singular). Very funny @zilog6128.
It is an excellent course though.

Keen to race again if there is space, signed up

12 entries so far, it's looking good.

Anyone else for 2 laps of Richmond UCI, Thursday 7.40pm?

Enter category A here: https://www.zwift.com/events/view/159629 3'll get teams posted by tomorrow lunchtime. If you all keep entering so promptly I'll be able to get that done earlier in the week even before the new entry system kicks in.

I've entered this evenings race.

I'm taking a few weeks out savoyad - need to get back into the habit of normal riding for a bit.

Should be back in a bit once I've remembered how to pedal sensibly.

Teams for later:

Team STW, tag (STW), discord TTT (STW)
Start delay 12.5 minutes, so in the pen by 19:40 and off at 19:52:30
@benman
@phil56
@w00dster - change your tag
@paino
@trolo1234 - change your tag
@yanboss
@munkeymadness

Team MoreSTW, tag (MoreSTW), discord TTT (MoreSTW)
Start delay 9.5 minutes, so in the pen by 19:40 and off at 19:49:30
@karnali - change your tag
@slowpuncheur
@mbs
@robbo1234biking -change your tag
@zilog6128
@haloric
@drew
?Jack (if he's riding)

Lots of us have TTT'd this course before. Most (if not all?) have raced on it. Once you hit Libby Hill, the whole thing goes into slow motion - and the most slow motion thing of all is *closing gaps* - they widen themselves on the descents and then refuse to close up the climbs, including that never ending finishing straight. So STAY TOGETHER on the hills is the main thing this week I think! And regroup immediately (not "after this next hill") if you do come apart.

Link to event for tags: https://www.zwiftpower.com/events.php?zid=1596293 (settings top right, whole name not just tag in "My Name")

Good luck.

So STAY TOGETHER on the hills is the main thing this week I think!

Cheers savoyad.

Going to be a tough one. I can do the countdown for MoreSTW but once my fan is going I don't know how well you will hear me. Having to use a Bluetooth headset with the iPhone tonight as the wife needs the laptop for a zoom call with her friends.

Jack can't ride tonight - remote cooking with Mrs Jack !.

However, I'm rarely short of another son, and the youngest - Tom - now plans to fill Jacks SPD's if thats ok. He has done a bit of Zwifting, no TTT but I'll be coaching him as we go. He has youth on his side, so we can only hope to hang on to his wheel...

If there is a more experienced rider that wants in, he will gladly give up the place, but for now we have berated him into it.

Do you have a whole TTT's Team worth of sons Haloric?!

He is more than welcome to join us though! Thanks

Excellent. @haloric is a team-time-trialist factory. (You are going to need a name other than "haloric jr" for Jack as well @robbo1234biking).

I've got 3 oven ready riders, plus me, so we could do a TTT - its a dream team, if you have a very specialised type of dream - but I've only two smart trainers, so we can only be deployed in pairs !

Technically Mrs H has my old Direto on her bike too, but thats off limits to sweaty oiks like us.

Need to get back on with you folks again soon!

Cheers MoreSTW. Think that went pretty well. We didn’t gap too much on the climbs and everyone did a good job of working together. sTW caught as at the wrong point but I don’t think we disturbed each other’s race too much. Defiantly some wierd physics going on as they gapped us by 1 or 2 seconds and we came round the corner for the steep short climb and went straight onto the back of you again. You pulled away though so not a big issue. Lots of other teams seemed in a mess tonight so was good to keep it together.

Pic below of both teams. If you zoom in by the trees on the left you can see stw. You have to zoom in a lot though! You only made up about 10 seconds on 10km of flat but about 50 seconds in 200m of hill!

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Tom 'The Bomb' is more used to the sparring ring or the rugby pitch, and detonated after 15 mins with cramp - who says I never give him anything.

I'm not sure whether we are putting more effort in on attacking the hills, or its just me, but I go into the red on every hill just trying (and failing) to keep up.

Enjoyed the ride, sorry couldn't have made that last hill at a much higher pace, glad there was enough to push on home.

Cheers.

Yeah, great ride! Stayed together really well & responded quickly to any small gaps I thought. Was pretty knackered going up the last hill and had very little left to give at the finish. Bit frustrating as I was 10W down on the last time we did that course 😭

Thanks MoreSTW enjoyed that after my bike decided to move off the start line and I recovered from catching up, a good effort, I was surprised how easy it is to get split up over those hills but I thought we did well. Cheers everyone