Forum menu
Robbo, how do you overlay discord ? I tried and could have a text window open but couldn't see the speech icons/names at all
@scaredypants it is in the options but you can move the overlay around once you opened it up. I think it defaults to top left corner so is over the power box.
https://www.howtogeek.com/663465/how-to-enable-and-customize-discords-in-game-overlay/
I think I used this guide but there is a screenshot a couple of pages back to show where you click to move the overlay around.
Well a total discord disaster for me, sorry about that, had it set up on my phone beside me and it connected ok, I thought it was a bit quiet in the pen, but wasn't too bothered until close to the start time by which time it was too late. Realised a few seconds before start that something was wrong, but figured I'd just watch for the bumblebees to start rolling then join them. except I didn't see anyone move, and by then it was clearly past the start time, rolled over the banner in the hope I'd spot you on the map and be able to catch, but still couldn't see anyone, then I relaised my phone had connected to my bluetooth headphones upstairs, hence the silence. So changed my tag and waited for the STW group instead, few seconds to go I switched my fan on, and very quickly realised I couldn't hear discord over my fan, so i had to ride pretty much without it, could just about hear if someone was talking just couldn't hear what was being said, so I just had to do the best I could, not blow off the front and not fall off the back, That probably made my pace a bit up and down, which doesn't help the others, and also meant I couldn't contribute to the pace of the group as much as I should have. The race itself went ok, the hills certainly didn't make it easy, but we mostly kept it together, and we had a strong finish. Hopefully next time I'll get discord better set up, and a flatter course will help us work together better.
Hope it hasn't put you off @mahowlett. The oddities of the format mean there's always a risk of this kind of thing happening. I'm glad you managed to join up with team STW. The results system has now moved you across into the right team, with the right time (we can ignore the TAG! flag etc). It does mean STW moved across to frappe though. Never mind.
@scaredypants robbo gave you the official answer on discord. my unofficial answer is that the overlay only appears about 50% of the time, and when it doesn't it's always in awful circumstances to figure it out (just getting a bit cold in cycling kit, fan blaring, can't quite reach the keyboard, hobbling around on cleats, phil shouting "2 minutes to go" in your ear, children asking why you aren't even on your bike yet because they just saw it flashing "GO" on the screen). To be fair, it works every time when I test it sat at my desk. Not so reliable in the actual event. I suspect (because I'm not changing any settings) it's to do with multiple displays and the order I open the apps in...
Moving on...next week is a very different kind of challenge. And probably better suited to trying out some more organised riding if you are inclined to that.
The team entries are in. I'll post the entry link as soon as it appears.
just a question of some improved kit for Discord I think! I'd definitely recommend a decent bluetooth headset (or just 'phones with a decent mic)Hope it hasn’t put you off @mahowlett. The oddities of the format mean there’s always a risk of this kind of thing happening. I’m glad you managed to join up with team STW.
next week... I always find flat courses pretty tough as there's no descents to have a rest on! Should make it easier to stay together though and hopefully make any passes easier.
It is this course in reverse next week BTW - 2 laps!
We passed a BRT team quite early on but they seemed to have a real trick on the downs and caught us again. We rode on, dropped them and then the same happened again – I think they must smash it over the top and then go for a supertuck or something. Maybe nixie can tell us the secret technique ?
I've just watched this back. We all got by, but never actually gapped them in the pass. So we all descended Cornwall Road (both teams, us and BRT) as one big blob. Initially we were the front 5, them the rest, no gaps though. They didn't so much catch us as some of them rotated to the front of that combined group. Half way up the next climb, we managed to get past the next team (Glasgow Tri) better than them, and we got away as a unit again. But when we hit Pot Bank Wall they smashed past us, by surging at the base and then pushing 1, maybe 1.5 w/kg more than us all the way up. Not something we could have matched I don't think. After that they just rode the 2nd lap quicker than us.
We must have gone out quite hot, especially considering we hesitated over @mahowlett, to take 30 seconds out of them so early.
There was some supertucking, but it didn't make a difference - one of them supertucked but within our joint group, the rest rode the same watts as us throughout that tangled up bit.
savoyad
I’ve just watched this back
Not that I particulcarly want to but how have you watched it back, Adam? Do you record the rides?
Oh, and RELAX everyone; I think I've worked out the overlay thing (hadn't relaised you set voice & chat via totally separate menus)
We must have gone out quite hot, especially considering we hesitated over @mahowlett, to take 30 seconds out of them so early.
You're not kidding ! I remember looking at the WHAAAATs and thinking I'd last about half a lap
OK - it's 2x Greater London Flat (forwards, not reverse as previously advertised...I don't think that even exists). 29 very flat kilometres. But unlike the Tuesday night race the other week, I think (?) it will have the lead in. Thursday, 7.40pm as usual.
Riders - sign up to category A here: https://zwift.com/events/view/1323707 (category A whatever you normally ride).
Signed up! Thanks for staying on as Team Manager even though you can't ride anymore!
We're on 5 riders at the moment - so plenty of room for others, especially if we are to maintain our run of putting out two teams.
2 laps of Greater London Flat, Thursday 7.40pm. Sign up to category A here: https://zwift.com/events/view/1323707
I’ve signed up, but like last week I’m 50/50 whether I can make it. Kids are at athletics until 7pm, 30 min drive home doesn’t leave much time for getting ready.
Obviously if there’s 8 I’m happy to make way for a guaranteed attendee.
9 entries so far. More riders welcome - sign up to category A here:
https://zwift.com/events/view/1323707
(it's category A regardless of your usual category, it works differently here...)
I've signed up for tonight's race.
Can’t do tonight I’m afraid, I’ll be at work eating mince pies. Enjoy.
I'm unable to join in tonight. Got to take my dad Xmas shopping.
@savoyad Apologies Adam, but I now can't make tonight's TTT - family issue I need to attend to.
I think this will be first one I've missed - I hope it doesn't cause any problems.
Phil - shame you can’t make it but hope your family stuff gets sorted.
That’s a really good run to be the first one you missed. Look forward to seeing you back next week!
Ahh drat. No Paino and no Phil means I really need to bring my good legs today!
Enjoy the mince pies Paino.
Hope it's nothing serious Phil and all gets sorted.
No worries @phil56, you've had quite the run without missing a week ! I hope you get things sorted.
I'll post teams/tags shortly. There will be room for more riders, so if anyone still fancies a ride, category A here: https://zwift.com/events/view/1323707
"ohhh a perfect 8 of us", oh I'm not on that list "
I've never noticed before how annoying not being grouped with riders I'm following is on Zwift.
(possibly not 8 of us and I'm just not following everybody)
Let's go with:
Team MoreSTW +10 minutes so in the pen by 19:40, off at 19:50, Discord TTT (MoreSTW)
@w00dster - change your tag!
@scaredypants
@trolo1234 - change your tag!
@haloric - sort your tag!
@mbs - change your tag!
(**@w00dster is a doubt for the start. With 5 riders, it's the 4th whose time counts; with 4 riders it's the 3rd whose time counts).
Team STW +17 minutes so in the pen by 19:40 and off at 19:57, Discord TTT (STW)
@dangeourbrain
@yanboss
@munkeymadness - change your tag!
@mahowlett - sort your tag!
@robbo1234biking
@zilog6128
Yes I have a tip: the ramp after that sudden right onto Northumberland Avenue (3.6km, at the end of the lead in) and the climb out of the subway (twice, 14.9km and 26.7km) are the bits where staying together can be hard. I'd go for @haloric and @robbo1234biking pacing their respective teams up there on the grounds that I've witnessed both do a good job of that in recent TTTs.
Back to the big delays I see. Can't you enter us fit the wrong time zone again savoyad? Seem to recall that worked out well in the end. 😉
The good thing about that middle of the night time zone is you are guaranteed short delays if you actually ride there AND you get gifted short delays if you ask for a late move to another time zone. Can't lose.
Great ride! Very little in it between the two teams. Obviously one of the easiest courses to keep it together, and we only did 2 passes, but thought we (STW) were pretty tight! I even managed a couple of feeble turns on the front 😀 Some good turns from everybody, and only noticed a few “dead spots” where no-one was pushing it.
14 seconds between the two teams, that’s a close one. Good fair team picking there.
MoreSTW also very tight. Thought everyone did excellent to hang in there, we only overtook a couple of teams, but each time it was a nice clean overtake. Enjoyed that a lot, agree that the course helped keep things together.
By heck that was hard work. You lot have certainly got fitter over the last few months.
Very happy with that, especially now I realise Martin and I were the C's in a B sandwich, and everyone else was pulling us around !.
I stopped putting in turns on the front after the first 14k I think, just was conserving power as best I could.
Martin lost power to laptop, and I was starting to cramp up in the last 5 or 6 K's with the dreaded twinges of doom, so was in limp-home mode, think we could have shaved a few more secs off otherwise.
I think we passed 3 teams at least, nearly lost Martin on the last one.
Thanks for the ride.
Enjoyed that one. Managed to get a few turns on the front and we stayed really tight. The couple of passes we had went really well. Wasn’t a lot that went wrong really! I even managed to say 800km still to go on the way to the line!
Replaced the battery on my HRM and my head rate seemed lower tonight. Wonder if it has been playing up as the effort was still high. NP was 278w so def put in a good shift but felt quite fresh!
Thanks all, my legs are still cooked after Tuesday. By lap 2 I was just trying to cling on to the back. Maybe it's time for one of those rest weeks people with training plans talk about...
There's no such thing as a feeble pull. And I'm glad both teams rode together tightly. @haloric 14km of turns in that group is definitely pulling your weight. How far out did @mbs disappear? Laptop battery is a sudden way to go (it happened to me recently...).
@yanboss you've been flying (I remember you saved my race in the Tuesday night figure of 8 by cruising across a gap on the reverse KOM while I grovelled on your wheel). I'm not surprised it's catching up with you - robbo's race series is pretty intense.
And @robbo1234biking in @phil56's absence, the 800km to go call was the most important job that needed picking up. @dangeourbrain does it make it harder with the turbo misbehaving?
I enjoyed watching that on zwiftpower live anyway. But you only really find out what happened on here...
I had another false start tonight - while standing next to the bike !
Seemed like my avatar got pulled out of the pen by the draft of another group. Was doing a bit of last minute prep (filling water bottle, putting away a box that was in the way of one of my pedals) and when I looked up I was "in" a team group, doing zero watts but about half a minute up the course. My fella was right at the front in the pen and I wonder if they'd come past as a fastish blob and just pulled me out with them.
Anyway, I went to shit shortly after that. Nothing to offer the team (sorry chaps) after Tuesday's race and then 2.5 hours chasing some bigger boys round the new forest last night. I'm buggered. Our team worked really well and kept very tight. I got sucked into one group that we overtook and had to sprint a bit to escape and then something similar happened to Martin.
Great ride the whole group but esp from Woodster - seems he accidentally put the e-bike on the trainer and did some really long stints
does it make it harder with the turbo misbehaving?
Sort of. London is flat though so less of an issue.
I'd normally expect to sit around 65-70rpm in 48:10 pulling about 300W on the flat. For me that's a comfy cadence and gear, I'm a masher not a spinner.
Round London loop there are no real hills so I'd expect to pull that gear and cadence the whole way, against the extra resistance on a hill that means a decent bump in power on those short climbs.
Making the same power with the dodgy turbo needs 85-90rpm in the same gear on the flat, that's not comfy for me. Pulling needed 90 ish to make 320 or so which I kept up for about the first 10 minutes then started to flag a bit and had to drop to short pulls and longer rests. 70rpm kept me about 250w.
The big problem was every time we hit a slope the 0 additional resistance meant I had to spin faster to keep up so ended up at 95-100rpm every time there was a bit of a gradient to keep in touch. As I say, lucky London is flat as a witches tit, tons anything with hills I'd have fallen off.
It just doesn't suit my riding style to be spinning that fast even on a flat course. On anything with hills I just can't keep up. Long term it'll do me good learning to spin better I'm sure but I'm the interim it's very hard to get used to!
I had the same round Richmond on race 5, the first sprint and was at about 130rpm and barely over 500w. (137rpm for 602w on the sprint on lap 2) I just disappeared off the group at that point, once we hit the climbs it was obvious I was going backwards (100rpm average up the climbs for 350w).
Compare that with the last TT I did and I averaged 64rpm and 304w, same gearing, pancake flat.
My cadence averaged 100 and maxed out at 128 last night!
2 laps of Sand and Sequioas next week so very different! Prob my last one before Xmas unless anyone wants to ride the 10.15 slot on Xmas eve.
Yeah, average 100 cadence would kill me. If also have to change gear, and I don't like change.
I might do the early one Xmas eve. Will see.
I really enjoyed that, despite misgivings after Tueday, I actually felt quite a bit better tonight, thankfully. Tried to keep a pattern of 30 seconds effort on the front followed by 2 minutes in the pack, which worked quite well for me, just enough rest to make the effort doable, hopefully that didn't mess it up for anyone else on the team, We kept together pretty well I thought. I'll be back again for next week, but I'm not doing christmas eve. Cheers guys and good work team.
but I’m not doing christmas eve.
You see I reckon we should do Christmas eve with a [insert seasonal beverage of choice] and when ever you're not pulling on the front you have to drink.
I'd be up for that, I only said I wouldn't do it was cos it's my birthday 🙂
Great idea DB - will need to wear a kids pelican bib as I’m bound to 🤮
But that does seem like a good idea.....goes off to look in the Craft Beer too expensive thread to decide what to drink.....
goes off to look in the Craft Beer too expensive thread to decide what to drink…..
I'd suggest at least 0.05% ABV for every W of FTP that way its a little less punishing for those who may struggle to make the front...
Sounds like it time to get some Hop House 13 or Stella in then!
Just something I have seen on the WTRL Facebook group - if teams register and don’t turn up the automatic allocation of start times will start to push them into the later starting slots. Hopefully will mean that we might get some slightly better waiting times!