Zwift, my journey, my weight and my fitness.

I think it broke. I crossed the finish line and it still didn't 'finish'

Arrrgggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙁

I had pretty good race and then bleedin' Zwift crashed 1km after I crossed the line. Is there any way of recovering it, or is it saved centrally somewhere.
I guess that means that I'm not entered for the prize draw either.

More annoying than breaking by finger on a real ride on Saturday!

EDIT. OK so I'm placed a few placed on Zwiftpower, although a few places lower than I'm sure I actually was

My race from earlier isn't even on zwiftpower.

That was great fun. I got ideas above my station and tried to break away from the group........that didn't last long.

[quote=cheers_drive ]Arrrgggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I had pretty good race and then bleedin' Zwift crashed 1km after I crossed the line. Is there any way of recovering it, or is it saved centrally somewhere.
I guess that means that I'm not entered for the prize draw either.
More annoying than breaking by finger on a real ride on Saturday!
EDIT. OK so I'm placed a few placed on Zwiftpower, although a few places lower than I'm sure I actually was

look in the \Documents\Zwift\Activities folder. there should be a .fit file there that can be uploaded to strava.

202/456 according to the live results...

not sure the 'winner' from group 1 averaging 4.5W/kg will see his result stand.

That's because you ride obscure ones that fifteen Chinese students are doing on their school dinner break Weeksy 😀

Been lurking and reading all this - got Zwift loaded and tested at home. All seems to be working OK on my laptop when watching (so assuming it will be OK once I get the turbo all set up and running). Inspired by this thread to get some more winter miles in when the kids are in bed and lose a bit of weight. Joined the Strava group too and will try to join in in the next few days. Thanks for all the info in the thread 🙂 Cheers, Mark

@codybrennan- Always best to look at the course. It was 1xFig 8 which starts and finishes facing the usual way through the Start/Finish line. Keep going until you've crossed said line 🙂
I think the Race Distance bar has been buggy since the iOS launch.

Nope, shocking race from me, wasn't paying attention and lost the group 6. TT'd from there until I found some group 5 riders.

I'm not drinking alcohol in large quantities ever again, I've still not recovered from Sunday evening. 😳

.That's because you ride obscure ones that fifteen Chinese students are doing on their school dinner break Weeksy

Timings just work better for me a lot of the time.

Cheers Jambo, I'll take a look.
I finished 211th

be interesting to see how they sort the results. i didnt have a time on that segment previously so I guessed at entering group 2. as it was, my finishing time was about right to put me in group 2.

Had I picked group 1 I would have placed 18th with the time I had. all those group 1 were pushing out 3 W/kg and above which means they probably shouldn't have been in that group in the first place.

Thanks crosshair.

Hey, can I join up with your group, guys, girls? Whats it called, and how do I locate you?

There's a link to the STW Strava group a few pages back.

@Jambo - W/KG wasn't mentioned so not sure how they'll do it if someone hasn't ridden that course before

well with a bit of strava stalking, the 'winner' had a PR on the qualifying segment of 39.14 which should have put him firmly in group 5...

The prizes are raffled though not based on positions. Riders sandbagging etc happens in all races. I just try a beat those around me

I had all sorts of issues getting started last night, including having to re-install Zwift on my ancient Mac. By the time I got onto the startline for KISS, I had to join the second fastest group, which was rather 'quick', then caught the buggy issue about the finish not showing as the finish, so did a Forrest Gump, and just kept on going.

Is there meant to be some advantage by drafting other riders, as I don't seem to be 'getting' this? I can ride tucked right in behind someone, but never seem to get any advantage from this - just makes group riding seem a bit pointless.

Is there meant to be some advantage by drafting other riders

Is there meant to be some advantage by drafting other riders?

There definitely is. For the first few weeks of Zwift I was just looking at my Watts and not my speed. Then I realised that when I'm behind someone or in a group if I ease off the watts the speed stays the same or even goes up a bit.

Works on the flat or a slight incline but I still get dropped almost straight away on the hills.

Anyone else find thier t2240 a nightmare to calibrate?

370th 😆

Highest placed rider in my group was 212th - we had too much time to make up.

But I think they're not right yet?

In the overall board my time was 55:23, on my group board it's 41:23 😕

The clock for everyone started ticking at 8pm.

In the overall board my time was 55:23, on my group board it's 41:23

I guess because it was a handicap the overall time is from when the group 1 set off?

First ride after 3 weeks of manflu for me. Great format last night. Judging by the amount of G1 riders in top 10 w/kg may have been a better measure than the segment time, guessing lots have not raced that segment before.

The 'winner' was from group 1 and had PR on that segment that should have put him in grp 5. Be interesting to see how they finalise the results.

greentricky - Member
Anyone else find thier t2240 a nightmare to calibrate?

They are a bit fiddly. Where in the green band are you sitting?

Out of interest- when I did that APR last night, I sacked it at 18.1 miles, thinking that a)there was something wrong or b)I'd misread the lap count.

I haven't done any Zwift races up to now, and was sitting at 47:30 at that point. Is that any good? Is it good enough to sit in the STW group? I don't want to embarrass myself, I'm not that quick these days. I was in Group 1, couldn't sit in the draft nicely on the 2240, and kept seeing riders stream past.

It was very addictive.

I haven't done any Zwift races up to now, and was sitting at 47:30 at that point. Is that any good? Is it good enough to sit in the STW group? I don't want to embarrass myself, I'm not that quick these days. I was in Group 1, couldn't sit in the draft nicely on the 2240, and kept seeing riders stream past.

@jam bo, ah makes sense! Haven't had my coffee yet 😳

@codybrennan, there hasn't been any formal STW group rides as of yet.

No, I race as "Mr 622".

nathb
@codybrennan, there hasn't been any formal STW group rides as of yet.

Ah, ok. Thanks.

No, I race as "Mr 622"

Oh I see. No, thats not me, my handle here is a bad pun 🙂

bored now. 1hr 20 in

With the t2240, I find it much easier to measure effort now it's turned up to 100% in zwift and power is set to 1s not 3s

Out of interest, exactly how good is the t2240?

I currently have an Elite Volano but it's not a Smart trainer. I quite like the concept of a Smart trainer but is it really going to be much better than my current turbo?

How does a £180 Smart trainer compare to a circa £400 Direct Mount one?????

jam bo
With the t2240, I find it much easier to measure effort now it's turned up to 100% in zwift and power is set to 1s not 3s

I'm going to try the same approach with my Vortex but around 75%, I'm struggling to stay with groups - can never seem to find a consistent power output.

A bit flimsy and can't cope with big power outputs, but the smart control bit is great for zwift.

I'm going to try the same approach with my Vortex but around 75%, I'm struggling to stay with groups - can never seem to find a consistent power output.

I struggle on the flat with consistent power, uphill no problem at all.

For some reason, on my T2240/Macbook/ANT+ combo, there's no 'trainer difficulty' setting. Anyone else see the same thing?

codybrennan - Member
No, I race as "Mr 622".

cheers_drive - Member
We were together within the last km, I thought that my push for the line was unexpectedly good, not that you stopped!

Dang! I was enjoying it too....its fun, eh? Wish I'd just trundled on now.

Where are you getting the results etc from btw? (sorry for the noob q)

Zwiftpower.com

Gotcha- thanks.

They are a bit fiddly. Where in the green band are you sitting?

I struggle to get it in the green and mainly get "too loose", that is when I can get the app to work.looking online it seems fairly common, some people suggest it's tyre related but doesn't look a definitive solution.

I have it done up pretty tight and don't fancy doing it much tighter as the plastic lever already feels flex when applying it

New update has been released:

Notable fixes/changes in this release include:
- “Ride with” feature improved. No longer does it simply drop you near the rider you selected (only to see them blow past you). It will now bring you up to speed next to them and give you 5 seconds to bring your power up to match.

- Changes to help keep riders in their lane, on the road, and improve rider routing in various situations

[b]- Fix for event progress bars on certain routes[/b]

I'm going to try the same approach with my Vortex but around 75%, I'm struggling to stay with groups - can never seem to find a consistent power output.

I've found 100% easiest to stay on someone's wheel on my T2240, but that's because it's most like riding on someone's wheel in real life - if they're putting out a nice consistent power then you can do the same, but chances are they're wavering up and down, so you have to it even more so, so you can stay just behind them. This is why in races it's absolute mayhem (certainly at my Cat 4 level!) because there's no nice "consistent" pace, the entire race is a succession of sprints and coasting, a very spiky power output graph.

For some reason, on my T2240/Macbook/ANT+ combo, there's no 'trainer difficulty' setting. Anyone else see the same thing?

Adjusted my realism to around 75% - requires changing gears more but it plays more to my advantage as I'm not a spinner.

Just did the BRS 22.2KM/13.8 miles and it felt really good, played using numbers and ignored the field. Happy with the result: [url= http://zwiftpower.com/race.php?id=2069# ]Provisionally 4th![/url]

Just tried to do the KISS race but think I missed the start (bloody kids!). Ended up just joining a random group that came past and doing a steady loop of the course. Shame there don't seem to be more races with an 8:30-9pm start. Would suit me much better.

Results from last night are finalised. I just made up 50 places....

nathb - Member - Block User - Quote
Adjusted my realism to around 75% - requires changing gears more but it plays more to my advantage as I'm not a spinner.

Just did the BRS 22.2KM/13.8 miles and it felt really good, played using numbers and ignored the field. Happy with the result: Provisionally 4th!

Oof!

jam bo - Member - Block User - Quote
Results from last night are finalised. I just made up 50 places....

Mensch 🙂

Just finished the Castelli series race. Zwiftpower shows me provisionally 5th in Cat C but, strangely, all the Cat C's ahead of me where pumping out way over category W/KG whereas I'm (just) inside the limit. So I may have got a category win - will have to wait until results finalized.
However, the reason I'm posting (not bragging, honest!) is that I don't really understand the stats and symbols Zwiftpower is using nor the logic why some riders get bumped up a category whereas others don't. I'm also confused as to why my entry does not show all the stats other riders have.
[url= http://www.zwiftpower.com/race.php?id=2183 ]Castelli race[/url]
Is there a Zwiftpower 101 somewhere???

Have you registered and linked your Strava account?

Just finished the Castelli series race. Zwiftpower shows me provisionally 5th in Cat C but, strangely, all the Cat C's ahead of me where pumping out way over category W/KG whereas I'm (just) inside the limit. So I may have got a category win - will have to wait until results finalized.
However, the reason I'm posting (not bragging, honest!) is that I don't really understand the stats and symbols Zwiftpower is using nor the logic why some riders get bumped up a category whereas others don't. I'm also confused as to why my entry does not show all the stats other riders have.
Castelli race
Is there a Zwiftpower 101 somewhere???

I wouldn't worry about the figures for a good few hours, sometimes mine shows all my data pretty early on, sometimes not until the rese finalised. It's all a bit weird.

woohoo! The Neo I ordered from Amazon on black friday has just turned up! D'oh! I wasn't expecting it & don't have my lockring tool or chain whip handy!

Very jealous @zilog6128!

I got my first trophy last night!! 😀 [url= http://zwiftpower.com/profile.php?id=8544067 ]My Numbers[/url] are starting to look very consistent too, zwiftpower is going to be great training tool!

There's not much choice tonight....

I did notice they were back in stock. Having cancelled my amazon order here and got it from my LBS, they've still not had their delivery 🙁

Annoying as I have 3hrs to do today and not sure I fancy battling with Barbara so Zwift would have been a nice option to have.

Fair enough, was going to ask how you were getting on with yours!! Hopefully will get a chance to test it out tomorrow, otherwise it'll be Boxing Day!

Have you registered and linked your Strava account?

Well that's annoying....I just threw a TT race win away by [url= http://www.zwiftpower.com/race.php?id=1929 ][b]0.81 seconds[/b][/url]..

I had it in my legs to sprint but didn't until they did, I'm really not sure why I did that. 😕

Wahoo kickr down to 799 for a limited time at SigmaSport and Wiggle too I think. Even at that price though I'm still not sure why you'd spend an extra 100 quid over the new Tacx flux.

an extra 100 quid over the new Tacx flux

Just got around to trying my Neo... boooooo metallic scraping sound! Went away after a couple of hard sprints then came back after another (but more intermittent maybe). Might give it an hours proper ride tomorrow but I guess it'll be going back 🙁 Interestingly the numbers I was putting out were way bigger than with Z Power on my KK Rock n Roll. Would be chuffed if they were accurate!

Zilog, sorry to hear that. Any idea if yours is the new 2017 version? I'd assume it is if you had to wait for stock.

I think any power based on wheel speed, the best you can hope for in accuracy is consistency between sessions. The Neo is very different though and is meant to be pretty accurate assuming it works!

Sorry a little off topic - but is there anyway to use my smart turbo to ride a section from Strava... like to copy a ride my mates done? (in the real world).

Any idea if yours is the new 2017 version? I'd assume it is if you had to wait for stock.

I found a guy on the DCR comments thread with the same problem, he said Tacx advised him to send it back but he rode it for a few days & the sound abated. May give that a go (certainly can't be arsed boxing it back up right now!)

Have you updated the software on the Neo? a few people have reported that this has fixed strange sounds.

I did it yesterday, not tested it properly since though. May have another go tonight if I get time.

How much were the Neos on Black Friday out of interest?

£850

Sorry a little off topic - but is there anyway to use my smart turbo to ride a section from Strava... like to copy a ride my mates done? (in the real world).

Do you have a Garmin? There may be a way of dowloading the Strava file into Garmin Connect and then following the course on your Garmin, with the Garmin applying the correct resistance....that's all theoretical though, Ive never tried it myself but my 520 can control my Tacx Vortex Smart.
Similarly, there are other apps out there which do something similar using videos & gpx filed (Eg Kinomap & Veloreality)
Ive used Veloreality to ride up Alpe dHeuz and several other places...

Zilog, Neo any better last night? Still waiting for mine. Suspect it'll be the new year now before I see it. Bit disappointing but still happy to be getting it from my LBS for warranty conveience!

alexxx
Sorry a little off topic - but is there anyway to use my smart turbo to ride a section from Strava... like to copy a ride my mates done? (in the real world).

https://www.cycleops.com/virtualtraining/apps-pricing

Uses google maps/streetview, so you just create a route on there and follow it.

Zilog, Neo any better last night?

Otherwise it seems to work perfectly. Makes a big difference to the level of immersion. At first it was a pain having to adjust gears for the climbs but it feels cool to click up through them as you crest a hill! Probably makes it slightly harder than a dumb trainer as you lose your rhythm a bit but I think I found it easier to keep a wheel when drafting - you have feedback from the trainer so your rider doesn't gain/lose speed without you noticing as the terrain changes. Spinning out as the motor picks up downhill makes it feel very realistic!

Zwift assigned me a new FTP of 244 vs 213 after the race which is obviously a big difference... the ride felt much more natural though. On my old trainer (KK Rock n Roll) it always felt very "sticky" in the bigger gears and I could never maintain a decent RPM (had to drop to 70-80) whereas with the Neo I can spin along at 90 just like I do IRL (whilst putting in the appropriate amount of effort obviously)

Zwift assigned me a new FTP of 244 vs 213 after the race which is obviously a big difference... the ride felt much more natural though.

I think (based on my own experiences anyway) is I find it easier to push in a race than I do with a dedicated FTP test. I'm too competitive not to.

My FTP has jumped through races, yet if I do a dedicated FTP test it feels brutal by comparison.

Most of my riding ha been through Zwift this month now & i've been heavily on it over the Xmas period - seen some good gains, so it's obviously working for me.

Seems to be two base/recovery rides for about an hour whilst watching films & 2/3 races a week. If I keep up with the weight loss & performance gains i'll be knocking on 4w/kg by the end of Jan, which would be pretty awesome 🙂

I expect effort levels need to increase exponentially for ever decreasing gains though...

^^^ my comment was an update to a previous post where I mentioned the difference in wattage being reported using my new smart trainer (Neo) vs my last race a week or so ago with my old dumb trainer (Rock n Roll using V Power) rather than a comment on FTP test vs racing!

(Although I agree that an FTP test is more brutal than any race!!)

Ouch! I just did a race after eating (30 mins before) and with a 60 second warmup (running late). Needless to say I got a stitch 6 and a bit miles into a 10 mile TT race. 😆

Having eaten my last Pizza for at least a month, I'm now on a diet to lose 2kg as fast as possible to take me down my "race weight" of 68kg. So Zwift here I come!

The reason for this post is would anyone be up for a Saturday morning group cycle? Going to try and do a 50 miler, I think that specialised challenge is still going? 8)

Really lost my Zwift mojo lately, not sure if the legs are feeling it from the outdoors stuff, or it's a motivation issue due to Xmas and no races falling within my timesscales, but i'm just massively struggling to get anything useful done on the Zwift side of things.

Today was a little less terrible than yesterday, but i wouldn't say i was setting the world on fire that's for sure.

With a new smart trainer that actually works I am now zwifting and enjoying it.

Question though - how good is the graphical experience for others when in a big pack? Currently mine is pretty average and I suspect the ageing macbook pro is responsible. Great just riding along or with a few for company but when tangled up with 30 in a big bunch it all becomes very jumpy and laggy.

(Although I agree that an FTP test is more brutal than any race!!)

In other news, I've bolted my trainer onto a coplate, which arrived yesterday - giving it a go later. From an initial twiddle, I think the pressures are going to be fairly crucial ! 😯