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zilog6128 - MemberNice one weeksy!
I reckon I will still be doing the odd Zwift race in the summer (especially if they keep bringing out more routes) as I do actually enjoy it.
Agree totally, Zwifting gives a completely different form of cycling, a different form of intensity and effort for me too, i can't generate power in the same way in a long structured effort outdoors in the same sort of way as i can Zwifting. There's also times when 45 mins of racing is better spent that no time outside due to life getting in the way.
I'm gonna need a bigger fan if I'm going to carry on Zwift racing through the summer....
I'm gonna need a bigger fan if I'm going to carry on Zwift racing through the summer....
I don't think they make a big enough fan!
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Not sure I could fit that fan in my spare bedroom!
Just finished a great ZTR race. A couple of flyers went off the front, but the main group of about 15 stuck together for all three laps with plenty of attacks chased down in the last lap. Didn't have much left for the sprint so 7th I think. Best race I've done yet.
Happy with that. 6th but 1s off first. Just didn't have the legs at the end of the sprint.
Ohhhhhhh unlucky mate
I'm gonna need a bigger fan if I'm going to carry on Zwift racing through the summer....
Looking forward to doing my first outdoor zwift session on the patio!
I've just discovered the Volcano Mountain.. and a benchmark on the TT bike is set 😆
https://www.strava.com/segments/14267710?filter=overall
I am having a nightmare with connections, the bluetooth just seems to randomly drop all connections if left idle for a few minutes like waiting for a start of an event, any ideas? I am assuming wifi signal should have nothing to do with the bluetooth connections? My tacx does bluetooth and ANT+ and I have an ANT+ dongle plugged in but it still seems to lose it even though the dongle is on a usb extension next to the trainer. I can't work out if it is a app issue, signal issue or things connecting in wrong order issue? I've missed three events this week because of it and land up having to restart everything and reconnect 🙁
Re: translation to real world riding: After too many 1-2 hour sessions on Zwift I was a bit nervous of doing a long ride in the real world. My conclusions: 1-2 mph quicker over a 5 hour hilly ride. Cadence is up 5rpm or so and legs felt fresher for longer. I'm a bit lighter so managed to keep HR down on hills. The most telling thing was my ability to keep a good pace on the flats and roll over little bumps without going up the cassette. It's great to feel tangible benefits rather than just computer game metrics. Roll on summer...
nathb - MemberI've just discovered the Volcano Mountain.. and a benchmark on the TT bike is set
https://www.strava.com/segments/14267710?filter=overall
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Had a cruise up that the other evening... I only did a 9.59 but i can see a low 9s possible for me.... Less than that.. Hmmm.. Not so sure.
It certainly won't be in the 7s !
That's a good time up the volcano, I have had 3 attempts so far 7:32, 7:32 and 7:34, not improving so maybe I should stop.
And still some seconds off Nathan's time around the volcano...
Real TT's this weekend, so no Zwift for me.
I was bored and did an ODZ EBB ride, was set to be around 2.2-2.4w/kg and was finding it effortless, mostly sitting at 190-200w and cruising along. 2.5 laps in i thought "really need a drink" and checked... my bottle was EMPTY...
So i think "how hard can it be ...." 3 laps in i jump off the bike and fill my bottle after pulling out a lead of 6s on the ride leader... Quick fill up and jumped back on... "oh shit, i'm 26s down on the leader !"
The problem came that i was now riding at 300w average and it wasn't coming down by that much.... 21s... "oh come on... seriously"... i got it down to 8s eventually after another full lap, but i'd been doing 325w average and i was still riding solo.... i lost another 1s and was 9s behind and thought "sod this.... " and bailed out.. Clearly the pack was travelling at way more than the 2.4, sure, mid pack you may be 2.4 but at the pointy end that dictates the speed, it was up in the 3's lol...
Turned out to be an enjoyable 45 mins though
It's the power of the draft effect sir 🙂
nathb - MemberIt's the power of the draft effect sir
Without doubt... I just thought as i was cruising along it wouldn't be that hard to get back.... how wrong was I !
It also shows (and i assume they've got this algorithm fairly well sorted) that above I think 15mph almost all extra effort is to overcome wind resistance rather than friction etc. So to have to go faster to make up time AND take all the wind, it becomes exponentially harder (maybe not actually exponentially but you know what i mean)
So if the pack is nipping along even at a conservative (for Zwift) 30-35kph, in the 30 odd seconds you're off the bike and got back up to speed they've opened up maybe 400-500m (at 30kph)
To close that back down in say 5 mins, you need to cover 3km in the time it takes them to do 2.5km - means you need to average 36kph now and that's all into the wind unless you can hop onto another rider who's out there.
Alternatively, how about a Romain Bardet / Vicenzo Nibali powerup, where you can get back in while 'having your gears adjusted'?
I's not entirely rational, since aside from a bit of time it's not really any different from a UK mail order place, but I would be very hesitant about buying a (especially Tacx) turbo from abroad again. If my Vortex had come from an LBS it would have been back there, since I ordered it from Germany I couldn't be arsed to send it all the way back, and now I've left it too long, and might never switch it off again...
Alternatively, how about a Romain Bardet / Vicenzo Nibali powerup, where you can get back in while 'having your gears adjusted'?
A sticky bottle icon...?
another question for the IRL riders (maybe racers, which I'll never be but sometimes this happens on the club run anyway)
Suppose you get 'dropped' by the bunch - sometimes happens at a roundabout or traffic light or you drop back to help out someone who is struggling and offer a wheel. I know on a social run they'll regroup or slow for you if you can't get back, but on our rides at least initially we'll continue to ride at tempo and give the tailender chance to chase back on and feel like a proper rider.
Do you go full gas and get back in asap or do you up your speed slightly and aim to get back in without working too much harder (wind notwithstanding, obvs has an effect in both situations)
I know in a race it'll be different in many ways - from the Boss calling a truce while people get back to the opposite where as soon as someone's dropped the group will ride harder to keep them dropped.... just wondered if there's a physiologically 'right' way to do it?
[FWIW I usually ride hard to get back in asap, only for the group to stop immediately after so Dave can have a piss. Dave's got issues and has a piss about every half an hour 😉 ]
Good ride Jambo. Nice result, I rarely have anything think left to finish on a sprint and am always pipped at the line by someone!
mashiehood - Member
Jim - I'm sure you weren't busting a 'guy' though!POSTED 1 DAY AGO # REPORT-POST
No! I got that a bit wrong! That's how finished I was!
[quote=jim25 ]Good ride Jambo. Nice result, I rarely have anything think left to finish on a sprint and am always pipped at the line by someone!
there was moment that I thought 'I can bloody win this' but it wasn't meant to be. I'd worked too hard to stay in contention up the reverse KoM climb and haul back the 5s gap I'd lost in the first steep section.
Not moving up to B's though until I've won a C...
In a race situation I'll dig deep and catch them up, it's a hard short effort - which I find less fatiguing. Once caught you can rest for a bit anyway, it's simply not worth the risk.
In fact my usual race tactic is to sit in the last 1/3 of the pack, with a handful of laps I'll sprint to the front/or past the front, then rest up ready for the last lap/sprint finish. I find this easier than shuffling around with the front guys and it's the same principle as above.
Not sure this is the best place to post, I'll put a separate add up
But I have my old Cycleops mag trainer that is of no use to me now. Free to anyone who wants it to give zwift ago.
It's not the best, works all perfectly fine, but is very noisy, I think maybe the bearing is a but worn-out however it doesn't seem to have any wobble on the flywheel.
Anyway free if you want it, North London/Hertfordshire area
Appreciating I'm recovering from injury and a number of months of undesired inactivity; am I really unfit (not a road rider) or am I doing something wrong? 40k distance was 1.5kg/w and 100w, and previous was 20k at 150w. I'm 83kg if that matters. Everyone seems substantially fitter/faster!
What turbo are you using and is it calibrated correctly? That seems pretty low and if anything zwift tends to be over-generous on the power front.
My neo arrives tomorrow. Tacx flow now surplus to requirements. Will post an ad in classifieds over weekend but pm me if interested. Thinking £120 cash delivered if you're anywhere near derby or reading.
Its a Tacx flow smart t2240 and its calibrated using the tacx app and its between the two green lines. It takes some amount of force to clamp it on now its in the centre of the lines, wasn't sure it was going to unclamp last time.
That's clamped pretty tight. I keep mine just over the lower line.
TBH, 1.5w/kg over 40k/~2w/kg over 20k isn't terrible if you're just getting going again. Keep going and you'll find it improves quickly
Mines just over the lower line too, I dread to think what it would be like in the centre spot. I don't feel really unfit or week though. I'm not sure it got above 1.5w/kg mind.
Crazy 8 year old is riding again. This morning is volcano flat. I'm going to have to sort him a strava account at this rate. He's ha0pily racing along at 1.9w/kg currently
P Race in 5 🙂
ARRRHGHHHHHHH that was going well. 3 lap of the Volcano flat was the course, after lap one, me and 3 others were sharing the work, a group of 10-11 or so overall
We had 3 separate attacks off the front, of which i chased down and caught 2, the other one was taken back by a Dutch fella i was chatting with pre-race. I was feeling strong and then it all went wrong ! the bloody seatpost of slippage kicked in 1/3 of the way into lap 2.... suddenly it had dropped 3", closing in rapidly on 4".
I texted Mrs Weeksy for a quick repair on it... but she couldn't get the Allen Key in while i was up out of the saddle... i had to stop for a few secs..... next thing the little hill in the volcano was there and i'd lost 19s !
I started again but by the time i got momentum back up, i was 27s behind the pack..... so i bailed.
Mrs Weeksy was confused.... LOL. But my intention for today wasn't really a training/exercise thing, it was simply for the race and a top 5 finish... which sadly for me i felt was very much on the cards. I was only sitting at 164bpm, which is near the top of my abilty, but inside my comfort zone enough that i could have maintained it...
Nightmare !
@weeksy is it a carbon seatpost?
If so you need to get some fiber grip stuff: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/finish-line-fiber-grip-carbon-fibre-assembly-gel-50ml/
Yup and yup I do. It did it at Abingdon too. It was 4" lower than at start of race. I'm not blaming it, I'd already been dropped by the time it was an issue.
Today though I'm a bit frustrated about lol. I took the proper grump with the wife even though it clearly wasn't her fault. But I honestly felt I was on for a good finish and a fun battle of wits.
How about a wrap of duct tape round it, just above the clamp-point? Might at least slow it down a bit
Won't go in as too tight. I've just used a piece of brown packing tape which just about goes in. We'll see next time. I honestly wasn't planning on racing for a few months, but this one just fell nicely considering it now due lots of rain tomorrow so thought I'd play. Road bike wasn't supposed to come out again but the Parkwood doesn't have the gearing to run at the pointy end of C.
ah, no, I don't mean in I mean above - it'll "jam" at the entry point and slow down the slip
maybe
Tried it previously mate. No good. There was some there today and at Abingdon. Doesn't usually affect it indoors.
Either carbon paste or double clamp i think.
carbon paste is a must, yeah. If you've not done that before it might just see you right
or, yeah, a better clamp if it's a standard fitting (and if your current clamp's not great)
If not, is it a posh post ? how about an extra layer of expoxy with a nice ridge (after roughening the cosmetic surface of the post) and then a turn of tape over that to keep from chipping ? I did that with an old alloy post once and worked pretty well
It's not my bike or my post lol. It's on perm loan from a neighbour.
It's an Isaac bike and Isaac carbon post
One of these
Well, there you go then. Araldite it is !It's not my bike or my post lol