STW Zwift Autumn Series 2

You just need to be able to adjust your avatar more like you could on a wii! It’s nice that they think that the heavy riders are all muscle but my avatar definitely has bigger biceps than I do!

Thanks @savoyad. That ^ may not look much but it is my favourite thing on the internet right now. Trust me, it felt far more frantic than my avatar suggests.

Great video @savoyad

Watching @kirky72 (who “has no sprint”) belting out 600W at the finish makes me feel pretty pathetic for rolling in at 350W behind @paino, especially after seeing how Kirky came within a second of pipping me in the points.

To be fair @J-R I’m surprised you didn’t pass me for third, I had nothing left in the tank by that point. The sprints and that last pull up Libby Hill finished me off. @DrP’s feed was great to watch our little group up those last few climbs. The gap to Phil only happened to put time into Nixie & DrP on the draftable descent, as soon as the last climb started I was never going to catch Phil. It’s going to be an interesting last race that’s for sure!

CrazyHarry – if you weren’t going so bloody fast I might have! You’ve only yourself to blame! (I’m D.Drysdale on Zwift btw) Like Andeh, I was mostly just holding on as best I could. Occasionally found myself in the lead and you’d both blast past almost instantly.

I also didn’t see the elbow, and even if I did there wasn’t much I could have done.

Normally I would say it was a terrible sprint, only 600/650w and you can see from my avatar during just the last effort I was on and off the power 3 times kind of putting it down in spurts as I was just to knackered.

Like I said I did my sprint up 22nd street by mistake, I think I finished with the second fastest time up there. it split our small group, opening 8 seconds to M howlett, ward and worricker and ultimately seeing off Yanboss altogether. more importantly it also put me back inside of 50 seconds from JR and would have been an awesome finish if indeed it was. instead I lost a bit of time waiting for Mat Howlett to rejoin me so we could keep in front of T Ward and Nick Worricker who working together may have caught back up.

surprised to see it was you you when we did catch you

Defo didn’t/couldn’t bring my A-game to this race @dangeourbrain. Even in my warm up in Watopia it was clear that my legs, for whatever reason, really were not warming to the idea of the the all out assault that is an STW series race. I thought that they may wake up for the thrill of the hunt although more in hope than expectation. Stayed with the lead group until the first sprint but realised then that it wasn’t happening. However put in a big effort to catch the wheel again only to be dropped at the second sprint. After resigning myself to a ITT in no-mans land I saw someone message “the catch to Harry is on”, which was a killer and I resigned myself to being caught and was grateful for the drafting respite that brought. No sure what happened after that but on the cobbled climb we passed @savoyad standing on the side of the road with his broken pedal (I guess – and sorry to hear that as it sounds expensive) and caught a couple of others and by the time we crossed the top I was in a group of three.

@Oblongbob and @andeh – honestly no hard feelings. That’s the trouble with virtual racing – you cannot see and hear the snot and tears that signal that “I got this guy beat” so I had no way of knowing if you were hanging on for dear life or biding your time for an all out assault at the end. Our Avatars look much more relaxed than real life. Kind of got excited when got the gap to the group up ahead down to 42s and someone commented “Let’s work together as we have a strong group behind” and though “Ooo they think we are a strong group” but was in no fit state to start texting folk so just resorted to poking out my elbow – didn’t work.

“the catch to Harry is on”,

Ah that was “Harry catch on” and was intended as fair warning for you to pay a bit of attention and hook up rather than us blowing through you.

I was very much hoping we’d pick you up, you’d rest in for a few minutes then you and I could make some ground on the group in front.

I knew there was no way I was making the bridge on my own but hoped you’d just missed a sprint and lost touch so between the two of us we’d have the legs to chase down the slower B/fast C group I expected would get shelled off the back of the As.

As it was it turned out despite feeling good and like I should have been able to produce I couldn’t actually find the effort. I wouldn’t have had a chance of making the leap even with the assist.

So this is the route profile for the final race of the series. The little bump near the beginning is the Titans Grove KOM.

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So this is the route profile for the final race of the series.

Ok, so I assume I’m getting 30 mins on most people in the handicap? 🙂

struth, I’m going to need an e-bike

Is it forwards or reverse titans?

I’m hoping that as most of the Sunday hills group leave me for dead on the Epic, that this has been taken into account in the handicaps for those concerned… 😉

Reverse Titans Brian

But there is a really nice downhill in the last 2km…

#robbo, just incase you don’t pick up on the other Zwift thread and so that all relevant information is in here. To let you know that thanks to a tough B cat race around volcano today my FTP has increased to 284.

Unfortunately weight is static, if I can stop eating shit at the weekend and after rides I might be able to get fairly decent in the world of b cat Zwift racing.

This as probably made trying to keep up with drp, JR and co on Tuesday race even more impossible but full transparency and all that.

I expect my usual big fitness fade during the first quarter of next year so will have to recheck every now again as I expect I may have reached my plateau.

But there is a really nice downhill in the last 2km…

Followed by more up :D.

Bugger. A wee trip up Ven Top yesterday and I’ve gone from a comfortable mid C to a scraping-the-bottom B. Apologies for being the cause of a lot of changes to your spreadsheet Mr Robbo.

Steve Ross STW
FTP 241w
Weight 75kg

Bugger. A wee trip up Ven Top yesterday and I’ve gone from a comfortable mid C to a scraping-the-bottom B. Apologies for being the cause of a lot of changes to your spreadsheet Mr Robbo.

Steve Ross STW
FTP 241w
Weight 75kg

Climbing on Zwift does seem to up your FTP.

Finally looked at my Tacx Flow last night. The outer casing of the brake unit seems to rotate slightly with high torque, causing rubbing and cracking noises. It looks like there’s only one screw holding the clip together case in place.

I’ve added some high tech cable ties and it seems to stay in one spot. Not tried it in anger yet.

Cheers @kirky72 and @svladcjelli I will update it.

Don’t forget a bonus point is available if you do the ride in a Santa suit.

Robbo – does a Santa Mankini count?

I have a aero Santa onesie on standby.

@stumpy01 that’s just strange if you have one of those in your wardrobe!

It takes all sorts, Robbo 😆

@robbo1234biking

With 2 weeks of eating too much and not enough biking, I’ve put on 4kg, so that puts me up to 66kg now. Don’t know whether it will make much difference.

Did a ramp test today and FTP has changed to 210, again, don’t know if it will do too much to the handicap.

Looking forward to the last race in series, having missed the last 2.

Up to 66kg! Bloody lightweights 🤣.

I think my right leg weighs 66kg! Will update it cheers giggsmaster

All I can say is, bring on the climb on Tuesday! 😀

66kg! I dream of 66kg! 🤣🤣
Now I know why I go backwards when the hills start. We definitely need a downhill race where my extra chunk will benefit. 🤣

We definitely need a downhill race where my extra chunk will benefit.

I’d smash a downhill race against you whippets 🙂

Right handicaps for Tuesday’s race are now live:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iTgJtFVOo3QzWHBY8iS-D2s2a52AB3awdMBMRtyWpNM/edit#gid=218684596

Best 5 out of 6 finishes for the points total. Only 5 people have scored points in every race so far and they are the top 5 so this rule means it is all to play for for the championship! But also means if you get a drop out in this race not all if lost!

I will highlight in red the lowest scoring race in the results so you can see which race is discounted.

@paino – wear your sprint champs green jersey again!

Anyone know how long this race will take – for a mere mortal ?

Between 45 and 50 mins – it isn’t that bad. Expect the climb to take between 24 and 35 mins for most and it doesn’t take that to get over there.

I reckon this could be a good race for Daniel and Julie.

Meanwhile there’s everything to play for in the top half dozen.

I am equally excited as I am nervous for this!!

in bed for 7 tonight, good nights sleep, plenty of stretching, a hearty dinner…. 😀

@robbo1234biking great interview on the podcast mate. Got me all excited for tomorrow’s little pedal:)

@slowpuncheur thanks! It is very strange hearing yourself speak on a podcast! Enjoyed doing it.

I have just made the wife listen to it whilst wrapping Xmas presents instead of Xmas songs!

there’s a podcast ? 😉

Good podcasting 🙂

15 minutes on the leaders in the handicap. Suspect I’ll need every minute…

Looking forward to tomorrow, what will will do after tomorrow to get through a Tuesday of work.

@robbo1234biking, hope this celebrity status won’t mean you’ll be dragged off to organise professional races and won’t be doing another series for us mortals 🙂

Did the Zwift powers indicate if the official recognition will be on-going or just for this series (assuming, fingers crossed that you’ll organise another series in 21).