STW Zwift Race Series 3 – Winter

Prob be best to put weight on – you have a 300w FTP now! 85% of the remaining races are flatish now – only one more big hill so high power and a higher weight is prob more beneficial! Time to eat some pies!

Just realised this weeks road race is on mountain bikes again, which seems a bit odd. I know this is a mountain bike place but is there any harm in doing a normal road race? The physics of riding an MTB on a road race are completely different (and not as much fun) on a MTB and they amplify differences in performance. On a normal road race we mere mortals can use the draft to stay wiith the fast guys a bit longer rather than getting dropped straight away and it becoming a time trial.

Everyone is obsessed with being in the front group but let’s face it, most of us are getting dropped sooner or later so it doesn’t REALLY matter if we hang on an extra minute or not! I found the dynamics pretty similar once we settled into groups of similar ability. Robbo can always tweak the algorithm for the handicaps if it’s throwing things out. I think being on the MTBs is a great gimmick and obviously Zwift HQ like it so if it helps to make the series a bit more special then I’m all for it!

@dazh this series is all on the MTB. It is part of the tie in with STW towers and Zwift. This will hopefully expand things for the future. Having said that we do a lap of the jungle this week so there is some off road in any case.

Week after next is a fat tyre crit which is actually a thing in the US apparently (not sure I have seen anything here!)

most of us are getting dropped sooner or later so it doesn’t REALLY matter

True, but most of the fun on zwift races I find is trying to stay in whatever group that is just above your ability. Maybe it’s just me but I find once I’m on my own the motivation disappears as it effectively becomes a time trial. Oh well, I suppose there are plenty road races in any case. So if we’re stuck with MTBs how about a proper endurance race? Say an 8 hour race on a weekend? 😉

Ive now moved into the unenviable position where I’m giving time to the likes of Savo, JR and Woodster.

Thank goodness for small mercies.

Ive now moved into the unenviable position where I’m giving time to the likes of Savo, JR and Woodster. 😂Big points are maybe a thing of the past.

@robbo will it help me in the series handicap to put weight on or drop some off? 😀

If it helps you feel better kirky I did bologna on a mtb yesterday. The same power as you over the race, 2kg heavier, exactly 1 minute down. That bit of weight gain for a better handicap isn’t as much of a leveler as you might think 😉

(even my cheat time of 17.58 at 5.5w/kg only saw me beat you by 90 seconds on the road and 3 with handicap!)

I was only jesting really, I wouldn’t other than a period of time where I hit the gym hard, try to purposefully gain weight.

Before we had our first daughter my weight had crept up other the years to 16.5 stone at just over 5ft9 I had become a lard arse. I got down to 11.5 stone over the next year but as it was an aggressive loss I was not a good shape physique wise so took a bit longer to address that.

I tend to get worried when my weight creeps back up, I used to be able to cut it back very easily but that now appears to be much harder. I do plan to lose a bit (3/4kg) by may June and hopefully enjoy the hills in the real world. Hopefully if I can achieve this I’ll sit around 3.9.

put weight on or drop some off?

That was my pre Christmas mince pie question. I did neither gain weight or power over Xmas but those who I normally finish close with on the actual event have improved in one or both of the categories. So now I have a reasonable handicap advantage in my favour (which I can’t use as my trainer is elsewhere).

Race day! Who’s feeling good today.

Terrible – partner is signed up to some online fitness program and keeps joshing me to have a go – I joined in with ‘fitness pilates’ last night and feel like instead of a bed, I spent last night packed into a wooden crate and dragged along a motorway!

I kmow im horrdly stiff and inflexible, but of course I’m stubborn, so time training is spent doing miles on the bike when what I really need to do, is exercise OFF the bloody bikes!

Today is better than yesterday at least but that’s not a high bar at all. I very much over did it last week (or maybe I just under ate?). I can’t say as, presently, I’m looking forward to this evening.

Race day! Who’s feeling good today.

Me! Shame I don’t have my trainer back 🤣

I can’t seem to get through a whole series without some drama, so apparently it’s time for me to have trainer woes. I’ll try to start, if I get to the top of that first climb I’ll begin to believe I might finish. There’s a reasonable chance this is the day I end up sat angrily on the floor watching you all ride off into the dust and teaching the neighbours new words though.

Had that last week in the TTT @savoyad. DOMS got the better of my legs and I got dropped in 3 minutes 🥺. Good thing this house is detached!

Me! Shame I don’t have my trainer back

☹️ That’s annoying.

My PT session got moved to 3pm and is leg heavy. Feeling quite apprehensive about tonight. Really want to get back to the front of the GC.

@robbo are there sprint points tonight?

@dangeourbrain think it’s my turn this week, got off yesterday’s workout ride with Robbo and Stumpy ok but then felt drained all day…no energy. Felt fine during the workout.
Crashed out at 9-30 last night and slept until 8am. Still feel a bit drained now but no cold symptoms or anything else

Still plan to hit the race tonight but it may be just as a participant…we will see how the start goes and how I feel as we go. I hope to make a race of it if I can.

Whats wrong with your trainer @savoyad?

No idea how I will feel tonight once it starts. Legs don’t feel too bad but I need to get better at racing the last 20 minutes. Where do you go for a break on this course? It will split early with the climb up to the windmill so expect the groups to settle early.

No sprint points tonight – we don’t go through any sprint sections or do any complete laps (unless I got it completely wrong!)

That’s what I thought but want to check.👍

Attack from the undersea tunnel and keep the pressure on till the windmill I think.

Whats wrong with your trainer @savoyad?

It’s my trainer that has the problem. No Bluetooth connection from it so it would not connect to the app. Seemed to work ok with ant+ and fec but I couldn’t connect directly to my phone to perform any firmware updates.

@retrorick – both you and Savoyad have trainer problems by the looks of it!

can anyone give a brief course description as I don’t know it, i must have ridden parts or all of it but can’t remember. Not that I think it will make much difference, I seem to have a low level something or other so i’m ok up to about 85-90% of ftp but got nothing after that. Couldn’t get past ftp on the tt climb last week, then the same again on the tdz hill stage felt fine about 0.7 -0.8 wkg under ftp but just couldn’t put out any more and when i go for a steady ride outside my nose runs!! Ah well its all good fun

Ah yes, having re read the previous posts I see what has been said! 😅

@karnali It’s going to be fast from the start, under the tunnels and up that first punchy climb which takes you to the reverse Epic KOM. It should settle down then into groups and past the windmills down into the jungle. This section will be faster than normal as everyone will be on the MTB’s which roll faster round the jungle, but it’s now a level playing field, so no advantage like normal with some on MTB’s and some not.

The climb out of the jungle is usually quite telling, especially on the MTB’s and then its a TT to the finish, around the volcano (but not up it!) and into the sprint finish into the watopia town.

It’s going to be an all out effort with not many places for a breather as there are no real descents except for the one back from the windmills, take a breath there and then push to the finish. Drafting should help on this one, don’t get caught in no man’s land.

Should be reasonably well rested physically, had a nice easy 50km ride on Sunday and a very easy 30 minutes in Zwift yesterday, but didn’t get to bed till 1am this morning due to work so am tired and probably not at the top of my game today.

Is the handicap done on w/kg or pure watts? Its worrying that I have the 2nd biggest handicap on a flattish course, when my FTP is only 280W… ;o(

@benman it is both. w/kg is king on the hills and watts king on the flat (plus weight if you want to include the downhill sections). You are going to have to make it count on the hills tonight I think and try and break free. The thing I cant predict is the draft so if you can sit with the high FTP folks and punch on the hills then you might make the time.

One thing that puts you at a disadvantage is that it doesn’t know when the hills come in the race so if it were to end on a hill then you have a good chance of breaking free (like the last race of the last series or this series in fact) – this one will definitely be harder for you.

Flip side is that if you escape too early the heavier riders might haul you back in.

I’m streaming again tonight should be live on https://youtu.be/iii4nWgioTU

I’m looking forward to the race – legs feel OK after yesterday’s workout with OopNorth & Robbo, although not actually spun them yet!

I seem to remember that I find this course a bit of a challenge. I need to try & hang onto a group up the first climb at least, so I get a tow on the descent. It is much slower on your own & you just lose tons of time.

We’ll see.

I got stuck all alone in the first race, got to avoid that this time round! Feeling pretty good today so hopefully I can still hold onto one of the faster groups by the time we get to the descent, if not I’ll have to drop back to the next group if they’re not too far behind (or if there is one!) to avoid doing another ITT to the finish.

I’m not challenging for points or podiums anyway so it’s all good fun, the learning process and fitness gains is great anyway.

I too shall be there… hopefully I get away from work in time to have a good warmup..
18 miles is a long one!

Here’s the stream!

DrP

How do you get that nice embed DrP?

Getting a bit sick of the Jungle 🙂

Ticked off the Mega on Friday night with a mate, and not Zwifted since so I should be well rested.

I got a significant FTP bump on the TT course, so my placing will doubtless drop this week.

It will be (as usual) working my arse off to stay with a group up the hills and using my extra weigh to rest a bit in the group on the downhill. Run in is flattish which should be interesting.

@robbo1234biking – the results page is still showing me with (I think) Paino’s sprint points from week one. Whilst I’m happy to have them, you should probably give them back to whoever earned them 🙂 🙂

@jimdubleyou It is right on my spreadsheet so will sort it out tonight. I have automated the spreadsheet so hopefully it will avoid transfer errors in the future as long as I transfer the times out correctly. That can be a challenge depending on how hard I have raced!

Hopefully this error will be corrected later tonight!

@DrP probably a silly question, but with the stream, does it just mirror your screen? Or does it have some magical way of going through the pack and catching all the racing/excitement/action?

@nixie and @v7fmp

Firstly..I’m no expert… In fact I was JUST watching a YT vid on how to be a better streamer using Streamlabs (the software I use).

Esentially… as i understand it..
You need 2 ‘things’.
Streaming software – in my case Streamlabs..

Which needs..

Somewhere to broadcast to – youtube, twitch, FB etc

Nixie.. “How do you get that nice embed DrP?” This was jsut a picture that I uploaded to my YouTube studio, once i’d scheduled the stream via Streamlabs.. If you click on the video in your YT, you can add an image.

With regards to what’s on the screen/stream… this is where getting ‘good’ at streamlabs comes in..
I have a few ‘inputs’
-live video camera (currently a single cam that is my laptop camera, but i’ve just bought a better webcam. I might play about with multiple live camera views etc). I pop this in the lower corner.
-the ‘screen capture’ i.e Zwift. This is why you have to run Zwift windowed – it needs to be a windowed screen. I guess whatever you have in teh Zwift window, it shows.
You COULD be smart, and have a FEW versions of zwift running perhaps??? I.e a couple of Zwift windows, with different views?
-a Youtube counter ‘widget’. I MUST know when I get 2 or 3 viewers…!!!

I’m toying with making the stream look prettier – with a ‘theme’ etc etc, and maybe a launching screen…
The more I play with it, the better I get..

DrP

@DrP yeah got an image but don’t seem to be able to get the embed when I post the link here. Hmm.

FFS

I just post my youtube link…

Whatever youtube ‘has in my video’, that’s what shows…

see here

DrP

What do you past into the site here though? I’ve been pasting the link but in both plain and fancy editor that does nothing.