Zwift, TR, Sufferfest etc

[EWG]

Yeah I set everything up today and have never done this before. I think the issue was with following Shaun- he didn't see me there to give me an invite. I did get into the 9pm one but it was just one other guy and he disappeared about 2/3 through. Cool to have something that actually measures power. I've been thinking about getting a PM for my road bike for awhile but still haven't.

Borrowed the trainer, not sure how long I'll be able to hang onto it but I guess I might have to just break down and get one. If I can find one that is. I think my shop has a couple of wahoos either there or on order but with limited availability they might prefer to sell it at retail than have me buy it. i can't stand my basic wheel on resistance one anymore.

Word from the sponsored wahoo guys is that they are now 2 YEARS backordered on the various kickr units. In late spring they were saying it was a few months. Not sure how much of that is hyperbole, but if you want any kind of kickr you probably should buy it immediately before the masses start looking for the winter and buy up any remaining stock in shops.

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

ERG mode adjusts to you.
If you want a higher cadence, then pedal faster. It will raise your watts for a few seconds, but then the trainer will ease up the load so that you hit the correct wattage at the new cadence.

If you cannot raise your cadence OR you keep getting bogged down, then your FTP is likely set too high and needs to come down.

Huh. Good to know. Sounds like I might need just give it more time, but specifically what I've run into is doing high tension sets at 40-60rpms where the ERG mode just won't let me get down into those slow cadences. On the other side I was doing sweet spot sets at 70-90 rpms, but then I'd go downhill on zwift and all of a sudden I'm in a sprint workout. But I def think it's user error - maybe I just need to give it more time to let it adjust, and as much as they suck an FTP test is probably smart since I'm on a new trainer.

[XtrPickels]

Huh. Good to know. Sounds like I might need just give it more time, but specifically what I've run into is doing high tension sets at 40-60rpms where the ERG mode just won't let me get down into those slow cadences. On the other side I was doing sweet spot sets at 70-90 rpms, but then I'd go downhill on zwift and all of a sudden I'm in a sprint workout. But I def think it's user error - maybe I just need to give it more time to let it adjust, and as much as they suck an FTP test is probably smart since I'm on a new trainer.

That's odd. The ERG mode should not respond to hills in Zwift. Your avatar's speed ought to slow or speed up based on the hill, but resistance shouldn't change.

Re. the low-cadence reps. You might need to be in a larger gear to ensure the flywheel is spinning fast enough. If it's spinning too slow and the load generator is producing max resistance it might not meet your needs for wattage.

I have a Saris H2 and typically ride in 52x17 and it's fine from high cadence sprints to low cadence (~60) out of the saddle climbing.

[ticketchecker]

Is it weird that I'm looking forward to Zwift season? It got me through the beginning of the pandemic, hopefully it gets me out of it too

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

That's odd. The ERG mode should not respond to hills in Zwift. Your avatar's speed ought to slow or speed up based on the hill, but resistance shouldn't change.

Huh. That's good to know in that now I'm convinced it's just user error and I need to just take some time to figure it out.

[jamal]

Word from the sponsored wahoo guys is that they are now 2 YEARS backordered on the various kickr units. In late spring they were saying it was a few months. Not sure how much of that is hyperbole, but if you want any kind of kickr you probably should buy it immediately before the masses start looking for the winter and buy up any remaining stock in shops.

Well, went to pick up some clothes I'd ordered, and my shop had a kickr core, so now I have a kickr core. Also it's in the 20s and snowing so I guess good timing.

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

FWIW I realized my ERG problem was related to me missing that I also needed to change a setting on my Stages app to run ERG mode. I also find during an ERG ride I'm better off watching the 10-second watt average Stages gives me vs. the 3-second average Zwift has. Would be nice if Zwift had an option to bump to 10 seconds.

Also, last weekend I did a 30 mile, 5600 vert open field race and took 13th place out of 91. And fuck it, I'm gonna brag here because people in the real world look at me like I have two heads when I try to explain Zwift. LOL. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

[EWG]

FWIW I realized my ERG problem was related to me missing that I also needed to change a setting on my Stages app to run ERG mode. I also find during an ERG ride I'm better off watching the 10-second watt average Stages gives me vs. the 3-second average Zwift has. Would be nice if Zwift had an option to bump to 10 seconds.

Also, last weekend I did a 30 mile, 5600 vert open field race and took 13th place out of 91. And fuck it, I'm gonna brag here because people in the real world look at me like I have two heads when I try to explain Zwift. LOL. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

As my lovely wife would say, "I'm glad you did well in your fake race against fake people."

That said, she's on zwift 5 times a week in the winter, so...

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

Same here! My wife's on there all the time, but she has yet to exhibit a deep interest in my race results. I think me talking about it to her more will totally fix that...

[buttahflake]

I’m racing this afternoon (B), Chris Pritchard will be live streaming it as he races. He’s a funny fucker. Hoping to see myself getting dropped on his YouTube channel.
TFC Autumn Race Series, 3:00 east coast time, if anyone wants to join in the pain.
https://youtu.be/1QdT4bEUFXc

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

That's awesome - wish I could join but work/kids has me stuck to only 5-6:30am MST race starts right now

[buttahflake]

I’ll be in a grey kit, black skater helmet, on a Trek Madone, painted like Miami Vice, with Zipp 454 wheels, keep an eye out for me if you watch!

And that’s another very strong result kto, you’re gonna be an (A) in no time.

[evasive_MT]

We just got a Tacx. Our LBS owner told us to give up on his order and get one online. Turns out REI has them in stock, but he won’t see his order until February or so.

We signed up with Zwift for the MTB simulation. Still waiting on a cassette that should arrive Monday so we haven’t used it yet.

[jamal]

I was tempted to hop into that but am not really feeling like putting in a race effort this afternoon after doing a race wed and a workout yesterday. Just going to find a new route to cruise later on I think. Maybe next week.

First week of zwift has been fun, should keep me a little more engaged with pedaling this winter. Our local cx substitute race the other day was great, cool to be with all the guys I'm used to racing on wed nights but have barely seen all year.


Related note, we could probably get the occasional meetup organized through here, keep it together group rides, short races, etc. Maybe get a list of zwift profiles going in the first post or something?

[joetron]

Is it weird that I'm looking forward to Zwift season? It got me through the beginning of the pandemic, hopefully it gets me out of it too

I’m in the same boat. Haven’t thought about it all summer, but I’m more stoked to put the bike on the trainer than put on cold weather clothes.


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[buttahflake]

Just watched the video, it’s pretty funny watching your guy hammering from someone else’s perspective. I totally watched myself get dropped! It’s brutal how fast it can go, and at 55 years old I’m still wicked competitive, just not as fast as I used to be. Zwift Power has me in 50th out of 60 (B). 43 minutes at 3.4w/kg, 163 avg HR is a little low, but my watts are a bit higher, what’s that mean? 147lbs

[EWG]

Just watched the video, it’s pretty funny watching your guy hammering from someone else’s perspective. I totally watched myself get dropped! It’s brutal how fast it can go, and at 55 years old I’m still wicked competitive, just not as fast as I used to be. Zwift Power has me in 50th out of 60 (B). 43 minutes at 3.4w/kg, 163 avg HR is a little low, but my watts are a bit higher, what’s that mean? 147lbs

This is why I don't climb with anyone that weighs under 180lbs. I actually tuned in but didn't see you. Gray/black isn't easy to spot. Next time wear something hot pink ... you know, for the fans.

[Dee Hubbs]

This inspired me to fire up the Zwift. Spent 90 minutes tonight climbing up Alp D'zwift. I need to find a program to start on Monday to keep me motivated.

[Iowagriz]

For motivation, chase all of the badges. Zwiftinsider.com has a page or two on the routes. Remember that you don't get credit unless you select the route at the startup screen. I think there are over 60 routes. That will keep you busy for a while.

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[Dee Hubbs]

For motivation, chase all of the badges. Zwiftinsider.com has a page or two on the routes. Remember that you don't get credit unless you select the route at the startup screen. I think there are over 60 routes. That will keep you busy for a while.

Ya I made a speed sheet and posted here with all the routes. I need to update it with the new worlds.
I mostly do my workouts on the Alp D'Huez route to maximize my vertical gain/sweat points. I still haven't unlocked a better bike.

[Dee Hubbs]

I'm on Level 13 with 850,000 points and I dont have access to any different bike or wheels in my Garage? What am I doing wrong?
When I look at Zwift Insider Shopping Guide, it says I should have seen a bunch of frames and wheels by now?

[jamal]

Your garage is the stuff you have. You need to go into the drop shop and buy stuff.

Also here's a list of all the routes you can sort by distance and elevation

https://zwiftinsider.com/routes/

[Iowagriz]

Climbing will give you sweat points but not the mileage. I personally just rode like I was riding outside, pick a direction and takeoff for whatever my workout was. I did the Everest, then jumped to the California and Italy badges, that was probably a mistake and I just should have left it in the climbing challenge. I would have gotten the Tron bike faster. You'll unlock bikes with hitting levels, so chasing points/levels is also good. Route badges get you bonus points, so going after those helps. I think I went from level 24 to 29 just chasing routes last winter.

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[buttahflake]

Dude you can buy some pretty fast bikes and wheels at that level and amount of drops. Canyon just added the Aerode 2021 open at level 10, pair that with some Zipp or Enve wheels and you will notice a big difference. Drop Shop!

[Dee Hubbs]

Thanks, that makes sense now. I alway saw "you earned new socks" and then saw them pop up in my garage. I assumed thats how new wheels or frames showed up.
I use AppleTV and the remote isn't the easiest to navigate the screen, and I never accidentally clicked on drop shop to explore that area.
I just bought the Canyon Aeroad 2021 frame, and Zipp 808 wheels.
Thanks, now I have no excuse to lose races