The Indoor Riding/ Zwift/ TrainerRoad etc. Thread

Soldato
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Stage 6 done today actually put some effort in up that last climb and gained about 30 places on the group ride after I'd been out for few hours on the cx bike earlier and wasn't exactly taking it easy. Might try a race on Tuesday for the first time!
 
Soldato
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Stage 6 done today actually put some effort in up that last climb and gained about 30 places on the group ride after I'd been out for few hours on the cx bike earlier and wasn't exactly taking it easy. Might try a race on Tuesday for the first time!
That last km dragged on for ages! The 100km yesterday didn’t help either. One stage to go
 
Soldato
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Failed totally to do Stage 6. Had intended to ride it on sunday after my long group ride but was quite empty. Then had a builder coming around so once I stopped I didn't really wanna start again. Oh well, 2 stages on catch up for me...! 4 & 6, providing I get Yorkshire done (should do!).

https://zwift.com/uk/tdzride

Heads-up you can get a free TICKR HRM via Sufferfest. Kudos as they offering this not just to new users, but also users who move from monthly to annual billing and users already on annual sub's (ie me!)

https://support.thesufferfest.com/h...352576#h_1de8c7bc-20cc-46d7-b758-0ffe27cdf2b0
Great deal, my TICKR is fantastic - 5 or 6 years old at least and still going strong!

How much is Sufferfest for a year? Much of a discount?
 
Soldato
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@Roady / any one else, if i do a race how does it work, ie which cat do I enter?

if you can do over 4w/kg for 20mins then jump in A category.
Because if you do over 4 and are in B you will be filtered from results.

Have you linked Strava and Zwift Power and all that nonsense?
 
Soldato
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nope not yet, but will go into A as I could do that power. Just hooked up zwift power.

You'll like it pal. The "racing" honestly is a sure fire way of working your backside off and achieving more in a semi-fun way. You will get more from it than structured sessions on the trainer yourself without a doubt.

I done 5W/KG for 30mins on a Zwift race last night. I didn't realise it was a TT event so just went hard. I'm doing 50% less hours than last winter. And all I have done is Zwift races and easy riding on it since mid December.... So there is something to it especially for time trialists over winter.

You'll be right in A cat. It will take you a LONG time to fully grasp and understand the drafting element of the game. It's nothing at all like it is in real life so don't expect it to be. Just ride in the A group and try to live with it as it pushes on. See how you fair and rinse and repeat. Stick with it and you'll notice a hefty jump in a matter of few weeks in terms of putting the power out properly and drafting in it.
 
Soldato
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cool, will give it a go, not sure whether I'll do it tonight or tomorrow Think i'll just use it to keep ticking over, with CX over the winter I don't need/want to do too much strenuous stuff during the week to have the best legs for each weekend. I have noticed that the drafting is odd, so will just try to get used to it. Presume you do a lengthy warm up, and then into the races which don't look to last too long.

Coach advised that I should be able to do 310W threshold now up from 290W last year, I've really noticed my capability going up, especially over the past 6 months pushing those higher numbers in each zone rather than just scraping through.
 
Soldato
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cool, will give it a go, not sure whether I'll do it tonight or tomorrow Think i'll just use it to keep ticking over, with CX over the winter I don't need/want to do too much strenuous stuff during the week to have the best legs for each weekend. I have noticed that the drafting is odd, so will just try to get used to it. Presume you do a lengthy warm up, and then into the races which don't look to last too long.

Coach advised that I should be able to do 310W threshold now up from 290W last year, I've really noticed my capability going up, especially over the past 6 months pushing those higher numbers in each zone rather than just scraping through.

I *TRY* to get on 20mins before the races to do some z2 with some efforts. Not really to warm up for "racing" as I truly only use the races as indoor training rather than structured workouts.... so use that 20mins to get a wee bit more volume on due to, as you say, them being rather short! I sometimes end up only getting 5mins warmup done prior to the events starting and stuff so just use the first 5-10mins of them to warmup a bit more.

20mins warmup, 40-60mins of the "race" and then 10-15mins cool down spinning is plenty time to reap benefits IMO.

Only one way to find out about that threshold! Based on your being a CX machine and a TT'er come the nicer weather then an actual 60min threshold effort is totally viable and worthwhile for you to do if you ask me.
 
Soldato
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Just did the group ride and rode it z3 all through with a few sprints. Will try the race tomorrow I think as the timing works out better with work.
 
Soldato
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nope not yet, but will go into A as I could do that power. Just hooked up zwift power.
Make sure you've opted into the GDPR stuff otherwise admins can't put you into results. Unsure if that is an additional step on ZP, it certainly used to be, along with the Strava bit (which I think is non-private rides?). Only really useful if you're interested in the numbers (or 'real' results) from there and seeing it all in your ZP profile (I'd recommend it!), rather than the inbuilt stuff at the end of a ride in Zwift (which is gash) or data from Strava.

I'd always recommend ZP to people. Fantastic site, for digging into ride information and a way of 'planning' your rides, joining them in advance/checking schedules etc. It really does highlight all the stuff Zwift 'dumb down' and almost hide away from the 'game', along with the administration of results by race organisers.

Coach advised that I should be able to do 310W threshold now up from 290W last year
Until you've done a trainer based FTP test you don't know for sure what your exact 'Zwift' W/KG figure will be. At a guess you're around 70-80kg so certainly in B cat or above. I'd enter B for now and get the hang of things, without expecting any major results. Enter C if you want results! The first few races you'll generally get a 'pass' for riding over cat limits, some you'll get upgraded in results to B/A. Some you'll get DQ - but most let you off or free upgrade you when you're 'new'. ;)

There's a huge amount of 'tactical' riding in the higher end cat races rather than pure power. D and C are more outright power/sprint based (less tactical), so you'll be able to sit in and figure things out at the pointy end of races. Breakaways happen and even solo wins in the lower cats, less so in the upper ones (not without some obscene numbers). The majority of time all Zwift races are decided by groups splitting at key moments/climbs rather than breakaways, then decided in sprint finishes. Basically you'll probably still get beaten unless you've got a big sprint!

When I'm riding well I can do a 10-11w/kg sprint and that gets me good results in C, as I've generally got the power/stamina to be in the decisive group at the end and not utterly destroyed so I can ramp up multiple times and still have a big kick. But I don't have the fitness to sustain it long enough for results in B as I'm already well over my limit to be at the pointy end. :cool:

Edit:
Category Power Limits
A: 4.00 w/kg and greater
B: From 3.20 w/kg to 3.99 w/kg
C: From 2.50 w/kg to 3.19 w/kg
D: Less than 2.50 w/kg
 
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Soldato
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lol there is absolutely no tactics what so ever. It's sit in the draft, surge the mini hills and win a sprint. Every damn time!
 
Soldato
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Until you've done a trainer based FTP test you don't know for sure what your exact 'Zwift' W/KG figure will be. At a guess you're around 70-80kg so certainly in B cat or above. I'd enter B for now and get the hang of things, without expecting any major results. Enter C if you want results! The first few races you'll generally get a 'pass' for riding over cat limits, some you'll get upgraded in results to B/A. Some you'll get DQ - but most let you off or free upgrade you when you're 'new'. ;)
g

Well those numbers are based on turbo tested power.

70 to 80 how insulting! 67KG! Just going to go in for the A later this evening.
 
Soldato
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I just finished stage 7 tonight, it's probably the hardest I've went which isn't saying much compared to the 500+ people in front! lol

As the weekend weather isn't looking great I'm thinking about doing the Fondo on Sunday next.
 
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