ZWIFT

GMAN 19030

I could have sworn there was a Zwift thread somewhere on EN but I could not find it so I apologize if I am being duplicative.

I have been a lifelong gamer.  I still love video games.  Still get together with the guys online on Friday or Saturday night and play the latest Call of Duty game.  We are all FBI Agents so that makes it cool, right?

Combining cycling and video games together seemed like it was specifically designed for me.  I did my first ride on Zwift beta the other night.  It was fun.  Obviously it's still a beta and there's a bunch of bugs to workout but it's very well done.

I quickly learned that Zwift can be dangerous.  I meant to just tool around but I got crazy competitive.  Going after primes, not wanting people to pass me, etc.  I ended up riding like an idiot for 42 minutes before Zwift crashed on me.

I can't see how I could do any steady state or structured training with Zwift.  Not that structured training is really the goal of Zwift but nonetheless.  Seeing as though I'm only doing short course stuff for the next seven months or so I guess I can spend more time in Zwift hammertime mode. 

I can't wait for the full product with more courses.  A TT course would be awesome for us triathletes.  I'm sure that will be one of the courses.

Jan Schorpion

I just got my Zwift Beta invite in my mailbox last week. I am waiting for a day when I have some time to play around on the Island for a little bit. 

kimmydct

Bob- I found that competition got to me too. But what I did was the first interval, I "played around" with the competition and then for the second, I just stuck to my plan. Partly because I was tired from the previous interval. I guess it is good practice for sticking to your race plan in and IM and letting people pass you....

Michael Crosby

Bob,
I rode my first laps around the Zwift island yesterday and, like you, I found that I rode like a maniac. I will definitely stick to Trainer Road for my workouts, however, there may be a place for Zwift on FTP testing days, or if you are forced to be stuck on a trainer on a long "Always Be Pushing" Sunday for a HIM or IM training plan. It definitely kept me engaged (a little TOO engaged). I like the concept though.

ezellrh

I'm Zwifting. I dig it. For me, I tend to ride indoors year round except when I start my race specific build. Trainer riding is much more time efficient and productive for me. I've memorized every SF video backwards and forwards and I can only create so many youtube video mixes. I can't watch anything with a plot and dialogue (TV/Movies) while trying to push watts.

So Zwift is the new shiny object for me in my training routine. I was very jumpy/competitive my first ride; I've since calmed down a bit and dialed the workouts back in pretty easily. In my mind, its like riding any other popular place where folks of all skill levels share the road. I've been on it a little over a month. I have my shuffle jamming my music in my ears. So far, I've stuck exactly with the JOS scheduled 'work intervals' but allow myself to play during the 'extra 80%' work at the end of workouts if I feel froggy. I did bump one Saturday ride to do their Valentine's Day distance challenge. Plenty of folks zoom past me and I zoom past plenty on my own. I have high hopes that as they continue to develop the platform, new routes and capabilities will greatly increase the experience. For me, its just another thing on the screen to help me pull my nose off my dial while I suffer

jello4

I too have gotten 'suckered' in to pushing way harder than I intended during a workout on Zwift. It is definitely a new way to ride indoors. With a little imagination and programming I think this could be an excellent training tool. Imagine if the other 'riders' were riding your defined workout, some a few percent below others a few percent above, definite possibilities there.

Al Truscott

I've never explored this site, so I don;t quite get it. To use video game analogies, are the "other riders" NPC, or are they avatars of actual people in a multi-player environment? The latter would be really cool, and a great tool for team workouts across cyberspace. I had initially thought Trainer Road was going in that direction, but, alas, not.

We need need a real time web based platform to ride with others. 

ezellrh

Al, Zwift has avatars of both other 'real' riders and AI riders. Based on recent rides and the lack of visible AI riders, I bet there is some type of leveling function that removes AI riders as the number of real riders increases (to reduce course congestion). For example, during most of my rides, there are ~30-60 other real peeps throughout the ride. Right now, the island is a 5k loop. There are lots of peeps that get together and 'ride' together in pack rides (virtual drafting makes a difference in speed).

Zwift supports ride inputs (watts, cadence) through either your existing ANT+ capable power meter or through a variety of smart and dumb trainers. Your real world watt/kg impacts your ride, assuming you've input your height/weight correctly.

GMAN 19030

Posted By Al Truscott on 05 Mar 2015 09:08 PM

I've never explored this site, so I don;t quite get it. To use video game analogies, are the "other riders" NPC, or are they avatars of actual people in a multi-player environment? The latter would be really cool, and a great tool for team workouts across cyberspace. I had initially thought Trainer Road was going in that direction, but, alas, not.

We need need a real time web based platform to ride with others. 

Al, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNwjIgjAb9w

The blue ghost looking figure is NPC, the others are real players.  I didn't see one NPC the whole time I was in the game.

drjohnson08

Can anyone tell me, do I need a "smart" trainer to ride Zwift? From the website it appears that I can use my Kurt Road Machine, however, I just had a friend tell me that I need a smart trainer to ride. If I can use a normal trainer, are there any limitations to riding Zwift?

Brad Marcus

@Doug-
I tried Zwift last season a couple of times, but never really got it into it. But, I just looked back at the parameters that they sent me and you should be good to go with your trainer (using Zwift's virtual power), or you should be ok using a power meter (which I'm certain you have). Check out this link here for all parameters:

https://support.zwift.com/hc/en-us/articles/203152565-Which-trainers-does-Zwift-support-

drjohnson08

Thanks Brad. I'm thinking about giving it a try in a few weeks.

Mike Westover

All that you will miss without a smart trainer is

• Changing resistance when you go uphill or downhill
• Erg mode to hold power during workouts

Zwift released a custom workout mode today, so you can now set up your favorite EN workouts.

 

Francis Picard

@Doug : I used it and I got the same trainer as your's.

drjohnson08

@Mike & Francis, thank you for the info!

robin sarner

have been thinking of trying Zwift to spiff up the OS staleness.

i have the Wahoo Kickr.

I hope they have IPAD appt soon.              anyone know if they have plans ?