Gravel Mountain Returns! Speed Tests, Bug Fixes, Events, and More

Zwift launched Gravel Mountain back in April, but quickly pulled it due to a buggy race experience. Zwifters have been wondering when it would return, and the answer is: last week! Zwift Labs events have been set up, allowing riders to test the updated map. Read on for details…

Races

Friday Night Fun Races are being held on the Red Rock Loop and Red Rock Loop Reverse routes, with six different time slots to choose from. These events have been set up by Zwift’s James Bailey, so you may encounter silly stuff like dino suits or forced bikes.

See upcoming events at zwift.com/events/tag/fridaynightfunrace >

Pacer Rides

Don’t want to race, but want to check out Gravel Mountain? James has also set up some “paced rides” with RoboPacers at four different paces:

• Coco – 2.6w/kg
• Maria – 2.2w/kg
• Miguel – 1.8w/kg
• Bernie – 1.5w/kg

See upcoming events at zwift.com/events/tag/gmpacer >

Speed Tests

Some Zwifters have asked what surface is used on Gravel Mountain, since it appears to be dirt, but less dusty than the Jungle. The surface is in fact, dirt (in terms of Crr), but with the dust and camera shake reduced for an improved experience.

So which bike is fastest in Gravel Mountain? I tested three top bikes, one in each category. Here are the lap times at 4 W/kg:

• Gravel Bike – Cannondale SuperX LAB71 with Roval Terra Aero CLX wheels – 4:13
• MTB – Spark RC World Cup – 4:23
• Road Bike – Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL9 with Princeton CarbonWorks Wake 6560 wheels – 4:31

What’s Different?

Zwift says they’ve fixed the bugs reported when Gravel Mountain was released back in April. That includes avatars bouncing on screen, erratic left/right movements and acceleration, riding through rocks, and a lack of rider placings. Most notably, though, Zwift has reduced the “visual speed” from 2.5x faster than normal to 2x.

This “visual speed” (I’m not sure what else to call it, so I’m calling it that) is accomplished by scaling the GPS coordinates. This allows your actual recorded speeds to remain accurate, while changing the speed at which you pass through the on-screen environment. So you get accurate speeds, but a faster, more exciting experience.

You can see the effect of this GPS scaling by comparing the Red Rock Loop from back in March to the new, slightly slower loop. Here’s the older version – note the length, and its dimensions on the map:

Here’s the new version. Note the increased length and dimensions on the map compared to the map above.

We know Zwift is using a factor of 2x now because the map below is exactly 1/2 the size of the original Gravel Mountain segment.

Rider Videos

Curious what the revamped Gravel Mountain looks like? Here are videos from Zwifters recorded in recent days:

Your Feedback

Have you ridden/raced the updated Red Rock Loop yet? What do you think? Share your thoughts below!