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    FeaturedReferenceHow Zwift Works

    Zwift Chartgeist, Volume 5

    Eric Schlange
    By Eric Schlange
    July 14, 2022
    21

    Today’s Chartgeist post revolves around a central question: what makes a top Zwift racer?

    (One request in advance: please hang up your pitchforks. These charts were created to make you smile as you ponder the population patterns producing the pictures. These are not personal attacks aimed at specific racers.)

    Top A racers come in two flavors. First, you’ve got dedicated cyclists who have trained and raced hard for years, reshaping their bodies into low-fat, pencil-armed visions of cycling fitness.

    You’ve also got some cyclists who have no business racing against these uber-strong riders, but their poorly set up trainers deceive them into thinking so. Ride on, ZPower Rangers. Ride on!


    If you’re a top B on Zwift, you could easily be a mid-grade A. But you manage to stay legal as a B through some combination of carbohydrate overindulgence, avoiding the sacrifices of serious structured training, and judicious use of Zwift Activity Monitor.


    Earning the points needed to remain a top C generally means racing flatter events with larger fields. But it may also mean you’ve got to keep your weight just a bit higher to stay below that w/kg limit. Bring on the cake, and leave that structured training to the masochistic As!

    Your Thoughts

    What do you think of this first set of Zwift charts? Got an idea for a useful chart we could put together? Share below!

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      Eric Schlange
      Eric Schlangehttp://www.zwiftinsider.com
      Eric runs Zwift Insider in his spare time when he isn't on the bike or managing various business interests. He lives in Northern California with his beautiful wife, two kids and dog. Follow on Strava

      21 COMMENTS

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      MATTHEW YANKOW
      MATTHEW YANKOW
      1 month ago

      RIP Zwift Activity Monitor… We hardly knew you.

      2
      Reply
      Eloy
      Eloy
      1 month ago
      Reply to  MATTHEW YANKOW

      They have a problem but their Facebook says that they are working on a solution. Otherwise you can use your headunit for some information

      0
      Reply
      Corey
      Corey
      1 month ago

      As a C rider that loves cake and flat races I feel personally attacked lol!

      2
      Reply
      AMS
      AMS
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Corey

      yes…the flat races…we’re gonna need to flag that

      0
      Reply
      Micah Amman
      Micah Amman
      1 month ago

      Eric, The infographics are spot on, great post.

      3
      Reply
      Neil Townsend
      Trusted Member
      Neil Townsend(@ntownsend)
      1 month ago

      “Dabbled in structured training and homemade cookies” – genius line. Unfortunately that’s the only B box I tick!

      3
      Reply
      Mathieu Bonnet
      Mathieu Bonnet(@mathieu_bonnet)
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Neil Townsend

      Bring on the homemade cookies !

      0
      Reply
      Eric Schlange
      Author
      Top Member
      Eric Schlange(@eschlange)
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Mathieu Bonnet

      Yes sir! I’ve got an amazing chocolate chip/oatmeal recipe…

      0
      Reply
      alonsomh
      alonsomh
      1 month ago

      Sandbagging makes a top B racer…. lol so many times you see B racers being cat up and immediately winning A races.

      0
      Reply
      Emilio
      Emilio
      1 month ago

      As a member of the D colective, I feel sad not to be considered in the charts :'( LOL

      1
      Reply
      Eric Schlange
      Author
      Top Member
      Eric Schlange(@eschlange)
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Emilio

      I thought about doing a D one, but:

      1) I’ve always done just three charts per post and
      2) All the D ideas I had seemed kind of mean and not terribly funny.

      That said, maybe I’ll come up with a good D chart in the future. 🙂

      4
      Reply
      Don't DQ me bro!!
      Don't DQ me bro!!
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Eric Schlange

      D’s are a combination of factors. Greater than 90kg, at least 6 months of riding, dialed in nutrition to keep wkg just below C category, weight lifting, races with C’s on the off days.

      Last edited 1 month ago by Don't DQ me bro!!
      0
      Reply
      Erik
      Erik
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Don't DQ me bro!!

      I‘m a 100kg low B Rider (ftp ~3,5), almost 3 years of riding after a 5 years brake, did the 3 month build up plan the last 2 winters and got updgraded to B this spring. Never raced C, B is always an all out competition for me fighting in the midfield… wished i could loose another 15kg weight like the first winter, but i can‘t manage the nutrition. On the other side i‘m not able to gain more weight to get back to C- Cat. So i think i‘ve to go on, always pushing it to the limit to… Read more »

      0
      Reply
      Eric Schlange
      Author
      Top Member
      Eric Schlange(@eschlange)
      1 month ago
      Reply to  Erik

      Ride on, man!

      0
      Reply
      Ray
      Ray
      1 month ago

      How does age figure in?

      0
      Reply
      Adam Dawson
      Trusted Member
      Adam Dawson(@adawson)
      1 month ago

      This is scary – are you inside my house?

      1
      Reply
      Paul
      Paul
      1 month ago

      That’s where I’ve been going wrong, I’ve no idea what the Zwift Activity Monitor is, although I do have a serious biscuit addiction.

      0
      Reply
      CouchTo1200K
      CouchTo1200K
      1 month ago

      “Top” C racer here. Your chart is dumb and completely inaccurate. You forgot to include a circle for “craft beer”.

      2
      Reply
      Eric Schlange
      Author
      Top Member
      Eric Schlange(@eschlange)
      1 month ago
      Reply to  CouchTo1200K

      Oh man, you’re right. Big miss on my part.

      I could have included that on all three categories, really. The difference is how many ounces you take in after each ride…

      1
      Reply
      Jack
      Jack
      30 days ago

      Ok.. Any advice for getting from 85kg to down to <70kg??? 🤣🤣🤣

      Last edited 30 days ago by Jack
      0
      Reply
      Eric Schlange
      Author
      Top Member
      Eric Schlange(@eschlange)
      30 days ago
      Reply to  Jack

      As Chris Froome said… “I ate fewer lollies.” He went from 75 to 66kg and started winning grand tours 🙂 https://www.businessinsider.com/chris-froome-weight-loss-tour-de-france-2016-7

      1
      Reply
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