Zwift has just released the latest version of their Companion app on both Android and iOS. Version 3.17 includes three important Meetup updates, giving every Zwifter even more power to create useful and fun Meetups with their friends.
While it may take several hours to roll out worldwide, most major regions already have access to the update. Let’s dig in!
Paris+France Available
Today is the first day of France and Paris as guest maps in the monthly schedule – and it’s also the first day we’ve seen Paris or France available for scheduling Meetups! These two new maps will always be available for Meetups moving forward. Allez allez!
Race Results
Selecting the new “Race Results” option under “Customize Your Meetup” will display a results screen at the end of your Meetup, and in your activity summary in Companion.
Many IRL clubs have been using Meetups to organize virtual rides for their members, but until today’s update, there was no way to get actual race results for that ride.
Two notes:
- If you enable Race Results for your Meetup, Late Join (see below) is automatically disabled… since you can’t join a race after it begins!
- Unlike official race events, Meetups with Race Results do not (yet) show your real-time ranking in the rider list. Hopefully, that can be added soon.
- There are no start pens for Meetups – riders just start on the side of the road, near each other. So even if you enable race results, riders won’t start from the same line. (It appears that the sooner you join the meetup, the further up you get to start.) Unless the Meetup has hundreds of participants, riders should all start close enough that an ad-hoc race will work just fine.
- Distance-based Meetups have a virtual finish line (blue hologram). Time-based Meetups do not have a finish line, so they may not be your best choice for a Meetup race. (On the other hand, the idea of a time-based race is intriguing…)
Virtual finish line 
Meetup race results screen
Late Join
All Meetups now automatically support late join! (*And there was much rejoicing!*)
This has been a popular request from Zwifters because let’s face it: cyclists are really bad at showing up on time. Late Join for Meetups works like Late Join for events – you can join a Meetup up to 30 minutes after it begins, as long as it’s still in progress.
There is no visible “Late Join” option when creating your Meetup, because it is always enabled. The only time it’s not enabled is when you choose to show Race Results (see above).
Questions or Comments?
Share below!
I’ve still no fence.
The functionality is in-game, but Zwift has to enable it for events.
This handy-dandy ZwiftHacks events search shows all upcoming fenced events: there’s one on Friday! https://zwifthacks.com/app/events/?key=5f31a3d60055e
Hey Eric,
Could you elaborate on meet-up results and timing? I assume that once the count down timer finishing everyone’s time starts there so it’s still whoever crosses the line first wins?
Yes, if it’s a distance-based Meetup, whoever crosses the blue holographic finish line first wins. Time-based Meetups don’t show a finish line, but it looks like whoever goes furthest gets ranked highest…
Setting the stage for a Zwift hour record?
Has the update already been released? I just went to Google Play Store and there is no update button available yet for Zwift Companion App.
Yes, but updates sometimes roll out regionally, so it’s possible you may not see it quite yet.
I updated my Android phone (UK) two hours ago from the Play Store. It was already in my update queue.
Tried a ‘timed results’ distance-based meetup this morning. One rider appeared at the roadside about 400m in front of the rest of us for the start. We all grouped up to have a fair race, however, when we sprinted for the blue hologram finish line, his timing didn’t stop until he was 400m further down the road – he won the sprint but came last in the results. Something to be aware of!
You sure it was a “timed event”? It states above that timed events don’t have a blue finish line. It makes far more sense if it was a distance based event, given he started and finished at the same distance as the rest of you. But yes, that’s a big issue for the final sprint if peolle don’t realise it – thanks for the heads up.
Oh wait, I read it wrong, you stated it was a distance event that was “timed”. Ignore me lol
We have noticed this too. Our local cycling community has been organizing weekly meetup races and since we have a lot of participants, this makes us all have widely different finish lines. Makes it hard to know if you are ahead or behind other riders around you and makes sprinting for the line kind of meaningless. We hope Zwift fixes this.
They need to figure out a way to smoothly make multisport races work. the way zwift duathlon is set up right now is very cumbersome, but its the best we’ve got. they need a race function with late join, but if you late join you still start at the regular starting area and have to complete the full course, not jump in with people already racing. that way you can effectively have a duathlon (or Tri when rowing comes in) Also this could neutralize the transition time effect which can be lengthy with pairing issues.
Has anyone else noticed that something seems to be broken with Meetups since the last update? I saw an issue on Saturday but then saw more weird behavior today. There were three of us in a meetup, all putting out about 2.5w/kg. Going up a 4% grade we were doing over 25 mph! Then later on the meetup we were descending and everyone was passing us. I saw that we could lonely do 11mph on a -3% downhill grade even when we upped our power…
Does steering work in Meetups ?
Since we here – the relative timings of riders ahead and behind in Meetups is also broken, or at least it was on Saturday. All times were showing as zero, although total distance was correct, so you could work out relative distance
Does or will meetup functionality extend to Zwift Workout Plans? In other words, if I wanted to create a meetup and use a Zwit workout such as SST or Over Unders, could I do that?
Looks like there is also a more detailed in progress readout of a workout segment: internal time elapsed now counts down in figures rather than a progress bar, l which I find much better. Unless I missed a setting before.
How does late join work? If you join 10min late? Where do you get dropped in? At the start? Or with the beacon?
With the beacon, generally.
Good but how do you late join, if no button etc to let you late join.?
Hi Eric – I did a locals only throwdown race today using the distance meet up function with results. We had about 30 people and it was great….except for the results. Since we spawned at different locations on the road – my meet up distance meant a different finish line for everyone…some hit their line and sat up while others had a little more to go and passed those that sat up. Anyways – in the results…the person that finished on my line in 5th place turned out to the be winner in the Zwift results – not great! We are now thinking about doing this as a timed race rather than distance but you suggest that the blue finish line does not appear with a timed meet up – is that still the case? And would we run into the same issue with those spawned farther back up the road being more likely to win if it comes to a sprint since they will have covered more distance? Ultimately – it would be awesome to create private meet ups by laps with a lead in, like a traditional race. We can still spawn on trainers on the side of the road but when we come through the next banner – the laps begin and you can set an exact number. Thanks!
I am interested in creating a race meetup. Is there any way to do intermediate points for sprints or say a kom?
Revisiting this as it seems late join now places you somewhere mid to lower group rather than at the front of the ride as in the distant past – do we know how it decides where @eric? 🤔
We do not!