Racing on Zwift is absolutely the most challenging and exciting thing you can do inside on a bike. If you’ve never tried it, you owe it to yourself to give it a go, no matter your abilities!
And while Zwift racing is a heart-pumping, leg-burning experience, getting set up properly can be a little daunting. The reason for this is simple enough: racing has been largely brought into Zwift through the grassroots efforts of the community. While Zwift HQ has added many race-friendly features over time, getting set up to race properly on Zwift is still not a completely intuitive and easy thing.
But we’re here to help. Here’s a guide covering the essential key tips to racing on Zwift.
Getting Set Up
Share Your Data with ZwiftPower and Strava
This is a very important one-time step many Zwifters miss! You must opt-in to share your ride data with ZwiftPower.com, or you will not be included in official race results. Log into your account at https://my.zwift.com/, click Profile>Connections, and click to enable sharing with ZwiftPower.
While you’re on the connections page, double-check to make sure you’ve connected your Zwift account to Strava, as this is helpful if ride organizers need to verify your numbers.
Create and Validate Your ZwiftPower Account
Visit ZwiftPower.comd and create an account. Follow the instructions and make sure you enter your ZwiftID. You will need to verify account ownership by adding a 4-digit code to your Zwift surname, then logging into Zwift for at least a minute before clicking “Connect Account” on ZwiftPower.
Get a Heart Rate Monitor
Most races require you to transmit heart rate data, as this helps reduce cheating. If you don’t already own a heart rate monitor, we highly recommend the Wahoo Tickr line due to its durability and connectivity.
Before Your Race
Find a Race
Head over to the Zwift calendar or use the Zwift Companion app to see a list of upcoming races. Pro tip: the events app at ZwiftHacks has more powerful event filtering tools than Zwift’s own calendar.
Once you’ve chosen a race, read the race description. It should contain everything you need to know about that race’s rules, route, etc. Different races have different rules and routes. Reading the race details completely will help you perform well and not get disqualified.
Choose Your Category
Just like real-life racing, most Zwift races organize riders into categories based on fitness level. Different races use different categorization schemes, but most use this:
A: 4.0 w/kg FTP or higher
B: 3.2 w/kg to 4.0 w/kg FTP
C: 2.5 w/kg to 3.2 w/kg FTP
D: Under 2.5 w/kg FTP
If you don’t know what “FTP” is referring to check out What is FTP (Functional Threshold Power) and why does it matter on Zwift? If you don’t know your FTP, check out How can I measure my FTP?
Some races have no categories at all, while others base their categorization on other criteria. This should be made clear in the event description.
Join the Race
Joining most races is just like joining any other group ride on Zwift: simply join the event in game and go! But again, be sure to read the event description as some races request or require that you add the race abbreviation and your category to your profile’s last name (my name for a recent race was “Eric Schlange ZTR (B)”) and some races may even require pre-registration.
After Your Race
Save Your Ride
Save your ride in Zwift, which will keep the data on Zwift’s systems and send it to Strava as well. This allows ZwiftPower to pull your segment times and other race data.
View Results at ZwiftPower.com
Head over to ZwiftPower.com to see how you placed against fellow racers. Most races will show provisional results immediately after the event, with finalized results available a few hours later once the race organizer finalizes the event.
Strategy & Tips
Much could be written about race strategy, but here are a few important tips specific to Zwift racing:
- Be ready for a fast start: the first few minutes of most Zwift races are tough, with riders pushing hard to establish groups. Be warmed up before the race, time your start so you’re pushing big watts when the clock hits 0, and be ready to dig deep to avoid being dropped right away from the faster groups.
- Stay out of the wind: the draft effect in Zwift is strong, and you won’t come close to winning unless you take advantage of it for most of the race. Just like the real world, drafting lets you conserve energy so you’ve got something left in the tank when it’s time to break away. Learn more here >
- Know your course and plan your attacks: different races are different lengths on different routes. Get familiar with the route so you can properly pace yourself and attack your group at just the right times if you’ve still got legs.
- Be prepared: if you have to stop riding to grab water or turn on the fan, you’ve lost. Make sure you’re prepared before the race starts! Check out this Pre-Ride Checklist.
- Upgrade your ride: as you hit higher levels and achievements in Zwift you unlock faster bikes and wheels. Use them, because the time difference between the “basic” and fastest Zwift setups in a 1-hour race is over 60 seconds! See Test Lap Data for hard numbers on bike/wheel speeds, or the 5 fastest bikes in Zwift, and how to get them if you just want to know which bike to use.
- Use power-ups strategically: if the race allows them, power-ups give you a slight edge when used smartly. Read the guide to power ups in Zwift >
Etiquette
- Unsure of your category? Take the high road and place yourself in the tougher category for your first race. This shows respect for fellow racers, and you can always gracefully drop to an easier category next race if you discover that’s where you belong.
- Use the ride tag if requested: your fellow racers need to know who they’re competing against, so place that race tag (eg, “KISS (B)”) after your last name to make it clear if the race rules request it. Using the tag also helps get the word out about the race to non-racers on course.
- Be kind to race organizers and leaders: the good folks organizing these races are just volunteers, so please treat them respectfully.
Want More?
Read my “5 Advanced Zwift Racing Tips” and “Get an edge with these advanced Zwift racing tips” posts.
When finishing a race, do I have to exit and save the ride at the finish line, or can I continue on and do a couple more laps without it affecting my position? Also, how or where do I see how I placed in the race?
Thanks!
As long as you go past the finish line, you can still ride around some after that–I would say just make sure you don’t ride another full lap, as that could mess things up.
Different races post their results in different places. ZwiftNation.com is the default place where most races post results, but alternative solutions are also being worked on to increase accuracy and that’s up to the race organizer.
How do I analyse the results? I came last but i noticed the rider in front of me was heavier but had a lower watts per kg etc. Why did he beat me?
This may have something to do with it, Sean: https://zwiftinsider.com/how-to-spot-a-smart-racer-on-zwift/
Just like racing in real life… it’s not the person putting out the most w/kg that often wins!
how can i warm-up before the race?
Several options–you can just join the race, then pedal while you’re waiting in the start gates. This puts you on a virtual trainer in the game, and you can spin as much as you want without your avatar moving.
Or you can take a warmup spin in Zwift, then join the race when you’re ready to go to the start gate. Because of how ZwiftPower works I’ve heard it’s best to not do this, though, since your pre-race ride may mess up your race results. So you can do a warmup ride, then end your Zwift session, then start Zwift again and join the race.
I noticed you get called automatically to the start line when subscribed to an event and already doing a warm up ride. Said ride will log separately though. Why would it influence the race if you don’t quit and restart Zwift? How does ZwiftPower work?
I noticed you get called automatically to the start line when subscribed to an event and already doing a warm up ride. Said ride will log separately though. Why would it influence the race if you don’t quit and restart Zwift? How does ZwiftPower work?
In the results,
Why do some riders have a profile and others dont? they dont have power / time data or a ink to it on Strava.
I just done a race with 2 of my friends, my data shows, theirs doesn’t. Both are strava premium users and it is connected to Zwift. As fa as I know my settings are exactly the same and it worked for me.
Any idea why I wouldn’t show up in the results? I used the correct tag in my name, rode the entire race, and named my Strava activity correctly.
I did the KISS race tonight, and if I click the “Live” button I see myself, but I am not in the results themselves.
I’m never sure if I’m at the right place for the start of the race. If I log in with the correct name tag on the correct course, where do I then need to go for staging?
This post should help you understand how group rides/races work: https://zwiftinsider.com/joining-group-ride-race-zwift/
When i’am joined to an event, only the participant are show in the nearby window ? CAn we use it for live classement ?
Hi i just completed a race and my name is not on ZP results , is there a reason why ,can i download to fix
just did the kiss Xmas day hill race.checked results it has a red circle with a u in the middle what does this mean ?
I joined the cat c race 10 minutes prior was all staged up rode the race, had my race ID set in my name EVR C, but I never showed in the results ?
Well past the finish line i cooled off from the effort and rode a bit then went to end the ride and it asked me if I wanted to quit the event, that confused me so I rode around a bit more and then had to exit, but I never showed in the results?
Did I do something wrong?
I have Strava results but no Zwift results.
I show on Zwift power in the race but on the bottom tab in the unlinked section, I don’t know what that means, and would love a key for all the Zwift power symbols like the hourglass in the rider line.
Thank you
Patrick Hover
Jan 2, 2017
One more thing I noticed is my countdown bar to race finish never engaged from the start of the race.
But my tag above me all my data everything else transferred over post race to Zwift power and Strava. But I was under the cat c race results as one of many a unlinked rider with all the data. My Strava stuff shows well.
I
Forgive this reply which fails to answer your question, it is just that I had similar problems during my first attempt at a race and I’d love to know if I did anything wrong, aside from perhaps not crossing the finishing line(!). The race was listed as 29.1km and I completed over 30 but didn’t see a finish banner. My countdown bar did not engage either and I guess it ought to do really. My results are logged on Zwift Power, however, despite one or two connection issues. I guess I’ll have to try again and get used to the way things work.
I do not understand why there is “zp” mentioned behind my name in zwiftpower.com race results. I do have a power smart trainer (kickr power trainer).
I have a strava account but not the premium version. Is that the reason?
I know some others have complained that zwiftpower.com is showing them as being on zPower instead of their smart trainer or PM. All you can do is talk to the folks over at zwiftpower.com about it, I guess!
Hi Eric. I have 2 questions about group riding/racing. I have been having trouble connecting via blue tooth. This morning for example, while I was waiting for my connection and see start time approaching, I clicked ride and “join event”. Then went back to check on my connection status. It finally connected and I was in motion, but it seemed I was not registering in the race. I looked at the results afterward and my name is not there. I added the race letters after my name. I had the sprint option available. Is it because I entered the ride late?
Second question, is there a way to see only the riders in the race I’m riding? Thanks.
Hi Joyce,
Not sure what happened with your race, but if you didn’t start with the group (and you would know if you did) then you won’t be in the race results.
No way to see only the riders in your race at this time. Eventually that will probably happen when they open up the option of racing on different worlds in the same day.
Hi ,when will the cvr league racing start times for the 2nd January appear in the mobile app ? I:e 7pm Tuesday Europe time
Stu
Looks like the CVR events for Tuesday are now in the app.
Hi, our Youth cycling club would like to start a group ride. How do we go about listing this as an event in ZML? Thanks
Here’s more info: https://zwiftinsider.com/setting-up-a-zwift-group-ride-the-unofficial-guide/
I don’t like the upper right corner of the screen. I would like to see the grade and how far the hill is going to be, like I see on some of the older screens. How do I change that to do it now, don’t want the course follow there. That doesn’t do any good, Rather see the grade and how far to climb on a hill. Is there anyway to change that?
It’s worth stopping soon after you’ve crossed the line and saving the race – making sure it’s public! From what I can see the results scraper from zwiftpower only works for a set time after the race finish and if your ride isn’t visible it’s not included.
This is what I keep forgetting!! I fall off the bike and crawl to the shower and by the time I can lift myself out of the bath I’m not on the results!!
Are you talking about making sure your Strava ride is public? I never have to think about that, because mine are all public automatically…
Why are some questions answered and some not. Is it because you don’t know the answer.
thx Eric, great post
Newbie question: are there any tips regarding TT races? I constantly take a beating by riders of the same weight putting the same average and normalized power as me on TT races. I tried to research in internet but couldn’t find any good tips about TT 🙁
P.S. My usual TT strategy (30-50 mins race): ride on FTP on flats, push to 120-130% FTP on climbs and “relax” on 90-92% on descence.
Not everyone wants to race some want a steady but testing ride
Having recently returned to Zwift racing my biggest problem is finding a race that isn’t on a flat route. It was always tough but it now seems next to impossible. Where are the hilly race options on the likes of Richmond and London, let alone the old school mountain route or Alpe du Zwift races?
Been looking the last few days then two hilly ones overlapping at midday UK time today but so few and far between 🙁