Zwift has just launched Zwift Ride, their all-new “smart bike,” which is essentially a smart bike frame mounted atop a Wahoo KICKR CORE Zwift One. Hear what some of the top cycling reviewers have to say about it (and read Zwift Insider’s review of the Ride here).
Shane Miller, GPLama, provides an in-depth review of the Zwift Ride smart frame. Is it worth the price?
Can We Hold Tour De France Pace? | Zwift Ride
As a fun way to test out the versatility of the Zwift Ride, members of GCN, GMBN, and GTN put their fitness to the test to see how long they can hold Tour de France or Tour de France Femmes pace.
New Zwift Ride – A Smart Bike Game Changer?
Road.cc talks through the Zwift Ride with product manager Graham Stoney, who helped to bring this smart bike to life!
Zwift Ride In-Depth Review: The Future of Smart Bikes?
There have been numerous iterations of smart bikes for indoor riding over the past decade. With the Zwift Ride, has Zwift finally nailed the perfect smart bike? Watch as DCRainmaker gives an in-depth review of Zwift’s new hardware.
The All-New Zwift Ride: Is This the Best Indoor Cycling Setup?
Tariq Ali from Smart Bike Trainers reviews the Zwift Ride. He covers everything from setup to ride feel, design, and more.
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Hometown: I live in Boulder, Colorado but was born in Calgary, Canada.
How did you get into cycling? I was a professional triathlete in the 1980s and have cycled on the roads (and now gravel, too) since 1983.
How many years have you been racing on Zwift? Since 2018.
Are you part of a Virtual team? I co-founded CrushPod, a team for women-only in January 2021.
What do you love most about racing? The opportunity to learn and improve.
What is your favourite style of race (e.g. points, scratch, iTT, TTT, Chase, duathlon)? TTT, because that’s how CrushPod started and it is all about teamwork. As an individual I’ve fallen in love with points races.
What is your favourite Zwift women’s race series?Tour de Boudicca because it’s a team competition and I love to race for the team.
What is your most memorable racing experience, inside or outside or BOTH? Winning the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona in 1985.
What is your favourite food to eat post race? I always like a protein replacement drink like Cold Brew Instant Protein Coffee by Infinit or Endurox R4 in chocolate flavor. Then I eat whatever I can reach.
What advice would you give to a woman entering her first Zwift race? Look for a team. You will make great friends that way and learn more quickly how races work on Zwift.
Any upcoming race are you looking forward to? The last race in the 2024 Iceni Women’s Series and then beyond that the ZRL Finals in April.
We’ve got an eclectic mix of rides on our list this weekend, from community-led rides on Watopia’s new routes to the final race (an iTT) of the Zwift Women’s Racing Series. See our picks below!
Zwift released a Watopia expansion last week, and has asked community event organizers to help launch the expansion by hosting rides and races on the new routes! There are lots of events planned on the new routes, and you can browse them all at the link below. Find one that fits your schedule and pace goals, and knock out that new route badge with some friends!
Zwift’s popular Women’s Racing Series is in its last week (with a new series coming soon!), and Saturday is your last chance to finish week 8’s stage. It’s gonna be an all-out effort, too, since it’s an individual time trial on the Bologna Time Trial route!
Here’s a popular long ride with two pace options: B group at 3-3.3 W/kg, or C at 2.5-2.9 W/kg. Both groups will be riding 100km on France’s Tire-Bouchon route. Choose your desired pace, listen to the ride leader, and get that endurance work done!
(Both categories have a leader (yellow beacon) and sweepers.)
We’re continuing to experiment with novel ways of categorizing Tiny Race riders, and this week we’ve added zMAP ceilings to each category so larger riders can’t wipe up the fields.
Give them a try, and let us know what you think by commenting on the Tiny Race homepage!
Looking for a longer group ride? Veteran leaders from the Ascenders team lead the AsC 3.0 Ride every Saturday. It’s actually two rides in one: the B category goes a bit faster (3.2-4 W/kg) while the C category is paced at 2.5-2.8 W/kg. You can also join the crew on Discord to pass the time with voice chat.
We choose each weekend’s Notable Events based on a variety of factors including:
Is the event unique/innovative in some way?
Are celebrities (pro riders, etc) attending/leading?
Are signup counts already high, meaning the event is extra-popular?
Does the ride include desirable unlocks or prizes?
Does the event appeal to ladies on Zwift? (We like to support this under-represented group!)
Is it for a good cause?
Is it just plain crazy (extra long races, world record attempts, etc)?
Is it a long-running, popular weekly event with a dedicated leader who deserves a shout out?
In the end, we want to call attention to events that are extra-special and therefore extra-appealing to Zwifters. If you think your event qualifies, comment below with a link/details and we may just include it in an upcoming post!
There are many teams on Zwift that use their events and their membership to do good in the world. From fundraising efforts to raising awareness for good causes, the platform makes it possible to interact with riders from every part of the world while riding. One team, Rocacorba, is taking this to another level by empowering women through access to and use of the platform itself. The team is working with the Khaltsha Cycling Academy (the “Academy”) to get young women onto Zwift to build their power – through physical watts but also self-confidence and resilience.
The Academy, located in Khayelitsha Township in South Africa, empowers young girls through biking by partnering with Rocacorba Collective and real-life pro cyclist Ashleigh Moolman Pasio. This partnership marries up riding in real life (“IRL”) and riding and racing on Zwift. Young women in the community gather at their capsule-sized container with access to academic assistance, high-speed WiFi, smart trainers, and Zwift accounts. The Academy, in other words, is providing the tools for these young women to be empowered academically, socially, and physically.
By including these young women in the Rocacorba team – training rides and team interactions specifically – these women see the wonderful wide world of racing from a community level on Zwift to the outdoor athletes sponsored by Rocacorba. Seeing women around the world working hard on their own fitness and racecraft while supporting each other in a team environment provides these young women with examples of how individual growth can be richer and more satisfying within a community.
In their first year (2022-2023), the partnership supported 30 young women in training for the iconic Cape Town Cycle Tour held in Cape Town each year in March. Rocacorba raised money to train, equip, and support the women, and Ashleigh rode the Tour with the women to witness their accomplishment. The partnership continues to raise money to keep access to these resources for the women in the community.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have raced the biggest races in the world, and even win a few of them. You can have the best equipment and best abilities, but if you don’t believe in yourself, it’s nearly impossible to succeed.”
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio
The Academy exposes these young women to elite athletes like Moolman Pasio who invest time and effort into them. Rocacorba’s contribution to the Academy hinges on the idea that supporting these women through their training inside and outside will give them not just a glimpse into the athlete mentality but a sense that every rider matters – that we are all capable of working hard and doing great things.
Rocacorba believes that community is power, and that self-confidence is key to success (in Zwift and in life). This position aligns closely with many international women’s organizations and with our own at FemmeCycle Collab. Ride on, together, women of Zwift!
We recently shared the upcoming events SISU Racing is hosting which included the headlines for the 2024 SISU Tour. With the Tour less than two weeks away let’s take a deeper dive into the details of this 7-stage race!
SISU Tour: June 29 – July 21
It’s back, and really is bigger and better, with seven stages across 206km of Zwift’s most challenging roads and nearly 3,000 meters of elevation gained along the way.
For the first time in SISU Tour history riders climb Alpe du Zwift and finish with an individual time trial. The firsts continue with three classifications and jerseys, including the grandest of all, the Johtaja (Leader) Jersey.
General Classification
The Johtaja Jersey is awarded to the General Classification (Men and Women) winner in each grade based on stage time. (For now, the jerseys are awarded symbolically; SISU continues to dream that these jerseys will be awarded in-game one day.)
Sprinter and Mountain Goat Classifications
Sprinters Classification Points for the fastest ten riders in each grade in each sprint segment. Points: 20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2.
Mountain Goat Classification Points on the KQOM segment for the fastest ten riders in each grade. Points: 40, 36, 32, 28, 24, 20, 16, 12, 8, 4.
Team General Classification
The team classification in each grade is based on your team’s fastest three riders in each grade from each stage. Riders must ensure they have listed a team on their ZwiftPower profile prior to Stage 1.
Results
Results will be available on the SISU Racing website and emailed after each stage to everyone who registers.
SISU Perks and Prizes
Friends of SISU Racing have provided a SISU Perk (Discount) or provided prizes. Riders who complete three or more stages will go into the prize draw, and discount codes for Limar, Pure Sports Nutrition, and Modex Natural are listed below with the stage details.
Stage Sponsor – Limar (20% discount on helmets and eyewear) – discount codes for Australia (2024SISUTOURAU), USA (2024SISUTOURUS), Europe (2024SISUTOUREU)
FLAT
Sprint Segments – Acropolis FWD, Sasquatch FWD, Woodland FWD, Woodland REV, Sasquatch REV, Acropolis REV and Stoneway REV (NOTE – the first sprint segment on the route, Stoneway Sprint at km 7.4, is not included – we don’t want any soft tissue injuries early in the Tour).
Mass start with no draft – select your fastest TT bike.
Champagne Party Rides
The team at SISU has created three Champagne Party rides for Wednesday, July 24 (into Thursday in Oceania and Asia). After a big three weeks it will be time to swap the bidons for champagne. Riders will be led around the Champs-Élysées by those who stepped onto the podium in each grade. Wait til you see what has been planned – it will be a party on two wheels!
Sign on for these rides in the Companion App.
Competition & Prizes
Riders who ride in three or more stages will automatically be entered into a prize draw. Prizes are listed on the SISU Racing website. There is also a call to adventure to ‘bling’ your pain cave with a splash of SISU (poster available here) and share on socials using the hashtag #sisupaincave.
Other Information
Riders who upgrade during the first six stages will be classified in their higher grade. This is a manual process and can take up to 12 hours. Riders who upgrade in the Stage 7 iTT will not be reclassified.
