“Pla d’Adet” Climb Portal Details
See zwiftinsider.com/portal/pla-dadet/
What is coming June 12th?
What is coming June 12th?
Update (June 12, 2024): the big news was Zwift Ride, the first-ever indoor smart bike from Zwift! Read all about it here>
Today, Zwift released a teaser video clip across its socials, with the message “Something new is coming June 12“:
So what is it? What’s new and arriving June 12th?
It’s clearly something special since Zwift has invested in a media campaign, including recruiting Mathieu van der Poel and two others for a special video shoot!
Full disclosure: I know exactly what it is. But I can’t talk about it, because, like everyone else who knows about it, I am under a media embargo until June 12.
So, I’m going to furnish you with some links and enhanced photos from what’s already public and invite you to make some guesses and discuss the possibilities in the comments below.
First: some stills from Zwift’s video, with lighting enhanced to bring out details. The riders are all on the same bike setup, which appears to be using a direct-drive trainer like the Wahoo KICKR Core (the legs match). You can also clearly see some sort of Play Controller unlike what’s on the market today:
Over on Zwift Hype, there’s discussion fueled by James Eastwood sharing Zwift’s patent for a handlebar with an integrated version of the Zwift Play controller:
In that discussion, Zwift veteran Patrick Tan brought up the “Zwift Ride” smartbike that was teased in December 2021:
Your Thoughts
What is Zwift going to unveil next Wednesday? Share your thoughts below!
Tiny Race Series – June 8 Routes, and Last Week’s Results
Tiny Race Series – June 8 Routes, and Last Week’s Results
See zwiftinsider.com/tiny for current Tiny Race details.
Community Organizers: How to Share Your Event on Zwift Insider
Community Organizers: How to Share Your Event on Zwift Insider
Zwift Insider has always been a website all about Zwift, by the community and for the community.
We firmly believe that the community is both the beating heart and the creative mind behind much of what is great about Zwift. Not only has the community conceived many of the great ideas that made Zwift what it is today, but they’re also the real people behind the avatars that make social connection possible on the platform.
Because of this, we love to publish posts that highlight interesting community events. We do this each Friday with our Notable Zwift Events posts, but we also do it regularly with dedicated posts highlighting various races and group rides organized by community members. All free of charge, of course.
Basic Criteria
If you’re an event organizer who wants to get the word out about your event, we’re happy to share the details of your event with our audience, provided it meets some basic criteria:
- Is it interesting? There are over 300 daily events on Zwift’s public calendar. How does yours stand out from the crowd? Typical distinctives include a unique format, a special cause, cool unlocks/prizes, lots of signups, or celebrity participants.
- Did you give us enough lead time? You should send your event info to us at least 2 weeks before the event begins, so we have enough time to put the post together and slot it into an ideal place in our publishing calendar.
- Did you send us the needed content? The better the content you send to us, the better your chances of getting published. See below for details on what that content should look like.
What To Send Us
Here’s what to send, and how to send it:
- Use Google Docs: it’s the easiest way to share content. Share it with [email protected].
- Give us all the necessary details: your writeup should include at least the following:
- Intro paragraph or two
- What makes your event special?
- Route details (including links to Zwift Insider route detail pages as appropriate)
- Additional info (unlocks, etc)
- Imagery: posts need images to make them “pop” and to illustrate what you’re writing about. Send over images, logos, etc so we don’t have to search them out or create them ourselves.
- Target date: let us know the ideal date for publishing your event details on Zwift Insider. We may not be able to hit this date, but we’ll do our best.
- Include author details if desired: we can publish the post as coming from Zwift Insider, but if you include your own name, a bio pic, and 2-4 sentences about yourself we can list you as the author instead so you get notified of article comments, etc.
There are hundreds of examples of event posts on this website that meet the criteria above. Here one: All About Next Week’s “Ride Like King 16” WBR Benefit Events.
Help Us Help You!
Zwift Insider is high-traffic website that receives tens of thousands of visits daily, even during Zwift’s slowest seasons. Additionally, our social channels are quite popular (56k followers on Facebook) and every post we publish is shared to those channels and to our email newsletter list of 75k+ subscribers.
If you want additional exposure for the events you’re working hard to host on Zwift, getting an article published here on Zwift Insider is an effective and free way to do so. But you need to help us help you. Give us the content we need, when we need it, and we’ll be happy to help get the word out about your amazing event.
Ride on!
Questions or Comments?
Post below!
More Details Released on Zwift’s Upcoming “The Grade” Watopia Expansion
More Details Released on Zwift’s Upcoming “The Grade” Watopia Expansion
Today Zwift released further details of their upcoming “The Grade” Watopia expansion. See below for the latest info, including a live stream collaboration with Zwift Community Live up The Grade tomorrow!
New Route Details
This expansion will bring 8 new free-ride routes to Watopia:
- Oh Hill No, 7.8km with 306m elevation – the most direct pathway to The Grade
- Coastal Crown Loop, 15km with 185m
- Glyph Heights, 25km with 537m
- Mayan Mash, 34km with 755m
- Tide and Temples, 36km with 459m
- Peak Performance, 45km with 725m
- Snowman, 44km with 577m
- Elevation Evaluation, 44km with 1493m
Note: Based on ZRL’s Summer Showdown using a “new and exclusive route” in Watopia, our guess is that this expansion includes one or more event-only routes.
Release Date
Zwift says The Grade expansion will roll out to Zwifters between June 11-13. This follows Zwift’s typical bi-weekly update schedule and phased rollout methodology: the release (version 1.67) will occur on Tuesday, June 11, but won’t reach all Zwifters until the 13th.
Community First
Zwift is inviting the community to take the lead in organizing events on the new routes. Events can start on June 13, and there’s an event request form to fill out if you’re interested.
“The Grade” FTP Test
The most interesting development in this expansion is “The Grade” and its new FTP-detection algorithm. This climb is a KOM segment like others in the game, but Zwift will compute your FTP using your average power over the segment’s duration.
Related: All About FTP (Functional Threshold Power) and why it matters on Zwift
Why the change? Zwift explains, “Traditionally, FTP tests have daunting workouts and therefore dreaded by many cyclists. The Grade aims to provide an easier and more accessible way to calculate this number by building a test into the natural terrain of Watopia’s Southern Coast.”
How does it work? Zwift analyzed over 700,000 FTP tests conducted on the platform, matching the FTP test result to the riders’ critical power curve to “create a system capable of calculating FTP on any completion time over 8 minutes.”
Your average power on the segment is shown as you ride, to help you target a particular pace. The climb is also broken up into 10 segments (like Alpe du Zwift and the Climb Portal) to help you track progress.
When you cross the finish line (up near the intersection with the Epic KOM) you’ll be greeted with a signpost displaying your detected FTP. If your FTP increases you’ll get a pop of confetti, and the game will automatically update your saved FTP value for use in future workouts.
Route Restrictions
All of the new routes will be restricted to level 10+ Zwifters, just like the other southern coast routes.
That said, if you’re below level 10 you can still join the many community-led events that will be held on these routes!
More Info
More information on this expansion can be found at www.zwift.com/watopia-expansion
See It Live
Shane Miller (GPlama) along with Zwift Community Live and Zwift Insider have been granted early access to The Grade. Shane has just published a video of his experience taking it on, including five tips for success:
Zwift Community Live’s Nathan and Gabi Guerra will live stream their FTP test on The Grade tomorrow (Tuesday, June 4th) at 11am PST/2pm EDT/6pm UTC along with Eric Schlange from Zwift Insider.
Check out Zwift Community Live’s YouTube channel or Zwift Insider’s YouTube channel to watch the live streams tomorrow!
Direct link to ZCL’s scheduled live stream >
Direct link to Zwift Insider’s scheduled livestream >
Questions or Comments?
Post below!
“Col du Galibier (Lautaret)” Climb Portal Details
“Col du Galibier (Lautaret)” Climb Portal Details
See zwiftinsider.com/portal/col-du-galibier-lautaret/
Top 5 Zwift Videos: Tough Workouts, Race Wins, and Pain Caves for Small Spaces
Ambitious goals take lots of dedication and hard work. The Alpe Ape has been hard at work to achieve his goal of holding 6 w/kg up Alpe du Zwift. This week’s top video features the third episode in his series documenting his journey.
Additionally, we’ve picked a video about a Zwifter’s race win, a pain cave set up for small spaces, winning a category D race, and a comparison between Rouvy and Zwift.
Alpe Du Zwift – Chasing 6W/kg – Ep.3 Trials and Tribulations of The Alpe Ape
I won this Zwift race… and got demoted! How is this possible?!
My Pain Cave 2024 – A solution for small spaces
How To Get an Easy Win in cat D!
Is Rouvy the Zwift Killer?
Got a Great Zwift Video?
Share the link below and we may feature it in an upcoming post!
Woman Racer Spotlight: Femke Vaessen-Bril
Woman Racer Spotlight: Femke Vaessen-Bril
Name: Femke Vaessen-Bril
Hometown:Dieren (Gelderland)
How did you get into cycling? My husband has been a cyclist for as long as I have known him, during COVID the swimming pool (I used to be a speed swimmer) was closed so I had to do something different. Tried running for half a year but that wasn’t my thing. After 17 years of nagging, I agreed to try my husband’s bike and indoor trainer in October 2020. From the very first minute I fell in love with both road and e-cycling.
How many years have you been racing on Zwift? 3,5 years (started December 2020)
Are you part of a Virtual team? Yes, SYNERGY race team and TeamNL
What do you love most about racing? The fun! Racing is a great sports effort, getting better every time, trying new tactics and lots of fun with others. With two children it’s sometimes a struggle to get everything planned and organised, but with Zwift it is so easy to exercise at home whenever you want to get together with Teamies.
What is your favourite style of race (e.g. points, scratch, iTT, TTT, Chase, duathlon)? I love the TTT working together as a team getting 1% better each week, and points races with sprints.
What is your favourite Zwift women’s race series? Tour de Boudicca, Iceni, Tiny Races, Women’s Racing Series, Fearless Team Championship and Wahoo le Col besides ZRL of course.
What is your most memorable racing experience, inside or outside or BOTH? Winning the WTRL TTT world championship in February 2022 with the team. I haven’t raced outdoors yet, but my most memorable outdoor rides are the Alpe d’Huez with my son (9 yrs in 2022) and the Mont Ventoux with my daughter (7yrs in 2023).
What is your favourite food to eat post race? First I drink a protein shake mixed with water and after that I treat myself with ice cream or another dessert and a cold 0.0% beer.
What advice would you give to a woman entering her first Zwift race? Have fun! Start in D or C pen (if you haven’t done a FTP test) look at what other riders are doing, watch learn and don’t expect to win right away. Be patient results will come!
Any upcoming race are you looking forward to? Yes, my first outdoor race. I’m going to participate in the 8-hour team race on Zandvoort, the F1 racing circuit in June.
Also, not a race but a great event, on the 6th of June I’m going to try to cycle up the Alpe d’Huez 6 times to raise money for the Dutch Cancer Society.