Tiny Race Series – August 3 Routes, and Last Week’s Results
See zwiftinsider.com/tiny for current Tiny Race details.
All About Zwift’s New Canyon Aeroad 2024 Frame
All About Zwift’s New Canyon Aeroad 2024 Frame
In the past week, cycling media has begun announcing Canyon’s new Aeroad. It’s an updated version of their flagship race bike, and seems to be a strong upgrade over the previous model from 2021. Given the media blitz for the new frame, it’s not surprising that they coordinated with Zwift to launch it in game as well.
The Canyon Aeroad 2024 is available in Zwift’s drop shop once you’re updated to game version 1.70.0. Here’s how it’s described in the Drop Shop:
“Aero, stiff, light, and all-around rapid. From high-speed Grand Tour stages to the cobblestones of Paris-Roubaix, the Aeroad is a contender at any road race on the planet. All thanks to its complete performance and profile: game-changing aerodynamics, superlight builds, and benchmark stiffness.“
It’s rated 3 stars for aero performance and 4 stars for weight on Zwift, which is an improvement over the Aeroad 2021’s 3-star weight rating. But new stuff doesn’t come cheap: at a price of 1,100,000 Drops, it costs 250,000 more than the older Aeroad, 2021.
Big news for Zwift n00bs, though: the new Aeroad is available at level 10+, while the old one was unlocked at level 27. That’s quite a shift.
Since Zwift’s 5-star rating system isn’t granular enough to communicate in-game performance in a precise way, we ran the Aeroad 2024 through our battery of speed tests. Given that it’s the updated version of the Aeroad 2021, which already is a strong all-arounder, we expected the new Aeroad to perform well in our tests. And it did!
Here’s everything you need to know about the performance of the new Canyon Aeroad 2024 frame in Zwift.
Aero (Flat/Rolling) Performance
The new Aeroad is faster on flat roads than the 2021 Aeroad, but just barely. Strava rounds times to the nearest second, so while we compute that the two frames are separated by ~1.6 seconds, Strava shows it to be a 1-second gap.
The Aeroad 2024’s flat test time of 51:18 puts it just 1 second behind the “fast four” (Cervelo S5 2020, Felt AR, Specialized Venge S-Works, Uranium Nuclear) which all turn in identical times of 51:17. That means it’s 7 seconds faster than our “baseline” Zwift Aero frame on our test course, which is two laps of Tempus Fugit totaling 34.6km.
Climb Performance
With its ultra-light 4-star weight rating, we knew the new Aeroad would perform well in our climbing test. It turned in a top-10 time, in fact, coming in at #10 on the list of non-Tron bike Alpe times.
The Aeroad 2024 turns in an Alpe climb time of 48:58.5, which is 29.5 seconds faster than our Zwift Aero baseline and 8.5 seconds slower than the best climbing road frame in game – the Specialized Aethos.
Note: all test results above are from a 75kg, 183cm rider holding 300W steady using Zwift’s stock 32mm carbon wheelset.
All-Arounder Comparison
Up to this point, the Scott Addict RC has been considered the best all-arounder in game, at least if you remove the Tron bike from the equation.
The Aeroad 2024 is 3.5 seconds slower than the Scott Addict RC on our climb test, but it’s also 4.5 seconds faster in our flat test compared to the Addict. So you could say the two frames are quite evenly matched, with the Aeroad 2024 having the edge in terms of aero performance, and the Addict having the edge on climbs.
What if we compare it to the Tron bike, or to the older Aeroad 2021? Here’s an updated version of a very useful chart that makes comparison easy.
Tron vs Top Performers
Colored based on frame. Mouse over each point for details.
Zwift Concept Z1, Specialized Venge S-Works, Canyon Aeroad 2021, Canyon Aeroad 2024, Scott Addict RC, Specialized Aethos
The enlarged leftmost blue dot for the Aeroad 2024 is the biggest outlier here. It shows that the Aeroad is just 1 second slower than the fastest aero setups on flat ground, while being 7.5 seconds faster in the climb test. That’s a solid tradeoff in many races!
Zwift Academy
Zwift Academy 2024 includes a ZA paint job unlock for this new Aeroad frame, but you’ll have to buy the frame to use the paint job. Unlock the paint job by finishing the full Academy (6 workouts and 2 races). Here’s what it looks like:
And don’t forget, if you finish Zwift Academy 2024, you be entered into a giveaway for a Zwift Academy-painted Canyon Aeroad 2024 bike!
Conclusions
Zwift nailed the performance of the Aeroad 2024 frame, in our opinion. It’s marginally faster than the previous Aeroad, and pushes the performance curve of the game’s top bikes just enough to make it compelling.
Three reasons why the new Canyon Aeroad 2024 frame is about to become very popular with Zwift racers:
- It’s a better choice than the “fast 4” frames in races with any climbing thanks to its superior uphill performance
- It can be paired with ENVE 7.8 wheels to basically become a climb-advantaged Tron bike
- It’s available at level 10
The only bummer is that you don’t get a color slider: “You can have any color as long as it’s black.” But the paint does have sparkles, just like the IRL bike.
We’ll be updating various posts soon to add the Aeroad 2024, including:
- Zwift Shopping Guide: What To Buy from the Drop Shop at Each Level
- Fastest Bike Frames and Wheels at Each Zwift Level
- Zwift Speed Tests: Frame Ranking Charts
- Speed Tests: Zwift’s Fastest Bike Frames for Flat/Rolling Races
Questions or Comments?
Share below!
Important note: this post contains speed test results for Zwift frames or wheels. These results may change over time, and a bike's performance relative to others may also change. We don't always revise posts when performance rankings change, but we do keep current, master versions of our speed test results which are always available. See the frame charts, wheel charts, and Tron vs Top Performers for current performance data.
Zwift Update Version 1.70 (132734) Released
Zwift version 1.70 begins its phased rollout today. This minor update includes a new bike and an automatic Challenge signup. See details below…
New Bike Day: Canyon Aeroad 2024
Zwift hasn’t added many new frames in the past several months, so it’s nice to see the all-new Canyon Aeroad 2024 added in this week’s update (1.1 million Drops, level 10+ required, rated 3 stars for aero, 4 stars for weight).
The Aeroad 2024 was first spotted outdoors at the Critérium du Dauphiné, and in the past week we’ve started seeing reviews in cycling media. The new Aeroad has a new aero cockpit and tire clearance up to 32mm, among other things. And in Canyon’s own wind tunnel testing, it beat the previous generation Aeroad as well as its nearest competition (which Canyon says is the Cervélo S5 and Specialized Tarmac SL8.)
But none of that matters on Zwift. How does the Aeroad 2024 compare to the 2021 version, which is a strong all-arounder on Zwift? We’re wrapping up testing now and can say it’s just a bit faster on flats and climbs. Watch for a detailed post later today.
Everest Challenge Auto-Signup
Since Zwift’s early days, riders have regularly made the mistake of not quickly signing up for one of Zwift’s three challenges, meaning their distance or elevation wasn’t counting toward completing a challenge.
Or perhaps they’d sign up for a challenge, but they’d sign up for the “wrong” one.
Because the first challenge worth completing is the “Climb Mt. Everest Challenge“. But not just the challenge you see on screen when you sign up (climbing 8,850 meters, or 29,028′). What you really want to complete is the hidden challenge of riding an additional 41,150 meters (135,014′), for a total of 50,000 meters, to unlock the Tron bike!
See Speed Tests: Tron Bike vs Top Performers (Scatter Plot)
Zwift’s update notes say, “Zwifters are now automatically registered for the Everest Challenge if they have not previously selected a challenge.”
Good luck, new Everest Challenge joiners. Get climbing!
More Release Notes
Zwift provided notes on additional tweaks and bug fixes in this update:
- Fixed an issue where the bottom drop buttons (i.e. LB and RB) on the Zwift Ride controllers were unresponsive when the Menu button was selected.
- Fixed an issue where the “Event Closed” notification could potentially not be dismissed.
- Fixed an issue where power-ups granted during meetups may not be properly randomized.
- Minor localization improvements for Spanish, German, Italian, and French languages.
- Android: Fixed an issue that could potentially cause a sun flare to incorrectly appear on the roadway.
Discuss this release on Zwift’s forum >
Questions or Comments?
If you spotted any other changes or bugs in the update, please comment below!
All About Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2024: In-Game Events, Giveaways, and More
All About Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift 2024: In-Game Events, Giveaways, and More
The women’s top teams will soon be racing the third edition of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift! Launching August 12-18, the 8-stage race begins in Rotterdam and travels south to finish atop the legendary Alp d’Huez. See route details >
Zwift has spun up a whole host of events, challenges, and more to immerse us in the excitement of this year’s Tour.
Read below for complete details of all the special events, including a sweet custom Zwift Ride giveaway!
Femmes Finale Mission
The monthly mission for August revolves around WtF. It’s called the “Femmes Finale Mission”, and you complete it by climbing the elevation of Alpe du Zwift (1035m) between July 31-August 31. Any ride you do on Zwift counts: events, workouts, free rides, etc. Allez allez!
Finish the mission and you’ll earn the exclusive badge, plus a chance to win a custom-painted Watch the Femmes Zwift Ride (see below).
Podcast Rides
Dive deeper into the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift action by joining pre-race and race recap podcast rides hosted by Escape Collective’s The Wheel Talk Podcast.
Rides are open-paced, 40 minutes long, and hosted on various France or Paris routes. Race preview podcasts will run hourly August 11-13, and daily recap rides take place hourly the day after each stage. Finish the ride to unlock the new 2024 Watch the Femmes Kit!
See upcoming events at https://www.zwift.com/events/tag/wtfpodcastrides >
Alpe Celebration Rides
On August 18, the final stage of this year’s Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift ends on the iconic Alpe d’Huez. Zwift is holding a week of rides from August 18-25 to celebrate.
Rides have 5 pace categories to choose from, with a Robopacer joining each group to ride at the stated pace.
Finish the ride to unlock the new 2024 Watch the Femmes Kit, and you’ll also get to spin the Watch The Femmes spinner at the top for extra surprise unlocks featuring WtF kit collections from 2024 and past years!
See upcoming events at https://www.zwift.com/events/tag/alpecelebration >
Workout of the Week
Zwift’s Workout of the Week series will be Watch the Femmes-themed for most of August, with four weeks of workouts featuring different pro women:
- Neve Bradbury’s Aerobic Conditioning: Designed to improve your aerobic conditioning, aka “cardio”, with efforts that will get your heart pumping!
- Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio’s Interval Workout: These on/off intervals boost your aerobic capacity (or cardio) and increase your top-end power, helping with sustained and punchy efforts.
- Kasia Niewiadoma’s Classics Workout: an interval workout designed to boost your power and endurance. Four sets of challenging efforts, beginning with a sprint, settling into a high zone 4 effort, and topping each block off with another sprint. Perfect for climbing and overall strength!
- Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig’s HIIT Workout: a power-boosting interval workout! Two blocks of 20/40s intervals with a nice long recovery in between sets. Perfect for building strength and endurance!
Finish one of these Workout of the Week events to unlock the new 2024 Watch the Femmes Kit! (Completing the WoW on your own as an on-demand workout will not unlock the kit.)
See events at https://www.zwift.com/events/tag/wtf2024wow >
Watch Party Rides
These “second screen” rides start at the same time as the actual race broadcasts, so the idea is that you’ll ride with fellow Zwifters while watching the race on another screen. Chat about race highlights with Zwift friends in real time!
Not sure how to Watch the Femmes from your country? See this page from Zwift.
These are open-paced 120-minute events, and each stage is held on a different route. Finish the ride to unlock the new 2024 Watch the Femmes Kit.
See events at https://www.zwift.com/events/tag/wtfwatchparty >
Win a Custom Zwift Ride!
In honor of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, Zwift is giving away two custom-painted Watch the Femmes Zwift Rides! There are three ways to enter for a chance to win:
- Complete the Femmes Finale Monthly Mission for one entry (see details above).
- Comment on the Watch the Femmes Giveaway Post and tag a friend on Instagram to receive another entry (click here using a mobile device).
- To receive a bonus entry, take a photo using the Watch the Femmes VR Filter, post it to Instagram, and tag @gozwift and #WatchTheFemmes.
See giveaway terms and conditions >
WtF Merch
Want to support the Femmes all year ’round? Zwift has Watch the Femmes 2024 merch for sale now. “Limited edition and crafted with care—whether on your bike or cheering roadside, be part of a movement that drives women’s cycling forward.”
Browse Watch the Femmes 2024 Collection >
How to Watch
If you don’t know how to watch the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift in your country, Zwift has put together a helpful page listing local broadcasters. See it at zwift.com/tdffaz-broadcasters.
Questions or Comments?
See Zwift’s page for all things Watch the Femmes. If you have a question or comment, share below!
Top 5 Zwift Videos: FTP Tests, Zwift Academy, Racing Tips
The ramp test has long been a crowd favorite when it comes to selecting the least painful FTP test. However, Samsung recently unveiled its new 4-minute FTP detection algorithm. Watch as one of the top sports tech reviewers puts it to the test.
We’ve also included videos about Zwift Academy 2024, the Wahoo TRACKR, how to win a Zwift race, and the Zwift Ride.
Samsung’s Magical 4-Minute Cycling Test: Does it actually work?
Zwift Academy 2024 Is Here But There’s a HUGE Problem…
New Wahoo TRACKR: The Heart Rate Monitor That Endures
How to Win a Zwift Race – Top 10 Tips
Bros Ride Bikes on the New Zwift Ride
Got a Great Zwift Video?
Share the link below and we may feature it in an upcoming post!
Zwiftcast Episode 203: The XP Row, Amazing Stats on Zwifters’ Levels and the Women’s Tour avec Zwift
Zwiftcast Episode 203: The XP Row, Amazing Stats on Zwifters’ Levels and the Women’s Tour avec Zwift
This episode kicks off with a sequence looking at the community reaction to HQ’s latest changes to the XP system and, in turn, Zwifters’ levels. It’s fair to say the latest changes were not universally welcomed, and Simon, Shane and Eric pick apart the reasons. HQ acknowledged that the changes were not well signalled and HQ’s head of product Mark Cote explains what happened.
Even the most casual cycling fan must be aware that Women’s Cycling is on the up – fresh, exciting and growing fast. Simon talks to HQ’s Kate Veronneau about the absolutely pivotal part Zwift has played in this, much of it down to the company’s critically important sponsorship of the re-born Tour de Frances Femmes, avec Zwift. Kate discloses that she’s been known to message journalists and broadcasters who forget to mention the “avec Zwift” part!
When a listener asked Simon to chase down some stats on how many Zwifters sit at each Level, he thought it might make an interesting feature. In fact, the data that came back from Zwift was absolutely gob-smacking. The Level 100 Club is uber-exclusive, with only 0.06% of Zwifters getting past the velvet ropes to the inner sanctum of achievement. At the other end, the percentage of Zwifters just starting their journey, and on Levels 1-10, is, if anything, even more staggering. Listen to the Ep to find out more.
Zwift staffer James Bailey provides a shedload of interesting insight into the new Zwift Racing Score system which should, before too long, replace the crude A, B, C and D racing categories.
And Kate returns at the end of the episode to give a preview of the exciting events on the platform to mark the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. We hope you enjoy listening.
Zwiftcast is available on Podbean, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Amazon Music, and Spotify.
Notable Zwift Events for the Weekend of July 27-28
This weekend we’ve chosen two races using the new Zwift Racing Score. We’re also highlighting the three longest events of the week, each topping out at 100 miles!
🥇 Tiny Races with Custom Bands
✅ Racing Score ✅ Custom Bands ✅ Kit Unlock
Saturday’s Tiny Races are some of the very first events to use a custom set of Zwift Racing Score-based bands to group riders. Why? Because we think it makes racing more interesting when packs get “mixed up” so you’re not always the weaker or stronger rider in the race.
See the Tiny Race homepage for route details.
Multiple timeslots Saturday
See upcoming events at zwift.com/events/tag/tinyraces
🥇 Zwift Women’s Racing Series – Short Scratch – Oh Hill No || Using Racing Score
✅ FTP Test ✅ Racing Score ✅ Women Only
The latest round of Zwift’s popular Women’s Racing Series is well underway, and using the new Zwift Racing Score metric for categorization.
This Saturday is your last chance to finish this week’s stage, which is a shorter scratch race on Watopia’s Oh Hill No (8.1km, 305m). You’ll want to warm up well for this race, as it takes you straight up the FTP-testing “The Grade” from the start pens! Why not make this event do double duty and treat it as both an FTP test and a race? Allez allez!
Saturday, July 27 @ 2:30pm UTC/10:30am EDT/7:30am PDT
Sign up at https://www.zwift.com/events/view/4430988
🤝 Ascenders Team Sunday Mission
✅ Kit Unlock ✅ Legacy Leader ✅ Endurance Challenge
The first of our long group rides is from the Ascenders team. Everyone starts together and rides at the same pace (1-2.8 W/kg), but the A group goes for 100 miles while the B group goes for 100km.
This week’s route is Watopia’s Big Flat 8.
Sunday, July 28 @ 12pm UTC/8am EDT/5am PDT
Sign up at zwift.com/events/view/4455261
🤝 DiRT Road DWGZ Hot Hundo (100 Miles)
✅ Legacy Leader ✅ Endurance Challenge ✅ Kit Unlock
Build your base/endurance with the DIRT crew! This ride is held on Watopia’s Triple Flat Loops at a pace of 2.7-3.2 W/kg, and the event description says the pace typically results in a 4 hour to 4:10 completion time. This ride also gets the prize for “most unique start time” this weekend.
Saturday, July 27 @ 11:17am UTC/7:17am EDT/3:17am PDT
Sign up at zwift.com/events/view/4454480
🤝 The BMTR Fundo
✅ Popular Ride ✅ Legacy Leader ✅ Endurance Challenge ✅ Kit Unlock
A regularly-featured event here on Zwift Insider, the BMTR Fundo consistently gets lots of joiners because it’s well-led and run consistently week after week, year after year.
This week’s ride is on Greatest London Flat. You have four distance groups to choose from, all the way up to 100 miles. Doubledraft is enabled to help the pack stay together.
Saturday, July 27 @ 12:10pm UTC/8:10am EDT/5:10am PDT
Sign up at zwift.com/events/view/4454500
How We Make Our Picks
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!
Woman Racer Spotlight: Kathrin Fuhrer
Woman Racer Spotlight: Kathrin Fuhrer
Name: Kathrin Fuhrer
Hometown: Glarus, Switzerland
How did you get into cycling? Cycling has always been a big part of my ski training, I loved the long endurance rides on weekends. In 2018 I got pulled into Ecycling on Zwift where I found my competitive me again and where I can fully unwind my skillset.
How many years have you been racing on Zwift? Since 2019
Are you part of a Virtual team? Yes, Aeonian Racing Team
What do you love most about racing? I love the whole race prep, getting everything on point and tuning up the excitement before the race and then execute and call off everything I have been working on.
What is your favourite style of race (e.g. points, scratch, iTT, TTT, Chase, duathlon)? I have not really a specific favorite, if I need to name some it would be TTT, Scratch and Point races.
What is your favourite Zwift women’s race series? Not particularly women only – the Tiny Race series is pretty cool.
What is your most memorable racing experience, inside or outside or BOTH? My first World Championships in 2023 – I don’t race outdoors.
What is your favourite food to eat post race? Cinnamon Bun
What advice would you give to a woman entering her first Zwift race? Don’t expect anything, just push the pedals and hang on as long as you can and see where you are and go from there.
Any upcoming race are you looking forward to? All the races 🙂 Most excited about World Championships in October and the Qualifiers for it.
Kathrin’s avatar on the gold Tron bike she earned by winning the Zwift Games overall in 2024.
