My last video concentrated on the techniques and tools I use as a DS to try and help a team get their best result. 

Having made that video, I was curious to understand exactly what the top teams are actually doing every week, in terms of the effort they are putting in and how they organise themselves. This video is the result of my number crunching.

You can find all the information on how to practice these efforts for yourself at the end of the video. Full transcript below. Hope you enjoy! 🙂

In my last video on Zwift Team Time Trialling, I concentrated on the techniques and tools I use as a DS to try and help a team get their best result. 

Having made that video,  I was curious to understand exactly what the top teams are actually doing every week. 

Questions I had that don’t seem to have been answered before are:

• What difference does team size make – 8 v 4?
• How are the riders matched and is everyone doing the same during the race?
• Just how much effort, how often, and for how long, are the top teams putting in during an event?

So, I decided to try and answer them for myself with some number crunching. 

The rest hopefully gives you some insight into team make up and effort levels required, based on the best. This applies regardless of your Coffee Class and are especially useful if you are a team that perhaps changes members every week, or who may not always have the chance to practice together to work out your own best plan involving more specific skills like picking riders for certain sections or deliberately ‘burning’ a rider. 

At the end I will also tell you how you can potentially train the efforts required, either solo or as a team. 

WATTS vs W/KG

Before I start though I want to revisit Watts vs Watts per kilogram. I regularly see conversations based on this topic and want to share my view. Now, I am sure there are dozens of teams who all agree with a W/kg target and stick to it. However, I maintain that this is not always the most effective way to plan a fast race.  Let me explain

Consider these two riders that could very easily be in the same Frappe team. If, as a team, 4.5w/kg is agreed on the front, when A is on the front, they are pulling 360W. crucially only 113% of FTP – which is not really hard enough, as we will see.

Meanwhile, Rider B is at 105%  at 3rd wheel, and at 113% in 2nd! – too much to maintain for the duration of the event – making their ability to contribute minimal and splits likely.

So let’s switch it around. 

Now, rider B is on the front at THEIR 4.5w/kg , which 293w or 122% FTP. This is just about hard enough for them, but not enough for a good time, given the other power available. Meanwhile, Rider A is only at 69% of FTP in 3rd wheel, which is all day pace. 

Whilst this is a VERY simplified example, you can see how a w/kg figure really doesn’t always make the best of the team. 

In this scenario, you are better off having Rider A sit at 320W (10% more than Rider B could hold for any length of time), leaving B in 3rd wheel or beyond, saving ~30% power to sit at 225W (or 94% of FTP). The difference in weight of 15kg, on the flat, will not make a discernible difference vs the loss in wattage if B goes on the front. 

That said, once the road rises at any more than 3%, a w/kg number to keep riders together is best. Then it may be entirely correct to agree on that figure of 4.5w/kg!

For all of the numbers that follow, I am using freely available data taken from a recent flat WTRL Thursday TTT. This negates the complication of teams splitting on the climbs and demonstrates how raw power as a squad is utilised in a purist’s Team Time Trial. 

It is well known that a group moves faster than a solo rider. Anyone who has had the horrible feeling of being just 2s off a group knows this fact. Recently, the excellent GP Lama did a test of group v solo,  showing some startling differences in terms of time for a given power. But, what about in the team time trial situation? 

There are not many teams of 4 to choose from in WTRL, that stayed together to the end, demonstrating evidence of taking turns on the front. 

There are also smaller teams who do very well but I wanted to find teams of 8 in the same Coffee Class, who produced similar race average watts, to see if there was any pattern in the results . Here are a few examples I found

Whilst this data may not take into account rider weight, this was a flat course, and the  coffee class used the same in each comparison. There is evidence that the 8 rider team, doing the same or similar interval efforts and with similar ability, beats the 4 rider team by around a minute on a flat course.  

If you want to do well in your class, then 8 equally matched riders really helps, so you can share the work evenly. Typically in the Doppio, this might be FTPs of 320 to 390, with an average around 360.  In the Vienna Espresso, the figure was generally 210-280,with an average of 245.

In the top teams, the spread of ability in terms of FTP was around 10% either side of the average, with very few riders falling too far out of this. Where there was a potentially weaker rider, with an FTP more than 15% below the team average, you should consider these riders doing very limited turns. Beyond 20% lower and they really just need to be in the draft, helping the group speed effect, as they are just not sufficiently powerful enough to lead. 

This is where my DS spreadsheet really helps to layout the capability available. It will also highlight who is well above the average and can do longer pulls! I have used this method effectively before, asking one of a team to ride threshold in draft for the duration, keeping the team as large as possible. 

The top teams (and way beyond) use a pace line, with remarkably similar 30s power surges above FTP and overall average race power compared to stated FTP, when expressed as a percentage.

Nothing new perhaps, but consistency is key. The more even and regular the turns, typically 20-30s, the faster the team. 

After a race, the best team’s amalgamated Companion apps traces tend to look like this. See how the peaks of effort follow each other smoothly, certainly early on, even if they get a little more ragged later. 

So, how much power are we talking in these intervals in reality? The video is about the very best teams, so the numbers generated are going to be out of the reach of many. But in case you are interested:

• 30s pulls well over 300W are typical in the Vienna Espresso Top 5 
• 500W for the best of the Doppio class

However, I was more interested in how did these numbers compare to the stated ability of the riders. As mentioned previously, Zwift Insider research of 4 riders, showed intervals 120% of FTP was needed on the front, for a group to beat their own FTP blob, whilst having a lower than FTP average for the race. 

However, all the top teams are easily surpassing this figure

• In Vienna-Espresso the 30s power average was generally 130%+ above the Team’s average FTP
• In the Doppio, this figure was as high as 143% 

Turns were usually around 30s, with then 3.5mins of comparative rest. 

This makes sense because if you have ever used TrainerRoad or Sufferfest, generally the Vo2 max workouts get you doing 120% of FTP for 2-3mins, which is taxing. So repeated efforts of ‘only’ 30s, should be doable at higher than this. Also similar across teams was the ‘Race Average’ power – typically, the average of each person was around 95% of their FTP. 

So what are my top tips for making sure you are really getting the best you can as a team?

1. Rather than 45mins at 100%, teams are doing a set of overlapping ‘Over and Under intervals’ of anything from 85% up to 130% and beyond. 
2. Have 8 riders, try and ensure those riders are evenly matched
3. Use the spreadsheet and work out who can do what
4. Pick a target power that is at least 120% of the team average – ideally 130%
5. Check course notes (I have these at zwift-ds.com) to check where w/kg and blobbing would be better
6. Really use the draft to get that rest at no less than about 85% in position 3+, 95-100% in position 2, as part of that set of Over/Under intervals,
7. Practice and be consistent and metronomic in those 30s turns at 130%+

This kind of session is pretty unique, indoors or out, and there are not many training workouts that you can use… so I made some. You can find a link to a full workout, including Warm Up, that simulates what a Zwift TTT should feel like, at my website, along with a link to instructions on their use from Zwift and Zwift Insider.

If you really want to take your team results to the next level, you could download the 6-rider set of files, create a ‘Stay Together Meet-up’ and choose a file each for a rough simulation of how a Team Time Trial should look. It will allow the team to do a guided effort to see how hard they can go and practice the communication required before doing it for real. 

With that, thanks for reading!

Questions or Comments?

Share below!

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Editor’s note: this article was originally published at zwift-ds.com, and is reposted here with permission from the author.

Since last March I have become obsessed with the weekly Team Time Trial… so I asked Eric if i could share my obsession with you all, in weekly doses.

Each week I will give you a profile of the upcoming route, guidance on bike choice, and some target times if you want to aim for the Premiere League (top-10 in each coffee class get to be in a special race televised on YouTube). 

If you can’t ride (or even if you can ride, but want more action) don’t forget to tune in to the live TV show on Zwift Community Live’s YouTube Channel at 6:15 (UK time). I am working through the glitches on my nascent livestreaming attempt so if you want to watch my TTT you can do that on YouTube here. 

Astoria Line 8 recap

This course has been run three times before; last time September (I missed this one), before that was April (#53, my second TTT), and the first time i found was August 2019. 

Across the board the top teams in each category are getting faster… is this tactics, is this fitness… I don’t know. There is certainly a strong debate in Facebookworld around the tactics used by the faster teams. While I am not qualified to get into all that – I do know that the small team at WTRL are hamstrung by Zwift live data crumbling. Anyone who wants to help improve the overall competitiveness and fairness of the TTT should pop over to the Zwift Forum and add a comment of support. 

	#53	#74	Prediction	PL-time	How did I do?
Vienna	53:50	55:14	53:45	51:27	Simply awful
Doppio	45:52	48:24	45:30	45:22	15th
Espresso	47:06	47:15	46:30	45:57	20th
Frappe	48:32	48:30	48:00	47:47	16th
Latte	52:57	52:38	52:00	51:11	16th
Mocha	1:01:55	1:00:06	59:00	59:21	9th

Wow that was awful! This past week I managed Uber Pretzel in 4:50 – significantly faster than my goal, and won a 30km race in C-Cat twice over Fox Hill. But today I died after one lap. Not one of those “need to take a few seconds then limp home” deaths, but a “complete failure and inability to pedal” ignominious demise. Ah well… I will let the ever amazing bard Trigg explain it all…

We waited nervously, listening for signs of Big Ben, who’d been on the tracks homeward from Newcastle since 2pm, it would be tight. Suddenly we saw smoke in the distance and then the chuffing sounds of our Titan as he pulled into the station. Just in time! The sweaty scene was set. All 8 players were off. The pre-race briefing was clear, riders should perish on the road to  glory if necessary.  Sentimentality is for football players (soccer to our American brethren).

This was a course for puncheurs and we had Smokin’ Ben laying us out on the canvas from the bell. Shifty laid to rest last week’s ghost, but not for long… like many a new player before him, he was poleaxed by one of the early surges. We pressed on behind Ben, with Andy giving strong support throughout. Over the first lap we passed two teams and a host of stragglers. Suddenly Sherpa was hit by an avalanche of lactic, and tumbled from his saddle just as we passed a third team. We pressed on, occasionally pointing out the gaps, answered immediately by an easing of the tectonic forces threatening to tear us apart. Sue the stayer; slayer of B-cat men was never in trouble. Simon fought cleverly to stay in the group of 5 which finished with Ben and Andy in the vanguard. Another great evening with the R&K ladies and gents.

I live to fight again next week, avoiding demotion but not avoiding shame. By next Thursday I will have worked out the kinks in my livestream too (5 frames per minute is more of a slide show than a video, but it looks sorted now). We will lose Ben next week as he moves onward and upward in the R&K ranks, but glory-be, we get Gaby back after a couple of weeks. Now Shifty knows what he has in store. I expect great things, as does WTRL as we have suddenly and accidentally become a Frappe team! 

I promised you some stories from around the TTT world… and here is what Bianca Fernandez-Clark had to say about her ride with Giant Camden Mad Jalapenos this week

No, we weren’t that fast… but my report is loosely based on the 20 mins I managed to stay with the super strong ladies in Mad Jalapenos, and the rest of what I could hear on Discord.

Before we delve into that, it’s worth mentioning that the UK has a “roadmap” to end the lockdown (by roadmap I mean, nothing is really happening for ages yet but we aren’t nothing if not hopeful) and the first one who’s decided it’s time to be out there is the Sun – so, with the rarity that it is sunshine in the UK, riders have had the audacity of going outdoors, making us believe they’re on Zwift with zwiftirl.com and making us team managers scramble last minute mergers and screw up team tags (sorry WTRL!) to accommodate for the deficit. All will be normal soon, can’t trust it to be good weather for long in this country.

Back to the race – in the pen early seeing if my ghosting issues (KICKR bike related) were solved, yes they were! Unfortunately, the legs remained invisible to push up those little nasty climbs! I did a Luciano and declared today to be the International Day of Numbers Not Making Sense. Not helped by our team being joined by a lone rider who not only did not know it was a TTT event, she was determined with passion to ride with us, which disrupted the line and caught a few of us on the wrong side of the gaps.

NOTHING in the scale of the universe is larger than a 2 second gap in New York. So I had to let the team go as we had already hemorrhaged many precious minutes trying to get rid of S.S., our uncooperative impromptu team member.

The ladies kept hammering it down though and in between turns all I could hear was a lot of gasping from all of them so a massive effort and finishing in a solid sub 60 mins – sneaking in to the PL for next week! Well done team!

Thursday 24th September – Watopia Figure 8

Back to Watopia next week for a single lap of Watopia Figure 8. This is the first time the TTT has been run on this course as far as I can tell, which is surprising because it’s a great route. 

Both ways through the Hilly KOM, both ways through the Esses and twice under the Sea gives the route plenty of technical hills but also enough flat to get the team settled. At a touch under 30km this will be a 40-50 minute effort for most teams. 

Starting in the downtown pier, you head down Ocean Boulevard and under the sea for a nice flat warmup covering the first 3.25 km. From there head up out of the tunnel, past the fishing village and take the gentle snaking climb up the hill. At the junction (6km) veer right and head up the Hill KOM reverse. Down the other side, through the start/finish gate and up to the Esses before heading back down the other side and through the sprint (reverse). You are now 14km in to the ride… almost halfway. 

Up through the Italian Villas to the top of the little hill snake back down the other side through the Fishing Village and back into the tunnels. When you head back towards downtown, swing left to the Hilly KOM forward. Crest the KOM and the hard stuff is over… you are now 25km done. 

From here it’s down the reverse Hilly, through the Italian Village and back to the Sprint – forward this time. Through the Esses and down the hill through the start/finish gate. 

Usually at this point I’d show the cool Veloviewer 3d route map… but because this route heads forward and backward on the same roads that didn’t look good – so here is the map-view of the same thing. 

What to ride?

This is another course with enough rolling hills that the Tron pips the Venge/Super9 combo. So if you have Tron available to you, use it this week. If you don’t have Tron here are the recommendations for different levels.

• Level 5 Specialized SL7 with ENVE 3.4 (just like last week I favor the ENVEs over the Rovals – but its pretty close)
• Level 13 Canyon Aeroad 2021 with ZIPP 808s
• Level 33 S-Works Venge with ENVE SES 8.9
• Level 40 S-Works Venge with Zipp 858
• Level 45 get those 858/Super 9 wheels and pair them with the S-Works Venge
• If at any point in this journey you get the Tron… pick that for this course.

As always, the Zwift Insider reports on frames and wheels are superlative so if you want to find the perfect bike and wheel combo for you, check them out. 

Every week i give the same message about the Tron… which can be summarized as “get it”. Last week I told you about Team Giant Camden’s upcoming series of group rides. Team Giant Camden is putting on a series of 4 (to start with) Tron Hunter events – the first is March 7th and they will be weekly from there. The routes are hand-picked to have enough ascent to be useful, but not to be just another grind. London Surrey Hills on March 7th, New York Rising Empires on the 14th, Ven-Top on the 21st, and finishing with Royal Pump Room 8 in Yorkshire. 

We still don’t have links to the events yet but as soon as I do I will post them in the recce. Team Giant Camden are well known for being a friendly lot and while they are based out of a bike shop in London, they have 200+ racers from all over the world with a very strong female contingent. The Tron Hunter rides are open to all… see you there!

Route recon

If you haven’t raced the Figure 8 in a while get out there and while you are there think about the TTT dynamic – especially the impact of the Esses which will stretch the team and the KOM itself which might break the weaker team members. 

There are a few rides to choose from this week – check out the event listing on zwifthacks.com. That said, if you want to create your own meetup  or just ride this route, it is really easy! 

• Hop on to Zwift, select Figure 8 in Watopia.
• Create a Meetup and invite the team… or just a few friends

What to look out for on the ride

The ride starts with a nice flat intro. Use those first kilometers to get sorted before heading out of the tunnels.

Fishing Village to the top of the reverse KOM

Once you come out of the tunnels the ride starts to get a little technical. First the gravel section and false flat snaking up the hill, then the Reverse Hilly KOM. 

By the numbers the reverse KOM barely exists – it’s 1.8% for 2.5km. False-flat, right? Well, the truth is we have four ramps separated by easier segments and even some downhill, rendering those numbers meaningless. Why is this a problem for the TTT team? In a large group race you have a big group to hide in, and as the groups split up you still have plenty of protection. In a TTT you have only (up to) to 8-team members to hold together – when the hill bites each team member will be impacted differently. 

What to look out for here?

• Stronger members leaving the team behind. This is not a time for a solo break.
• Weaker team members being left behind. Particularly on the first ramp – at over 10% someone will crack if you go at race-pace.

If you come over the top together you’re in luck – gather momentum on the descent and there is even an opportunity to supertuck for a few seconds – just look out for the flatter section around the bend where your supertuck might break. Stay together here and power through the start/finish gate. 

Through the Esses 

From the start/finish gate we run up the hill and through the Esses. Work hard here to stay together – don’t let the undulating Esses throw off your group work. Keep momentum, and use the Esses to build momentum.

From the end of the bridge (where the sprint finishes), up through the Italian Villas is a pretty steady rise. Then it is a steady decline into the Fishing Village and through the tunnels. A good time to regroup and take stock. Nothing exciting to see in this middle section.

Hilly KOM Forward

You will climb the Hilly KOM with tired legs. There isn’t a lot I can give you for advice here – gather your wits, gird your loins, and grit your teeth! Get your four best riders up and over together because you’re almost home. Just under a kilometer in length, the climb comes in four distinct parts – how much you feel the distinction will depend on how tired you are.

1. The first 400m is steep, averaging 7% but up to 10%
2. It flattens for 50m as you round the bend then
3. Tightens back up to 6% again for 300m then
4. Eases to 2-3% for the remainder of the climb

Talk about how you will handle this among the team – but make sure you keep your finish-team together.

The rest is easy enough – down to the Italian Villas, through the Esses, and down the hill, finishing on a downhill. 

Wrap up

I am amazed this is the first TTT on the Figure 8 course – it looks perfect. Enough with the rolling hills of the past few weeks – this is a nice balance of the two KOMs and enough flat to get the speeds up!

This week for the final regular-season race of Zwift Racing League Season 2 we have another TTT, and the route is the Greatest London Flat – around the City of London itself, then over to Surrey with the flattest of the three paths through. Two little things to remember:

• This isn’t the Greater London Flat, it’s the GREATEST London Flat – this takes a wide loop around London heading south of the river, and into Surrey.
• It starts and ends at The Mall, not at the Start/Finish banner on Upper Thames Street… remember to add the extra 7km to your ride as you sail past! 

What to ride?

This is almost as flat as the route name implies, so aero rules. If you have it, the Specialized S-Works Venge with Zipp 858/Super 9 wheels is the pick of the bunch (and the only frame/wheel combo to beat Tron on the flat). Tron is almost as good on this course, and if you haven’t done it yet – kick off the Everest Challenge and start the long painful climb to get Tron.

Once you kick that off – look out for the upcoming Tron Hunter series from Team Giant Camden. Team Giant Camden are putting on a series of 4 (to start with) Tron Hunter events – the first is March 7th and they will be weekly from there. The routes are hand-picked to have enough ascent to be useful, but not to be just another grind. London Surrey Hills on March 7th, New York Rising Empires on the 14th, Ven-Top on the 21st, and finishing with Royal Pump Room 8 in Yorkshire. 

I don’t have links to the events yet but as soon as I do I will post them in the recce. Team Giant Camden are well-known for being a friendly lot and while they are based out of a bike shop in London, they have 200+ racers from all over the world with a very strong female contingent. The Tron Hunter rides are open to all… see you there!

If you don’t have either of those two setups, read Fastest Bikes at Each Level for guidance on picking your TTT rig.

Course Preview from Rick at No Breakaways:

Route recon

This is a single lap race. Starting at the pens it’s mostly slight rollers to Northumberland Avenue, where you head up the hill to Trafalgar Square. Sharp left at the top and then a right as you head towards Buckingham Palace and then down the Mall to the reverse sprint.

You are now 7.5km into the ride, and this is where the lap actually starts. The jaunt around Central London is mostly flat/false-flat, except when you head down Piccadilly through the Hyde Park Corner underpass and up the other side. Soon enough (17.5km) you will head across the river to Surrey – but fear not, you aren’t tacking Box or Leith, you are just heading through the beautiful Surrey parkland.

Through the Underground Station and across Tower Bridge (23.5km) and you’re soon on familiar ground – because you’ll pass the Pens and be back on the lead-in with 7.5km to go. Just follow Upper Thames Street, up the Northumberland Avenue hill to Trafalgar, left, right, past Buck House and a quick Reverse Sprint to cross the line.

There are loads of rides on this route if you want a proper recce. Check out zwifthacks.com. I struggled to find many times that would suit our American friends, but the Europeans and Antipodeans have quite a few choices.

My picks for recce rides this weekend come from Team CLS, who have two rides on Saturday – one for the European early birds and another for the Americans and European afternooners.

What to look out for on the ride

Unlike last week, this is all paved road surface. No significant hills to split the group, but there are a few areas to watch out for: 

• From the pens it is a flattish start allowing you to get into formation and go… 3.7km into the ride you make a sharp turn onto Northumberland Avenue – that’s a 150m stretch at 4% – keep the weight-weenies in check and you’ll be fine.
• Just past the 11km mark you will head down Piccadilly (1.1km where you will pick up speed) into the underpass and back up the other side (where you will lose it again). The incline out of the underpass shouldn’t split the group but keep an eye on your teammates. 
• At 18km you hit what I think of as the worst part of the course… legs are starting to get worn, and there’s a 3km stretch of just annoying ramps. Can’t describe it better than that… annoying and just in the right place to create a split.
• Right before 23km you exit the Tube station – it a short, sharp shock peaking at 15%. This will hurt.
• Once more down the lead-in, with the main lump being Northumberland Avenue again
• No time to look, but you’ll see Nelson’s Column, Big Ben, and Buckingham Palace again then SPRINT for the line with whoever’s left in the group.

Ride summary

This is the last ride for season 2 outside playoffs, and a great route to showcase your TTT skills. Have fun out there!