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Zwift Update 1.0.49663 Released

Eric Schlange
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155
Zwift Update 1.0.49663 Released

The latest Zwift update is now available, with new bikes, workouts, sandbagger controls, and experimental event modes! There’s a lot to love here. Let’s dig into the details…

Not sure if your Zwift install is up-to-date? Here’s how to check >

New Bike Frames

New bike day is always a good day! Zwift has added two new frames to the Drop Shop: Factor’s One and Ridley’s Noah Fast Disc.

  • Factor One (level 8 locked)

(no description provided by Zwift)

“The Noah Fast Disc is Ridley’s top-level aero model and was built from scratch with every feature reimagined and redesigned. This powerhouse has no rival in cutting through wind thanks to component integrations, where every part fits together perfectly.”

We are currently testing these frames for speed performance on flat/hilly routes as well as climbs. Test results will be published as soon as we’ve got them!

New Workouts

Zwift has added 24 new under 60-minute workouts. These workouts were all created by coach Shayne Gaffney, a super-knowledgeable fellow who has contributed articles in the past here on Zwift Insider. 16 new workouts for runners, 8 for cyclists. Some of the run workouts include 30-minute variations.

These workouts add a great deal of variety to the existing “Under an hour” category, giving us access to a new bunch of quality workouts! Learn all the details of these new workouts on Zwift’s blog post.

Boost Mode

This new FutureWorks event type will allow you to choose a boost type before the event. Think of it like a battery which you charge yourself. Here are the three boost types, with details (to the best of our knowledge) about how they currently work:

  • Efficient: 50 watt boost for up to 90 seconds. Charging subtracts 50 watts from your current wattage. Choosing this boost type adds 5 kg to your weight for the duration of the event.
  • Balanced: 200 watt boost for up to 17 seconds. Charging subtracts 100 watts from your current wattage. Choosing this boost type adds 7.5 kg to your weight for the duration of the event.
  • Power Burst: 500 watt boost for up to 5 seconds. Charging subtracts 150 watts from your current wattage. Choosing this boost type adds 10 kg to your weight for the duration of the event.

Sounds like a fun way to make races more strategic and animated! You’re able to put out some extra watts when the group isn’t pushing hard, then somehow “activate” those watts for a boost in the final sprint.

We aren’t entirely sure how this will work, but it will be fun to test it out.

New Missions and Programs for May

  • The Tour for All (May 4th-30th): Join the Tour For All and come together with the Zwift Community to support Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in their response to COVID-19. Learn more here >
  • CeramicSpeed Cycling Mission (May 1st-31st): Unlock the CeramicSpeed cycling kit and a chance to win a CeramicSpeed OSPW derailleur by riding the target distance on OSPW enhanced Road, MTB and Tri/TT bikes. (More info coming soon)
  • Goodr I.P.A. Running Mission (May 1st-31st): This mission challenges Zwifters to run 3 different workout types: one interval workout session, one pace group run, and one “altitude” or hill workout session to complete the mission. Completing all three workouts unlocks some sweet Goodr shades and a contest entry to win the real thing. (More info coming soon)

Bib Numbers

Zwift has “Added support for unique bib numbers for riders and runners in specific events.” We saw bib numbers in the recent INEOS race up the Alpe. Will they be useful in races, perhaps helping us to more easily identify certain riders or runners?

More Changes

Wes’ notes also include the additional items in this update. Here they are, with some notes from us:

  • Added a new experimental event mode that lets you experience the sights and sounds of Zwift in its most pure form. This event mode will be exclusively tested within FutureWorks Club Jarvis events: super curious what this entails. Will it be more detailed imagery? Crazy surround sound? We’ll find out!
  • Fixed a bug related to events that could cause some lone riders to achieve ludicrous speeds: this was a fun bug to witness. A little sad to see it go.
  • Improvements to Apple TV pairing
  • Upgrades to the anti-sandbagging logic used for some races: the iOS update notes say these upgrades include removing sandbaggers from race results. Hurray! Continued refinement of this vital feature is super important to the future of Zwift racing. Want to see how it functions now? Hop into a ZHQ Beta Race on Crit City!
  • Added the GeForce GTX 1650 GPUs to the ULTRA graphics profile group: Zwift has some hard-coded logic to detect GPUs and set graphics quality. For whatever reason, these higher-end GeForce cards weren’t allowing ultra-level graphics. But now they are! (And all the PC users rejoiced.)
  • Fixed an issue where Meetup riders would not receive a powerup when passing through a sprint, KOM or lap arch

Read/discuss Wes Salmon’s full release notes >

Questions or Comments?

Post below!

Review: Indoor Cycling Kits from Castelli, Rapha, and Le Col x Wahoo

Eric Schlange
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43
Review: Indoor Cycling Kits from Castelli, Rapha, and Le Col x Wahoo

Indoor cycling is a thing. A really big thing. So it’s no surprise that top cycling brands have begun to release indoor-specific clothing.

Indoor vs Outdoor Kit: Is there a difference?

You may say it’s a marketing gimmick. And for some brands, you may be right. But other brands are taking it seriously, and you can feel the difference when you’re sweating your way through a Zwift race, or entering that dreaded fourth hour on your Uber Pretzel effort. Any ol’ kit will do for a laid-back 30-60 minute Zwift session. But when you’re looking for maximum cooling and comfort, you’ll have to look beyond yesteryear’s worn-out bib shorts.

When it comes to kit, there are two big differences between indoor and outdoor riding – three, if you want to press the issue:

  1. You simply don’t have as much air flow indoors as out. Even with a strong fan game, you’ll be sweatier inside. To avoid overheating and reducing your performance, the kit you wear needs to wick sweat from the skin while allowing air to ventilate both the skin (evaporating sweat) and the clothing (to keep it as dry as possible).
  2. You don’t move around in the saddle as much indoors, and you’re not riding over rough surfaces. So the chamois doesn’t need to absorb vibration – it just needs to provide a bit of anti-friction comfort, and hopefully stay as dry as possible. A thick, sweaty chamois doesn’t help anyone indoors.
  3. When riding indoors, covering up is less of a concern. Tops are optional for many, many Zwifters.

Over the past several months, I’ve been testing the indoor kits offered by three top cycling brands: Castelli, Rapha, and Le Col. Through many races, group rides, and long solo sessions, I’ve become intimately acquainted with the pros and cons of each kit. And now, humble reader, I’m sharing this Insider info with you.

First, let’s introduce the kits…

Castelli


Castelli’s indoor line has been around longer than Rapha or Le Col x Wahoo’s, and it’s also the simplest line: just two items. The Insider line is only available in men’s.

  • Insider Bibshort: a lightweight, low-padding bibshort made with breathability and moisture-wicking in mind. Retail price $139.99US
  • Insider Jersey: a super-lightweight jersey, just modest enough for group training sessions while allowing for maximum airflow. Retail price $119.99US

Rapha


Rapha announced its indoor line in early December 2019, consisting of existing Rapha Core shorts plus three new products: a shirt, cap, and towel. The shorts are available in men’s and women’s, while the other items are unisex.

Rapha’s Indoor Training page now lists additional items, including women’s Core shorts, base layers, and flyweight jerseys.

Le Col x Wahoo


The newest kit on the block, Le Col and Wahoo announced their collaborative indoor offering in March 2020. The original line consisted of a jersey, bibshorts, and cap. Available in men’s and women’s, in two color schemes.

The Le Col x Wahoo shop now includes sleeveless jerseys, long sleeve warmup jersey for men and women.

My Testing

My testing protocol for these kits was nothing advanced or scientific: I simply wore them as much as possible, mostly for Zwift sessions, but also for some outdoor rides. With 6-8 rides per week totaling 8-10 hours of weekly ride time, these kits got plenty of play.

By my calculations, each kit got at least 20 hours of ride time, complete with plenty of sweat and laundry cycles. The Le Col x Wahoo kit got the least use, because it was released so late in the season. But I made sure I wore it every chance I got, so it got a fair shake.

My Results

After putting each brand through the weeks-long Zwift Insider patented “sweaty pain cave stress test”, I’ve come to the conclusion that each brand’s indoor line has unique strengths which may make it the best choice for you. So I’ll summarize my experience with each line below, leaving the ultimate buying decision (of course) up to you.

Comfort Leader: Castelli

Confession: I’ve been a fan of Castelli’s chamois fit since my very first Castelli kit years ago. Of course, fit is a very personal thing – but in my experience, Castelli is one brand that gets recommended quite regularly when people ask which kits fit best. (The other brand I see most recommended is Assos – and I really like the way they fit as well. But they don’t have an indoor kit, sadly.)

Of the three kits reviewed here, Castelli’s Insider felt the most comfortable. Heck, I specifically picked it to wear on last Saturday’s “Monica Does 25 Laps of the Volcano Circuit” ride, because I knew it wouldn’t let me down! Their “Kiss Air2” chamois is the same used in Castelli’s (now discontinued?) “Inferno” line – it’s not as thick as their other pads, which I love. We don’t need thick pads for indoor riding! There are no vibrations to dampen here. They just soak up sweat.

Nothing better than new kit day!
Gotta love the branding.
Castelli’s Kiss Air2 chamois pad
Not gonna lie: I miss that mustache.

In terms of staying cool and dry, this kit does the job. I don’t typically wear a jersey when Zwifting, but if I did, it would be a jersey like the Castelli Insider. Super lightweight – just enough material that it qualifies as a shirt, while letting a lot of air through. The bib shorts have mesh leg cuffs that let air in, and the material which makes up most of the short is very lightweight, wicking moisture away from my skin so my fan’s breeze can evaporate it away.

My one complaint with this kit is that the shorts are so lightweight, I popped a few of the stitches pulling them on over legs that had been made extra-sticky by pre-race PR Lotion. This is probably an edge case, mind you. And it makes sense that super lightweight apparel would be a bit more fragile than its more standard-weight counterpart.

Where to Buy:
Competitive Cyclist (currently 25% off!)
Direct from Castelli

Simplicity Prize: Rapha

Instead of creating a fancy and expensive new kit, Rapha went the other direction. They created a few simple indoors-specific items, then rebranded some of their existing kit as indoor-friendly. The result? A simplified, bare-bones approach to indoor kit.

Cool little towel label
The towel, installed as directed
Blueberry Crisp Clif bar. The best!
Fully outfitted

Their Core cargo shorts are $130USD, and in fact their plain “Core” shorts (no cargo pocket) are just $100. So they’re the most affordable shorts in our test. Rapha’s shirt, which is really just a simple sleeveless mesh T, is much cheaper than the competition’s jerseys.

But it’s not really fair to compare pricing here, since Rapha’s shorts aren’t bib shorts, and the shirt isn’t a real jersey. One would expect them to be priced lower.

If you’re the type of rider who likes a simple indoor setup (no table nearby, for example) Rapha’s cargo shorts may be just the ticket. The pockets works well for holding just about anything – my Clif bars, AppleTV remote, phone. There were two downsides to these shorts, though. First: they are shorts. I don’t like shorts. I literally hadn’t worn “non-bib” cycling shorts for 4+ years, until I got Rapha’s kit and decided to run it through its paces. (Some folks love shorts – and if that’s you, Rapha’s may be just the ticket.) My other complaint is that they aren’t as moisture-wicking and well-ventilated as the competition’s shorts.

Rapha’s Cargo shorts don’t feel like they were made for warm temperatures or indoor riding – and that’s probably because they weren’t.

Of all the items in their original indoor line up, my favorite is actually the towel. Not only does it include a super-cool tag highlighting Mat Hayman’s incredible Zwift-trained Paris-Roubaix victory, it’s also super soft… much softer than the cheap towels which I buy by on Amazon by the double-dozen. When I’m doing a long ride and don’t want to rub my nose raw, I’ve found myself turning to the Rapha towel.

I’m not Rapha’s target market for the cap – I’m bald. That means one of my main sources of cooling is the open top of my head, and I definitely won’t be covering it on tough indoor sessions! But for the “haired” among us who may wear sweatbands indoors, the cap is a stylish option.

Where to Buy:
Direct from Rapha

Style Award: Le Col x Wahoo

Le Col makes some beautiful kit, and the result of their collaboration with Wahoo is no exception. They wisely chose to create two distinct “looks” for their indoor line… the basic “Ride Real” look (mostly black with white lettering and Wahoo blue color blocks) and the “Collective Edition” with its much wilder colors. I got the Collective Edition.

New kit day!
Breathable jersey mesh
Laser-cut air holes
The whole ensemble

In terms of comfort, this kit is a close second to Castelli’s. The chamois is a bit thicker than Castelli’s, but not as thick as Rapha’s. The laser-cut holes in the thighs are definitely a distinctive feature, and I felt they offered nearly the same level of cooling as Castelli’s ultra-light fabric while feeling a bit more robust.

The jersey is super lightweight, similar in wicking and airflow to Castelli’s.

The cap… well, it’s just a cap. No special mesh or sweat band. It’s just there to complete the look.

Overall, this is a stylish and comfortable indoor kit which would also wear nicely outside for hot-weather riding. It’s the most expensive of the bunch, but it also has the most high-quality look and feel.

Where to Buy:
Direct from Le Col

Questions or Comments?

Share below!

Unleashing the Power of Zwift’s Community Organizers

Eric Schlange
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12
Unleashing the Power of Zwift’s Community Organizers

It wasn’t until my late 30’s that I realized how passionate I was about building communities. It’s something I’ve naturally done since my teens, yet I didn’t think there was anything special about this until others pointed it out.

Community is a big part of why I love cycling – the camaraderie of a group exploring new roads. The rush of pushing hard in a chain gang as the tarmac hums past. Perhaps that’s why I was immediately drawn to Zwift – because the centrality of its community was immediately clear from the moment I first signed on.

One thing I try to do here at Zwift Insider is pay attention to big events. Perhaps it’s the “community organizer” in me, but it’s fascinating to observe how certain events launch with limited success, while others explode in popularity.

A recently-launched event that has caught my eye is the Newbury Velo TT. The organizing team includes Glen Knight (the leading mastermind behind the KISS series that helped evolve Zwift racing in many ways) and Rachael Elliot (a super-strong racer with a Zwift story like no other). Since I know them both personally, I decided to reach out and learn what they’ve done to create such a successful event.

There are lessons here for anyone trying to create a successful Zwift event. There are lessons here for anyone looking to organize a community. And there are also lessons here for Zwift HQ! So let’s dive in.

A Brief History of the Newbury Velo TT

Glen Knight, Rachael Elliot, and others started the IRL Newbury Velo team in November 2019. Glen says, “We had a vision to build relationships with other cycling clubs to try and change the way cycling clubs operate. We were different. And this was recognised very quickly. Within 6 weeks we had over 100 paid members of our new club. And now, 5 months old and we have 160. Making us one of the biggest clubs in the region.”

Finding an IRL 10-mile TT under normal circumstances is easy in the area where Glen lives, but when the coronavirus epidemic forced race cancellations, the Newbury Velo team decided to run the TT races on Zwift. Glen says, “On 25th March we had our first Wednesday night TT. We promoted this event to local and regional cycling clubs. Within the time trialing groups and the forums. Deliberately targeting British time trialists. We had 126 riders. But the key was the banter in the forums, in the clubs. And the race report after the event. We promoted this differently and deliberately away from traditional Zwift events/groups.”

Due to the success of the Wednesday events, Newbury Velo decided to add a Saturday TT, with the first being over Easter weekend (April 12). They promoted the event to local clubs and associations and in their second event (April 19) hit the max of 500 riders allowed by Zwift in any one “category” for a TT event. Glen was surprised when they hit that cap – he didn’t know such a limit even existed!

For April 26th they requested two categories so the max would increase to 1000 riders – and that event filled up as well. Glen reached out to Zwift in the days before the event to have more categories added, but was unable to get a response, so some interested riders weren’t able to take part.

And that brings us to this week. At this point, Zwift’s events team has set up the weekend TT with just two categories – so it’s still capped at 1000 riders. Glen and his team are hoping Zwift will update the event and expand it before Saturday rolls around.

Lessons for Organizers

If you’re looking to launch an event on Zwift, or wanting to increase turnout for your existing event(s), there are a few lessons to learn from Newbury Velo’s phenomenally successful approach:

  1. Find a niche… with broad appeal: your ride should be distinct from other events, but appealing to a large number of riders. Ask yourself: what makes it special? What hole does it fill in the Zwift calendar? Newbury Velo’s TT is an event style that isn’t seen often on Zwift’s calendar, and the races are short enough that people can easily fit them into their ride plans.
  2. Stand out from the crowd: Newbury Velo puts in the extra effort to police their race results, write up race reports, create beautiful graphics displaying winners, and more. This personal touch makes Newbury Velo’s TT events stand out from Zwift HQ’s TT events, which are the most commonly-seen TT races on the calendar. Race organizers especially should take note here: this effort shows riders you care, and is a key part of getting them to return.
  3. Do your own (guerilla) marketing: as Glen explained above, most of their marketing has been personal outreach via their IRL network of British cycling clubs. If you want more signups, don’t just wait for people to see your event on the Companion app – share it with your network! Get creative. Nobody is making money here, so you probably won’t do any paid outreach – but there’s a lot you can do for free.
  4. Provide support: if your event is pulling in new Zwifters, they’ll have questions. Glen and his team have helped numerous new Zwifters sign up for ZwiftPower, get their equipment working, etc. The more you support participants, the better their experience in your event will be, the more loyal their attendance will be, and the more they’ll share your event with others.

Non-Zwifter Evangelism

Not only is the Newbury Velo Weekend TT hugely popular – it’s attracting a high percentage of non-Zwifters. According to Glen, “We know this because of the high number of people we’ve helped get signed up to ZwiftPower and the advice we’ve given around equipment, etc.”

There’s a valuable lesson here for Zwift HQ: community organizers can and will attract new users to the platform. They’ll even do much of the customer support work, if those community organizers are given real ownership of the events they host on your platform.

The Power of Passion

The story of Newbury Velo’s rapid success with these TT events perfectly illustrates what can be accomplished by a small band of passionate volunteers on a platform like Zwift. Event organizers are able to reach out to their personal networks in a way Zwift cannot. They can channel their passion into creating an event that stands out from the crowd. And crucially, they’re able to attract new Zwifters in a way Zwift cannot!

Eric Min understands this – he’s said in interviews that Zwift doesn’t need to be the event organizer, but instead they need to be the platform that organizers use. He’s also said that Zwift really needs to get out of their own way when it comes to letting the community manage their own events. This is certainly the case with Newbury Velo’s events, which Glen (an IT expert) says he would love to manage, if Zwift would give him that ability.

Feature Requests

When I asked Glen what he would request of Zwift in order to make his job as event organizer easier, he knew exactly what he’d ask for first: “Zwift could control the calendar and create event entries and then giving organisers the ability to make changes to that scheduled slot. So they still control the time/date the event is scheduled for but they don’t have the hassle and the workload of making the little changes to things like descriptions, course, lap numbers, categories etc. I understand this may be coming to some extent with Club functionality.”

Indeed, I’ve heard Zwift is hard at work trying to release some “event editing” tools to ride organizers, to offload some of the work the overtaxed events team has taken on as Zwift numbers soared in recent months. These tools won’t come a minute too soon for event organizers, and it will be sweet relief to Zwift’s events team as well!

(The situation today is far from ideal: I’ve had many club leaders, Zwift team heads, and event organizers reach out to me for tips on getting their events onto Zwift’s calendar, or getting their events modified. I can only imagine the number of requests flooding into the events team’s support ticket system.)

Big Names vs Big Communities

With so many event requests coming in, Zwift is being forced to perform a balancing act. I think it’s fair to say this has led to some frustration on all sides.

One team manager (who asked to remain anonymous) shared with me that he has been trying to get just one official event onto Zwift’s calendar for his fast-growing Zwift club, which now has 2100 members. (They’ve been holding regular club Meetups, but those are severely limited when it comes to attracting hundreds of riders.)

He can’t seem to get a response from Zwift, but at the same time, his country’s governing body was able to quickly get events created. As he sees it, “They are just a COVID blow in and will leave Zwift just as quickly as they joined.”

There are two sides to every story, of course. One can’t blame Zwift for wanting to play nice with the cycling governing bodies. But Zwift, by its own admission, needs to do a better job of empowering the community to organize their own events. Doing so helps people find a place on Zwift. It keeps veteran community organizers happy. And it brings more users to Zwift. There’s no downside – it’s a win-win-win situation.

The Way Forward

It’s only fair to acknowledge that coronavirus has placed everyone on the back foot, Zwift included. I don’t believe for a second that Zwift doesn’t value what community event organizers bring to the table. At the same time, organizers are understandably frustrated by the continued lack of tools available to help them successfully host events.

The way forward, it seems, is for Zwift to fast-track the development of some basic event management tools. The good news is, this is being done! These tools need to work for public events, but also allow organizers to create private events for their clubs. Hopefully Zwift will be able to deliver these tools in a matter of the next week or two, instead of a delayed launch months out.

Event organizers are a smart lot, and quite adaptable when it comes to tools. They would happily take a rudimentary interface and a few bugs in place of having their events negatively impacted because Zwift’s events team isn’t able to make needed changes in a timely manner.

Your Thoughts

What makes a community-driven event successful, in yours eyes? And what can Zwift do to better empower the community’s event organizers? Share your thoughts below!

All About Zwift’s “Working from Home” (And Similar) Badges

Eric Schlange
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106
All About Zwift’s “Working from Home” (And Similar) Badges

With many of us riding and running only indoors due to coronavirus-related restrictions, the topic of Zwift’s “Working from Home” (formerly “Unemployed”) achievement badge is popping up regularly. This is the badge awarded when you (as Zwift says), “Ride a lap 14 days in a row”.

Lots of questions surround this badge, including:

  • How far do you have to go in order for Zwift to count your activity for the day?
  • Can you get the achievement by running?
  • When is the time cutoff each day?
  • How many XP do I get for the achievement?

Here are some answers – a few of which aren’t definitive. We invite your comments below if you can provide more definitive information than we’ve got here!

Note: this info also applies to the “Habitual” (3 days in a row) and “Addicted” (7 days in a row) badges.

How Far?

While Zwift’s official line from the forums (and this support post) is 10km, testing shows the limit to be 5km in a single activity. Zwifter Dave Higgins recently received the Working from Home badge, and posted his ride log as proof that 5km in a day will get you the badge:

Ride “A Lap”?

The badge says “Ride a lap 14 days in a row” but clearly that text needs to be updated. No lap of anything is required – it appears to be strictly distance-based. Also, “riding” isn’t required at all… which brings us to:

Does Running Count?

Yes. The limit for runners appears to be 5km in a single activity, just like cyclists. (It’s possibly even lower, but we know it’s not higher than 5km.)

Time Cutoff

According to Zwift support, the 24-hour window in which you must do each day’s activity is based on your local time. So if you ride at 6 am one day, then 10 pm the next day – those should count as two activities on consecutive days. (See Dave’s ride above on Sunday March 29th at 9:26 am and the next ride 33 hours later on Monday at 18:45 as proof.)

It’s the start time that matters, not your end time. So if you start your ride at 23:55, it still counts as riding on the day you began the ride.

We haven’t tested this, but our guess is if your activity shows up on a particular day in the guest world calendar (see orange sections around days) then it will be applied to that day for the purposes of the Working from Home achievement badge.

XP Bonus

The XP awarded for these achievements is minimal: 50 XP.

When Do I Get the Badge?

Here’s one that confuses a lot of Zwifters! You get the badge at the start of your first activity after the one which achieved the goal.

So on your 14th day’s first activity, you won’t get the Working from Home badge. But if you save that activity, then start another one, the badge should pop right up. A bit silly and confusing, but there you have it!

Questions or Comments

We hope this answers a lot of your questions about these badges. Got more questions or comments? Post below! (Note: we aren’t Zwift support. If you think you should have gotten the badge, but haven’t, reaching out to us via comments or email isn’t going to fix anything.)

100+ Routes On Zwift: How to Access the One You Want!

Eric Schlange
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59
100+ Routes On Zwift: How to Access the One You Want!

Editor’s note: This post is outdated. Read a current post on this topic at Four Ways To Ride (Almost) Any Zwift Course at Any Time.

Did you realize that Zwift has over 100 “mixed-use” (ride and run) routes? 108, to be exact! See the full list here >

When it comes to choosing a route, Zwifters cover the full spectrum from “I didn’t even know there was a way to choose my route” to “I have a specific route I want to finish each time I zwift.” Some Zwifters stick to just a few routes, while others like to explore.

Whatever your style, it’s all good. But here are some tips to help the more “route choosy” among us access the route you want, when you want it.

How To Select a Route

There are two methods for selecting a route to ride or run in Zwift.

Method 1: Choose from Route List

Zwifters can manually select a route it from a list of available options within a given map. This is done before you begin your activity:

Choose your map/world
Select your route!

Method 2: Joining an Event

The other method of selecting is route is by joining an event. Every Zwift event that occurs, whether it’s an official calendar event or a Meetup, is held on a single, specific route. That route is selected when the event is set up, and you can see that route in the event’s details. Here are two sample events (a calendar event and a Meetup) showing the selected route:

How To Ride Any Route

While public events can be held on all 8 of Zwift’s maps, and privately-organized Meetups can be held on all 6 of Zwift’s “open” maps (thanks to a recent change), the routes available to choose from within Zwift on your own (Method 1 above) are restricted to just three maps each day.

Why? Because Zwift doesn’t want to open up all maps to free-riding, since they don’t want maps to feel “empty” because Zwift is a social platform. Therefore, Zwift has three maps available each day: Watopia plus two guest maps. The monthly schedule can be found here.

If you want to ride a particular route, but that map isn’t on the schedule today, here are a few ways to get it done.

Option 1: World Tag Hack

Zwifters have been using this option for years, and even though Zwift has made it easier than ever whichever route we’d like for a given sessions, sometimes world hacking is the easiest way to get it done. This solution is quite easy on Mac and PC, but more of a hassle on Android and iOS. AppleTV? Don’t even try it!

How to World Hack in Zwift >

Option 2: Use the Zwift-Preferences App from ZwiftHacks (PC Only)

This little bit of software from Jesper at ZwiftHacks basically gives you a visual interface for world tag hacking, as well as access to many other Zwift preferences.

Visit the Zwift-Preferences homepage for details/download >

Option 3: Select a Public Event On Your Desired Route

If you’re not into world tag hacking, or would rather complete your desired route in a group event, you can join an event being held on that route. Unfortunately, Zwift’s event tools (Companion app and zwift.com/events) don’t all us to filter events based on route at this time.

The good news is, you can search for upcoming events on particular routes using the ZwiftHacks Events app. Just enter the route name in the “Search in route name” box and viola! all upcoming events appear.

ZwiftPower also allows you to filter events by route.

if you don’t actually want to participate in the group ride, but just ride the route, you can click to exit the event at any time after it has started. This will keep you on the same route, but remove you from the group ride. A good solution if the group ride pace doesn’t match your goals for the day.

Option 4: Create a Meetup on Your Desired Route

Thanks to the recent update which allows us to create Meetups on all 6 open maps, any Zwifter can create a Meetup on any open route!

Note: Meetups cannot be held on “event only” routes, or on the event-only maps Crit City and Bologna.

The only caveat here is that you must invite at least one follower to your Meetup before the event can be created. So if you’re only creating the Meetup because you’re you’re wanting to ride a particular route, you’ll still need to invite a friend to join you.

AppleTV users: since you’re unable to do the world tag hack, Meetups are currently the only way for you to access off-schedule routes, apart from joining a public event.

Learn how to create a Meetup >

Conclusion

Zwift’s restriction of the daily map calendar can be a bit confusing, and even annoying, if you’re wanting to ride a particular route. But there are ways to get access to that route, no matter what platform you’re using to run Zwift.

So get out there and do a little exploring! And if you’re really looking for a challenge, see if you can get all the route badges – here’s a good place to start.

Your Thoughts

What method do you use to access the routes you’d like? Share your thoughts below!

6 Zwift Events Not To Miss This Weekend

Eric Schlange
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17
6 Zwift Events Not To Miss This Weekend

With more big events than ever happening in our virtual cycling paradise, it’s easy to miss some really cool rides! Here are 6+ events this weekend that you won’t want to miss.

Special thanks to Jesper at ZwiftHacks with his Events app which provides powerful event filtering tools so we can narrow the weekend list from 400+ events to just a handful.

Monica Does 25 Laps of Volcano Circuit

Join Mrs. Zwift Insider Monica Schlange as she puts in 25 laps of the Volcano Circuit to unlock all the badges and XP! This isn’t an official Zwift event, so you should click here to learn how the ride works. You may also want to click here to learn how the Volcano Circuit multi-lap badges work.

Monica and Eric will begin their ride at 3pm GMT / 11am EDT / 8am PDT. Join any time and ride with us!

Crush Covid

Toronto Hustle and Michael Garron Hospital Foundation are partnering to give Zwifters the opportunity to support health care workers in their mission to CRUSH COVID. They’re hosting a 24-hour Zwift cycling marathon raising funds for Michael Garron Hospital Foundation’s Emergency Response Fund.

Over the course of 24 hours riders from Toronto Hustle are leading rides, every 2 hours, and raising funds to CRUSH COVID. Join one or more rides by signing up for the Zwift event(s). Get all the details at toronto-hustle.com/crush-covid

You can donate here: http://www.crushcovid.ca/

Begins Friday at 10 pm GMT / 6 pm EDT / 3 pm PDT
See all events at zwift.com/events/tag/crushcovid

Bo Bikes Zwift

Two-sport legend and Alabama native Bo Jackson is teaming up with Zwift for Reason to lead a ride and raise funds for the Alabama Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund. Bo’s annual “Bo Bikes Bama” ride is typically held outdoors, but it’s been moved inside this year.

Zwifters who complete the ride will unlock the in-game “Bo Bikes Bama” kit.

Zwift with reason and help spread the word by setting up a fundraising page on zwift.com. Zwift will match funds raised by the community dollar-for-dollar up to $10,000. The top 3 fund raisers will get their hands on some next level goodies from Bo. Visit here to get started: https://www.zwift.com/bobikesbama

Saturday @ 4 pm GMT / 12 pm EDT / 9 am PDT
Sign up at zwift.com/events/view/469017

Watopia Run Festival: Marathon

This week’s Watopia Run Festival culminates with 4 Marathon events on Sunday. Can you go the distance?

4 different event times on Sunday
See event schedule at zwift.com/events/series/watopia-run-festival/

ZHR Audax 200km

Go long, working with others, at whatever pace you’d like! An Audax is a cycling event in which participants attempt to cycle the distance within a pre-defined time limit. It is a non-competitive sport: success in an event is measured by its completion within the specified time limits, and everyone receives equal recognition regardless of their finishing order. Choose the category that matches your desired pace, then enjoy the camaraderie!

Saturday @ 8:15 am GMT / 4:15 am EDT / 1:15 am PDT
Sign up at zwift.com/events/view/613922

Group Ride with Pros

So many pros on Zwift these days! Why not take the opportunity to ride with some of your cycling heroes? Here are four pro-led group rides scheduled for the weekend – be sure to click for event details as each event has its own unique pacing, route, etc:

Your Thoughts

Got other events that stand out this weekend? Share below in the comments! And if you participate in any of these events, let us know how your ride went.

Zwiftcast Episode 83: Pro Riders on Zwift, the good and bad; Monica is the Route Hero and the Pants Podium!

Simon Schofield
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6
Zwiftcast Episode 83: Pro Riders on Zwift, the good and bad; Monica is the Route Hero and the Pants Podium!

Simon, Shane, and Nathan reconvene for Episode 83 – and to celebrate a minor victory: the return of the famous First Attempt Very Intens Strava segment on Zwift. Simon has a little insight into how it happened.

Lionel Birnie, one of the co-hosts of the popular Cycling Podcast joins Simon for a chat about the recently-updated Meetups in the game and to discuss what the prospects may be for a return of IRL bike racing this year.

The Zwiftcasters spend a few minutes riffing on the behaviour of pro riders in group rides on Zwift, ranging from the exemplary… to the not-so-good. The chaps have a few thoughts on how things may be improved.

Monica Schlange, writer for Zwift Insider, is recovering after her monumental Route Hero achievement. Simon talks to Monica about the best bits and the hardest bits.

Do we even need to see The Fence back? Simon, Shane, and Nathan discuss whether self-regulation on group rides has settled into something acceptable.

And the podcasters round off this episode with awards made on the Zwiftcast Pants Podium… jeans, track pants, and all-day pajamas… who’s wearing what and why?

We hope you enjoy listening.

Nostalgia for the Future: Club Jarvis Members-Only Ride #1

Eric Schlange
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16
Nostalgia for the Future: Club Jarvis Members-Only Ride #1

Last Friday I took part in the very first private club ride on Zwift, “Club Jarvis Members Only Ride #1”.

If you recall, Club Jarvis went live a few weeks ago as the first (and only) club on Zwift’s new “Clubs” module. (If you want to learn more about what the Clubs feature will do, read this post.)

This event was Zwift’s first test of running a ride for a club where only the members could participate. As such, the event didn’t show up in the main Companion events list – it was only listed under “Club Events” on the Club Jarvis homepage. Clicking to join the event was easy enough – the same as joining any other Zwift event.

Family Reunion

When Friday morning came around I led my weekly Sprintapalooza ride, then hung around until the start of the Club Jarvis event. The ride’s description included a Discord link, so I hopped into that as I clicked to join the event.

This was two laps of Sand and Sequoias, at 2 w/kg. A casual social ride, with HQ’s Wes Salmon listed as one of the leaders. The other leader? One “Jarvis Bear”. Interesting!

The ride began, and I started looking around at the names of the 70+ riders. We had a pile of folks in Discord as well, and a sudden feeling of Zwift Nostalgia rolled over me. Maybe it was the OG Zwift Carbon bikes we were all riding, or the Beta kits on our backs. But mostly, I think it was that so many prominent, long-time members of the Zwift community had joined this ride!

Only beta users can join Club Jarvis, which meant everyone on this ride had been on Zwift since before November 2015. I spotted Kim Little, one of the first top racers on Zwift. Another top racer (and Kim’s teammate on TeamX), Casey Schumm, joined us – but only on Discord. Because he was “working” from home. Their teammate René Rolighed was there, the guy who created ZwiftNation, one of the earliest race results tracking sites. Team ODZ’s Justin Wagner was prominent on the Discord chat (as he always is), bringing fun sound effects and jokes to the crowd.

Jesper Rosenlund Nielsen from ZwiftHacks was in attendance. David Desrosiers was there – he’s the guy who figured out many of the early Zwift hacks, and is still quite active on the Zwift Coders Facebook group. There were many others I’ve seen for years, including Zwift forum stalwart Gerrie Delport and Morten Tillquist Nielsen who created the kit unlock graphics for this post years ago.

It really felt like a meetup of old friends. We shared long-running inside Zwift jokes, made fun of Wes Salmon for his inability to get Discord working, and generally just had a good time as we spun around Fuego Flats and into the redwoods.

Jarvis the Pacer Bear

As it turns out, ride leader “Jarvis the Bear” was actually a pacer bot being controlled by Wes. So Jarvis stayed at 2.0 w/kg steady while Wes rode nearby with his own beacon. Wes asked what we thought of Zwift creating the ability for ride leaders to control/set up a pacer bot like Jarvis the Bear, to keep rides from surging. A lively discussion ensued – keep in mind this group is packed with experienced Zwifters, many who have led hundreds of rides over the years.

We discussed the merits of the “pacer bear” idea – most saw the value in it for certain group rides, but noted that many group rides wouldn’t want such functionality. We also discussed how ride leaders would need to be able to control the pacerbot easily from within the ride. In the end, it sounds like this is one of those ideas that may come to fruition well down the road – but I wouldn’t expect it any time soon.

So Well-Behaved

The inability of Zwifters to stick to stated pace in group rides is a long-running joke/complaint at this point. But guess what? Our group stayed tightly packed, even though the pace was 2 w/kg and we had many strong racers in the bunch. So it really is possible to keep a group ride together without a fence. It just requires people who know how to ride with the beacon, and are willing to do so.

After the first lap, Wes asked if we wanted to bump it up to 2.5 w/kg. We did, so Jarvis revved it up a bit and away we went!

Standing on the Brink

As our little group wound its way out of Titans Grove on the final lap, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we’d entered some sort of Zwift time machine. 5 years earlier, many of the Zwift luminaries in this group were just getting onto the platform for the first time. For me, and many others, those first Zwift rides turned a lightbulb on which never really turned off.

On those nascent rides we immediately saw how Zwift might just change the world of cycling forever. And we immediately began to test the game’s functionality. To break it, and request new features. We were the first Zwift fanboys/girls, and now years later we’ve seen Zwift evolve from a small group of beta users to a massive community with hundreds of daily events and pro racer participation.

Today we stand at another key point on Zwift’s timeline. An unprecedented number of new users have come on board, and Zwift is working to get the Clubs feature released and Meetup capabilities expanded. Once those tools are in place, the social side of Zwift will be taken to a whole new level. Combine community-building tools with a much larger user base and we’ve got a recipe for massive growth, both in terms of user numbers and engagement levels.

I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Michellie Jones: Optimal Training When Training isn’t Optimal (Zwift PowerUp Tri Podcast #26)

Eric Schlange
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0
Michellie Jones: Optimal Training When Training isn’t Optimal (Zwift PowerUp Tri Podcast #26)

Welcome Michellie Jones AM, one of the most successful triathletes of all time! Olympic Silver Medalist, Ironman Hawaii champ, and more World titles than you can count. Now an accomplished coach, the hosts pick her brain on the best ways to optimize training during lockdown life. We’ve all had to make changes to our training, and the three of us chat about the best ways to adapt.

About the Podcast:

The Zwift PowerUp Tri Podcast is hosted by former pro triathletes Matt Lieto and Jordan Rapp, lending their in-depth knowledge of the multisport to the Zwift Tri audience.

Open invitation: Monica Does 25 Laps of Volcano Circuit – April 25

Monica Schlange
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256
Open invitation: Monica Does 25 Laps of Volcano Circuit – April 25

This is an open invitation to our entire Zwift family to join us for a worldwide effort to get the “On Fire” badge together! To do so you must complete 25 laps of the Volcano Circuit. 

When and How this Will Work 

It’ll work much like the PRL Full event where we all ride on the same day, at whatever time is convenient for each of us. I (Monica) will start on Saturday, April 25 at 8 am PST (GMT-7), but you can start whatever time works for you. Since we’re doing a circuit we’ll surely overlap with others’ efforts and see each other out there often! 

Each lap is 2.6 miles long. That means you’ll be riding 65 miles. Be sure to prepare accordingly. 

Other Badge Options

Is 65 miles too far beyond your riding capacity right now? Still join us to get the “Hothead” Volcano Circuit badge for 10 laps (26 miles). 

Is 26 miles too much? Still join us to get the “Warmed Up” badge for 5 laps (13 miles).

Don’t yet have the “100 Clicks” badge? Ride the 25 laps and you’ll get that metric century badge too!

Changing Your Name

I’ll have my Zwift name as “Monica Schlange (25 Volcano Circuit).” If you change your name to add Volcano Circuit too we’ll see each other more easily! 

Let’s Do This! 

Who is with me? Let’s get a ton of us out there so it’s more fun and we can draft each other! 

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