Race 3 of Zwift Racing League Season 2 took place yesterday, finishing atop the Innsbruck KOM – the longest climb in Zwift Racing League history.
With a ~25 minute climb at the end, I knew I wouldn’t get anywhere near a podium finish. And I didn’t fancy my chances of earning intermediate sprint points, with the Leg Snapper standing guard like some sort of tarmac sentry just before the sprint.
Heck, I even volunteered to sit the week out, if my team could find a rider better suited to the route. But alas, no such rider was found: I would have to do what I could to grab points for my team.
Pre-Race Strategy
My team (the DIRT Hellhounds) had been chatting on Discord in the days leading up to the race, and we never really settled on a cohesive strategy because that was impossible to do. Instead, we discussed how the race would probably unfold, and we each set goals for how we would approach the race given our strengths.
For me, an “overmuscled cyclist” who sprints better than he climbs, it looked like this:
- Attack the first Leg Snapper with max effort if needed, to stay in touch with the front group
- If I make it over with the front, hit the sprint and try to get some intermediate points
- Try to stay in touch with the front for the three laps of Innsbrucking, so I can put time into those behind and have a better chance of a higher final placing atop the KOM
The Warmup
Zwift Racing League‘s Tuesday events are my priority races each week, so I do my best to be fresh for race day. That meant a day off on Sunday, and an easy Monday. But Monday’s ride had me worried – I didn’t feel strong at all, and my heart rate didn’t want to get out of zone 2. This usually happens if I’m getting sick, or need recovery… or both!
So I didn’t push it on Monday, but made sure I ate and slept well. Then I executed my usual pre-race warmup routine on Tuesday, which included my three favorite race-day products:
- Caffeine gum – three pieces (300mg), 1 hour before the race.
- PR lotion on my legs about 45 minutes before the race. More bicarb=less burning.
- The Nopinz Subzero kit, with two sets of freezer packs. One for the start, and one for the final climb!
I got on around 40 minutes before the race began, and spun with Cara Cadence for my warmup. I happily sensed that the legs felt good, and my heart rate was responsive. Soon enough it was time to hit the start pens. Let’s race!
The Start
We figured the start wouldn’t be too crazy, because everyone knew the Leg Snapper is where the fireworks would happen. And that was exactly right: I averaged ~300W for the first three minutes to easily stay in the front group.
During the lead-in to the first Leg Snapper I was just conserving as much as possible, because I knew the first Snapper would be a max effort for me as the strongest riders pushed hard to make a selection so they could reduce the competition for the sprint intermediate. (My 1-minute power is a big weakness when it comes to short climbs in competitive fields – 6.5w/kg doesn’t keep you in the mix very long against guys who can do 8w/kg or more!)
As we hit the brown bricks leading into the Leg Snapper I worked my way to the front of the group so I’d be able to slip backward a bit on the climb if necessary while still staying in touch with the pack. I used my feather powerup as the road pitched up, so I could keep my entry momentum for just a bit longer. And I stayed seated for this climb, trying to keep my heart rate low and power consistent.
And I hung in there! Over the top things were a bit strung out, but it came back together on the descent. I was in the mix for the sprint!
Cresting the first Leg Snapper 
In the front group heading into the first sprint
I had no powerup for the sprint, though… and I was far from recovered after a maximal 1-minute effort up the Leg Snapper. When riders began sprinting I went for it… but got left in the dust, crossing the sprint banner in 25th place. But two of my teammates (Tucker and Pruett) finished 1st and 2nd – extra points, baby!
Wash, Rinse, Repeat
As I predicted in my route recon post, the chase group caught our front group as we made our way around the Innsbruckring loop. The front group had no incentive to keep pushing, because they knew the group would split up the Leg Snapper yet again. But the chase group had incentive, because they wanted to stay close to the front group and hopefully pass some of them on the final climb.
Laps 2 and 3 were similar to 1, just a bit easier. Each time a group of 30 or so split off on the Leg Snapper. I never had the legs to contest the sprint. After the third sprint I found myself even further behind the front group than I’d been on laps 1 and 2, so I waited for a few other riders to catch, and we easily caught up to the front group just before the final KOM began.
The Final Climb
The Innsbruck KOM finish had given me nightmares for a week. I had hoped I would start the climb in the front group, thanks to any splits coming together. That all went according to plan. But how would the climb shake out? This was by far the longest climb we’d taken on in ZRL, and I had no idea how strong the competition would be.
But I knew it wouldn’t be pretty. And it wasn’t.
I started the climb in 39th place, the front group quickly riding away at a pace I knew I’d never sustain. Then I just tried to hold steady wattage – but my steady wattage wasn’t enough to keep me ahead of those chasing from behind. I finished in 50th place after putting in a max effort in the final kilometer to pass a few riders.
It felt good to gain a couple spots in the end… but losing 11 spots hurt more.
See my activity on Zwift >
See my activity on Strava >
See race results on ZwiftPower >
Watch my race video:
Team Result
It looks like we took third overall, behind first place KIRCHMAIR B Bees and second place Foudre Bourgogne. That keeps us in second place on our division.
Foudre brought in a ringer for this race: one Camille Udny, a lady weighing in at 44kg and thus able to average 4.7wkg for this race while still being a B, since she’s nowhere near the 250W limit. Smart move by Foudre, and a commanding win by Camille who blew all the dudes out of the water, winning by 13 seconds!
Our top finisher was Scott Olsen in 5th. The sprint bonus points from Tucker and Pruett helped hugely, amounting to 40% of our total of 170 points. Me? I added a paltry 13 points to the team total.
Takeaways
My result is nothing to crow about, but it feels good to set some PRs if nothing else:
- 1-minute power PB on the first Leg Snapper: 537W
- Leg Snapper PR: 50 seconds/550W
- Innsbruckring PR: 11:22 (previous best was 12:02)
- Innsbruck KOM PR: 23:37 (previous best was 26:34)
Given 20/20 hindsight, I would have grabbed more points for my team if I’d eased up on the Leg Snapper and sat in with the chase group through each sprint, content to reel in the front group each lap. This would have resulted in me arriving at the base of the KOM in the exact same place as I did in this race, but with fresher legs. (My guess is I could have finished perhaps 10 places higher with those hypothetically fresher legs.)
But that’s a big gamble to take! Some of the earlier races in the day had seen the groups coming back together – others had not. So I think the smartest approach would have been to handle the first lap just like I did – but ease up on the second and third laps, since I could be reasonably sure everything would come back together, and I knew I didn’t have the sprint legs to earn any extra points from the front group.
Next time!
Your Thoughts
Did you race in ZRL race 3? How did it work out for you and your team? Comment below!
Was a great race, however, the Tron bike decision/recommendation was not the right one. Pace eased off extremely after the sprint until legsnapper again. Hence a lighter bike for the KOM and the legsnapper would have been favorable.
With perfect hindsight, I would agree. But since I was targeting the sprint and wanting to stay with the front group until the base of the KOM, I went with the Tron for maximum advantage.
But yes, based on how the race actually shook out, a lightweight climber would have served me better, and I would have made it up the KOM maybe 6-8s faster based on the bike weight alone.
But maybe losed much energy on the flat, i think tron was the good choice
I would be curious of a test up this specific climb. There are better “climbing” bikes then the tron but there is a breakover point on aero vs. weight based on climbing speed. I’m guess an aero vs light bike are not that different on this climb because it is a bit of a faster/less steep climb then the tested Alp climb.
Great post Eric and similar experience here. I ended up ditching my trusty tron and going Aeroad 2021 and DT 1100’s. I’m 88kg with not a great 1min, I’m suited for ITT, so goal was to do my time trial pull watts on the leg snappers so as not to go too deep and save myself for the kom. I ended up going way too hard on the leg snappers as I was getting passed so easily. In a group around 50th at the base of the kom and they rode away from me, as I was shattered and low morale. Lonely ride up passing a few, getting passed by a few. Finished 58th. Wish I would have stuck to my plan, a little slower on the leg snappers, and gone harder up the kom. All in all good workout and learning where I need to focus my training. My team did great, 6th overall and 3rd for the season so far. After this really looking forward to week 6!!😂
On the bright side I had the same tactic as you, and I did manage to ride within myself on the leg snapper, but I started the climb so far back I only managed 59th… so you shouldn’t beat yourself up about it 😄
Sounds like you described my exact race to the T. Humbling day for sure.
lol, your division seems a little weighted in favour of DIRT lol. 12 DIRT riders
Yeah, 2 separate DIRT squads. We were hoping the other squad would get placed in a different division this time around, but that didn’t happen. It sure does look like we’re an intimidating force though, eh?
hahaha, it’s all good. Just enjoying the racing. Nice to have a league that working well for the most part.
The numbers show you did a great job on a course your not suited for. With the bonus points being so important you have to take a chance. I decided to also go for it on Lap 1, I screwed up the super tuck, but recovered enough to get bonus points for 5th FAL and 8th FTS which was worth the spots I lost on the KOM by being less fresh. Not to mention gave me an opportunity as a midpack C to contribute to the team.
Nice work. Exactly – getting just a few sprint bonus points negates the cost of pushing to get them. Unfortunately, I didn’t even get those. But that’s how it happens sometimes!
My first ride for KRT C mixed team (Love Guns), no expectations of greatness and fully prepared to finish last, so went into iTT mode to try and close the gap. I found myself in a very lonely last place (79th) for most of the race, watching the time gaps increase. I was very happy not to have been lapped by the lead group before they hit the bottom of the KOM so that was one achievement.
Got to the bottom of the KOM 3:26 behind the 78th place rider. Working on a strategy of keeping my W/kg higher than his I reeled him in at a rate of 300m per km climbing. Another rider had stopped on the climb and I just kept hammering away. In the end I finished 76th and managed to get a lead of 26 seconds on the guy I was chasing.
Way to keep at it! It feels so good to pass someone, even if it’s just one or two folks. That was me, sprinting past 2-3 riders in the final meters!
Teammate with a different perspective. As 100kg rider and 3.0 hour power I knew KOM was out of the question. Positioned myself well going into each LS and made it up and over the first time with top 5 riders. We got caught by a larger group as we hit the sprint. Hung on for a 3 points. Next two laps played it smarter knowing the same would happen. Make it over with the bigger second group. Picked up 5 points each lap. Went into the kom in 11th. Goal was 2.8 on the climb but was SPENT. Got passed time and time again. Sitting at 34th with a mile to go I just had to hang on to collect my 16 points. Type2fun. That hill sucked.
I was racing for foudre yesturday and finished 4th in the race
Our strategy was simple, one guy for the sprint (flavien who still managed to finish 10th overall), 4 riders for the finish and one team mate. We wanted to stay cool in the leg snaper to not lose so much energy so i was always starting the climb in front and easely going to the back to finish in the 2nd group. Our team mate was planned to push at this time to get us back in the front at each lap and it worked well.
I just moved on the last lap to stay with first group to avoid bad surprise but we knew that if our strategy worked with succes, we got at least a top 3 with camille and u know the end! Thanks for your review!
This might have been my favorite race out of 91 races on zwift. As a 60kg B with an engine tuned to longer climbing my only fear was getting over the leg snapper with the front. I managed that better than anticipated and climbed about as well I can to go 20:08 on the climb and finish 4th overall. I got dropped twice on the flat bits where I lost focus on the wheel ahead although I don’t know if I would have been strong enough to sprint past anybody at the end. I agonized all week about bike choice and ended up going with the Tarmac Pro and DT Swiss. It’s a noticeable difference on the flats, but I wanted every watt to count on the climb. Watching your race and how easy the pack went in between leg snappers was what sealed my bike decision. Nice write up, Eric!
Tron vs Canyon/DT vs Canyon/Enve3.4 on this route would be a very interesting test.
Would love to know how much climbing needs to be on a course for Tron to be a disadvantage..
Thanks for sharing what it takes to compete in a race at that level.
Used the canyon aeroad 2021. As I do not have the tron yet, working on it. Went with DT Swiss 62 wheels but thinking back should have gone with the enve 3.4. Was also thinking of the cannondale evo with 3.4 that I used TdZ stage 2 standard route on the climb but went with canyon due better aero for town laps.
I used the Aeroad too with ENVE 7.8. Worked well and I picked up a 3rd and 4th FAL in laps 1 and 2. Missed the cut on lap 3 so rolled through in 21st place. Caught the lead group just before the KOM and managed to finish 12th. New PRs all over the course including 20min, 5 min and 15 sec power output on ZP. A testing course but more looking forward to Harrogate next week which more suits my style of riding. Great work Eric, love reading your race stories and the articles on ZRL. The ZRL is definitely a big and challenging weekly test but has pushed me from low C to upper B in less than 2 seasons so must be doing something right.
Question pertaining to bike choice:
Like you, sprinting is my strength. Knowing my weight (106kg) and FTP (268 in the last 90 days) would mean I had NOTHING for the KOM, I choose the Venge S with the disc wheel (Level 35). It seemed to work. I finished 10th in FTS with no drafting help, but I DID have an aero boost. I believe if I had used the Tron or a climbing frame/wheel set, I wouldn’t have snagged that final point position for FTS on the sprint. Yes, I slogged up the KOM with the heavy wheel set, but I was going to do that anyway. Am I missing something obvious in strategy here?
This was clearly a course for sprinters (at least in my race). We are all heavyweight and therefore only decent climbers. With our sprint points alone (+1 point per rider for finishing) we would have finished 2nd as a team only 3 points behind the climber team. Overall we finished around 100 riderpoints ahead of the second team.
I couldn’t hold the group over the leg snapper… my 1 minute power is woeful and I am only barely an A based on FTP anyway (4.05), so I can get rolled in a sprint or 1 minute effort by most B riders.
My goal was just to do what I could to get to the climb – as above my 20 min power is my best characteristic so my aim was just to try to get out a 20 minute power PB up the climb and see how that went for me. I can’t do a good 1 minute effort but I can suffer for 20 no problem 🙂
I started the climb in 75th and finished it 59th for 10 points! I think a lot of people knackered themselves fighting for the sprint and leg snapper, so couldn’t hold anything on the climb. I also finished above 2 of my teammates who are nominally stronger than me- based on that I think my strategy was pretty justified. I didn’t set a 20 min PR, but it was a 6 week PR on Strava which suggests the numbers are going the right way. Finished the KOM in 21:03, 287 watts, 4.16 wkg. Think my 20 min power was 289 vs a PR (from last season’s New York race) of 303, so still a little way to go.
Great route though, nice bit of variation.
We raced on Tuesday in EMEA E1 and were part of the Atom Racing Team, who all had the Zwift Steering Update issues (Eric recently covered my workaround video on Fri 29 Jan). We were all suffering from invisible cloak, lack of power, gears not connecting etc.
Our best rider pulled a blinder round the 3 laps. Stuck well in contention on the leg snapper and sprints (no primes though) and stuck to the front KOM riders, we enjoy the ZRL and hope to do well in our new class Espresso after only serving one season as Frappe in 2020.
Love your write-ups Eric, always great reading. I was wondering, do you know if the individual point scores from each race are published anywhere? I know Zwifpower has the Prime results, but I haven’t seen a list of overall point scoring for each rider for the overall race – only the final teams results on the WTRL website. Now that Prime scoring goes 10 deep, it can change tactics considerably, but it’s hard to assess those tactics if you never actually see the results!
They aren’t being published anywhere… yet. WTRL said they’re working on the code, though… sounded like it would arrive any day now!
Cheers. I imagine it’d be a pretty huge job given the huge number of racers and points to be tallied! Now they just need to schedule a flat course with lots of sprint intermediates – like an old fashioned track points race – to really change up the tactics.