Zwift just sent out a press release announcing today’s launch of Urukazi. Read the entire release below (and see Jon Mayfield’s test ride from last night)…
Zwift, the global online fitness platform, is today revealing the roads of Urukazi, the latest expansion to Makuri Islands. Urukazi follows the November 2021 Neokyo expansion, and now includes over 40 miles of road available to explore in Makuri Islands, taking Zwifters from cityscapes to the country and now to the coast.
Urukazi (woo-roo-kah-zi) is the combination of two Okinawan words – “uru” means “shore,” and “kazi” means “breeze.” The combination of the two words is meant to evoke the serene, untouched character of the Southern Japanese archipelago. On the roads of Urukazi, you’ll find a Zwifty interpretation of those islands’ scenery as you ride pavement, gravel, and a new type of surface not yet found anywhere else on Zwift.
Enter Urukazi directly through a paddock or choose between heading south from Yumezi or Neokyo. Pedaling from Yumezi to Urukazi takes you through a slot canyon or you can explore the cave system while traveling from Neokyo. Take in the shoreline with fast gravel roads that skim the water’s edge. Marvel at the lush flora and fauna or test your legs as you rack up the miles through the varied landscapes across Makuri Islands.
From launch, there will be 8 new routes to ride and Makuri Islands now has over 40 miles of roads to explore.
- Mech Isle Loop
Take a lap around this short industrial loop.
Distance: 2.5 mi // 4 km, Elevation Gain: 127 ft // 38.7m - Bridges and Boardwalks
Explore the biggest island in Urukazi.
Distance: 3.9 mi // 6.3 km, Elevation Gain, 195 ft // 59.5m - Island Hopper
Visit all of the islands of Urukazi in a single lap.
Distance: 11.2 mi // 18 km, Elevation Gain, 421.6 ft // 128.5m - Fine and Sandy
Explore mangroves and sandy beaches on this off-road loop.
Distance: 6.5 mi // 10.6 km, Elevation Gain, 253 ft // 77.1 m - Island Outskirts
Race around the outskirts of Urukazi
Distance: 7 mi // 11.3 km, Elevation Gain, 295 ft // 90.1 m - Makuri 40
Feel the burn on this 40 km loop around Makuri
Distance: 24.9 mi // 40 km, Elevation Gain: 1006 ft // 306.6m - Country to Coastal
Cruise open fields to open oceans
Distance: 20.7 mi // 33.4 km, Elevation Gain: 899 ft // 274 m - Turf N Surf
A race from city streets to sandy beaches
Distance: 15.3 mi // 24.6 km, Elevation Gain: 642 ft // 195.8 m
Tour of Makuri Islands is ongoing where you can venture through all that Makuri Islands has to offer. Stages 5 & 6 of Tour of Makuri Islands will take on these new roads of Urukazi, read more and sign up for the Tour here.
ah yes, lets make the roads gravel so it can be dead content on release day… 🙁
I think you’ll find there is very little to slow you down in Urukazi… don’t knock it ’til you try it.
You recommend a gravel setup?
Cervelo aspero with the gravel specific wheels as it looks like the routes are more flatter than climbing based on the test ride in the link.
Gravel setup definitely NOT recommended for Urukazi.
So MTB? Need the info before Race Makuri Stage 3 which I assume is on Turf N Surf. Or is it the dreaded bike change?
Road bike. Tron if you have it.
True. Fast as pavement mostly.
I beg to differ. I’ve now ridden both “Turf and Surf” and “Island Outskirts.” It almost looks as if Zwift deliberately surfaced the climbs with dirt to slow riders down. Riding these routes was quite frustrating. Now that I’ve received the requisite badges, I’m not planning to voluntarily ride either again.
Developers and designers spend hundreds of hours on this stuff. You haven’t seen it yet. Paired with the other roads in Makuri and Neokyo this will be a nice variety. Try some positivity!
positivity on the internet? about zwift? no one hates zwift more than people who comment on zwift on the internet
Seriously, it’s a video game you get to exercise to. Makes me want to pull out my shirt that says “Don’t be such a roadie”
If you’ve ridden it by now, you know the “fast sand” is indeed fast. As far as I can tell, it rolls as fast as tarmac. There are only a couple of relatively short “dirt” sections, but overall I was very pleased.
agreed. I don’t understand swifts obsession with gravel when at a bare minimum it pisses off at least 50% of the users. Maybe for some reason they need to create routes that aren’t going to see heavy usage.
Based on the pictures, it is mostly gravel, which is a shame… Not like I don’t like off road, but because it is a small aprt of Makuri, meaning for a long ride (let’s say countryside tour + urukazi) one should switch bikes… Market trend is important, but is it THAT important?
Don’t knock it ’til you ride it. It’s definitely NOT mostly gravel.
Unless racing, or trying for a segment jersey, why bother to swap bikes? It’s not like IRL where riding a road bike on gravel can be a miserable experience.
On Zwift, it’s a not really noticeable. Sure the virtual speed will likely be slower, but that’s just a number on the display.
So what’s the Point in gravel then?
you can’t feel the gravel sections except for slower speed. I don’t get it, if I want to go in the dirt I take my mtb/gravel bike/whatever and go outside. On the trainer I want to train and have fun doing it. Gravel on the trainer is imho pointless and no fun at all.
My idea for a solution: something like Trainer sensitivity for surface. Everyone who likes to go slow on gravel, go with 100% surface, and everyone who doesn’t go 0%, or just a on/off switch. And for races/meet-ups/etc. the Organizer can set it for the event and override everyone taking part. And of course it must be clearly marked and highlighted what’s chosen.
For the same reason there are forests, deserts, rural scenes, blowing snow, flowing lava, urban areas, rain, etc. To give a varied and interesting visual experience.
Yes, that‘s the right point you‘re making here. Visual experience. No less, no more. I don‘t need different crr on the visual experience. And I‘m not alone here. So why not let the user choose?
What is the ‘new type of surface’? Did not explain that. Beach or grass?
Sand. But…. very hard-packed sand.
Very hard packed sand sounds nice. My favorite scenery on Zwift for riding is “the woods (? the dirt road between the village onsen and the castle village) and repack ridge but the gravel (and the repack ridge steering) mechanism mean I don’t ride them as often as I otherwise would (epic KoM bypass is probably 3rd on my list for visuals). I love the looks of narrow paths that open on big vistas, so something like that here but with a faster rolling surface sounds spectacular.
How does this new surface fit in to the existing surfaces? Speed, rolling resistance, tire choice, what does it add?
ZHCC have provided a dedicated gravel ride now for a couple of years (jungle circuit) as that was the only fully off-road course available to us. Having another dedicated gravel circuit and more gravel is a welcome addition for our off road fans.
I do not see these new routes when I log on, what am I missing, would like to ride today
What you’re missing is they haven’t launched yet. My guess would be it’ll launch in the next 2 hours…
Thanks Eric
Which devices are supported, at present?
I guess I could just go and boot up my Apple TV, but I’m busy doing computer stuff 😉
Supported for what?
So, does this mean that people wanting to race in the wicr races (or any other race this evening) should be planning a few extra minutes for an update when planning to load Zwift before their ride?
Yup.
Looks like Crit City could be about to have a rival, in the form of Mech Isle Loop.
the climb is a longer but less steep so the oversize people would like it
Looks like TOMI:
Stage 5:
Category A: The Longer RideRoute: Makuri 40
Laps: 1
Distance: 40km (24.9mi)
Elevation: 300m (985’)
Category B: The Shorter RideRoute: Turf n Surf
Laps: 1
Distance: 24.7km (15.3mi)
Elevation: 195m (641’)
Stage 6:
Category A: The Longer RideRoute: Country to Coastal
Laps: 1
Distance: 33.3km (20.7mi)
Elevation: 267m (878’)
Category B: The Shorter RideRoute: Island Hopper
Laps: 1
Distance: 18.1km (11.3mi)
Elevation: 128.5m (422’)
So if you’re badge hunting do the other 4 1st:
Why 1st?
It’s faster to the group rides
Sorry if I’m missing something but does that expansion sound pretty small compared to let’s say France and Paris?
Or in other words, are those 8 new routes, none longer than 40km, the new stuff we’ve been waiting for for a year? I kinda hope I’m totally confusing stuff here.
And the 40km route includes a lot of preexisting roads. So really its one year waiting time for <30km new roads. They go for quality over quantity which I believe is correct as we have "enough" roads for a functioning Zwift, however that is really slow and I hope for more in the future.
I think what we’re missing is a good climb segment in Makuri – I’m hoping Mt Fuji will come along soon but was still hoping for a decent climb in this release. Makuri doesn’t have anything too taxing in terms of climbs. That being said, I’m not being negative, the release of new roads is always good and will be enjoying getting out exploring these too 🙂
this is the transition to Fuji. you need something between the city and the mountain. it would be weird if you turned the corner in neon and suddenly you were on fuji. suspect fuji is the next climb
The graphics are really nice. I love the theme. The surface… doesn’ make a lot of sense. Not a lot of elevation gain, although it looks like Mt Fuji is lurking in the background for a future expansion.
Jeesopete people! It’s like complaining about the taste of the food at a restaurant that you haven’t been to yet! Go ride the new content. THEN complain about it…
Very cool to see new routes.I assume there will route badges added as well. Something to chase.
I agree with many of the comments that it’s not a lot of new KMs since the last map drop 12 months ago. Having said that, there are some nice touches and both of the routes into the island are beautiful! Hopefully with Zwift refocused they can keep building it out in the coming months. Lots of potential!
How much xp for completing each of these routes?
40xp per KM. Find the route detail pages here on Zwift Insider and they’ll list the exact XP for the route.
Its 20xp per KM not 40. Unless you are on the fast track to level 50 and get double XP .
Oh yeah, forgot about that! 20XP per KM.
Sorry to bother you with this, but I was wondering: When do you think will you be able to upload the info to Zwifthub?
I am really only looking for the achievement buttons, so I can mark them that I have finished them.
Eric’s right. Like any route on which you can gain a badge for completion, you do get 40XP per km (in total) for the duration of the route the first time you ride these (with the doubled part being awarded as you cross the line).
But 40XP when you gain the route badge.
I was also wondering if there is bonus XP for the route badge like there there is for other courses in Zwif @Eric Schlange
Morning.
Is it too early to sugest a new Rebel route?
Let’s call it Makuri perimeter. Start in the pens near Neokyo harbor, turn left towards the Alley sprint, go to the Rooftop KOM doing it in the same way as in the route “Rooftop Rendevous”, coming down the railway, go throgh the arcade and then to Yumezi, turning right at the begining. Climb bordering the castle and go up to the Temple KOM reverse, go down the normal temple KOM and go to the Country sprint reverse. Up to this point is like Chasing the sun route, only doing counterclock wise the rooftop KOM and the railway part, and also doing the Yumezi counterclock wise as well.
The leave Yumezi for Urukazi (turning right instead of going to Neokyo), go to Mech Isle (a couple of right turns), go beside the pens in the island. The Urukazi part would be like in new “Turf N Surf” route to go back to the pens near Neokyo harbor.
Hope I explained clearly enough.
There’s enough roads that they could probably create two new routes a month for the rest of winter just winding around them in a different ways.
Do Farmland Loop, then right turns only. I did this before the new expansion was released. I thought it would take me on a perimeter route, but it took me into the city before eventually taking me back to the start of Farmland Loop. With this new expansion the right turn only should take you on a larger perimeter route.
Cant wait to try the new roads later today ( after my mandatory Alpe 😉 ) Anyone managed to figure which routes to ride to cover all the new roads ( maybe even in both directions ) ?
So weird, that they’ve previously done all of that work with dirt and gravel (introduced dirt, then added a new one and changed the crr of the first, introduced MTBs and Gravel bikes), and now introduce “sand” which is no different than pavement? There’s even sections where you ride over grass, and, no effect? Even cobbles add a bit of resistance, but not sand or grass?
Did Mech Isle Loop and, Bridges and Boardwalks last night, and maybe it’s purely psychological (probably definitely), but, I did feel a tad bit slower.
Although they’re an extension of Makuri Islands, they look nothing like the other routes. Kind of has this Hawaiian look and feel to it. So far, prefer it over the rest of Mauri.
The part through the mangroves had huge gaps in the surface and yet it didn’t slow me down at all. It’s strange.
Weird, rode Turf and Surf last night and there is no KOM segment even though there are 2 climbs that are more KOM-ish than say Aqueduc or Titan’s Grove KOMs.
Just tried some of the new routes and encountered a number of teething problems – bikes floating 10cm off the ground or wheels sunk up to the hubs, riding through trees/rocks/ road barriers when steering, and winning one of the sprints and the Zwift app giving me two different times (that weren’t even close). Apart from that it looks great…..
The pavement seems crazy fast in some places, I was holding pack speeds as a solo rider on the area near the start pens
Visually, it was pretty cool, if a bit odd having road-like speeds while seeing myself go over sand (or rocks with gaps between them for one segment in the mangrove maze area. I did feel that the dirt climb (even if not very steep or long at 6-800 m and 3-5%) could have been a KoM given that it would likely be a major selection point through any race over it given how flat and fast the rest of the course is.
Already working on my own route ideas. Here is one 4c (city, canyon, cliffs,cave) route harbor start, lead into castle sprint, tower sprint, into tunnel, down the canyon, along the beach/ tide pool sprint, cave climb, finish at castle sprint. New map add on has some good hill climbs beach to canyon, cave, and sehisa hill/ sprint either way. Then some shorter power grades and rollers.
Packed sand is Zwift attempting to satisfy its customers who hate slow rolling resistance while being able to make something more graphically engaging. Now if only they’d retroactively offer the same solution in the jungle and the Yumezi dirt sections.
Rode one of the routes last night, nice change and scenery. LIKE! Will the maps and elevations profiles and XP be added to the route list?
The visuals are great, with a lot of variation in scenery, loved it! The routes could do with a number of longer KQOM segments, there are only sprints now. Hope they add some longer segments or timed loops in the next update. And Mt Fuji would also be a grand addition. But I suppose it will not be any time zoon.
Well, Zwift proves once again that Money💰talks (oh Eric! thank you for fixing the Emoji issue, and always awesome seeing you😊) Climbers🏔 are seriously disappointed with this new roll out of routes. Second verse same as the first with a few “hair extensions”.
I thought this new addition was really visually amazing, as is most of Makuri in general. Rode the Makuri 40 at lunch with a group and it was great! Not too challenging in terms of elevation, but lots to look at, and fun to ride. (I’m level 45 Zwifter at this point)
Yeah, it looks like a second Watopia’s Waistband — great for a big group party.
It is simple. If rolling resistance worked in sand, most people would probably be bothered by it. That’s why Zwift invented hard sand.
Have ridden wet beach sand in CX races before and it is pretty hard and rides close to wet tarmac. You could easy drive a regular car on it as they some places. Assuming that is what zwift is doing here. Dry sand whole different situation. Wet sand = fast, dry sand = very slow power sapping to walking/running.
Any big climbs in it? Seems I only really feel epic climbs interest me judging by all the releases since beta. We need a. We ADZ type climb. Best thing Zwift has done IMO – epic effort and gamified. Shame the game doesn’t have tons of this stuff in it as opposed to that kind of content being discouraged from development.
Also why no real everesting challenge in the game – ie. You have to complete it all in one session like the Hells500 guys ask. I did a vEveresting on ADZ and loved it but wish it was integrated into the game as a challenge (current one is a bit lame, sorry – everyone will get that by random play. Not actually a challenge!)
Why do I have to climb from Urukazi beach to Neokyo harbour if they are on the same ocean?
any idea on how long it usually takes to upload the routes to zwifthub?
Really love the look and feel if the new roads, just mildly bemused by geography (north and south sides of two of the islands seem more like east and west) and sea level. (It’s at sea level. Neokyo is at sea level. There’s 50m of elevation between them …) I’ll be back for more of them. And, as a non CX or MTB rider IRL, I loved flying over the diverse surfaces like they were tarmac. I’ll hide now,
ZwiftGPS maps need an update to show the new roads.
I was pretty blown away by this addition. And as with the original Makuri and then Neokyo, there are a lot of ways you can vary the course so that even if it’s not a lot of additional miles, there are a lot of new routes you can trace (unlike France, where I do wish they would add at least one new road through the middle of the RGV circuit).
Totally agree. The amount of new road seemed disappointing on paper, but it has really opened up Makuri and added a variety of route options. A case of the sum being greater than the parts.
The new roads add some nice rolling sections for added intensity and they are visually stunning.
I am really liking it and think that Makuri is now my favourite world.
I’ve ridden a fair bit of the new roads on a road bike (Trek Madone with Zipp 353NSW) and didn’t find much additional resistance on the non-tarmac portions, other than the usual experience on gravel segments. As Eric says, it’s “hard-packed” sand. Check it out… variety is good.
Hi – since the latest update we now can NOT get onto the makuri island at all. still able to use the rest of the zwift world. is this to do with our PC’s graphic card ? or something Zwift has done ?
No problem with my windows setup.
Any feedback on weather a mountain bike or a gravel bike is better on the sand?
Neither. Road bikes roll best in sand. See https://zwiftinsider.com/crr
I am not convinced that the rolling resistance on the compacted sand is the same as that for a road. I just did 2 laps of the Fine & Sandy course in a race (C Category). I averaged 219 watts (3 w/kg) & did 35.7 kph with 156m of climbing. As a warm up I did a similar distance on the Flat route in Watopia with the Maria robopacer (D category). For this I averaged 150 watts (2.2 w/kg), avg speed was 36.9 kph with 148m of climbing. For both rides I was on the Tron bike. It looks to me like the rolling resistance in Urukazi is significantly slower that the roads in Watopia.
You may not be convinced… but I am. I’ve seen the actual Crr numbers in realtime. 🙂
OK Eric, thanks for the reply. The numbers do seem odd though, more than 45% more watts needed & a slower average speed. The group size would have made a bit of difference, about 70 or 80 with the pacer, compared to about 20 in the race (the group I was in), but surely not that much.
Fine and Sandy has the key dirt climb (twice!) which would greatly reduce your average speed. I’d say that plus group size probably explains the difference.