Update: Zwift Ride is now shipping! Shop via the links below:
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Today, Zwift unveiled Zwift Ride: an “always-ready, complete indoor cycling setup ready to unlock the full Zwift experience.”
I’ve had a Zwift Ride setup here in the lab since early May, and you’ll see a full review published here on Zwift Insider this week. For now, let’s show some photos and discuss key Zwift Ride features as announced in today’s press release!
What It Is, and Why It’s Special
Zwift Ride is a smart bike setup, but it’s wholly different from other smart bikes on the market today in two ways.
First, the frame (Zwift calls it the “Zwift Ride Smart Frame”) is compatible with any trainer that supports virtual shifting. Yes, you can purchase Zwift Ride as a full package with a trainer. In fact, that’s the only way you can purchase it, for now. But eventually – and this is important – the frame will be sold as a standalone item which you can mount on your trainer, provided you also purchase a Zwift Cog and your trainer supports Zwift’s virtual shifting. (Currently compatible trainers include the Zwift Hub, Wahoo KICKR Core, Wahoo KICKR v6, and Wahoo KICKR Move.)
Read more about virtual shifting on Zwift >
Secondly, the price is well below industry norms. Selling for $1299USD, Zwift Ride is much more affordable than the big hitters in the smart bike space, including the Wahoo KICKR Bike ($3999), Wahoo KICKR Bike Shift ($2999), Tacx NEO Bike Plus ($3999), Tacx NEO Bike ($3199), and Wattbike Atom ($2549).
Zwift Ride is initially selling as a complete package combining the Zwift Ride Smart Frame and a Wahoo KICKR CORE Zwift One trainer. Starting this fall, the Zwift Ride Smart Frame will also be sold as a standalone item.
What a video intro from Zwift:
Pricing, Availability, and Timing
Zwift Ride With KICKR CORE will begin shipping June 26 to the US, UK, EU, Canada and Australia.
Register early interest and see product details at zwift.com/shop/products/zwift-ride-kickr-core.
Zwift Ride with KICKR CORE Pricing:
Zwift Ride Tablet Holder Pricing:
Zwift Ride Smart Frame Details
Zwift Ride was clearly designed with simplicity and affordability in mind. Virtual shifting pulls a lot of the weight here, since it takes away the hassle of dialing in mechanical shifting while also reducing cost since it removes shifting hardware and chainrings/cassette from the package.
But it’s also easy on the eyes! While the single front leg makes it clear this is an indoor-only proposition, it has the overall lines of a modern road racing frame.
Key features and specifications include:
- Adjustability: saddle height, bar height, and reach
- Integrated Zwift Key tool handles all necessary adjustments and is securely stored in top tube
- Rider size range: 5′ (152cm) to 6′ 6″ (198cm)
- Cranks: 170mm
- Integrated dual control pads (similar to Zwift Play) for virtual shifting, steering, and more
- Virtual shifting: instant, silent, customizable
- Selectable shifting styles: Shimano, SRAM, or sequential
- Two easy-access drop-in bottle cages
- Thru-axle frame mounting
- Sturdy single-speed bike chain
- Flat pedals included
- Rubber nonslip handlebar tray for phone/food/towel etc
- Chain tensioner makes it easy to remove Smart Frame from trainer if necessary
- Optional integrated tablet holder
More features and specs on the Zwift Ride homepage >
Complete Review Coming Soon
As mentioned above, I’ve had a Zwift Ride here in the Zwift Insider Lab for several weeks. I’ve been putting it through its paces, testing it with a Zwift Hub, KICKR Core, and KICKR v6 trainer… sometimes on a rocker plate!
It’s worked like a charm, handling everything I can throw at it. It’s a bit early to be making predictions, but I’m going to come out and say Zwift Ride is going to further revolutionize the indoor cycling market by doing to smart bikes what Zwift Hub did to smart trainers: lower barriers to entry so more riders enjoy a top-notch Zwifting experience.
Additionally, once the frame becomes available as a standalone product, I predict many established Zwifters will buy one so they can have an always-ready indoor setup without moving their outdoor bike on and off the trainer.
Watch for a full review this week.
Questions or Comments
See the Zwift Ride homepage for more info (and to register early interest).
Got questions or comments? Post below!
“the single front leg makes it clear this is an indoor-only proposition”
How stable is this when sprinting out of the saddle? Is there some sway built into the rear triangle? If not, seems like they should have small horizontal stabilizer on the bottom of that single front leg.
Gotta say … I’m very interested in this. I already have a Zwift hub, so will probably wait until just the frame is available. I would love to be rid of switching the bike on/off the trainer. In Northeast Ohio, springtime is outside one day ‘cuz it’s great, inside next day ‘cuz it’s snowing. 😉
Agreed that single front leg looks a bit concerning especially for sprinting efforts where you could have some rocking side to side motions
It’s rock solid, because the rear triangle/trainer is rock solid. No concerns when sprinting here.
What’s the difference between that and a normal wheel with a tiny contact point?
Exactly, Tony. This is actually a bit MORE stable than a tire.
LOL, my first thought was exactly like Tris, but then I immadiately switched to Tony. That thing looks amazing and the pricing is brilliant. Looking forward to detailled testing …
When will it be released in Korea? I really want to buy it
The footprint of that leg looks bigger than the footprint of a 28c tyre on the ground. I dont think stability on the front is important.
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Regarding the the single front leg, I’m of the opinion that a an oval foot, say 8 inches wide by 4 inches to a avoid a small single point contact with the floor, mat, rug or what ever. I know that using my carbon frame with the version 5 kicker smart trainer, which boast a side to side movement in the description, there is a bit of rocking when hammering out of the saddle. When I see this addition, I may be hooked.
Would work quite nicely as a bike fitting rig for business too. Very solid product at an excellent price.
Is 170mm the only crank option? Lack of adjustable crank lengths makes this a no-go for me.
Yup.
Yeah, 170mm is short for my 36″ inseam legs. But I would guess they keep costs low by minimizing variations. However, 172.5mm would be a better middle ground, IMO.
I have same inseam, ride 175 on the road and ride 170mm on the track. I’m considering 170mm for my next road bike.
172.5 feels like it’s writing off half the population (yes, there are tall women and short men out there, but we’re talking averages). I do ride 170 at 5’5″ (which is a little above average height of a woman in the US) but have had fitters suggest I’d be better off at 165, and some charts say I should be riding 160.
Generally, the data I’ve seen put the peak of the bell curve for men around 175 and the peak for women around 165, which, obviously, puts 170 as the compromise spot.
Yep, would pick up the frame the day it’s separately on sale if cranks are adjustable or replaceable.
I did think the same, I have the kickr bike, and accept it’s pricey by comparison, but it’s adjustability is pretty much across every aspect you can think of, including cranks. I guess if you’re willing to buy additional kit like crank arms etc it can still be affordable by comparison but just with a little more work.
Now this is interesting. My current set up uses a Kickr with my old 2005 road frame permanently attached. At some point the drive train will stop working quite as it should or something important will break. Hopefully not for a while yet, but when that day comes, it would be very tempting to replace it with this frame. Much more suitable and cost effective than any of the smart bikes on the market.
At that point why not just remove your shifters, derailleur and put on a chain tensioner. It’d be the same thing
Sounds cool. I will definitely consider buying the stand alone unit without the built-in trainer when it is available.
I’m surprised nothing mentions the KICKR Climb. It doesn’t appear to be compatible, but I might just be missing information.
I was thinking of buying a dedicated bike frame setup for indoor cycling since I already have the Zwift Plays, and found this interesting, but I might just not be the targeted market.
Yea, it sadly doesn’t list KICKR Climb as compatible in the specs 😕
Yeah, it’s not compatible with the Climb.
That’s a shame. I used to use a trainer with a climb and loved it. It adds a huge amount of immersion into Zwift, especially routes like Titans Grove, it’s like being on a roller coaster 😉
I’m kind of surprised they’ve not gone for some considerations for it, given 3/4 supported trainers also support the Climb. Although it looks like there’s a bolt on the back of the front leg from the photos, is the bottom black part removable?
If it is, I wonder if they could release an adaptor that replaces the bottom of the leg with a stubby fork & a thru-axle?
Belt drive would have been next level
Agree, disappointed by the chain from a maintenance and noise perspective.
I just found the replacement for my Wahoo Snap On!
If indieVelo ever becomes compatible with the Zwift cog virtual shifting this would be great (l can’t be the only one who rides on multiple platforms). Also, not having adjustable crank lengths is weird. I can’t imagine a bear claw to solve that would have changed the cost at all.
Probably would have increased the cost, since much of the bike seems to be well thought out.
Would be nice to see virtual shifting come to more trainer manufacturers (seems to be an exclusive thing with Wahoo – part of that settlement?) when the frame-only option comes out. On the other hand, this really locks you into Zwift since they encrypt their Play and Click communications so that you can’t use them with other platforms.
Ah I didn’t think about that. So you wouldn’t be able to shift gears on other platforms with this bike?
Not unless they have an alternate controller for virtual shifting (iV uses your keyboard or you can use bluetooth buttons you strap to this keyboard). You wouldn’t be able to use the buttons from this model though, unless they decide to open up the communications.
Virtual shifting is definitely coming to more trainer manufacturers. I bet we’ll see news on this in the next 1-3 months.
Well it’s been what, over three months since Wahoo said they were going to upgrade the firmware for the Kickr v5 to enable virtual shifting and they haven’t done it. Maybe now they never will. I paid close to $1,000.00 for a trainer that can’t be used with virtual shifting on Zwift….yet. What do you think?
I’ve been waiting impatiently for the v5 to be updated too. DC rain said on 6-18 that “At the moment they’ve run into unexpected challenges with the V5 and size of the firmware. It’s unclear if, or when, it’ll now get it.” This is the first update I’ve heard since they announced it. I don’t understand how I can have virtual shifting on my 2018 core, but not on my 2020 v5. Is the size of the memory different on each trainer, or the size of the firmware? Either way it makes no sense. I want to be able to use my v5 because it feels more stable than the core under all out efforts.
Thanks for the update. I half expected this. Some bogus reason they can’t update the v5 firmware. We just might be screwed by Zwift/Wahoo. I hope I am wrong. All we can do is wait and see. I know one thing, they are not likely to offer a frame only option and add other trainers until they maximize their sales of the bundled package. Could be a long wait.
By the way, virtual shifting with the Kickr v5 works just fine on Indie Velo 😉
Is it possible to change the handlebars, 42cm is wider than a lot of people run these days.
Yep. You can swap them out for other bars. (FYI, 42mm is what my KICKR Bike came with, so this seems to be sort of the standard size.)
I’m stubbornly convinced that this is part of a larger plan to get into the Spin Class market.
would 100% buy this (stand alone) but my dedicated zwift bike on my kickr is going to last for ever (even more so with virtual shifting). so dont need it personally. but would if i was in the market
Err, am I missing something? If I don’t want the hassle of switching my bike on and off the turbotrainer, I’d just buy a cheap secondhand bike as a dedicated zwift setup, not spend £1200 on half a bike and not be able to use the CLIMB…
Yes, you’re missing something. 😂
I’m willing to be educated. I can see the appeal for a total newcomer who needs a low entry point for trainer, frame and virtual shifting package. It makes no commercial sense for anyone who has already invested (either totally or partially) into the zwift/ wahoo infrastructure?
Must admit, that seems the better choice, since it’s even a standard chain drive. Just get an old frame with wahoo climb and put the virtual shift Play controllers on. If they make that front end compatible with the climb, or make an integrated version as a higher model, that would be great though.
It may be great but I’m skeptical it’ll be a big seller. Fixed crank length and no elevation adjustment ability (eg Kickr Climb) seem to put this on par with, or below, just buying a secondhand bike and going with virtual shifting.
Apparently, they don’t sell a ton of Kicker Climbs
Climbs are a luxury I guess, but having had one I think they are a great addition. Definitely adds a real immersion into the game, and having the bike angled when out of the seat to climb etc is really good to get a feel like IRL.
It’s the same crank length as the Peloton Bike. Based on the millions of people who bought one and relatively low number of posts/videos on how to change cranks, I would estimate there’s not that much demand for it?
You’d be amazed at how many Zwifters I know who either 1) have the Climb capability disabled on their KICKR Bike or 2) bought a Climb but stopped using it after a few weeks.
For some, it seems to be a novelty feature that gets tired quickly.
I just want the handle bars 🙂
hope they will bring them solo as well.
Great idea. The bike sitting on my trainer is slowly rusting away, so when that goes I could see myself going for the frame only option, as I already have a Kickr Core
Just purchased a Wattbike Atom X a few weeks ago and no regrets. The Zwift version may be okay for your typical lightweight rider but it took me about 2 seconds to see this is no good for me from an engineering perspective.
It says max rider weight is 265 lbs
Care to elaborate, Carl?
Pretty simple take a look at the Atom X frame and then the Zwift Ride. Its not really just about the hardware either, once you start using the Wattbike Hubb and the data it provides like the PES you don’t want to use anything else.
I think the dedicated frame product makes a lot of sense. My biggest question is will it offer a competitive advantage? Looking forward to any testing upcoming.
What sort of competitive advantage could it offer? (I don’t know of any it offers.)
If the frame is optimized for only indoor riding could it register more power into the trainer? Outdoor bikes have to balance stiffness with handling, vibrations, comfort, etc so there would be some efficiency losses. That being said the interesting chain routing around the pulley wheel might be adding some frictional drag.
I wonder if it works with the Wahoo Kickr Move? Have you tested it in such configuration Eric?
Doesn’t work with the Move’s fore/aft movement, because you don’t have a wheel to roll on.
But I’m using it on a rocker plate with fore/aft motion, and it works great!
Available in Canada eh? I was hoping that might mean they are reopening their e-commerce site in Canada and other products like the cog, click, play, etc. might also be available. But it looks like they are just selling this (and the kickr core zwift one) via the Wahoo Canada site, and the individual components are still not available. Boo 👎
Which also means that the standalone frame likely won’t be available in Canada and Australia when that gets released.
Even if they did offer it in Canada, at these inflated prices you are much better off purchasing it from a US site and shipping it. At least that’s how it is for the kickr core right now.
Do you ship to South Africa and price please
The price seems attractive, I hope it’ll put some pressure on Tacx and Wahho’s prices.
But honestly I personally can’t see any advantage of purchasing the Zwift Ride Indoor Smart Bike over using an old (or even a new, low price) road bike with a smart trainer. Using a chain instead of a belt drive is just a missed opportunity. And they sadly didn’t use a standard seat post, which is a matter i.e. when sharing it with my wife. She has a different seat height, which is adjustable, of course, but also needs a different saddle.
I’d like to see updated in the future: belt instead of chain, standard seat post and adjustable crank length
You can easily swap the seat out… as easy as swapping it on any other bike.
Can you share anything on maintenance of the drive train eric? Assume the chain needs some sort of lube or wax and will at some point wear out and need replacing? Is there a front chain ring and bottom bracket with an expected lifespan?
So Zwift deliberately spec’ed a non standard, non ISO sized proprietary square taper bottom bracket to prevent people from putting any other BB or cranks on this thing? Never encountered a company that treats it’s customers with more contempt than Zwift.
Oooo, any bike only purchase price?
Surprised about the negative feedback on here, especially compared to other platforms like DC Rainmaker.
I totally understand that Zwift lost a ton of credibility and goodwill over the last couple of years thanks to some mind boggling decisions and an extended period of time where they clearly didn’t care about user feedback.
But this product is a potential game changer. Even if nothing else, it will have the same effect as the Zwift Hub that dropped prices in the category significantly. Hard to justify paying $3-4k+ for a smart bike when you can buy this one for $1.3k.
There’s also zero downside for anyone not interested in it. They’ve clearly used what was left of the sunk cost Zwift Bike development plus Wahoo’s know how so it’s not like an absurd amount of money went in there that could have been used differently.
I think the price is competitive.
It’s going to be the execution, as it always is. Rolling out a few pristine ones to your favourite sponsor sites is not the same thing as shipping to customers and managing supply chains and versions and support etc.
At this price it’s arguable that perhaps that can’t be expected, though — so setting the right level of expectations and achieving those will also be important.
I think if they knew for sure that they could execute all that then they might have done something like thrown in a 24 months subscription, which would knock the effective price down to even less.
Or, this might be a loss-leader already for them and the hardware and setup etc costs more than the price they are charging. If that’s the case then there’s opportunity for others.
Feels experimental. Nothing wrong with that though!
It’s hard for me to see the appeal of this. One can get a kickr core plus a decent second hand road bike for the same price, but you can use the bike outside or when your main bike is in the shop or something. At least with the inflated Canadian pricing they announced. I guess for non-technical, non-biking people for which mating a bike and a kickr core is a bit too much for them to contemplate, other than that though, I’m stumped.
It’s partly about identity.
Some people may want to have a Zwift bike (and/or be seen to have one).
Sure, but that seems like a very small market, not enough to make any economic sense for zwift to go after.
It is until it isn’t. See iMac
I’m pretty sure the business case inside Zwift for this product isn’t “create a style icon that people want as a status symbol”.
That’s also true for every other smart bike on the market. Right now people pay 2-3x more for a smart bike from Atom or Wahoo.
Also millions of people (literally) bought a Peloton Bike even though they could have used the app with their own bike on a trainer.
I’ve actually been seriously considering getting the Kickr Shift bike that retails for $3k. Now I might just get the Zwift Ride instead once the standalone version is released.
I have the same feelings about smart bikes. For the peloton, those people definitely fall into the category of just wanting to buy one thing that works and not have to futz around figuring out anything extra. They don’t even know what a trainer is. They just know that they can buy a thing and then they can workout from home.
Maybe you can enlighten me, why do you want to spend more on a smart bike? What appeals to you about it? What do you get out of it that you can’t from a second hand bike + trainer?
There are multiple reasons including ease of use but number one is that I want the bike to fit aesthetically. With the Peloton that’s even a bigger thing because so many people have it in their living room instead of a dedicated home gym (or garage).
At the end of the day it’s the same reason why people buy road bikes with fully integrated cables. Aero gains are minimal for recreational cyclists but it looks just so much cleaner. Overall it’s the same reason why people buy Apple products. They work out of the box and look nice.
Okay, ease of use and aesthetic were mentioned in this thread. You said multiple reasons, what are the other reasons beyond those two?
Funny enough I had been drawing ideas out for something exactly like this for a few months now. Too late to beat them to the punch now haha
Maybe a future option could have a belt drive instead of a chain.
If/When they start selling the bike part stand alone without the trainer I would get one right away. Ive been meaning to get an old bike for the trainer so I dont need to switch back and forth. Currently the switching reduces my riding both outdoors and indoors when the bike is in the “other position”. Its not that its so much work but its just that hurdle.
Totally. You’re not alone in that, by any stretch.
Why not just buy an old bike then? It can do trainer and outside, for say when one bike is in the shop.
What’s the width of the handlebars, and are they adjustable or even replaceable?
Love the idea of this, but as with other bikes once you have to start replacing cranks, handlebars, etc. to give a proper fit the cost soon ramps up.
The handlebar is 42cm c-c. The controllers are built into the handlebar, so not meant to be replaceable with aftermarket parts. Not sure if the mounting bracket comes off the bar, if it does I suppose you could replace them with your choice of bars and use zwift play controllers.
The crank is 170mm, proprietary bottom bracket with a non-standard square taper. So again not meant to be replaced with aftermarket parts.
I don’t think people who have had a proper bike fit are their target audience.
Can you turn the handlebars?
Will it be possible to put aero bar extensions on this bike?
With shipping to Canada, will there be local support for us? Will there be a Canadian location in case repairs are needed? I have been interested in Zwift for some time, but lack of Canadian support deterred me.
You can buy a bike and a bike trainer from a local bike shop in Canada and that local bike shop would act as your local support. This has been possible since the start of zwift like 8 or so years ago. You can sign up for zwift after buying those physical items, but that’s a completely separate thing, and it’s just software so no need for anything local.
The shipping to Canada would be through Wahoo, and the local support would most likely be through the same channel. In my experience they have had excellent customer support, that’s in Australia.
Will the Zwift bike frame be compatible with a Tacx Neo 2 trainer in the future? I understand the Zwift hub will be necessary.
That’s up to Garmin/Tacx. My understanding is that Zwift is talking to them about it. I have no idea where that process is at, though.
If only Zwift had made it an open standard instead of their own thing this process might be further along right now.
Is the Zwift Ride will be compatible with Rouvy ?
See “Compatibility” section here: https://zwiftinsider.com/zwift-ride-review/
Steering?
Are you asking if it supports steering? If so, the answer is yes.
Can you swap saddles for one you are used to and like? Also, I would probably buy one of these if it worked with my NEO TAC X. I would like to know if there is any change in the current experience vs the experience on this new bike. Looks great. I would love to dump my current ride for something like this. Never happy with tinkering with shifting etc. on my current cheap commuter / gravel ride. No interest in putting my road bike on and taking it off all the time. Thanks for the review.
Yes, you can swap saddles, just like any other bike.
I bought the zwift turbo with a single cog etc. Promoted by Zwift as new cycling format and a month later it was abandoned by Zwift. How can we be sure this will last longer ?
What was “abandoned”? Zwift just stopped selling the Hub. They still support it.
If you’re asking how long Zwift will keep selling the Zwift Ride… well, that I have no idea about. But my guess is it’ll be in their store for a year or more, until/if something better replaces it.
Hope they plan to sell “Zwift Ride Smart Frame” standalone! I do already have a HT but would take advantage of the frame and its feature…
Possibile avere solo la bicicletta senza il rullo? Ho già il rullo della Wahoo
Any possibility to buy only Zwift Ride Smart Frame ? Last year I bought KICKR trainer …
can I order a Zwift Ride Smart frame and connect my Elite trainer to the smart frame? If not, when will you make this available?
Rein
No, Elite doesn’t support virtual shifting… yet. Hopefully some good news on that front soon though.
(Also, WE won’t make it available, since we aren’t Zwift. Just a news site about Zwift!) 🙂
Do you have any plan release it in Asia?
Is there a predicted date for the release of the ride without trainer. ? Thanks
I wish I could get one of these in Australia. Nobody has stock.
If I tighten the thru axel on my Zwift Ride too much I can’t back pedal. If I leave it loose enough to back pedal I get a slight wobble and quiet clicking noise. Any solutions ?
Thanks