[Closed] STW Zwift Racing League - Spring 2022

Yeah. Stick with it reluctantjumper.

It'll come.

@reluctantjumper I’ve learnt to hammer it from the 10 second count down, it seems to keep me with the group until it starts to climb or there is a sprint.

Sometimes I can be with the front group for 5-10 minutes, then once you get dropped, there will be stragglers who will pick you up in their draft for a while, which helps out.

Definitely helps me if I can sprint hard for the 1st minute or so, while everyone else is just trundling along at an easy pace.

What a great start to the series. The front group was quite big for quite a long time. I thought the split after the sprint in neokyo might get away (me, @robbo1234biking, @j-r and @yanboss I think), but we never established a gap and eventually got reeled back in.
Then Rob just dismantled the field with a perfectly judged effort up the hill. The gap went up steadily and nearly everyone dropped away. @yanboss was up there, and ended up solo in no man's land. What a ride to to hold off the chase for 3rd. I knew Rob was sprinting well from the way he was grabbing points (he isn't moaning about his chainring today I see...!) so I tried to pull away from him with 1km or so to go, but he was like a limpet and that was my effort spent. A really deserved win.
Congrats @bails on the overall.
And @reluctantjumper stick with it. The gap is in reality much smaller than the times say - once you manage to hold a group in those first few minutes, it'll all be worth it again.

Well that was fun. Turned the laptop on 45 mins before the race, and it spends the entire time updating windows. Restarts itself with about 5 mins to go, and then I just get Zwift booted up and into the race about 5 secs after it started. I hoofed it at 400-500W for as long as I could, but the group just left me for dead. Couldn't get back on at all. Debating whether to upgrade my laptop, or get an Apple TV for next winter...

I managed to be still browsing the frame store when the gun went off - dead last the entire race 🙂

while everyone else is just trundling along at an easy pace.

🤣😂🤣

Thanks all for the kind words! Was a bit of a shock to actually win the race (might start giving points for the winner).

I stayed out of trouble mainly surfing the back of the pack apart from the sprints when I didn’t want to get dropped. Got lucky on the first one as I got a bit of momentum from being at the back of the pack and slingshotting through to win it.

It was a really big group still as we approached the hill. I just started pushing hard as I did in Yorkshire on the last series but this time people were more fatigued so I was able to gradually drop people. 3 of us went over the top together and the power stayed on. I thought it would be a bit of a ttt until the end but yanboss dropped back. I managed to stay with a few Savoyad bursts but think I got lucky as the course was downhill which suits my higher power and weight. 9min30 seconds at an average of 356w.

I was hoping to get a podium this series so pretty pleased after the first win. Well done Savoyad and yanboss for making it hard for me. Double header next week!

First of these races for a while (September) and ended up being a bit of a disaster. Thought the group initially set off quite steady (less frantic than the old days) so I found myself trying to hold back a bit in an effort to pace myself and use the draft, and ended up losing my rhythm and lost the group completely on the second sprint, leaving me 26/29 and cadence all over the place an barely able to hold 160W for a couple of mins.

Was hovering over the "give up" button but then steadied my cadence, found my rhythm and last two thirds of the race were epic, but left myself too much to do. Recovered to 11th which in the end I was pretty pleased with.

Different tactics I think for the next race.

Oh and that late surge saw my FTP go up to 314W... highest it's been for a while.

Crazyharry....

Came past me like an absolute missile at the top of the hill.

@crazyharry - came up to me like a god-dayum express train.  I wondered why you were back there

@reluctantjumper

If you decide it isnt for you anymore then no worries - the series is there for people to have fun and that should be your main aim when getting on a bike (indoors or outdoors).

I would however be sad to see you go and a 230w FTP should be close to keeping you in the front group at least on a flat course for the first part of the race. Stumpy has a similar FTP. Looking at the data from last night you were within 5w of his average power so the gap isnt as big as you think. There was one surge that he did for about 40-50 seconds at 340w to cover the sprint but other than that your power could get you on the back of the group.

You have been doing a lot of training work on the Build Me Up plan but this will also leave you more fatigued until you get used to it.

RANT ALERT NOT RELATED TO RELUCTANT JUMPER

Zwift training plans work for some people but they are also a lot of intensity very quickly. The Red Unicorn (Week 1) has 8 min O/U with only 2 mins of recovery between each set! That is far too much intensity in a short space of time 1/2 weeks into a training plan. They also focus far too much on specific cadences. Your natural cadence looks to be around the 80 mark - forcing you down to 60 rpm is going to cook your leg muscles and increasing it to 90-100 rpm is going to tire you quickly. The focus should be on small adjustments to your natural cadence in order to achieve the most efficient cadence for you. Everyone is different hence i cant understand why they are so prescriptive. That's not to say that cadence work isn't beneficial but doing it every single workout is wrong. Even going as far as specifying a cadence for a recovery segment!! You should be able to focus on recovering not worrying about what cadence you are doing.

I would think the compliance rates to the Zwift workouts are very low because of the reasons above. A training plan should gradually build intensity and confidence not start hard and get even harder.

END RANT

Dont be too harsh on yourself and I believe you are close to making that breakthrough.

The usual for me, hung with the main bunch until there was a hill, then hung no more.

Managed a 'after-you sir', 'no after-you I insist' gentleman's agreement with Zilog for the last 4k until the last 1k when my aero helmet won out.

@reluctantjumper - check the stats for the race on Zwiftpower - despite being 13kgs heavier than you, and putting out less average power for that race I finished ahead - I put that down to being able to hold the initial surge for a teensy bit longer is all. Staying in the draft is everything in the first part of these races.

You are so close to being *in* the last bunch of tail end charlies with me and the other usual suspects, rather than just off the back of it.

Having you just behind me also keeps me honest when I think I've done all I can. It might look like we are cruising ahead, when in fact I'm close to jacking it in.

If I can suggest anything it is a proper full half hour walm up, and managing that initial surge from the off for as long as possible - you have to micro manage your position in the blob - if you are just near the back when there is a push, it can be gone in seconds.

The other thing is lots of races - the 'category enforcement' series is great because it ensures those in the race with you are similar speed - meaning less sandbaggers, so tactics are more important.

Hope to see you at the bottom of the next hill.

@reluctantjumper From just reading your frustration of being spat out the back soon after the race start, it's something I can very much see where you are coming from, because it happens a lot for me... Especially since recently being marginally promoted back to Zwiftpower B (and also the new "in progress" Critical Power based ZwiftHQ pen enforcement category races that are now spreading to some community events) on the back of now two relatively good 20min+ power days.

It's still very much a work in progress, but short 10-15min races like the Mon-Fri 1215 sprints such as https://zwiftpower.com/events.php?zid=2858212 today (pen enforce test now) and the Monday Arena Games Super Sprint Races such as https://zwiftpower.com/events.php?zid=2771644 (which had ~170 riders a couple of days ago for second week) are helping me stick with fast starts and then not blow up so soon.

List of current races using pen enforcement https://zwifthacks.com/app/events/?key=621b895261613

Fun race predictor https://zrace.bike/

Congrats on the win last night @robbo1234biking

The bad: You lot just buggered off as usual after 30-40 seconds. I thought I had a chance to hold onto the group for the first 30 seconds but then everyone just went up a gear and pulled away despite me going balls-out.

Managed a ‘after-you sir’, ‘no after-you I insist’ gentleman’s agreement with Zilog for the last 4k until the last 1k when my aero helmet won out.

Well my legs are cooked today!

Reluctantjumper.....

Stumpy has a similar FTP. Looking at the data from last night you were within 5w of his average power so the gap isnt as big as you think.

It's true! 🙂
I used to be in a similar position to you in these races, I think. As mentioned above, it is the start & keeping with a group that really makes the difference - hanging on for 15s more can make all the difference.
Regular training has got me fitter, but also more confident of my ability to push & recover. I used to tire in the initial burst & then feel that I needed to back off or I'd be dead, whereas now I understand my ability a bit better I know that there will be the opportunity to recover at some point.

Don't get me wrong - the slaughter still happens at some point in the race; it's just normally a bit further down the road, than it used to be. 🙂

EDIT to add: - anecdotal perhaps, but I bought some Bulk All-in-One recovery powder at the start of the year & have been using that after every workout, race & hard session.
It's hard to say whether it has made a real difference as i have no 'control' to measure against. But, I definitely feel fresher the day after than I used to & it seems to help with the tired legs feeling. Perhaps this might be something to try?

@reluctantjumper - One other metric I find interesting - look at the race on ZP, reverse sort it by finish time so us tail end charlies are at the top - put the power chart into watts mode, and select the little pie chart on the end of each users row to see their power lines.

This will add/remove them from the power chart - add yourself also.

You can then compare others with your own chart.

You and I are quite different for up to 1 minute power - but after that pretty much the same. Generally those who finish just ahead have either an elevated one minute power or can hold it for longer than a minute, but after 5 mins are not far different profiles.

One other thing to bear in mind - these STW races have quite a small field and wide range of ability - so inevitably a wide spread of finish times. Larger fields and in a closer range are a lot more fun.

Zwift races are also not comparable with general outdoor performance - after a year and a half on Zwift as a strong C nearly B I changed my trainer from a Elite Direto (which I kept religiously calibrated) to a Neo 2, and went straight to D, dropping 50+ watts the same day. Only just clawed my way back into C. The absolute finish position is largely meaningless - its about your own personal fitness improvements.

That was another 37mins of type 2 fun, even though it was a disappointing result with my end of race FTP estimate 15W down on normal.
Maybe it’s the effort I put into the sprints this time, especially a mistaken early solo effort on the first one before being overtaken in the last 100m by @robbo1234biking and @straightliner. Or maybe I’ve got a virus (not The Virus) or am feeling the effects of not riding much the last couple of weeks. But when we got to the hill I couldn’t thin out the group or shake off @paul-s, which I had found easy up the hills in Yorkshire a few weeks ago. And when we all sprinted for the finish line I just didn't have enough left in the legs to stop him just inching past in the last few yards.

Well done everyone - a good start to the series.

Was an enjoyable first race. I quite like the flat ones, as i can now stay with the front runners a lot longer.

I managed to stay in the top ten up the only real climb and about 6 of us stuck together until the end. The sprint went off early and despite cranking out 600 plus watts i couldnt get anywhere near.

So happy with a 10th place finish (on the road).

Although i am very aware that numbers are down a few these days.

One thing i do struggle with is extracting the last 5-10% of effort out of my body. It feels like a bloody good work out and at no point is easy, but once i finish i always feel like i could've given more... i just dont know how to! Maybe its a subconscious fear of leaving nothing left for the final few km's.... i dunno??!

But yeah, cheers everyone, was good fun 😀

I noticed how well you climbed on that hill @v7fmp. Big improvement since autumn I reckon. As for sprints, some Vo2 workouts might help you.

I had nothing left when Robbo engaged his inner Wout van Aert so was happy to ride in with you guys. Those 3 sprints fatigued me alright. I like that fast downhill sprint at the end. Just about held off a fast finishing @straightliner on the line.

Big congrats to @robbo1234biking. Must be pleasing to see the training pay off.

Stumpy has a similar FTP

Don't be fooled - stumpy's race pace includes typing at 90 words per minute

@robbo1234biking - Cheers for the insight Robbo.

That makes me feel significantly better about struggling with the elements of the 'Build Me Up' training plan.

I noticed how well you climbed on that hill @v7fmp. Big improvement since autumn I reckon. As for sprints, some Vo2 workouts might help you.

I had nothing left when Robbo engaged his inner Wout van Aert so was happy to ride in with you guys. Those 3 sprints fatigued me alright. I like that fast downhill sprint at the end. Just about held off a fast finishing @straightliner on the line.

Big congrats to @robbo1234biking. Must be pleasing to see the training pay off.

Ah yes, the FOURTH sprint at the end.... I was late reacting to you guys going and was struggling to make up the gap. I thought we might reel in @yanboss before the line but he must have put in a solid TT effort on the run in.

Was planning on joining last night, but had an ibs attack and felt bloody awful, went to bed instead! Hopefully nothing will set me off next week and I'll be back on it 👌

scaredypants

Don’t be fooled – stumpy’s race pace includes typing at 90 words per minute

HA HA! Genuine LOL at that.
I even annoy myself, so I dread to think what you lot think of it.

Thanks for all the encouragement everyone, still undecided though as doing the races and the FTP Builder stuff is working but leaving me probably over-tired at times.

Might sound daft but when are you starting, are you waiting for zero or pedaling hard from 5-10seconds to go?

I figured that out after the first ever Zwift race I did! I tend to build up my power in the last 30 seconds of the warmup from 50-60w to just under FTP with 15 seconds to go with a full-on effort at 5 seconds. I just can't keep up that effort for more than 30 seconds, yesterday's race for example I was up with the top 10 15 seconds in but from then on everyone just pulls past and away. Looking at the figures on the leaderboard during the race no-one really eased up until they were a good 10 seconds ahead. I've never had a great top-end though, I'm more an endurance and climbing type of power.

If you made it to 30-40 seconds you were probably really close to hitting the first lull in the pace. It doesn’t feel like it because the speed of the pack+draft means it keeps pulling away but nobody* just smashes on at full gas beyond around a minute.

I don't drop my power after those 30-40 seconds, everyone else just has more so leaves me behind! I can go full-out for about 90 seconds at the start but it's nowhere near good enough to keep with the group. I think I'm just suffering from there being fewer riders around my level so there's no-one small group for me to latch on to.

Will think it all over the next few days and see how I feel. It has become my regular Tuesday night ritual though so I may well find that hard to drop.

I was up with the top 10 15 seconds in but from then on everyone just pulls past and away

It might sound silly but that could be part of the issue - once you start to fall back through a group you need to push harder to get back into the draft (made up numbers alert)

Say you're doing 250w and lose the draft at the front, you'll fall back through the group and clean out the other side at 250w. You need to kick to 300w to catch a wheel but can then draft the back of the group at 100w and stay with the same riders you fell past at 250.

If you're on the ragged edge in the front of the group you will fall off but when you do you won't have the extra kick to give to "hook up" you'll just see the group sod off down the road despite actually having the power to keep with them. A lot of it is technique (and I'm crap at it as my (comparatively good) numbers from last night to place in 17th will show)

Hi Rob,

Sign me up please, 97kg & 210w FTP

Ta.

@reluctantjumper I really recommend thr team time trial for learning how to draft. Adding extra probably doesn't fit with your training program but it really helped me. Nothing like Phil's encouragement to teach you how hard you can push yourself.

With big groups I find the moment you start sliding back you have to do something serious. But once settled in near the back you can gently ease off without dropping out the draft.

Looking at my race I started at 400w but by 15s in was down to 275 and then by 30s was down to 200 ish. But a minute in I lost concentration and eased off too much and needed a big kick up over 350w to avoid losing touch. Popping out the front then sliding back makes it really hard to hold even power. Getting it just right makes a massive difference. In the group on the flat bits I was averaging 230w so really not that different to you.

I definitely overdid it last winter and didn't rest enough. Just couldn't raise my power when there was a surge and so kept loosing the draft.

Just focusing on the Tuesday race and TTT is working for me this year as I find them much more fun than training plans. Good luck figuring it out

Well, it seems I'm 'race fit' again. Got a podium in Cat C in my first race for a very long time. Also my FTP went up to the old level (ish)
No numbness in my leg and I think the Pelvis is fully healed.

If I could join in again that would be great.
Cheers.

302FTP 98kg.

@robbo1234biking

Can I get a late entry to series, won't make all events so not bothered if handicapped or not. On that front I'll try a FTP test over weekend as been under weather for a number of weeks and way off my current zwift alleged FTP.

Also echo your comments re zwift training plans. I used to use sufferfest and found their plans more manageable. I'm going to re sign to a zwuft plan but I will plan my training days and then pick out the workouts from the weeks plan to match those days and miss out some. My previous experience was just being knackered after about 2 weeks trying to do full plan and jacking in

Weight change to report - down to 82kg.

What ftp @reluctantjumper?

I tend to build up my power in the last 30 seconds of the warmup from 50-60w to just under FTP with 15 seconds to go

Reading this it sounds like you aren't warmed up? 50-60w is barely anything, just above freewheeling?? The warm up I would suggest should bring you comfortably to at a guess 70% of your ftp
You need to be near your FTP 5 seconds before the timer gets to zero and then 2 times your FTP at the start gun so pushing out 400 - 500w for the first part of the race. Everyone will then taper to a sustainable output for the next part of the race, hopefully you'll be drafting in a group with others doing the harder work at the front at this point?!
When you sprint at the start of the race or any sprint you will output lots of Watts. My FTP was around 270 before I quit zwift but during sprints or starts I could scrape 900/1000 if I had the right gear selected or enough energy during the race.

@robbo1234biking - 232w FTP.

@retrorick - I do a 5-10 minute warmup similar to the training rides then drop down to 60w for the final minute then build it back up. It gives me enough time for the muscles to get warm but not still be in shock from the warmup so I can hit the start flat out. The issue is I top out at 350-400w and that's just not enough to keep me in the group for long enough to get to the tapering bit! I did try a longer warmup last series, 20-30 mins freeride beforehand, but that left me empty by halfway through the race. I'm trying my best and am always willing to try new things to see if I can get better.

@robbo1234biking – having said I'd not make another race beyond the most recent one, seems I'm in with a chance this week too, though it all sounds a bit hilly
Please could you send me a link ?
(as before, no handicap/points required but if it helps, seems I'm about 265W, 79Kg)

Handicaps are live for Tuesday

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1SYEJq-_k2w-I3LUIgg6hoi5LAb7angXxiRasZfjvPE4/edit#gid=938751648

Not liking my chances with a 22 minute handicap... savoyad is only 3 min.... 🤭😄

DrP

That's what you get for publicising your training plan, DrP

Sorted now!

Hi Robbo @robbo1234biking

I know I'm late to the party, but Tuesdays I am now available - or rather the wattbike is, as my better half has finished her winter race series.

83kg, 309 W FTP if I could be a late joiner?

not too concerned about handicap etc as I've missed the first race, and might not make the last either.

dont think i will make Race 1 (bloomin daughters 5th birthday!) but i am hoping to make the 2nd race, albeit with a belly full of birthday cake! 😀

frustratingly the first race i think i would have missed since the series started.

Doubt I'll make tomorrow as I'm in that there London

I’m going to try and make it tomorrow, might not be full on from me, see how the back goes.

I see a few of you did one of the routes this morning, which bike is looking to be the most suitable, Road, Gravel or MTB?

Double header night tonight!

Jungle circuit to start with (if you aren't used to this then the MTB is definitely the way to go - even the stock Zwift one will be better than a road bike). There will be sprint points available for the fastest lap.

https://zwiftinsider.com/route/jungle-circuit/

Then we head to Makuri and Spirit Forest - the jury is still out on which bike to ride for this between Gravel and MTB and I think it will come down to how you want to race it - what your strengths are etc. The lead in is tough as we have to get up the climb before the segment starts although having done the Jungle Circuit first I wouldn't be surprised if we don't get a peloton protest and a gradual group climb up the hill!

https://zwiftinsider.com/route/spirit-forest/

If you haven't done a double header before the pop up will come up with a 30 min countdown 10 mins into the first race (the 2nd race kicks off at 20:10). Don't click on it until you have crossed the finish line and then you will head to the pen of the second race (or do a cooldown if you want first).

Looking forward to it tonight. I've never race spirit forest.

My streams for tonight should be;

https://youtu.be/nlON3PkMWd0

Should be a hard couple of races. Don't forget the Jungle Loop has a long lead (~4km) before the loop actually starts. Then it's up, over the rope bridge and then mainly down....

Just "bought" a gravel bike for tonight....
Hope it's worth it

shhh

I'll just use the MTB, sort of like a throwback to the first series. Might not do the second race as I have an early start in the morning but will see how I feel after the first race.

Oooof that was a wounder!
See for PT.2!

That did not go well.

Well that was demoralising.

Managed to keep up with the pack for a good 45 seconds and despite me still putting out around 400w the same thing happened again, you all just seemingly found another gear and pulled away. It's very impressive to watch but I don't know how you all do it.
I've also seemingly got an issue with my Kickr. As soon as I'd got about 2 minutes in it was dropping all the resistance for a second randomly but regularly, gave the same feeling of a chain slipping or snapping. When the resistance came back it really messed with my cadence, made it very hard on the climbs. I have noticed little drops in the power graph at the bottom of the screen when training but the resistance stayed the same so put it down to an issue on the game side, it's probably an issue my side by the looks of things. Still got an FTP increase of 3w to 235w out of it though.

Not doing Race 2B as that one knackered me out and I have an early start for a long day at work tomorrow. Hope you all enjoy it!

Not as demoralising as Zwift locking up while cooling down, probably lost my result from race 2
I was P10 just popped J Donnelly and C Charles, gutted ...

Apologies RJ, don't mean to dismiss your issues!
It's strange, I had the same issues with not being able to hold wheels when I first started using Zwift, I have no idea what changed.
The only thing I can put it down to is putting myself in one cat lower than ZP said for a few events. I was getting dropped line a stone in B so there was no way that was my cat.
Dropped to C and did a few events, not just races but more social stuff and it just gave me a confidence boost and I learned to ride in pack and hold a wheel. I've naturally drifted back to B and can get on a bit better.
Try it and see if it helps...
Good luck, it's quite good fun when it comes to you. Never easy though (the puddle on my floor is testament to that)

@sturdylad, you might still appear on zwiftpower (?)
Anyhow, serves you right for battering me up that hill

Bastard connection loss.

Good fun though. Cheers.

@reluctantjumper - maybe it's yr connection ?
have a look here: https://zwiftinsider.com/how-to-fix-ant-dropouts-in-zwift/

I'm aslo sure I've read that you need to set your power source to NOT be the "FEC" variety, if you get a choice - leave that connection just for the controllable resistance

Tired tonight, legs definitely feeling recent rides and efforts. Dragged my way round the first one, didn’t have much energy for the second so thought I’d drop back and ride with a friend who’d joined, only to find he had dropped out by then. Oh well!

Well done to everyone, that first race just broke up on the climb as expected and there was little to be done to close the gaps.

I managed to upload to Strava, from a recovered file so here's hoping!!

Am I wrong to say I enjoyed that? Had a nice gentle spin between races and felt reasonable in race 2.
Only 1 double per year though thanks!

Thanks for everyone for taking part in the series! Hope you all enjoyed it.

The results are provisional in case I have made any mistakes. Please let me know.

Anyone help out with the fastest lap of the Jungle? Zwiftpower is only showing about 10 riders as completing a lap which isnt right!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1SYEJq-_k2w-I3LUIgg6hoi5LAb7angXxiRasZfjvPE4/edit#gid=1334036094

Race 2a - Jungle Circuit

Overall Race Winner
1. benman
2. savoyad
3. nixie

Overall Race Winner (with handicaps)
1. Paul-S
2. J-R
3. karnali

Fastest Lap of the Jungle Circuit
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Race 2b - Spirit Forest

Overall Race Winner
1. Nixie
2. Savoyad
3. Crazy Harry

Overall Race Winner (with handicaps)
1. Savoyad
2. J-R
3. Yanboss

Overall Standings
1. J-R
2. bails
3. Paul-s

I have set up a GoFundMe for people who have enjoyed the series. This time around we are raising money for Diabetes UK. Slowpuncheur has been a regular in this race series from the start. On Fathers Day last year he ended up taking his son to hospital as he wasn't feeling well. Many hours later they were delivered the news that his son is Type 1 diabetic. His son has adjusted well to the changes in life and continues to do everything he wants to. Diabetes UK helps his son and others like him through investment in Diabetes research and support for other Diabetes sufferers. I know there are also others on the forum who have diabetes or close family members with diabetes.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/e3732-stw-race-series-fundraiser?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1

Please dontate if you are able to and would like to show your appreciation for the series.

well please with the first race as i've been feeling about 80% for weeks now, and tonight was the first chance i'd had to race and actually fee like having a go. 2nd race bought my gravel bike and then zwift not responding, it let me in just after 8:12 so had a deeply unpleasant ITT round the course. thanks for the organisation Robbo.

@robbo1234biking looking at the Strava top 5 for the Jungle Circuit today:
1 Ben M 12:49
2 Aron B 13:07
3 Rob B 13:11
4 Paul T 13:12
5 Ian M and Southside J joint: 13:16
7 B Clark 13:17

Savoyad was faster than Ben for the jungle lap. He had the jersey after the finish.

Bloody Hell they were tough!

First race felt good and gave it the beans.

2nd race just couldn't keep up during the road bit at the start - legs like jelly and ended up with S Copping and I working together most of the way round. He slaughtered me on the run in to the line. Need to work on my sprint power for sure.

Oh, and apologies for my "chicken" joke - if anyone's kids were watching them ride 😬

Oh, and apologies for my “chicken” joke – if anyone’s kids were watching them ride 😬

Too busy thinking up jokes to warm up again for the second race (That's my excuse anyway). Definitely didn't have the legs to keep up with the bunch on the road bit at the start.

I am gobsmacked to be top of the overall standings, however briefly it may be.

My benchmark in a race is currently @Paul-s because he gets a minute or two on me in the handicap but last week he beat me on the road as well as the handicaps. So in the first race when the peloton split on the climb I pushed hard to take some time off Paul's group and keep the small group I was moving as fast as I could - even though I burned a few matches and didn't have much left at the end for the sprint. It was partly successful - I got about 30 seconds on Paul but not enough to make up for the handicap.

In the second race I focused on going hard up the first climb to get an early gap on Paul and this seemed to work well. I soon ended up in a small group of @yanboss and @benman - who I think we could only keep up with because of an unfortunate bike choice. At the end the last climb benman was able to pull away and I hid behind yanboss for the last minute so I could get a lucky win on the sprint.

Next week's race plays to my "strengths" but unfortunately I can't participate, so I am sure we will have a more deserving rider at the head of the overall standings.

This was the one I was not looking forward to. I had no idea about bike choice and ZwiftInsider was giving me feelings of doom if I got it wrong, swap bike/gravel/MTB. I decided to go MTB on the line, which seemed to be the consensus, and let the die roll.

The short format suits me quite well, it means the legs complainand want to die, but I can do a Jens Voight on them until the end, which doesn't work on the longer races where I end up crawling the last 1km.

The race split earlier than I thought that it would, and as usual I missed the split, @ayjaydoubleyou nearly dragged me back on, but I lost his wheel and had to ease up and let the next group catch up. The group of 5 of us @Straightliner @joedilla, Chris Charles, & scaredeypants. It stayed that way until the end, where for a change, I timed the sprint to perfection and beat @Straightliner by about 0.05 secs 🙂

The 2nd race was different, no gravel bike in the garage so that made the choice easy :-(. Again lost the 1st group, but @Ogg dragged me back to a couple of other stragglers @bails & @ayjaydoubleyou, who were both on gravel bikes. We managed to work together pretty weel, although I'm sure it was everyone just putting down feelers to see who was weak. @Ogg was the one who got caught out but he valiantly held the 8-10 sec gap for pretty much the rest of the race. I was the next as @Bails went for a long 1km sprint to the line. The MTB was toast, I pushed to the end, for a poor result ( for me ). I will be buying a Gravel bike before we come back.

Well done the Winners, commiserations to the losers, thanks to all, esp @Robbo1234Biking

P

blimey, it's all worth it when the payoff is so huge:

Your estimated FTP has increased by 1w

@chrischarles - I def think you pipped me in race 1 as well as by miles in #2 for what that's worth

Hills are not my forte, and this wrung every last bit of effort I had.

Competing for the much cherished 23rd-ish place with the usual suspects, was pipped in the first race by @woodiwoodwood, which was a bit rude as I'd let him be in front for nearly all of the last 5k.

Quite touched in the second race that @giggsmaster thought I was chasing him, when all I was doing was trying make @woodiwoodwood behind believe I was not almost dead, having already put a 10 second gap in once to see it disappear while was reaching for a water bottle as he resurrected himself.

Totally trashed - roll on next week.

Game of two halves for me. Different strategy but the result as last week - did a structured warm up but my legs just felt dead for the first 10 mins for the first race, lost the main group and by time I got it together I was nigh on dead last and in a short race like this not really enough time/distance to claw much back. Not sure if it's a physical or psychological thing - both last week and first race of this week, I mentally gave up but then went through a sort of mental reboot and it all came together.

On the upside, the first race acted like a proper warm up and the second race I felt amazing. Could have eaten all the weatabix in the world and not stayed with @nixie and @savoyad, so third was the best I could hope for.

That was enjoyable @haloric it's nice to be able to at least try to keep up with you.

I had a mass panic as the results loaded for the first race that you'd pipped me at the line.

But you left me for dead on the second race - resurrection was not on the cards, limping to the line.

At least Robbo has selected a flat route next week and not 500m of climbing... 😱

Congrats to the winners 🏆

Cheers all

Race 1 did not feel good. A late dinner and very little warm up made for a bad legs. I was very glad the pace stayed lower to half way up the hill. When Ben M got a gap I missed the opportunity to follow and then could not break away from savoyad. Legs would not support the power required.

Race 2 I was feeling better. The first climb resulted in a much stronger effort and the legs felt much better. With just the two of us out front it got really cagey. I tried to make savoyad dance to my tune and made repeated attacks before climb 2. Attack and wait for him to have to burn bigger numbers to catch while I was backing off, then go again. The final climb was comfortable to start with. Savoyad tried a few attacks but they were easy to spot, his avatar always gets crazy legs before the power numbers appear on the right. The last one I was able to draft then power past and away for the win. Much happier with that though my legs now feel dead!

@scaredypants - all the issues I can find online relate to an Ant+ connection where I'm using Bluetooth. One option I'm going to try is actually going to Ant+ for just the turbo as it gets worse if I use my wireless headphones so I'm guessing it's an interference issue. Will have a look at the FEC thing too as never heard about that.

Did anyone buy and use the newish custom gravel wheelsets at Jungle, for a substantial time gain over standard gravel wheels?

https://zwiftinsider.com/enve-g23-roval-terra-clx/