Zwift Chat

[CXRAndy]

25 of the top 35 in Cat B had average watts of 4w/kg or more according to ZP results

I know a fella in my group after more than half way, put the hammer down and rode away at 4.5 W/kg

 

[<Tommy>]

Aw yes I must have got upgraded for the sprint at 2.3km to 5th as well. Knowing what was happening ahead on the course was so useful in retrospect. The main climb was exactly 10km in as said so I knew when to drift to the front of the group so I just about clung on when otherwise I might have shot out the back.

Edit; now that the full zwiftpower analysis is up, my 20min power was actually only 0.2w/kg different to the first stage and I didn't freewheel at all downhill at any point so I feel a bit better that the trainer wasn't going completely bananas. Will eventually upgrade to direct drive though

Sounds like you just rode a great ride Michael. Simples! Well done mate 👍👍. It’s nice when little things click (and I don’t mean your knees 😄)

From the way you wrote it it makes sense to me. I think it’s a big psychological advantage if you can tell yourself how much effort you’re going to need to put in to complete a certain section.

 

[<Tommy>]

Dear ZwiftPower, When can I have my downgrade please???
I’ll not bore you with all of the details from the Cat A race, mainly because i don’t have a clue what happened at the business end! I lasted about 5km this week, and improvement on last week. Unreal how strong these riders are - I was back in 80th place and unable to move up the group despite hammering it flat out. I could see the whole thing was strung out and my elastic snapped and slapped me in the face. Lack of a warm up didn’t help but I’ll. or use that as an excuse as I know myself it won’t wash. Anyway a more respectable time of 35:26 this week. I’m not sure if I can take another bashing at the hand of these Scandinavians next week

B cat looks much more appealing to me too Alan. Especially as there’s a nice little group of us who can battle it out every race. It can’t be much fun not being in the mix. I’m not going to try any less hard on races but I am going to try and avoid races which are short enough to put me over the threshold I think. Hopefully you join us in B cat soon!

 

[Brendan Parker]

Thinking next week we ll be relying on the lighter riders

 

[Whorty]

I know a fella in my group after more than half way, put the hammer down and rode away at 4.5 W/kg

He did indeed, I saw him coming behind me after I dropped from the lead group, but he didn't get far. I slowed him in my sticky when he caught me. He gave me a 'ride-on' to ride with him, but there was no way I was helping him reach the lead group. Your group caught him, if you recall, just after the sea front start/finish banner, on the incline. Someone tried to bridge to him and I chased them down. If I'd known where the finish line was I may have carried on and tried to ride to the end at that point

 

[Freelanderuk]

I think the green kit last night worked , it really stood out making it easier to see team mates in the first group , was looking for Andy but he disappeared in his camo shirt😀

 

[CXRAndy]

I think the green kit last night worked , it really stood out making it easier to see team mates in the first group , was looking for Andy but he disappeared in his camo shirt😀

Yes I need to change to the more noticeable lime green

 

[Whorty]

Thinking next week we ll be really on the lighter riders View attachment 506024

I was thinking about this last night, and I'm not sure. The climb is only 1 minute or so in length, so sprintable for most. And with the big downhill the other side, most heavy riders who can sprint and recover will get back on. The trick will be to be as far ahead in the group as possible when you hit the climb so that you have drifting space, and also so you don't get caught in any sticky drafts. As you turn left off the cobbles start to push forward, right over the bridge you need to be close to the front so that when you turn left onto the climb you're at full speed and power - then hold that for a minute - easy That first 6km or so run in to the climb is going to be manic!

 

[peterob]

Some really good rides last night and a really close set of times, even across multiple cats - so good effort chaps.

League table updated. The league takes your best 5 points totals from the 7 stages, so gives a bit of leeway if you miss a stage or two.

@IrishAl is the early pacesetter - some reward for trying to hang on to the fast boys for as long as possible . But the table won't really take shape until the last couple of stages.

 

[mjd1988]

I think the green kit last night worked , it really stood out making it easier to see team mates in the first group , was looking for Andy but he disappeared in his camo shirt😀

Green worked very well, and psychologically it was a big boost to see so many of us about the pack

I was thinking about this last night, and I'm not sure. The climb is only 1 minute or so in length, so sprintable for most. And with the big downhill the other side, most heavy riders who can sprint and recover will get back on. The trick will be to be as far ahead in the group as possible when you hit the climb so that you have drifting space, and also so you don't get caught in any sticky drafts. As you turn left off the cobbles start to push forward, right over the bridge you need to be close to the front so that when you turn left onto the climb you're at full speed and power - then hold that for a minute - easy That first 6km or so run in to the climb is going to be manic!

That's probably just too long for the heavier of us (including me) but should suit some of the guys. I'll look to give everything on the first climb and try and hang on my fingernails. Might do a recce this week

Some really good rides last night and a really close set of times, even across multiple cats - so good effort chaps.

League table updated. The league takes your best 5 points totals from the 7 stages, so gives a bit of leeway if you miss a stage or two.

@IrishAl is the early pacesetter - some reward for trying to hang on to the fast boys for as long as possible . But the table won't really take shape until the last couple of stages.
View attachment 506028

Thanks again for doing this. No idea how it will work with best 5/7 but I'm sure you have it covered!

 

[Whorty]

That's probably just too long for the heavier of us but should suit some of the guys. I'll look to give everything on the first climb and try and hang on my fingernails. Might do a recce this week

I think the best you can do is work out your top 1 minute sprint that yo can recover from, then try to hold this number on the cllimb.

I'm planning to create a workout to try and emulate the ride .... something like this ....

1 minute 300 watts (simulate the start)
4 minutes 270 watts (holding on to the pack)
4 minutes 235/210 watts (the cruising watts I think I'll need in the race)
1 minute 300 watts (Climb 1)
1 minute 200 watts (descent)
15 mins 235/210 watts (lap back to the climb)
1 minute 300 watts (climb 2)
1 minute 200 watts (descent 2)
15 mins 235/210 watts (lap to final climb)
1 minute 300 watts (final climb)
1 minute 200 watts (final descent)
5 mins ramp up from 210 to 250 (simulate the increasing speed to the finish)

50 mins there which may be about right for the race - not sure - this is based on my 245 FTP. Not sure I can hold these numbers, but should give me an indication of what the race might be like and where I'll get dropped

Edit: just looked at ToZ stage 2 which covers the same course ... 3 laps of Innsbruck. My time was 38:17 at 224 watts. Will adjust the above workout to be more like the actual stage. I note that the leg snapper was taking me 1:20 to get up so need a slightly longer sprint

 

[bridgy]

B cat looks much more appealing to me too Alan. Especially as there’s a nice little group of us who can battle it out every race. It can’t be much fun not being in the mix. I’m not going to try any less hard on races but I am going to try and avoid races which are short enough to put me over the threshold I think. Hopefully you join us in B cat soon!

Here's the tactics for you guys to stay out of Cat A, but at the top of Cat B @<Tommy> and @IrishAl - from a bit of detective work on all those 4w/kg Cat B's on ZP after last night's race:

- Make sure that you enter a few races regularly where you're not going to push super hard - i.e enter a race but do a recovery ride. This will keep your 90 day race power average down in B Cat levels. Then, you can unleash the full power in the races that matter to you - you will usually not be DQ'd even if you do 4.2w/kg as there's some leeway as long as you have entered your ZP assigned category.

This seems to be what a lot of the Cat B's in last night race who had 4w/kg+ were doing - whether on purpose or not!

EDIT: Sorry I'm wrong about this as pointed out by Tommy - it's the average of your best 3 rides from the last 90 days that counts

 

[kipster]

Carl, If you're going to do it as a workout, put in 10-15 seconds after the climb at a higher wattage. The climb, although short, is likely to split packs so the extra spurt over the top is the place to gap and catch. Something around 330 watts.

 

[Whorty]

I think the best you can do is work out your top 1 minute sprint that yo can recover from, then try to hold this number on the cllimb.

I'm planning to create a workout to try and emulate the ride .... something like this ....

1 minute 300 watts (simulate the start)
4 minutes 270 watts (holding on to the pack)
4 minutes 235/210 watts (the cruising watts I think I'll need in the race)
1 minute 300 watts (Climb 1)
1 minute 200 watts (descent)
15 mins 235/210 watts (lap back to the climb)
1 minute 300 watts (climb 2)
1 minute 200 watts (descent 2)
15 mins 235/210 watts (lap to final climb)
1 minute 300 watts (final climb)
1 minute 200 watts (final descent)
5 mins ramp up from 210 to 250 (simulate the increasing speed to the finish)

50 mins there which may be about right for the race - not sure - this is based on my 245 FTP. Not sure I can hold these numbers, but should give me an indication of what the race might be like and where I'll get dropped

Edit: just looked at ToZ stage 2 which covers the same course ... 3 laps of Innsbruck. My time was 38:17 at 224 watts. Will adjust the above workout to be more like the actual stage. I note that the leg snapper was taking me 1:20 to get up so need a slightly longer sprint

I know ... I may be overthinking all of this ... but I'm a bit of a geek and it keeps me out of the pub

 

[Whorty]

Carl, If you're going to do it as a workout, put in 10-15 seconds after the climb at a higher wattage. The climb, although short, is likely to split packs so the extra spurt over the top is the place to gap and catch. Something around 330 watts.

Good point ... although i feel you're just wanting to make me suffer

Looking at my numbers for that climb, which are about 1:20, setting the 300 watts section in the workout to 1:30 should cover the climb and a bit over the top