During my recovery earlier in the year and then using the trainer between cross races I was finding my enthusiasm to ride indoors waning. With specific training profiles from my coach I could not use Sufferfest videos and whilst I could build the profiles I needed in trainerroads, I have to be honest I was beginning to view them as a grind.
I had heard of Zwift from a friend who espoused its virtues and ultimately pursaded me to try it out. My first try, was, shall we say, less than successful and I could not see what all the fuss was about. I gave up as messing with technology was not what I needed at that point in time. Needless to say we had further conversations and I was pursaded to try again. This time it worked out and I was starting to get an idea of the platform when I ran my free trial out.
It almost ended there, but I am not someone who gives up easily, and I had enjoyed it just enough, so I decided to get a subscription and really try it out. After all I reckoned I would be spending more time on the trainer over the winter and anything that could improve the experience was worth a try. Plus I would have a good response for my friend when he bugged me about it.
Riding natively, I was surprised at how engaging it was and I have to say using it with the Wahoo KickR was seamless. The change in terrain and the fact that you are riding with real people really takes it to the next level. My friend and I arranged to ride together online. Crazy as he lives a few doors away but this is the age of technology. It was fun, if a little odd as you have no way to gauge speed as you approach each other, resulting in us leap frogging each other util we could settle into a power rhythm. We setup skype to communicate as I don't know about you but typing whilst putting in an effort, is well, hard. I did try out the mobile app and a couple of messages but it is not something I would do whilst training. Oh and listening to your mate grunt and grown on Skype was a little perturbing and strangely satisfying.
When they added custom workouts I got excited. Could it be a replacement for trainerroads? Well I found the builder to be basic and it took me far longer to setup a under/over program than it does in trainerroads, maybe as they develop it will get better but for now not as good. The other challenge is that I do not always want the power to be dictated to me in ERG mode but rather have a profile that provides a target.
So I when this week I transitioned back to sustained under / over efforts I got to thinking could I use Zwift and could it improve my planned training session in the same way it does when I Just free ride. To be successful, I would need to run Zwift and Trainerroads concurrently and have Trainerroads control the KickR in Standad mode so I could dictate the power. Long story short I got it all working and it totally improved my training experience.
During warm up I was able to watch riders pass me or ride with me, then as I approached my first steady state under/over I zoomed away and then picked up other riders. During the rest sections I would get dropped and then have the chance to chase as I entered my second steady state. What is normally a watch the graph effort became so much more about the riding and it helped me push myself without realizing it at times. Hmm that might be a minor negative and require a little more self control on my part.
Today I was picked up by a group ride of maybe 30 riders and that was a whole new experience. Then I rode with the same rider for 10 minutes during which time we pushed each other just like you would on the road. It was strange seeing the name but not connecting, and all whilst operating within the parameters of my personal trainerroads profile. I still have lots to learn about the program such as what the car symbol means and why a thumbs up appears. There are still many things that could be improved and simply work better, but I for one am hooked for now and will continue to explore the capabilities in my quest to continually improve the indoor training experience.
Equipment
- Laptop with Ant+ USB adapter running Zwift
- IPad using Bluetooth running Trainerroads
- Wahoo KickR in Standard Mode controlled by Trainerroads
- Wahoo TickR Hear Rate Monitor
- Garmin 810 as a head unit
- Garmin Cadence (Ant+)
Remember keep it rubber side down and MaxLifeOut
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