Yep, one increasing while other decreases sounds familiar, an extension of the “smash a sub 3min effort” and it might drop you down a category if you’ve never really done an all-out sub 3 in the past 60 days.
FTP increased last night, zFTP hasn’t …and they thought using ftp instead of cp wouldn’t be much of an issue or cause confusion 
Really wish this thread was closed and someone else can start a new one, because I don’t stand by anything in the OP now it has evolved in to an obfuscated beast.
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James, what are you calling an obfuscated beast?
The use of pen enforcement, the use of current CE vs the old 95% of 20 min best, or the large forum thread with multiple tangential topics?
I actually had recently reread the original article you referred to and I still think you did a great job of presenting the info.
a Noob perspective on the topic:
i just started to ride indoors and was in category D.
i found quite competitive to be in the first 10th pushing my max effort.
after managing to be on the top3, Zwift upgraded me to C. Fair enough is this fits the calculation rules.
looking at the new C category, considering my numbers, i would be (in the same races i raced) on the bottom (which also make sense as im in the bottom W/kg of the category).
Perhaps wouldnt be better to create tighter Categories? its really easy to split each race in 2 categories. with this aproach, i believe it would be more competitive and more fun to the riders.
My feeling now is that if you push and improve your fitness you´ve being “punished” by upgrading to the bottom of a category, without enjoying too much the competitiveness of the lowe one…
just my thoughts 
Congrats on your upgrade! You might consider trying some events that have customized the category boundaries like TFC Mad Monday or the VirtuSlo Split-Cats races
https://teamtfc.com/mad-monday/
Currently there is a limit of 5 starting pens in the game so a single event can’t just chop up all the existing categories and have more than 5 pens. More starting groups also means some pens may not have enough riders to make a good race, depending on how popular the event is.
You might also enjoy trying some team events where more people in the race care about your performance and don’t want to drop you, such as TTT or Club Ladder events. Join a team if you want to pursue that.
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Thank you so much Paul.
I will check this immediately
Paul,
I was going through the information and it says that Mad Monday will use primarily the Zwift CE. However, it shows that a 2,6 W/kg would be in the Mad D Cat, but with this wattage/kg, I’m automatically on the C, following the CE rules…
Thanks again
Check the two events today and enter the lowest category where you are allowed to enter. Don’t worry about which pen it is. Probably Middle-End C,
Hi Paul, these are the only options, on Mondays?
thanks.
The other options I know of are mostly team events, like Dirt Racing Series and the Club Ladder events. Club Ladder race times are negotiated between the participating teams for each event, so if you’re in a team that races at your preferred time, the day will vary a bit. Teams challenge each other and work out a time that both teams can ride. The next DRS will ride on Tuesdays, starting Nov 14.
https://www.dirtracingseries.com/
There are also WTRL TTT events on Thursdays. For any of these events you’ll need to join a team, which can be a great way to learn more about racing, get support from the team, and have a role in the team’s results even if it’s not being first over the line. I’ve been joining Rhino Racing team events for a while and they are typically racing evenings in Europe. Join the Discord if you want to explore that: Rhino Racing
If you join a team be sure to find out what time they like to race. That’s one of the most important factors in your choice.
Probably only option on a Monday. In ZwiftPower use the filter on events, set to 7 days and races and then search for Low. Some race organisers split categories between Low and High.
Example for tomorrow night.
Buongiorno a tutti , per me novizio devo dire che le gare sono molto stimolanti ! Detto ciò come mai a parità di categoria Zwiftpower A/B/C/DE le classifiche non tengono conto di un fattore importante ovvero l’età, oppure ci sono degli errori o bug ?
Le categorie Nazionali in Italia sono così divise :
Giovani (13-18 anni); Junior (19-30 anni), Senior (31-40 anni); Veterani (41-50 anni); Master (51-60 anni) , Super Master (61anni ed oltre); Donne Junior (13-39 anni); Donne Senior (40-65 anni)
Non si potrebbe replicarle o perlomeno fare un filtro così un atleta si compari sia a pari livello W/kg ma anche a pari età. Grazie!
The standard Zwift categories do not reflect age at all, no.
However, organisers of events are free to set up categories how they like, and to not use the standard w/kg boundaries. You will find some Zwift events that use age-related categories, though there aren’t many of these. Someone else here will probably be able to point you towards some specific events.
Quando sei nuovo a Zwift e corri, le corse di categoria Aged possono essere molto difficili. Invece di correre contro persone della tua razza/abilità di potere stai correndo contro persone che, sebbene possano avere la tua età, sono spesso molto esperte e potenti.
Tuttavia, se vuoi provare le corse basate sull’età, prova a cercare eventi su ZwiftPower cercando/filtrando per MASTERS.
Attualmente sei all’estremità inferiore della Categoria C. Guarda i post alcuni da questo, cerca/filtra per LOW o TFC MIDDLE e troverai alcune gare in cui sarai valutato meglio con piloti di potenza simili.
When you are new to Zwift and racing then Aged based category racing can be very difficult. Instead of racing against people of your own race/power ability you are racing against people who, although they may be your age, are often very experienced and powerful.
However if you want to try age based racing try looking for events on ZwiftPower by searching/filtering by MASTERS.
You are currently at the lower end of Category C. Look at the posts a few up from this one, search/filter for LOW or TFC MIDDLE and you will find a few races where you will be better graded with similar power racers.
Grazie mille Ian , tutto chiaro 
CP Category Boundaries
A: 4w/kg and 250w CP
B: 3.2w/kg and 200w CP
C: 2.5w/kg and 150w CP
MAP/VO2 Category Boundaries
A: 5.4w/kg MAP (60 VO2 Max)
B: 4.1w/kg MAP (50 VO2 Max)
C: 3.9 w/kg MAP (45 VO2 Max)
Your category is the higher of either the CP cat or the MAP/VO2 cat
MAP/VO2 is the new way for Cat right so now B can to 5.39 for 20mins?
No, MAP/VO2 is not the same as 20 min power. It’s closer to 4-6 min power.
See All About Category Enforcement on Zwift | Zwift Insider where you find some explanation.
Thanks, Its was just in a race today B rider had a 4.3 20min.
The zFTP limit is not based on a 20 minute effort. More like 40-60 minutes depending on the details of their power curve. That rider might still be in B, or they might have been upgraded after the event - they must be close to the limit.
As an example, my 20 minute PR is currently 3.48W/kg. My zFTP is 3.35W/kg. I remain in C because that is less than 3.36W/kg.
The CP/MAP limits that you posted above are not what’s being used currently.
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