Cheaters ruin the experience for everyone but they have particularly prevalent in TdZ. I appreciate they pay their monthly fee like all of us but rolling around at 6 w/k does not make for a great community experience.
Any plans to deal with that Zwift ?
Just curious, are you seeing this in races other than the A category, or group rides?
Look at yesterdayās TdZ ā¦A 76 year old beat the best racer on Zwift by a country mileā¦
LOL
Totally agree with you George. But seems like zwift does not give a ā ā ā ā about it. As well on riders joining a lower cat in races. They plain and simple are promoting both the cheating and the sandbagging behaviours.
Seriously, it is only a game!
I canāt see how Zwift are āpromotingā cheating. It is not an easy position for Zwift to sanction its paying customers, for cheating in a group ride or race. If it were a pro and/or it led to financial loss then that would be different (as we have seen).
I guess you have to ask yourself what your objection actually is. As Iāve said elsewhere today, I find it easier to simply concentrate on what I can control and not worry about others. Do you really care if someone posted a faster time than you by cheating? I canāt say I do.
I know not everyone uses it, and some feel it shouldnāt be left to them to filter out illegitimacy, but Zwiftpower is the best way to see what really happened in your race.
Thanks for that useful information. I would also add. Seriously itās just a game. Donāt cheat
Well I guess that if they post a race result sheet at the end of races and they donāt care if anyone posted a 4, 8 12 or 16 average w per kg during an hour, they are more or less promoting cheating, because the guy who cheats has a higher probability of wining, or the guy who cheats the most wins. Either way. For zwift that guy was the āwinnerā.
It is a game where you use your own power to power the avatar the fun in the game is to compare how you get stronger and more skillful. Part of a racing game is to race and use strategy to beat your opponent. If people enter the wrong cat or cheat they take away from the strategy and a lot of the fun.
Even Games where you just use a controller ban users.
Donāt get me wrong I am not for banning people, I also donāt want every trainer checked or have every user weighed.
but there are somethings that can be controlled and putting riders in the correct start pen is a good start.
@George_Thivaios_Sp: the āraceā you refer to was a group ride, so it is a mass start event with no starting categories. Categories is use to pick different ride distance.
All very valid points Paul,
My problem is not the cheaters beating me, is what you said here:
ā I know cheats mess up bunches/pacing etc but I canāt stop them.ā
I should know better and ride within my limits of course but thereās no distracting from the fact that cheaters make for a much less pleasurable experience for the rest of us.
And yes you or I canāt stop them but surely Zwift can do something about the obvious cases.
But this involved money, according to the article he āreportedly has amassed over Ā£2mil (RM10.5mil) professionally playing Fortnite so farā Very different proposition.
I agree George, I really do but I think unless it has some financial gain, Zwift are unlikely to start sanctioning their customers.
I know I keep on about it, but Zwiftpower do a great job of shining a light on it. The problem is their sanction is post-race DQ which cannot address the effect in-game.
Wow, either this guy is so strong that averaging 300 watts is zone 1 for him, or he is cheating (ignorantly or deliberately).
Interesting. I donāt know anything about Fortnite but is it subscription based? Perhaps Fortnite is so big their clout is a lot greater than Zwift. Nathan Guerra is the man for this. Perhaps Simon will ask him about this on the next Zwiftcastā¦
That was just an example. Thereās a guy that regularly joins a Tuesday race with exactly the same behavior. And he regularly ruins it for the rest of usā¦ we donāt care about āwinningā but the whole experience is just not that great. Maybe I am alone in thinking that but the āin gameā comments lead me to think I am notā¦
I very much enjoy Zwift for my own individual achievements in my personal health.
With that said, using Zwift as a means for racing, as I have done in the first 2 legs of TDZ, has a lot of work to make it fair and consistent. In class D where I race I push hard to get to 260 watts and my heart rate us at 165. On Innsbruck today as we were in lining up the 10deg hill people were flying by at 400 and 500 watts in a D race uphill. My guess is they are on electric bikes or have their trainers turned to zero and weigh 100 lbs. Yes Zwift needs to find a way to sanction and regulate these events for sure to make them fair and realistic. I will continue to not cheat myself out of a realistic and fair workout and achieve my own goals. I feel bad for those that think finishing higher in a race is more important that achieving their fitness, which is why we are all here. Good luck to all!
Welcome Michael. And amen to that.
This is nothing new, see this post auto-assign-race-categories from 2018
But the good news is Zwift is aware of this, and if I listen between the lines they are working on this.
Hi Gerrie,
I appreciate you posting your previous comments. I am sure incorrect categorizing is part of the issue. The issue as I see it is that we all have different trainers and can turn them up or down affecting performance and we can all change our weights which affects the outcome as well. There needs to be a way to 1) yes be categorized by your FTP, but 2) a way to register your trainer w Zwift so they can read or tell what the settings are and make it even fir all. I also think a picture with a license should be used to register for the race that shows your real age and weight. To make this a more regulated and fair race, especially as virtual racing becomes more popular, these types of activities need to take place. Just my additional thoughts. Thanks.
