Create own custom route and follow them

Hi, I have seen that many posts on this topic have been archived with the new forum, hence this new post.

I would like to be able to create custom routes, so I can follow them during my Zwift Sessions. Here are the current limitations I see so far:

  1. When riding long distance on a course (2h-4h sessions), it is difficult to select the right direction at any intersections in order to explore the map and not choose the same roads again and again. When riding outdoor, most of us are used to following GPS routes and that is great, no need to remember where to turn.

  2. When riding in Erg mode during hard sessions, I find it difficult to be focused at choosing where to go at intersections. I currently take part to the Everest challenge to get the Tron bike, and I would like to start and select the hilliest route on a course (ex in Watopia: climb to Epic KOM tower again and again or to Alpe du Zwift from the bottom of the climb only).

  3. Just to have more options than the already great Zwift standard routes. This means more changes, more variations during the training experience.

Those are the custom route functionalities I would like to use:

  1. Select predefined starting point of a route on a given Zwift course
  2. Define where to turn at each intersection
  3. Save custom routes into a route library (same idea as workout library)
  4. Custom routes could have description, summary (total elevation, total distance, map, elevation profile with intersections)
  5. Ability to sync custom routes across devices

At the very least Iā€™d like to be able to pick up where I left off. So if I log out at the top of Alpe du Zwift, thatā€™s where Iā€™ll be when I next log in on that World. Could even be an option on the start screen.

8 Likes

Perhaps this could be as simple as ā€œSave Routeā€: an option at the end of an activity to save the route that you just rode.

10 Likes

I would like to be able to pre-plan my rout by pre-selecting turns. For example, I would like to plan my rout to Epic KOM, go past the ā€˜wrongā€™ turn to the telegraph tower, do the Maya village loop and return to the Epic KOM from the steeper side, by-passing the ā€˜wrong turnā€™.

10 Likes

When I want to do this, I go the ZwiftGPS, find a friendā€¦letā€™s say ā€œO.UTLAW RACEā€ at the top of the alpe or wherever they might be, attempt to find them on the Zwift start screen and join them.

1 Like

Do you know if thereā€™s been any improvement on the firmware ever since? I have some monthly goals set and in the last few days I need to make a push and canā€™t never find the proper event and I get bored with the turn choosing. It really breaks my concentrationā€¦

Yes please I was just thinking about this before.

Iā€™d love to be able to create custom routes.

1 Like

Save a route would be the simplest way or maybe follow someone elseā€™s route like you can on Strava

1 Like

Exactly, I imagine a route builder like they have on Strava. Once saved, it makes a custom file that Zwift gives you the option of running on the first world select screen. Once selected Zwift runs the file and guides the avatar(s) around the custom route.

Iā€™m speaking out of my rear end here, but I canā€™t imagine that it would be that hard to give users a custom route builder and to automate the event/race creation process.

3 Likes

Having custom routes would make training goals so much more realistic. Imagine planning a big route for next summer and spending the winter doing virtual recce training ridesā€¦

3 Likes

Yes ā€¦ this!. I have been wanting something like this since I started Zwifting a few months ago. A ā€œGenerate Custom Routeā€ option for Watopia would be sweet. You enter in the distance and amount of climbing and Zwift takes you on a journey.

Example: Say I want to do a 90k ride with 700m of climbing and it joins together Bigfoot Hills and Tempus Fugit or creates some other custom route.

Added bonus points if you can add a certain number of climbs and their distance/height.

Double monster bonus points if you can upload a Strava route or some similar form of data and it creates a similar route within the game.

Quick(ish) Workaround: Allow someone to upload the route data that they want. perhaps it could share the same mechanism used to create custom race routes like ā€œWatopia Wastebandā€ or ā€œVolcano Climb Afterpartyā€. This would allow someone else to create a 3rd party tool or Plug-in to create the route.

Thoughts about the plug-in option: When you think about it this makes a lot of sense. The most popular multi-player games over the years have allowed user customization and plug-ins to individualize the user experience. Eventually Zwift is going to have some serious competition so creating ways to further tie someone in a deeper level by allowing the community to create their own tools and experiences would be a huge step towards that possibility. I mean how could would it be if others created their own texture pack ;).

Sorry for the long comment, Iā€™m just very very happy with Zwift and passionate about seeing it succeed long term.

4 Likes

This is a bit off Topic, but it is an important topic, maybe you should start a feature request for it, I would surely vote for it.

2 Likes

I was thinking that same thought but was feeling a bit lazy at the time. Iā€™ll definitely do a spinoff.

2 Likes

long time and still nothing ā€¦ but hey you are not alone ā€¦

4 Likes

Excellent idea!

ā€¦and add one of my most wanted features, simply an indicator to let me know when Iā€™ve finished the route! :).

1 Like

I would certainly like this! Been having the same idea. Riding longer rides (200-300k) I would like to do a climb, then stay on flat land for a bit, do a climb, long time on the flats. The current routes are great, but either very short, and get repetitive fast, or too many hills for a long ride.

Iā€™d like to see:

  • Show us the full map
  • Select a start point (can be pre-defined spots)
  • Click on a section of road (intersection to intersection) to select it.
  • Click on any of the consecutive sections.
  • Show total distance and elevation on the side.
  • Save the course, and ride it.

This way we can plan our own routes next to the already existing ones. Being able to share them with friends would be great, but very awesome, but for me an extra.

1 Like

I joined Zwift a few weeks ago, and I was really surprised that planning your own routes is not possible.

If we consider for example Watopia, it only has about 100 kilometers of roads in total. Other worlds have less. You really learn them quite quick.

After learning the roads Iā€™d really prefer to plan my own route before the ride. This is how many of us ride in real life.

Implementation-wise it could be something like choosing the starting location (from a reasonable set), starting direction, and then just pre-selecting intersections until done. After choosing the direction at an intersection, the camera could jump to the next intersection along the route, and so forth until ready.

3 Likes

Although it will be nice to have a route planner.

Curently I have a map of Watopia close by (it can be printed or on a second screen) and I use manual turns.

Zwiftinsider.com has some nice maps and interesting rebel routes that you can try.

Specifically, I want to be able to select turns at intersections well before I approach them (and possibly multiple turns ahead of time but not necessary)

I canā€™t tell you how often I will be hammering away and I put my head down for 2-3 seconds and miss a turn that I intended to make. I like having the freedom to pick and choose over the course of a ride if I want switch it up and hit some hills or whatever it might be in the moment but also sometimes I have a specific circuit I might be trying to do that is not an already pre determined route (custom route builder would is also on the table)

This would allow me to just focus without having to be constantly worried Iā€™m going to miss that short window of opportunity to turn where I intend to

4 Likes

Please make a route planner so I can preselect which turns I want to make in a world before I ride it.

2 Likes