… Why am I an A Cat/Pace rider?
Sure, In the event below I would have placed third, but would have been out of 7 riders.
It’s just demoralizing to consistently get passed/beat by lower Cat riders when I can’t join that Cat.
Because you have a relatively quite low w/kg at shorter time intervals. And/or the 4.6 w/kg 20 minute performance you did on Nov 2nd?
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If you’d like me to do the math to estimate where you stand in your pace group, the info I would need is on your profile on my.zwift.com, under the Fitness section. Tell me the zFTP and zMAP numbers, and the Watts and W/kg for 3, 5 12, 20 minute PRs below that. The PRs also expire after 90 days so you can look at the dates to understand when that will happen.
OK, so improve my number and I’ll go down in Cat? Or is the emphasis on a solid performance once every 3 months or so?
The vast majority of the B podiums are with very small fields… like 4 people or less.
Just so hard to watch B (or sometimes C) riders roll past me. Takes me a couple days to get over it.
And I seriously doubt I can hold 304 watts for 40 minutes.
As John alluded to, this is a case where a higher short term PR might drive your zFTP down. Your power curve is very flat, so if you are capable of driving up zMAP (often around 5 minute power) that would likely make zFTP go down. Whether that would be sufficient to shift you down a category, I cannot guess. The zFTP threshold for A category is 4.2W/kg, and the zMAP threshold is 5.1W/kg. I estimate you at about 4.4W/kg zFTP and 5W/kg zMAP as seen below, so you don’t have a lot of room to raise zMAP before you cross the threshold for A based on zMAP alone. Basically these are bottom-of-A-category numbers so that probably describes most of your experience. In events categorized by racing score, you would probably have fairer competition, especially if there are hills, but that doesn’t include Zwift TT Club events.
I doubt you’d go down a category. Recording a high 5 minute power will lower your zFTP but it’s unlikely to be enough to get to B.
The pace groups being based on w/kg is always going to be a problem, because at the same w/kg a heavier rider is always faster. A heavy enough rider could have a 400w zFTP and still be classed as a B rider, and if they’re short then they won’t have much of a CdA disadvantage.
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A quick look makes me think 371-346 isn’t great for 2-5mins. Relatively speaking!
I think you could get the shorter durations of that window much closer to 400W.
It might marginally lower your zFTP, but I’m not sure you would lower it enough to drop to Category Enforcement B, without risking a pen A zMAP.
Yeah I doubt that will work unless zMAP goes well above 5.1W/kg
I appreciate everyone’s insights, especially Paul’s math.
FTP I get, but I feel it’s over-estimated. I really have no idea what zMap is.
I find it interesting that if I generally choose longer races without sprinting, I get promoted.
zMAP is intended as a measure of max aerobic power which in Zwift is typically around 5.5 minutes
As Tom mentioned, being light is a liability when it comes to getting upgraded under the old pace group system. In events that use racing score, you start at a compound score that includes both W/kg and raw Watts, so that is more in your favor if you do events with hills.
Hills makes sense, at least historically. Issue is the limited hill races + time zone = very few options. But I can usually find something on the weekend.
Even doing scratch races that are based on racing score instead of TT club would probably give you a better experience (assuming you don’t just want to be crushed by giant beasts). Your racing score is 604 so in ZRacing range 1 events, and most other events that use racing score, you are in the middle of A category as opposed to the bottom, so if you pick one of those with a climb you have a shot at staying with the lead group over the top. You might get smoked at the finish but just getting to that point can make the overall race more enjoyable.
look at me Poor C rider who can drop 400 watts for 2 min. lots A riders think FTP win’s race’s but there Very wrong.
FTP doesn’t win races except for the big climbs. FTP does put you into the position to win. No point having a big sprint if you can’t keep up with the group to use it.
As a rule of thumb, your FTP determines which pen you start in. Your anaerobic capacity determines where you finish in the race.
If your zMAP is 113% of your zFTP, you’re going to struggle to win races. If it’s 125%, you’ve got more of a chance.
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Not a huge problem on flat or punchy courses. Just suck wheels like your life depends on it. Especially if you’re, say, 93kg 
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Even that has its limits. I’ve tried in vain to keep up with the fast pack often enough to know.
Heavy with high raw power doesn’t easily beat 30-40kg lighter with the same raw power.