I think it’s much more realistic. Indeed, you do get less draft from the group if you’re stuck out on the edge - just like IRL. RGT has some work to do in other areas… rider positioning included (and also apparently compatibility with music apps)… But they’ve done a really good job on the physics.
Listen to what Ed Lavrarack has to say. He makes an attack at about 44:30 and then talks about his observations of the draft for a few minutes.
https://youtu.be/O69ICNsMey8?t=2666
@Gru If you agree that the Zwift peloton speed is pretty close to IRL, but you say that the draft effect isn’t strong enough… If the Zwift draft effect were more like RGT’s, wouldn’t the Zwift peloton speed just increase considerably? If so, it would just exacerbate the issue of never being able to get back in the group once you’ve been dropped. Or do you not think the peloton speed would increase?
Eric on ZI did an experiment where everyone in a pack had the same power. The result was a “bee-hive” where riders would shoot off the the front, then slow, but then be immediately overtaken. The result was the pack went faster than a solo rider. This is obviously non-physical, because IRL the pack only goes as fast as the lead rider, who’s almost solo (some benefit from trailing riders, but small).
The problem with Zwift is there’s no collision detection: riders pass thru each other. This is what causes the bee hive. RGT OTOH has an energy for passing other riders. If you did this experiment on RGT, one rider would just pull the whole way, because with everyone @ constant power, the trailing rider wouldn’t be able to get past the leader. This is obviously more realistic.
So it’s more than just the draft effect. Pack dynamics is also an issue.
But do we want it to be realistic? It’s a game, and we want it to be hard. Those IRL races where I just sat in the pack wondering why nobody way up front was pulling hard aren’t the point. Zwift races are intense, and that’s part of the point.
Still, I would like to try RGT.
It’s an interesting question… With a more realistic draft, I actually think the peloton speed would be slower. Reason: Race tactics and psychology.
With a strong group draft, do you want to be on the front hammering out 300 watts? Or do you want to be a few places back putting out 100 watts and getting sucked along? Unless there’s a really good reason to be working hard on the front (like team strategy?) I know where I’d rather be.
In a Zwift race, the difference in power between being on the front of the peloton and sitting mid pack is much smaller, so it matters less if I happen to end up on the front through the usual churn. I usually try to get with a pack of riders who are honestly a bit stronger that I am, and just hang on to the middle or back of the pack. The stronger riders in the group know that there are blokes like me who are just barely hanging on, so they keep pushing the pace to try to drop us.
In RGT, with a more powerful group draft, nobody ever wants to be on the front of the peloton. It wastes far too much energy. The stronger riders know that they are unlikely to drop anyone by simply pushing the pace of the pack. So they wait, conserve energy, and then attack to separate from the group. Nobody wants to go to the front, and the strong riders aren’t constantly pushing the pace, so the peloton goes slower.
For the stickyness issue, perhaps one solution would be to use the companion app. A simple toggle button to turn on/off sticky drafting would go a long way to helping this. Now obviously this only helps people who using the companion app, but it’s a start at least.
It justy needs removing compleatly (sticky). I think it only ever robs you of watts ie removes your momentum and sticks you on someones wheel. I cant think of a time i had been thankfull to have it but plenty of times it has hindered progress. I would like to see the HUD speed displayed to 1 decimal place like in TT mode, its a bit dificult to judge how much it is slowing you down otherwise.
True, we all too…
Because “mortals” need to experiment unrealistic performances really far of the real life physics.
Zwift is the Matrix for the cycling, people have to be happy somewhere… 
Drafting still sucks - if I’m at 3.5w/kg chasing back on and a couple of riders come ‘round me at 2.3w/kg (and how that even happens on the flat off the back of a group is another question), I DO NOT want to draft. The group is gone in a flash. Does anyone from Zwift monitor these feedback forums?
Check this out: New Pack Dynamics [February 2021]?
Cool, thanks!
So if that’s the new dynamics (I was in a make-up stage) how do I feed back that this didn’t work so well - was in the same group for 10+k and it was mostly fine until it wasn’t
Maybe post in that thread. Give them as much info as possible.
The new draft dynamics: get in a blob and hold a bit more power to stay in it. Increase power to 25% or more than the blob when you are about to get spit out the back. If that how drafting is supposed to work? If so it is working correctly. However, I really don’t think that is what the intent is. Please fix the draft. We shouldn’t need to put out more power than the blob to stay in it.
I am so tired of this that I am exploring other trainer options.
That is not how the draft work. If you are in the draft you can save a lot of power vs riding in front in the wind or dropped of the back.
OK. Then the draft is not working. I don’t remember having this problem with the old mechanics. Anyone at Zwift going to look into this or are they going to ignore it like my other requests? Really beginning to wonder why I keep my subscription considering how much they ignore this long time customer.
I have 49,889 Zwift miles and can confirm that something has changed and is not working correctly.
But thanks for responding!
Can you drop your log file in Zwiftalizer.com. and share the link here maybe we can see something.
The problem with the current implementation is that typically you get no “close the gap” messages until it is way too late, i.e. after you have effectively been dropped. It appears to me as though it looks at the distance to any rider in front of you ignoring lateral position, so there might be someone “right in front” of you on the other side of the road that you don’t get any draft benefit from.
Now you just have to keep an eye on how the pack looks and push a little bit extra for a few seconds any time you see the pack in front of you thinning out at all, to move to the more dense part of the pack.
And of course you have to keep doing this over and over again after the riders you just overtook also finally notice it, surge past you and then start opening gaps in front of you again… Depending on who you are riding with, of course.
Draft has serious issues as it is implemented right now. My ride often rides outside of the blob and immediately looses the draft. Other times I get ‘sucked’ to the front (sometimes coasting) and the instant my front tire hits the front, I get kicked out the back. Other times I have to do more power than the blob just to hold the draft. Don’t forget that the sticky draft is stronger than the few times I am actually holding the draft. The only problem with the old draft implementation was that I usually couldn’t stay in a blob around sharp corners.
Looking at some of my other group rides on the same course it appears I am putting out about 10% more power then previous rides, am going slower and can’t hold the draft. You really need to fix this.
Just an observation I had in a double draft race recently. Dropping back in the field and placing at the back feels much more realistic than normal draft. I didn’t have to be careful not to be dropped. Just slide back and take a position at the back. In normal draft algorithm, I feel this is unrealistic and irritating.
Double draft is double edged sward. On one side I like it because it feels more realistic. On the other side it can make flat races very predictable and boring. If it is used on longer courses or courses with some climbs, I think it works quite well. On shorter or flat courses it can ruin the race.