I think the draft indicator design is a wonderful innovation and very useful.
7 Likes
It is certainly a great addition to the HUD. Unfortunately, Zwift didn’t consult a human factors engineer when implementing it. It needs a coupla things:
1. Operate from left to right with a scale on it. The bar extending from the center takes more time to decipher what you’re seeing. Standard human factors have shown an instrument reading from left to right is much easier to use. A numbered scale would improve it even more.
2. Be a different color than the other bars in the HUD. Making it the same color as the route/PP bar is confusing.
And it really shows how fouled up the auto steering is. I had no idea how much it affected me in races when I’d get pushed out when I’m 10th wheel. Thanks for that…
6 Likes
The draft indicator (which I really like, I’d like to have a fuller comprehension of what exactly it’s showing but that’s minor) is really showing how bad the issue of getting pushed out into the wind by people advancing up the middle of the pack really is. Happened constantly in the ZRace I did this morning. I hope there will be another look at the pack dynamics to address it.
3 Likes
Doubtful, given the absolute silence on pack dynamics.
I’ve been saying for a while that overtaking riders should be forced to overtake on the outside, without draft.
Currently they seem to be able to push others ahead out of the draft and go through the easy way without having to work.
2 Likes
Yup. In the TdZ Long ride this morning, I was in the middle of the pack, 10th wheel of about 20 and hit the draft boost. As if on cue, I got shoved to the right completely out of the draft and couldn’t get back in until I slowed enough to get behind the group and then I could steer back into the draft (slowly because that’s what autosteer allows in a group ride). I lost about 10 seconds of draft boost because of this and while it was in a “ride” and wasn’t an issue like it was in the races on Sunday, it’s still stupid and needs to be fixed.
Another 1000x agreed.
1 Like
Yesterday on the TdZ standard ride, I found myself near the right edge of the pack. I still had some draft, but not full draft. I held the left steer button, got the red “fence” and could not move more to the left because another rider was there, not completely side by side, but close. Another rider came up from behind, between me and the rider who was blocking me from going left, thus forcing me completely out of the draft.
That just seems wrong.
3 Likes
Draft Indicator must be optional (OFF toggle)
I’m paying a monthly subscription for Zwift and I want to decide myself which HUD elements I see.
The new blue Draft Indicator in the central HUD is constantly moving, very distracting, and completely unnecessary for solo free rides. Even when riding alone, there is currently no way to disable it.
Request: Please add a clear toggle:
“Draft Indicator OFF”.
Users who want this feature can keep it enabled. Users who don’t want it must be able to turn it off.
A mandatory, animated HUD element without a disable option is not acceptable in a paid product.
Kind regards & cu
1 Like
In ZRL yesterday, the Burrito was in play.
I was observing draft behavior during the Burrito and made the following observations.
If I am behind a rider deploying a burrito, but not the first to follow, my draft indicator bar doesn’t decrease.
I was not able to get directly behind a burrito deployment to see if the first rider following a burrito has a change in draft indicator.
Does the burrito prevent all riders from getting any draft from any other rider or only prevents drafting from the rider deploying the burrito.
And still unanswered, what effect does deploying another power up behind a burrito.
I was happy to see my draft indicator not decrease and I really can’t say I saw or felt an effect but dying up Libby Hill may not be the sensitive test.
1 Like
That doesn’t match my experience. If I’m anywhere within the cone behind the rider using the burrito my draft bar goes to zero.
The cone seems to be about 10m long, and about 30 degrees each side of the line directly behind the rider.
When I’m entering or exiting the cone my draft bar drops away or reappears accordingly.
When I was using the draft van powerup and went into the cone behind a rider using a burrito my draft bar went to zero.
2 Likes
I had about 4 of them dropped on me and my draft bar went down to zero
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The entire HUD is animated, else it would be useless.
But you can hide it all and just ride with the game world (apart from rider name tags, IIRC).
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My observation must have been in error.
I was close to the burrito but not directly behind.
I must have been just outside the cone.
I watched a couple YouTube races and in those races, the draft indicator dropped to zero and on one, the rider had a draft power up played prior to the other guy playing a burrito and his draft went to zero.
1 Like
@Peter_Twigt has a clever solution to this problem
1 Like