Today’s pacers: 1.2, 1.5, 1.5, 1.6, 1.6, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.9, 2.9, 3.3, 3.7, 4.2, 4.4
This doesn’t at all match the robopacer roster, and I really don’t understand the massive gap between 1.6 and 2.4 - which sadly, is right where my fitness level is at the moment.
I think I’m just salty as I’m right around 2.0w/kg at the moment and the last few times I’ve been on Zwift there’s been a massive gap of pacers either side of that pace, but today with the gap between 1.6 and 2.4 it just feels like they’re taking the piss!
I was riding with Maria for 1:38 hours yesterday (12 hours ago), averaged exactly 2,0 W/kg.
Use Mike’s chart as a reference, knock about 20% off those values (if you can draft efficiently) and that will be your approximate average pace on a flattish course. If you’re much heavier than the pacers (75 kg) you can probably knock a bit more more off.
This is all predicated on your desire/ability to “shadow” the pacer and not ride off the front or drop off the back. Where hills are concerned, the pacer increases their intensity going uphill and decreases it going downhill, so you need to pay a bit more attention to what’s going on around you (the values displayed on the menu screen are a snapshot of their current values determined by their position on that particular course, flat, uphill, downhill etc).
These rides are certainly not steady-state rides and your pace could vary considerably (both above and below) the pacer’s advertised intensity at any point during the ride.
I believe Maria’s w/kg is being wrongly reported (too high). It was mentioned in another, similar, thread recently. I’ll see if I can find it.
If you should have a Zpower rider sitting at the front doing 4.8-5.9w/kg for 60km+, the group can go considerably faster especially if one or two people don’t realise what is happening and give chase.
A group on Tempus that might have done 43km/h average then ends up doing 45km/h average because Constance gets towed along also.
Those at the back end up having to push 6-7w/kg to avoid getting dropped if they don’t react fast enough.
That sort of thing messes up the robo-pacer rides.
@James_Zwift did you manage to raise the fact that Maria’s w/kg is being over-reported on the RP selection menu?
Ta.
Yes, but we’re not sure why currently.
(Just dropped in a reminder to have a look into this next week)
She moves like she don’t care
Smooth as silk, cool as air
Ooh it makes you wanna cry
She doesn’t know your name
And your heart beats like a subway train
Ooh it makes you wanna die
Frankly I was disappointed not able to find a steady flat ride like Tempus Fugit for weekend
base pace 2.4 to 2.6 range today. Joined a few Robopacer rides recently and found the pacing is not as consistent as hoped for. When we encountered the climbs, the whole pack just fragments while on downhill the bot gets slingshot forward on the tow.
Ultimately rode myself today on Tempus Fugit like a bot…
Edit: Rumored if I ride like a bot for 30 days I can apply for RoboPacer job? 
You’ll find there are plenty of “flat“ routes - it’s just that they have lots of little undulations unlike Tempus.
Or the only pace partner group on Tempus is a doing very low w/kg so then you just end up riding alone.
Also noticed that none of the pace partner groups go on the epic KOM and radio tower climb. All the groups from C and higher should get to enjoy that route sometimes. 
Maria was showing 2.1 on both routes today so it might have been fixed.
What I can never understand with Robopacer’s are their speed is not consistent it jumps or falls in certain areas of a route. I have joined Genie the last two mornings there has not been that many riders at either time but for following Genie on Zwift’s flattest route Tempus Fugit I have had a power differential of over 50 watts / 1 w/kg which seems very high when Genie’s power remained constant at 3.7 w/kg.
Depends who else is with genie and their speed?
Constance was on Tempus last week and some of that group have moved over to Genie this week - so the pace partner is towed along very fast.
Through the banner on the return part of the route the speed quickly surges to 47km/h or more. And going the other way, sometimes 50km/h.
I rode with her yesterday, it seems better now. I fell off the back after 45 mins due to my fitness levels being in the toilet, but that’s on me 
Anyone ride with Coco this morning on Tick Tock?
Could just be me, but something didn’t feel quite right. It was quite a big group (202 when I joined) but I wouldn’t say there were any more people than normal out front pushing the pace. I tried to shadow the PP, as usual, but found it really difficult; lots of surges and drop-offs at unexpected times (which didn’t always correlate with changes in gradient).
Also, there didn’t seem to be as much draft towards the back of the group as usual (could have been my tired legs). I was sat there thinking, I wonder if David is tinkering with PD4? I think this was one of the first (only?) PP rides I’ve ever done where my average output exceeded the bot. I can usually bank on quite significant savings from the draft.
Is it just my imagination (running away with me)? 
There’s definitely no PD4 on Pace Partner rides.
I rode with her for 90km, everything felt fine.
