There is no ranking for group rides and the results of a timed event is all random. 
Just ignore them once they pass the fence and have fun riding with the ride leader.
I’ve never understood any value for those zap fences. So someone rides off the front. So what? So long as the group leader maintains the advertised pace, why should it matter that someone rides off the front more than it matters that a rider falls off the back? Nothing kicks riders out of a ride because they choose to go slower than the advertised pace. So why kick riders off who choose to ride off the front? It’s the mentality of this that confounds me. Really? Who actually cares that some riders take off because they felt like it? Why should they care? Who’s being hurt? I just don’t get it.
See all the discussion above.
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I’ve read all that (and a lot more) before. I understand Zwift provides for members to organize group rides, and part of that is how to set up this fence thingy. Each group leader has options as they please. No harm in that. My earlier comment was no more than me opining that, speaking for myself as a group leader of IRL rides, the mentality of kicking someone from a group ride because they opt to move ahead just never made any sense to me. It makes even less sense when a faster rider is kicked out and slower riders are not kicked out, when both opted to join a group at an advertised pace. I just don’t understand the mentality.
The culture of Zwift social rides is in my experience almost completely unlike club rides outdoors. I’ve adapted my thinking to how the people on the platform conduct themselves. In Zwift social rides, there is a lot of priority given to keeping the group together, there’s no stopping to regroup as you might do in an outdoor ride, and the game physics mean that people off the back just ride alone forever unless a sweep team manages to pull them back to the group. As a sweeper I hope that the group rides steady and the leader tries to manage the pace when people are chasing back on. It’s not that harmful if a flier makes a clean break and disappears, but it’s a problem if they hang around the front surging and getting chased by the group. That urge to chase someone who has sped up just a little is very strong in humans. Most of the social rides I do that cater to slow pace riders do not use a fence, but the leader often announces that people who want to go up the road should really GO up the road.
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Lets say that we are hosting a ride, advertised pace is 2watts.
A couple people fall off the back because they lost the group. Sweepers can go back to help them get back into the group. Sometimes people just aren’t strong enough and they tell the sweepers not to worry about it. The ride carries on as advertised.
They absolutely don’t effect anyone if they fall off the back.
Riders that go off the front at say 2.5 watts, absolutely disrupt the ride.
They start splitting the group.
- some riders are just following the blob.
- other riders just don’t know and think they have to keep up to the front.
When the ride is over the complaining will begin(or during the ride)
I will never with these guys again. They don’t ride at there advertised pace.
Meanwhile the ride leader was riding at 2watts, and the flyers took part of the group. Rode at 2.5
That is why you need a fence, and that is also the reason they should be zapped from the ride.
We have group rides at advertised pace for a reason. Not for a couple people that ruin it for everyone else.
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The one disconnect is that I don’t believe there’s a lot of complaining on robopacer rides of those who decide to go off the front. Everyone on those rides seems to know to stay with the leader/RP beacon who want to stay. So, why is there a different psychology – is it just because the leader on regular group rides isn’t in the shape of a robot?
I’m guessing that it’s the points multiplier. Want to get more drops.
[quote=“Doug, post:46, topic:607079, username:Doug_Ox”]
Riders that go off the front at say 2.5 watts, absolutely disrupt the ride.
They start splitting the group.
[/quote] Yes, that’s what I here people whine about. I still don’t get the mentality. We’re all individuals. If a group splits into two groups all that means is that you had one group and now you have two groups. So what? This happens all the time on just about every ride in the real world, and it also happens without any (serious) consequence on all the Robo pacer rides. This is natural cycling. It’s neither abnormal nor deviant. The same thing happens on Zwift group rides, only on some of them the grouping out front gets kicked out of the ride. Not very inviting for new comers. But the environment is as Zwift provides it. I’m not complaining about it. It’s just never made any sense to me.
Lol. Right! We need another zillion points to purchase what exactly? I mean, in practically no time you have any bling that actually helps you.
As many tried to explain, those riders drad the other riders with them so that soon you have a lot of people not noticing that they are not with the group and they can’t keep up anymore.
This is to help newcomers. Having led many rides for new people before and after the fence I can tell you it help them a lot.
Zapping people does not harm them they just continue riding and if they have a small group they can ride together. They will just not be in the results but in a group ride results does not matter.
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Of course zapped riders aren’t harmed, and can continue on together if they wish. My comments on the topic have not been to complain, but, rather, only to share my view of the fence thingy. My interest with Zwift is to turn a workout into something as close to IRL as I can get. The fence thingy is pretty unnatural. When I ride with groups I tend to look for ones who don’t zap riders. Depending on group dynamic (which is different on every ride with every group) I may tend to get out front. IRL, at some point, I’d stop and wait for the group. But when I am riding I’m doing what comes natural to me, like how I climb or how I descend. When you get zapped for riding natural, it just doesn’t make sense to me. The fencing thingy makes what is natural unnatural. Just my view, and my experience. This is the prime reason I stay away from group rides lately, instead opting for the Robo pacer when I want to ride in a peloton.
As Gerrie says, see discussion above.
Let’s say you are in a nice little group of riders at a nice advertised pace and I come along with a couple of others and drag the rest of that group along faster and you get spat out the back.
You probably won’t be happy if you are now on your own or having to push way faster than you intended.
For people who want to go faster, there are faster groups, rather than zooming off the front of a C grade group, join an A grade one with 4.0w+ average. Or the Constance robopacer groups.
[quote=“Chris, post:53, topic:607079, username:Chris_D9”]
Let’s say you are in a nice little group of riders at a nice advertiser pace and I come along with a couple of others and drag the rest of that group along faster and you get spat out the back.
You probably won’t be happy if get you are now on your own or having to push way faster than you intended.
[/quote] Group riders I’m familiar with have a group leader, and often sweepers too. It is up to these to maintain the advertised pace, in this case for those who might otherwise be left alone.
Also, honestly, natural cycling will have riders dropped on climbs and/or descents; not because anyone’s trying to push ahead or get dropped, but because of their unique riding style. A very annoying aspect of group rides is being forced to ride slow on a climb or descent when taking advantage of inertia and/or gravity helps you maintain yourself with a group on flats. Nevertheless, in the Zwift world group leaders should not fly off with riders pacing faster than what’s advertised.
Natural cycling in a group, we slow for the slower riders so they don’t get dropped.
That’s so they are encouraged to keep coming back and riding with us, rather than “this group doesn’t care and leaves me behind on my own”.
It’s also part of learning correct group riding techniques.
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No good ride leader will do that, they stay at the advertised pace even if it mean riding alone
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That’s right Randy, the fence is a pain but can live with that, however IRL you might speed up on a climb, or contest a sprint, you know a bit of fun mate, nope, you get zapped (rejoin, breaks up ride on strava) we have insecure ride leaders constantly whinging if you go a bit quicker in places, say you hit a climb, and the pace is 2 w/kg, I normally go 3, can’t do it, stupid count down begins and leader gets all anxious, ‘oh no I’m losing control here’ we aren’t kids we can simply regroup at the top of the climb. Similarly sprints, go too hard and you’re into the count down again mama mia can you imagine in the real world having these plonkers shouting out slow down, ‘I can’t keep up you’re ruining the ride’, have they no real world experience, what a joke.
Talk about no fun. Anyway the Cycle Nation rides are mature enough that they don’t’ have the fence zap so do those, much more fun, instead of boring same pace the whole way - robot riding.
unfortunately irl and zwift don’t always replicate each other, does the regroup happen on zwift. Generally the answer is no on the vast majority of rides I’ve seen so where is the harm kicking somebody. If they want to ride solo in a group ride then makes no difference if they ride solo having been kicked out the group ride.
it is what it is zwift tries to account for what everyone wants. Some like no fence, some like zappy, fence some like non-zappy fence.
Can younever please everyone so my best bit of advice would be for anyone that does not like something just choose another ride there is plenty things to do on zwift.
Gordon there’s no way of knowing the fence zap is on prior to joining ride, otherwise yep that’s a clear warning of a boring robotic ride - no sprints, no climbing.
you could look at Events for the no kick tag it’s less than ideal and really should be clear in game signup.
The other option is to drop back. To get the fastest sprint you are actually slower going off the front you are better to go from the back through the group pack for a faster time.
Climbs you have a point. Personally i run the fence but without kick gives enough control. for those that really want to smash a climb i’m not chasing them but i like that options are there for ride leaders that want to run rides as they see fit.
I used to sweep on quite a beginner friendly ride with a big turnout and big groups pushing the fence or through the fence really speed up the pace of the blob and it was very common new riders found themselves 2k ahead of the leader next thing you get complains i signed up for a 1.5 ride and i’m doing 2.0 so i understand there is place and time a kicking fence can work quite well.
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