One of the reasons got excited about Zwift was I saw TT races and I saw TT bikes but it seems that now I have done a few, the difference is the no drafting and no steering and a delayed start between riders.
I would think that you had to use a TT bike and other requirements but many of the races do not even seem like TT courses. I know there are TT races that use very different courses and bikes than the traditional ones you associate with TT but it seems like we even have the category?
I am training for my first duathlon my hope is this year.
I frankly asked myself the same question and I guess it may be more the requirement of the use of TT bike, the course being a bit more what I would think a TT course to be (ie relatively flat), must have HR device. Just a more TT look and feel like you see on TV for the tour. Right now just feels like a race without draft and steering.
You should try the TTT’s on Thursday’s, but you need to be on a team and these races aren’t open to the public to join, you need to have a special link from WTRL. If you are looking for a team, join their (WTRL TTT) facebook group and they can help you find a team.
John, still a little confused by your post. Some riders will use road bikes on some TT stages of tour races, whether because the stage is hilly enough that it’s worthwhile or because they’re managing an injury.
I think the conveyor start on Tempus Fugit or Bologna TT courses will give you the feel you’re looking for.
If you go on zwifthacks.com and filter on TT races, you’ll see plenty there. A TT on Tempus Fugit should give you the mainly flat experience that you seem to be after, and most will mandate a TT bike.
Perfect. That was what I was looking for. I have done several TT races and I always end up with the only TT bike usually and going up a 10% hill for half the race which is fine as long as everyone else has to use one instead I see everything but a TT bike.
I do love the look and feel of Bologna and a real treat and I am fine with the big climb as long as everyone else is required to do it with a TT bike and again the HR band, the power device and so on. Otherwise just call it a race with no draft and no steering.
I think it would be cool to be in like a chute you see on TV coming out full speed and lines of people on the left and right of you with big turns to slow you up or spin out instead of using London Uprising or some other course. Maybe TT is not a big enough category to put all the programming into it.
Otherwise thank you for the response. Hope explains my thoughts more.
John - I’ve done a big geek-out post on this before - for Bologna, you’ll save at least as much on the flat as you lose on the climb vs. a climbing road bike. You aren’t at a disadvantage using a TT bike unless you’re riding quite slowly.
I did do silver in my cat so I was happy enough but man it feels slow going up. Ha! Also did you check this before and after the new upgrades? I will stop geeking out after this question. I really want to see the difference on my Felt after I earn a few of the upgrades.
The TT bikes are so much faster than the road bikes on the flat I don’t think it’s even a question. It might not be worth taking the CADEX as that’s extremely heavy, but one of the fast TT bikes with ENVE 7.8 wheels or the Zip 858/Super 9 disc set ends up almost perfectly even and seconds faster than a road bike.
There’s more to geek out reference optimum power splits on that course than equipment, honestly. I had a couple years of averaging almost identical power on races roughly every 6 months, and the more I saved energy on the flat the better was how it came out.
Before ZwiftHQ messed about with wheel performance on different route surfaces, it used to be quicker to do one lap of Isle Mech TT on a gravel bike rather than on a TT bike, because of the dirt section approaching and up the climb.
That course is special for sure and I use it as my ultimate test honestly. I have a Felt but will look into the Cadex. I was saving XP for something special after I get all the upgrades to the Canyon done.
To me I am just trying to hold a constant output cause with the duathlon I was told that is much more important and when I tried to do some of my own BRICK sessions locally you can see that running and cycling are not the same. But that is for another thread.