Hi,
As in the title of the post - disabling ERG mode causes the trainer to disconnect from Zwift for a while, after a few seconds the connection returns.
During workouts where there are all-out sprints and Zwift itself disconnects ERG suddenly the power and cadence reading disappears for a few seconds, the character stops, the Bluetooth light on the trainer flashes and after a few seconds everything returns to normal.
I have been the happy owner of the Zwift Ride for about a month now. Last week I did an update of the trainer via the Wahoo app, and I have the impression that the problem has appeared since then, but it seems to occur only on the Zwift. As a test, I downloaded another free indoor riding app and there I seamlessly turned off/on the ERG every few seconds and the problem did not occur.
It is definitely not a problem with the Bluetooth on the laptop because during the ride (no matter if with ERG mode or not) there are no problems with disconnection of either the trainer, heart rate sensor or Zwift Play controller. The problem occurs only when I manually disable ERG mode or there is a free ride block in the workout.
All devices (trainer, heart rate sensor and Zwift Play controller) are connected by Bluetooth to a Windows 11 laptop.
I recorded a video of what it looks like. (After turning off the ERG, you can hear that I continue to spin, the power and cadence readings indicate 0 and the figure stands)
I have just experienced exactly the same problem and had just reported it, before seeing your post.
Have you managed to fix the problem ?
Are you using the Kickr Core with Zwift Ride ? In my case it is the Resistance connection that disconnects - Power, Cadence & HRM all stay connected. As I was in the middle of a workout with multiple switches between Erg mode and free ride I had to pause the workout to reconnect. It wsa not a random event - it happend everytime Zwift switched out of ERG mode.
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find a workaround for this.
Yes, I use Zwift Ride with Kickr Core.
In my case it disconnects both power and resistance, cadence and heart rate continue normally (I have separate sensors for heart rate and cadence).
I reported this to support earlier and one of the ambassadors wrote me back saying that there is a recognised issue where the virtual gears don’t kick in during freeride segments of workouts when ERG is switched on. And reportedly Zwift are working on improving this, but somehow the results are not visible yet.
I checked what he wrote and actually on some workouts it worked fine and on some it disconnected. So there is no rule when it happens and when it doesn’t, it was random. I’m currently riding workouts 100% on ERG mode so it’s hard for me to say if anything has changed, but 99% no because few days ago after finishing a workout I wanted to ride a bit more and it disconnected the trainer for a few seconds and after few seconds the readings returned to normal.
I am also having the same issue working on a Samsung tablet with a Kickr Core (just a regular bike with gears - no virtual shifting). The problem started sometime in November. I worked with Wahoo support, and it does not appear to be a trainer issue. I have no problem switching between passive and target power in the Wahoo app. Wahoo support had me try replicating the issues on Zwift on my phone, which does NOT have this problem (android phone).
The problem only happens when switching off ERG mode (whether done automatically within a workout or manually). Based on the log file, it loses bluetooth connection, and then is able to reconnect within 30 seconds. Zwift support hasn’t been much help. They just say it’s probably bluetooth interference, so try to fix that. I have removed or unplugged everything I can think of that would cause interference in the room that might be causing issues.
So is there something going on with the settings on android tablets causing this problem?
Thanks Amanda - yours seem to agree with my issues. I wonder whether it is an Android version problem, but definitely a Zwift/Kickr/android bug. I will try my phone, instead of my tablet - I believe they are running different Android versions.