I was riding the Innsbruckring tonight. I did one lap fast for me, and slow for anyone else. Then I rode steady for a second. As I got to the top of the hill, Zwift just went wild. The first thing I noticed was a string of achievements coming up. Then I realised that I was cresting the summit at over 30mph, instead of my usual 3mph. I shot down the hill at well over 40mph, and at that point it dawned on me that I was going to put the riverside sprint record on the shelf - I think I took a second off it.
It was good fun on the flat run to the finish, with my own personal hurricane tailwind. At last I had the experience of shooting past everyone else - they’ve done it to me enough.
However, I now have a string of duff achievements, including a 1200-watt badge. The highest I’ve ever hit is 225 watts, and I’ve nothing to go for now because I’m never going to get up that far.
Near the finish, a warning came up that I was either a pro in disguise, or my equipment was set wrong. Fair enough as a warning, but I’m on the most basic set-up possible - dumb, wheel-on trainer, HRM and speed/cadence sensor, plus an Android tablet. I’m not sure how I could change anything on that, especially three-quarters of the way around a perfectly normal ride, short of attaching an electric drill to my bottom-bracket spindle. So I think something went wrong in the software or something.
Any suggestions?
And (less important) can I repudiate badges and so on? I don’t really want awards to which I am not entitled.
That sounds almost exactly like my experience. (I have to admit, though, it was fun until the ‘pro warning’ came up!)
I never was able to resolve it. I tried un-pairing my speed, cadence, and HRM sensors, and unselecting my trainer. Then I went through the entire trainer selection and sensor pairing process again, only to end up with the same issue. Things got back to normal only after I bought a smart trainer.
Wish I could help, but at least you know you’re not alone.
Appreciate the reply, thanks. So once it hit you, it stayed? I had run out of time, so stopped my ride after the second circuit. I was thinking of trying again today to see whether it had reset itself. But it sounds as though it won’t have done by your experience?
I have no plans to buy a smart trainer.
Yeah, I tried for several days without luck. I was considering cancelling my account and starting a new one with an alternate email account, but that would cause me to lose all the levels I had earned. I hope it works out for you.
I do like the smart trainer (Tacx) but my speed, watts/kg, and FTP scores dropped once I started using it (and from my old ‘normal’ levels, not the Superman 1000+ watts I could record when it was messed up.)
@oldandslow, a few things to try and see if this helps get the sensors back to normal:
- Replace batteries, even removing them and putting them back in might reset the sensor.
- Not sure what kind of wheel on trainer you have, but make sure it is tight enough against your wheel.
- Tire pressure
- Double checking that you selected the correct trainer in the pairing screen
- Is it a magnetic resistance trainer or fluid? If magnetic, make sure the resistance setting is correct based on what Zwift tells you in the pairing screen.
Out of interest, what sensors were you using? I’ve got an old, spare GSC-10. I’ve found a thread on CycleChat that says that flaky readings are possible if the battery is going. I am about to try that. Although the Ant+ monitor I’m using suggests that the sensor is actually reading about half the speed that Zwift is suggesting.
Thanks both. Paul put me on the right track by talking about changing equipment, which pointed me away from anything in my Zwift account. Changing the sensor battery didn’t help, but it was clear from the pairing screen that I was getting weird speed-sensor readings. It looked better on an Ant+ monitor, but I wasn’t sure, so I stole a Speed Sensor 2 off another bike, and sanity returned. So it must have been a sensor failure.
1 Like