That’s just being a bigger a-hole.
When will we continue with these pointless (pun) w/kg race categories?
Let’s just have a points system like IRL in the UK and beyond. Start racing on Zwift, racing in cat 5 and the better you do, you progress. You cannot race in a cat below and the software could sort that.
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That does not impact the racing, only a delay in results.
That are some of the growing pains of a big league but it is a lot better than many other races.
Yes registration is closed because there is only 10 races and 3 are already done, they have to close it at some point.
You will always find that. People don’t event update their weight regularly.
But yes we need Zwift to focus on the racing community.
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Here is what i find the most fitting solution to overcome that crappy w/kg non-sense (especially in the flat):
All riders speed is based on their FTP%.
All riders would ride at the same speed if they push 70% their FTP.
If all riders would race at the same speed only the strongest, fittest, best recovered (mind power, will power) will survive/win.
It doesnt matter if you fit in a Cat IRL online things change. People can easily change their weight. How will someone ever control that?
Would be far more interesting without the weight or w per kg bogus.
Lets say the system i present would be valid and active inside Zwift:
If an automatically race placement would be valid you would have a lot more interesting races.
Your FTP is always based on your fitness and the system behind zwift already is tracking your FTP.
You as the rider will always see your best FTP. But lets say the system asks to do a FTP test (In order to start a race if your FTP hasnt been updated for 1 month f.ex.) with the option to use the best FTP tracked in that month automatically so if you racing alot your FTP would be always up-to-date.
If your FTP matches your current fitness which would be the base to start any race you then have to find races or create races based on your FTP of course. In order to find races you could setup a reach based on your FTP (instead of A to E) you will see something like that, search for races with 5% reach or 10% reach of current FTP:
If FTP is 300 W you will see either races of
270 to 330 @ 10% reach
285 to 315 @ 5% reach
After you set your reach you will then see available races (worlds, tracks) which you can select together with a countdown when the races will start. Like in the good old days of first person shooters or strategy games and so on … like a table of all races available:
Reach | World | Track | Racers
5% | Watopia | Track X | Racers Y/Max
5% | Watopia | Track X | Racers Y/Max
10% | Watopia | Track X | Racers Y/Max
10% | Watopia | Track X | Racers Y/Max
That would be the real deal, the future of races. Because who cares about weight in an online game? In that case gender doesnt play a role either!
Its just about Power in any case your muscle power and/or will power. Who cares about weight???
I believe in the solution many people posted before: categories based in rankings.
PROPER rankings and not as Zwiftpower rankings are now, that is: a little bit like in boxing where if champion doesn’t want to fight you, then you will never win or grow.
In Zwiftpower many high ranked riders are not exposed to race in months, so they keep their ranking status just by not letting others beat them.
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here, here!!! well done
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I have a question about races.
When I race in some event, normal is 30-40 people as much in B category, around 100 people in all categories. Many times it’s a half of this.
Is there some kind of “rooms”?
That is: same event with different “rooms” depending on regions, number of people…etc and could have sense for the internet connections…etc.
Or there is not any other “rooms”, and a race is only that event, one room, 50-100 total people?
Because if races are, for example 100…150 people at 11:00a.m. and I see that there are “20.000 people zwifting now”…
Then it’s pretty clear: the business for Zwift is NOT with the racers… so doesn’t mind for them.
I think this is it.
road bikes are rare compared to normal touring bikes.
profit is done via shifting groups sold for touring bikes, not for road bikes.
who cares about races?
how many teams and riders are racing the tour de france?
how many riders are racing in front of the peloton during a race?
how many riders are even able to race infront the peloton…
That’s not accurate at all.
Lots of people care about races. What’s the Tour de France got to do with this debate?
What’s the relevance to this discussion in your comment?
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define accurate. its metaphorically spoken… and was an answer to the post of @Susun_Corda
Ironically, “accurate” has a very specific definition.
Road bikes are not rare compared to touring bikes, in fact, the opposite is true.
for 1 country true, is true.
for 1 world true, is not true.
Ah, I see “alternative facts”… righto
Lots of people do care but a lot more people don’t.
Look at the numbers. There are over 2 million Zwift accounts but only 250,000 ZwiftPower accounts. And even then, the ZRL, the premium racing league only has 10,000 competitors in total.
And yet, the two aren’t mutually excusive.
Love a pointless discussion. People ask for something, others that wouldn’t be affected if the request was honoured, want to argue with them… i wonder why
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its simple @Tim_White if you want to sell something you will make it fit to anyone.
If you modify a product to fit only a “hand full” people well its worth less … thats why posted about touring bikes and stuff in a metaphorical way … i guess if Zwift would consist about touring bikes it would fit more. Instead they used road bikes (equal to car race simulation games just to the point that these race games are ment to race and build all around racing and this programm/Zwift is not) … but are unable to create a simple Cat hierachy like you and others mentioned. Btw the core/idea of this topic is not new concerning Zwift …
I dont know what is the spirit about Zwift but for now like you already mentioned about racing in your first post of the topic the racing sucks! Its far from beeing real and sandbaggers destroy the experience en top of all the discrepancies. Not only for “lower” Cat for all Cat as well!
- Cat should be achieved by racing/results and/or power (FTP)
- w/kg needs an overhaul (flat is different to hills)
This is from my point of view as a racer a serious “no Go” and the fact that its hasnt been changed over years (not only 1 year, close to a decade) is seriously low and leads to the question is Zwift playing Zwift or in this case is Zwift racing Zwift?
Really?! Well, I’m glad all products in existence appeal to everybody. Vegans like meat, everybody drives 4 door saloon cars, etc, etc… makes you wonder why there’s so much choice in the market.
Enforcing w/kg categories is an easy fix while building a system that is based on results.
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I will give my answer to the original question.
Yesterday, I kind of raced a TDZ stage.
I meant to just warm up during the stage then actually do my planned hill repeat workout.
I am weak.
Immediately out of the pens, I jumped to my 3 min power and started jumping gaps and bridging to forward groups.
I finally got dropped on the last lap then vowed to watch my chasers and defend my 50th position.
I was so tired, I did not go on to my workout.
I was 100% immersed and entertained.
Before Zwift, I was staring at the wall and bored after 10 min if I bothered with the trainer that day at all.
This is all so much better than it used to be.
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Before Zwift i sit on my rollers and watched movies.
With Zwift i raced much and joined alot of Group rides. BUT …
- After a while group rides got boring most group rides did fit in the training schedule either being to slow or to hectic because even the leader didnt know that 2 wpk isnt the same as 3 wpk or out of time range … only some fit but this was rare so i focused on another strategy. This changed thank whoever for the Ghost/Bot rides!!!
- After a while racing got boring (with/without zwiftpower…) its always the same wait till the last sprint. Riding away the peloton is close to impossible caused by the mysterious sling shot bogus making FTP70% riders (pack) went faster then 1 rider riding around FTP 80%+ … of course super realistically … not - so i’m asking those who believe that riding around 3 wpk is equal to riding around 40 km/h did you ever road outside? did you ever raced? Next to the sling shot bogus lies the fact that alot of the riders cheat. Weight, height, or just a trainer with unrealistic high watt output.
So what is the point using Zwift?
For me only the Bots/Ghosts and the really neat training builder!
So i’m close to the point going back to “before” Zwift and spare the even higher monthly price and use only rollers and watch movies… witch would hurt because the worlds and routes are really nice. But the fact that racing gets so low attention by the team behind zwift makes me feel sad. And no the solution is not to build more and more 3rd party sites which compensate what zwift cant realise for whatever reason …
So again.
- Cat should be achieved by racing/results and/or power (FTP)
- w/kg needs an overhaul (flat is different to hills, groups are equally fast with f.ex. 70% FTP to a single rider)
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So - before I started racing in a team / riding in a club, I was one of the Zwift accounts. But I only paid for 2-3 months a year, it wasn’t engaging enough to keep paying outside of Christmas - March Break.
Racing multiplied by 4-6 their revenue from me.