Having an issue since switching to the Zwift Ride. It sems cadence likes to spike to 120 multiple times per ride. I’ll be riding at like 80-90 and then out of nowhere it will spike to 120 and stay there for a bit. I have the firmware updated and am using the newest iPhone and iPad Air for my devices.
Any ideas? I’ve tried all the basic stuff, turn off back on, made sure firmware is up to date, latest OS for iPhone/iPad
I’m assuming your trainer is a Wahoo Kickr Core. Most smart trainers like that do not measure crank arm revolutions. They are guessing at your cadence based on the tension on the chain. They often do a pretty good job but not always, especially when the Watts are low. A cadence sensor that actually measures crank arm revolutions will give you an accurate measurement. You could contact Wahoo support about it, but given how cheap cadence sensors are, I think the smarter move is installing one of those on the crank arm. There are many options out there, this is just an example:
I see thank you for the advice. I will try this out. Yes it is a Kickr Core but what is weird, my old setup which had a Kickr v5 never had this issue
Hi @Michael_Ortiz2 welcome to Zwift forums
Shuji at Zwift HQ here. I peeked at your server logs for clues and one thing I noticed is your Zwift Ride controllers are still on the factory firmware version 1.0.0.
Please use the Zwift Companion app to update that to the latest version 1.2.0. Instructions are here This will bring the virtual shifting piece of your setup up to where it should be.
Can you provide a little more context on this point? When you say cadence spikes to 120 - are you saying resistance changes and you have to spin faster to keep up with the group? Or something else? I’ve looked at your recent activity history and it looks like you’ve been doing RoboPacer rides recently. These are free rides where you’re not given a cadence target as you would be in a structured workout session.
Are gear shifts a factor? If you are not shifting, it makes sense that you need to spin faster to stay with the group because the group’s pace increased suddenly. Please elaborate.
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Oh wow I didn’t realize there were firmware updates for the controllers. I will update those tomorrow.
The cadence spikes aren’t from me trying to catch the pace group. My typical cadence is around 80-90 on average and I’d say get up to 100 if I fell behind the pace group to catch up or keep the same cadence and just go to a higher gear.
This issue will happen even if I’m in front of the group and trying to slow down my cadence. I could be pedaling around 70 or so and I look at the cadence on the iPad and it’s 120.
I’ve attached an image and you can see how many times it’s spiking up to 120. I’m definietly not pedaling that fast. If you look in Zwift my character legs are spinning super fast compared to mine on the bike
Hey @Michael_Ortiz2
Something we haven’t touched on yet, but would like you to try is to force-close the Zwift app after you log out. Here’s how. Simply swiping the app into the background leaves it running, and over time, that can manifest weird symptoms. It wouldn’t hurt to reboot your iPad from time to time.
If that doesn’t clear things up - please confirm I’m understanding you correctly, all three of these are in effect, yes?
If yes to all three - it may help for you to contact Wahoo support to ask if they have heard reports of these symptoms on a KICKR Core. I’ve confirmed that your CORE is on the latest firmware version 1.5.36.
The trainer data displayed in the HUD is showing you whatever data is broadcast by the trainer. One possibility is that the CORE is broadcasting flawed cadence data. If that’s the case, you’ll want to ask Wahoo about that.
Hi @shooj,
Just jumping in to say I have experienced similar cadence spike issues as Michael over the last week or so. Spinning with a similar rpm 80-90+ in a structured workout, Watts around 60-90, the cadence will spike up to 120ish for a few seconds on the display, no changes to resistance though.
I have a Zwift Ride with Kickr Core and using a Mac Mini with bluetooth. Zwift controllers updated and performed a manual spindown on the Kickr Core again just in case, no luck.
On top of this, the odd few workouts I start and start to spin, ERG is on but not controlling the resistance with the Watts in the workout. I usually just start my workout again to reset things. Today I disabled and enabled ERG mode when this happened, it seemed to work again properly. This issue seems to have started with the latest update in Zwift.
Would love any thoughts around the cadence spikes and ERG mode not working properly when starting a workout.
Hi,
I came here to comment the same. It appears when cycling in low wattage (<100W) at ~80RPM, the Kickr Core will periodically report a cadence of 119/120 RPM
This happens with the latest firmware on the Kickr Core and using the Zwift Cog. I didn’t remember seeing this when using a cassette on the trainer instead.
That being said, agree not a Zwift problem but a Kickr / trainer problem.
I have exactly the same issue with Zwift Ride + Kickr Core. When I’m increasing my cadence from a low range and I reach around 85, it suddenly jumps up to 120 and stays there for a while. This is especially annoying during workouts with a target cadence.
I am having the same problem but with my new Zwift Cog and Zwift Ride on a Tacx Neo 2T trainer. There is also a problem with the resistance becoming randomly very high.
Hardware and software
Brand new Zwift Ride
Brand new Zwift Cog
Tacx Neo 2T with latest firmware (2.6.0)
Zwift game on iOS, with latest software version
Zwift game on iPhone, with latest software version
Good Bluetooth connection (turned on and off, discoverable, etc.)
I’ve experimented with turning ERG on and off and do not notice any difference in the problems
ANT is turned off
Randomly increased resistance:
When riding, the resistance of the cog increases for no reason (not going up a hill).
It feels like the resistance goes to gear 24 and stays there for maybe 30 seconds before returning to the set gear.
The game displays the original gear throughout.
This change in resistance is completely independent of hills.
RPM reading is inaccurate
The RPM fluctuates from a normal reading (e.g. 90 RPM) to a high reading (e.g. 160 RPM).
These fluctuations are short and frequent. The fluctuations are typically 40-60 RPM higher than the true reading. See chart of spikes. I think they are more frequent than this shows. I definitely did not hit 208 RPM!
At zero RPM, the reading doesn’t go to zero. With full brakes applied, no velocity, and no pedaling, the RPM reads 50. From the photo you see that the bike is stationary (0 km/h) but the RPM is 50. Also at a dead stop, the power reading is 20W.
Then if I remove the brakes and do not pedal, the bike starts coasting, and the RPM reads with low values in the 20’s and 30’s.
Is it a connection issue?
I’ve used the trainer for years with a regular bike with gears and have had no such connection issues.
It is only since adding the Cog and Ride that this issue appears.
The power meter reading seems accurate so whatever hardware is computing power is communicating with the game just fine. This suggests no connection issue. I assume the power is computed by the Tacx so this helps isolate the issue to the Cog.
Is it a bad Cog?
Having the same issue.
Latest software update on Apple TV. Latest firmware on the kickr core.
Random spikes in the displayed Cadence, usually up from 85 to 120-ish.
This seems to occur most often while in erg mode when a workout changes power. That’s just an observation, not verified.
I didn’t experience this issue previously to the updates.
Update: I installed a Garmin cadence sensor on the crank and now I have reliable RPMS – zero spikes. But this has not changed the issue with the spiking resistance.
The resistance spikes for about 10-15 seconds then overcorrects and becomes very slack, before settling back into the correct gear.
To demonstrate this visually, I pedaled with low watts and then, whenever the resistance spiked, I increased the watts and you can then see the spikes in the attached image.
Just FYI, it’s to be expected that using a separate cadence sensor would make no difference to resistance issues. Zwift does absolutely nothing with your cadence data except to put it on the screen and log it. Cadence doesn’t affect resistance at all.
Indeed. It just another piece of evidence that Bluetooth is working fine.
