Add a rowing bike to Zwift. This should be done instead of, or in, addition to an on water simulation. I have rowed many millions of meters online using Rowpro, and about 5000 miles in Zwift. My rowing machine misses me, but compared it Zwift it is very boring. Adding a rowing bike simulator would get me and many others back on the rowing machine, and make my exercise more well rounded than just cycling…
It will be more fun. Rowing in real life is fantastic, and rowing online(e.g. Rowpro) is OK, but imagine being able to row up and down hills, row in packs, and being able to do group rows and races. With drafting, the group races would offer something totally unique that many rowers would gravitate to. I could see many rowing teams using this as a cure to the winter indoor rowing doldrums.
It should be easier to implement. You will just need to create 3d models for the rowing bike and rower and read the watts produced by a concept 2. In an on water rowing simulation, it would be awkward for rowers to pass closely due to the large extent of the oars.
Here are some thoughts more thoughts about a rowing bike.
a. Rowing bikes should share courses with the cyclists, but they should not be able to draft off cyclists,nor should cyclists draft off rowers.
b. Rowers and cyclists shouldn’t mix for races, rides and workouts. Theses events should be rower only or cycle only.
c. For the physics model, rowing bikes should have a lower CoD similar to to a recumbant. Also due to the complex machinery there should be a higher loss between the watts read by the concept 2 and those put into the wheels.
d. Here are a few videos of actual rowing bikes: the Rowcycle, and the rowing bike. There is also something called the Rowbike, but it looks kind of awkward.
Mod edit: This idea was also suggested in this thread:
I had an idea, if Zwift is doing the rowing thing, they will have access to the PM5. If that is the case they can pick up stroke rate. What they should be able to do is pick up some point in a stroke (i.e. when the PM5 updated the data). Based on this if you were within a given distance of an athlete AND your stroke rate matched up (I.e. you stroking the same), that could work as a multiplier. The more people you have rowing together the faster the multipler (up to 8). Speed equivalencies are easy to work out as te know the difference bost classes. If you do a group ride it becomes easy to help the ‘bus’ go faster by getting everybody to ride together. Bonuses speed (with some graphic enhancements) can be generated from stroke sync (server receives stoke update at the same time). Makes the experience a little more engaging.
I really love the rowing machines in the gym. But I never heard of a rowing bike.
This is a fantastic idea ! Being possible to row around all the roads in zwift with a bunch of other rowbikes would be something I would really love to do.
I just got my concept 2 hooked up to Zwift using the PainSled app. These are great suggestions. I’m still in my free trial but something like this would be a real enhancement to my zwift workouts.
Just completed my first two Zwifts using my PM3 wired to android phone using painsled and Zwift on the iPad. Really happy with it but agree a direct connection to Zwift (wired or Bluetooth) would be brilliant!
Couldn’t log in to Zwift for about two hours today so I had to row without Zwift (first time in about a year). It was sooooo boring! Unbelievable what difference Zwift makes.
I don’t need a rowing avatar or a rowing bike. It’s perfectly fine for me to move my cycling avatar with the rowing machine. It’s great to have a lot of other riders around you, that wouldn’t be the case in an extra rowing world. However, a jersey with a rowing symbol would be nice, makes it clear for others that you are rowing.
A rowing jersey or indicator would be nice. That would let the cyclists know that I’m not ignoring their chat messages, I just can’t use my hands as much as they do
This post needs more love. Zwift just introduced the handcycle, they should do the same for a row-cycle or whatever they want to call it. Holofit on Oculus Quest has creative virtual machines that look forward and don’t have clunky oars. Honestly it doesn’t really matter what the machine looks like as long as you get rowers into the Zwift-verse. It’s a simple add-on and you will add value for very little cost!
I know that rowing as a feature is not being developed at Zwift, but how about just a simple “row-cycle” avatar to connect rowers into the Zwift world?
It would be similar to the hand-cycle avatar but would be a very simple way to put rowing machines into the game. I would love to have an easy way to “row” my C2 around the Zwift world!
There are examples available of what the machine would look like, both real world and virtual. For example, Holofit on the Oculus Quest headset has many forward-facing machines with no oars that are “powered” by rowing.
Please enable more athletes to use Zwift with the great world and community that already exist!
If Zwift has given up on a big rowing development, please do something simple to allow rowers into the world. (And yes I know about the PainSled app but I would like a unique avatar and native method for using my rower.)
Are you suggeting literally seeing people in the game “rowing” around? Do such things exist in real life? If so I’ve never seen one. Would it not be better to aim to add the ability to row in Zwift via adding canoes/kayaks in water features of the maps at some point further down the line? I think it would be a really bad idea to have people “rowing” along roads, that just doesn’t make any sense whatsoever.
Yes, that is what I am suggesting. In what sense is it a bad idea?
Con: It is odd and rarely if ever seen in real life
Pro: It lets people with rowers participate in the biggest virtual exercise world that exists
I think “Pro” wins. It is a simple solution to quickly get rowers in the Zwift world. If we wait for water it may never happen, not to mention likely sparsely populated. Also how is it not odd for a rower to be in a kayak or canoe?? The motion is completely different.
Check out rowbike dot com.
Weird, yes, but is a locomotion vehicle simlar to cycling. I personally have never seen a hand-cycle in real life on the roads but obviously have no objection to them in Zwift.
I use a 3rd party app to hook my rower up to zwift as a treadmill. So I can use the running side of Zwift that I otherwise won’t use to row around. Speed on my rower and on zwift match 1:1. Having built in support would be amazing, as other stats like stroke rate gets lost in translation with my current method.
Not too bothered by using a runner avatar. Heck, give me sailor outfit and I’d be good! Or not even that, change the camera to 1st person view and you’re done.
It looks like there’s several similar platforms to Zwift already, that cater specifically to rowers. You may want to check them out (there’s probably more):
I bike and row, so am already on Zwift. It’s my preferred platform. I beta-tested EXR and didn’t care for it. Single-player and honestly boring to row on a flat lake by yourself. Thanks for the suggestions, though.
