Very correct. Don't agree? Ask Matt Hayman.

According to the Zwift Tri Academy details, they're making cadence sensors compulsory too.

I really don't see what is to gain by cheating on Zwift - even if it's just to unlock a bike or jersey you like the look of - it'll come back to haunt you...

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/...ation-charges-439720

I guess I get it about the Zwift competition. I signed up for the $2 a month version of Strava just to see how I stacked up against the other 250 pounders locally, only to find out that all the over 250s who had photos were skinny guys or girls who can't be over 130 lbs. I suspect they accidentally put their weight in as 130 kg. Which makes the rankings useless.

In our fitness center at work, there are Expresso bikes and a few of us old dudes try to beat each other on the different courses. I'm glad those don't ask for your weight because those guys weigh a lot less than I do.

To actually cheat virtually seem a bit far. But I never believe the weightlifting numbers or vertical leaps or 40 yd dash times that guys post on internet forums, for example, because those are always exaggerated. I guess this is the same thing.

Honestly, that's the way to approach it. I don't worry about cheaters when racing, I just race the race. My competitors are "real" enough to me that it feels like a race, and that's what makes it fun. I'm a former college athlete, so I'm also pretty competitive, but I'd never let the results of a zwift race get to me.

I'll add this too. The other cool thing about ZwiftPower and race categories is that is kind of makes dealing with cheaters easier, unless you are A cat. If you race B or C or D categories and people cheat (which I know they do) they still have to stay within cat limits, so you still get a competitive race regardless. It keeps it fun.

https://deadspin.com/...al-to-you-1838856161

---

"What's your claim?" - Ben Gravy
"Your best work is the work you're excited about" - Rick Rubin

I think Zwift should automatically assign the categories rather than the user choose their own. Give people an "unranked" marking until they've done a certain number of events or hit a certain rider level.

If they took the same approach as what happens in "regular multiplayer" such as Call of Duty or Halo for example - you never get players deliberately throwing matches to lower their rank in order to get a better chance of winning another match further down the line. Top gamers guard their kill/death ratio's more than their kids - their rank is a bragging right (but some do get up to nefarious means to protect it).

Yeah, I agree. I think the idea is that Zwift doesn't want to restrict people, or something like that. But for racing, that seems wrong to me. Like you said, in other Multiplayer games, they enforce skill limits, and people are very obsessive about them.

Zwift shouldn't restrict anyone - apart from the cheats.

Perhaps Zwift should mark suspicious activity in game by giving them a very dodgy looking jersey - the "shirt of shame" to make them stand out!

If you click on settings when you are registering on Zwiftpower , you can let ZP decide which race category you should be in. I think they take the average of 95% of your best 20 minute power for your 3 best efforts, and assign you a race category based on that. You could also just assign yourself a race category, and you usually have to be within those category w/kg limits if you are in the B, C, or D categories, otherwise you risk getting disqualified.

I don’t know why anyone paying for a zwift subscription wouldn’t register on ZP. It is very useful in tracking all your activities on Zwift, and you can see whether you are improving, stagnating, or getting worse. It keeps track of many useful metrics.

I am very competitive, and I love racing on Zwift. I am only a C category rider, but have won some races, and it feels great. There is a chance I will be upgraded to B one day, and I will probably never win a race again. Lol

Virtually all of the strongest riders (A category) are registered on ZP. I take any performance by anybody who is not registered on ZP with a grain of salt, as I believe that most of them are probably not registered because of nefarious reasons. Maybe one day, you will have to be registered on ZP to be allowed to join a race.

I think it should be a one stop shop personally, and I can't see Zwift restricting participation of events based on data from a third party, who get that data from Zwift anyway... (the UCI could be an exception here)

Zwift should control as much as it can by itself - rider weight is about the only thing they'll struggle to keep tabs on.