Back on Zwift after trying out Rouvy a year ago for a couple of months, then not touching the bike for like 8 months. I’m hopelessly out of shape (again…), so in July I rejoined Rouvy for a month, and tried out MyWhoosh for like 2 days.
Back to Zwift, thankfully it took me back in. Although I didn’t race a lot, I do like the option of racing at pretty much any time that’s convenient, and the lack of racing on other platforms is a bigger deal than I thought it would be. I see that there a few new features that have popped up since I was last on Zwift, like the Fitness Trends in the companion app. and the racing score (I think that just started when I left).
So I jumped into my first race yesterday on a whim after the kids went to bed (my racing score is a massive 133, so I joined the lowest category) and managed to win (solo break with 15km to go). so I’m like the greatest ever or something…
The other thing I was pondering is possibly upgrading to a direct drive trainer, although I’m leaning against it. I have a Tacx wheel-on smart trainer thingy now, which is fine for my needs. I don’t have a massive sprint, and it’s easy to put the bike on or take it off for outdoor rides. plus new trainers (even the budget models) are expensive, and I’m thinking that money might be better served upgrading the other things that I use. Or going with a set of old-school rollers for Z2 rides…
You gotta get the wheel-on trainer PLUS the new Zwift click-cog combo if the trainer doesn’t come with it. Virtual shifting and being able to control things like +/- erg mode midride is awesome without fiddling with the keyboard. It’s game-changing for erg mode, in my opinion. $500ish for a Kickr Core and you’re good for like a decade. I’d only not upgrade if you rarely ride Zwift, but if you even anticipate using it several times a week only for the winter, it’s a fully worth it upgrade.
Hah - sadly I’ve been swimming 10-12k/wk for the past year, and even did a pretty regular self-video session over the past 2 months to fix some minor stroke errors and I guarantee you’d smoke me in any swim event even with zero swim training on your end.
I did manage to fix the stroke errors but speed is actually SLOWER if I swim with the corrected optimal-looking technique, sadly. Mainly because it slows my turnover down, I’m in the process of trying to get my turnover back up while holding the correct techniqiue, but it feels really, really unnatural.
Triathlon training is really, really tough with young kids, it’s pretty much a constant compromise on what you really need to do.
Kickr core is like $900 up here (over $1000 after tax) that’s really more than I want to spend. My 10y/o boy child is into hockey and outgrew all his pads over the summer, and my 8yo girl child is going back into dance.
I can get $400 of personal fitness gear covered through work benefits. But honestly, I don’t think I’m missing out on anything with the wheel on trainer for my needs. I don’t need the accuracy of a direct drive, and i typically dont go beyond 5-600 watts. It doesn’t need to be quieter.
I’d probably get more of a performance benefit by investing in additional remote controlled fans and a better desk.