I’m just back from Los Angeles and starting to get my legs back after the CVR (Cycligent Virtual Racing) World Cup against Lionel Sanders and many other elite cyclists on March 24/25. There’s an article written by Dan last week about the event I participated in for the Winter League.
Tomorrow begins the the Spring season and it will culminate in a live event in Vancouver, Canada! There are 8 time zones to compete in, so plenty of options to fit your schedule. The season works as best 6 out of 8 races, so if you can’t get registered to participate for tomorrow, you’ll be just fine!
Register here. I believe you just need to create a ZwiftPower account, and link your Strava for race results to be sorted. Additional League Information and rules can be found here.
Come and join the Spring Season–it’s an incredible way to mix up your training and boost your fitness. Tomorrow’s race is 3 laps on Volcano Flat Reverse, so plan on tempo pace with some surges on all the inclines, no true VO2 max efforts other than the start (Zwift races always start stupid fast), a few attacks, and the finish.
I’m tempted to jump onto the Zwift bandwagon for maybe one or two midweek rides, but don’t know if the CVR races would fit into my schedule. I currently only have a Kurt trainer, but considering using my REI dividend to get a smart trainer.
My biggest issue is that I’m pretty time constrained - my only two longer midweek rides are M and W, when I’m on the trainer around 4:30 am EST. Having two younger kids makes riding while they’re awake pretty much impossible.
I’m curious, does it matter which Cat we sign up for in the companion app? Last season the 5am race just had one Cat, A, and the CVR site sorted us by our brackets. This season, they give us the standard A, B, C, D catagories. W/kg I race B, but in CVR I’m in C, so I assume I sign up for C?
I’m tempted to jump onto the Zwift bandwagon for maybe one or two midweek rides, but don’t know if the CVR races would fit into my schedule. I currently only have a Kurt trainer, but considering using my REI dividend to get a smart trainer.
My biggest issue is that I’m pretty time constrained - my only two longer midweek rides are M and W, when I’m on the trainer around 4:30 am EST. Having two younger kids makes riding while they’re awake pretty much impossible.
Hey Nate, I cannot say enough good things about Zwift (but largely smart trainers in particular). TrainerRoad is also an incredible tool with a smart trainer. I know watts are watts, but theres a difference in a smart trainer not allowing you to drift off target power when you’re fatiguing. A lot of mental gains I had last year came from suffering in ERG mode–well before I found Zwift racing.
That being said, I think Zwift racing is just an entirely different training tool… The courses are built to elicit certain “intervals” but the rests are totally organic, or there are none at all. It trains you to be ready for different types of efforts and to learn how you can use micro-recoveries to keep going for longer.
I really found this out in LA against Lionel. I hit 5 and 10 minute PRs on back to back days, digging deeper than I thought I could–chasing wheels in a race, or trying to drop people when I noticed a gap. If you think you have a competitive bone in you, and can get on Zwift give it a try! Feel free to send me a PM with any questions. I’d be happy to help out.
I’m also time-constrained somewhat with my job and I’m getting on the trainer at 4:30 every day so I can get my run/swim in afterwards. There’s a lot you can do on a time-crunched schedule to get good gains on the bike. A smart trainer could help you squeeze every ounce of fitness out of your time with 100% execution of planned workouts.
I’m curious, does it matter which Cat we sign up for in the companion app? Last season the 5am race just had one Cat, A, and the CVR site sorted us by our brackets. This season, they give us the standard A, B, C, D catagories. W/kg I race B, but in CVR I’m in C, so I assume I sign up for C?
CVR does their brackets a little differently (not w/kg, but race history) using their ranking system at www.zwiftrankings.com. Since you raced before, you can check your bracket at this link: brackets for spring.
Assuming you didn’t get an upgrade from the Winter season, you’d be in C. You can ask to be upgraded to a higher Cat, but I’m not sure if it can be done after the season starts, or if you do, I’m sure your prior race points go away.
Awfully confusing, I’m hoping it all gets simpler as the seasons go on–the easier it is to understand, the more people will join.
My experience from my first CVR race today: Just because CVR verifies your ZWIFT ID does not mean you will get credit/points for your race. 122 out of 125 racers received no points for their race I was in today. When 99% of the field has issues and gets no result/points it might be systemic on CVR’s end. I do hope they fix their issues.
In the end though I had fun and I got a good workout in.
I’m trying to fit in at least one Zwift race a week but with Tuesday Worlds and race season going on its tough, but I can’t beat the threshold effort for training. I’m just not sure if I can be consistent enough; are these daily and on all the time or during a set time in the week?
Zwiftpower just promoted me to A, but at 4.1 w/kg I’m getting crushed by the other A’s. I can probably push myself to 4.3 but the other guys are hitting 4.5; maybe that race was an anomaly but they were on another level. So is it even worth my time?
Like you I do it mostly for the workout. Being in a ‘race’ and being a type A one tends to push harder since others are around you. It is my understanding that with CVR it is every Tuesday time dependent on the zone you picked IF you are doing it for the points/league. Anyone at anytime can sign-up to race these events though. They don’t have to be CVR registered, only a Zwift customer. It’s like signing up for any other race Zwift offers on their “events” link so every Tuesday you can find the CVR races that run every 3 hours (different zones) and choose one you would like to race. If you want your results to count towards league placing then you would need to register via the CVR site linked above and pick a Zone (start time each week) to race in.
If you do register via CVR, they will put you in a bracket. Bracket placing is not done entirely off your Zwiftpower category if my case is any example. I am a 4.4w/kg-4.5 w/kg ftp and they put me in the B bracket. CVR has the link to my Strava for “real world” power/results so who knows how they really decide. So if you just moved up via Zwiftpower then good chance you might be in the B bracket still.
I have found in my racing on Zwift that while FTP w/kg is important, the 30", 1min, 5min powers are equally if not more important in a race (and able to repeat those efforts multiple times). Zwift does put a premium on the draft. If you can hold the 2-4 min high octane start then your chances of staying with the pack are far better. Total guess on my part but on the flats maybe the draft is worth .3 w/kg. So at 4.2 you can hang with a 4.5 racer, on the flats at steady state. Learn to use the micro-rests when drafting and let others pull you back up to an attack that has gone off the front as well. Definitely tactics can be used to optimize your ‘race’. Highest w/kg for a race does not always win.
Steep sustained hills definitely disadvantaged but that is your chance to push yourself. Also remember each race has a an elevation profile to see. Sign up for the flat races with the A’s and do the hilly races with the B’s perhaps? If you pop over the 3.9w/kg for the duration of the race, Zwift will adjust the results accordingly but you still got your good workout in.
Lastly, there are time trial events every so often as well using the Zwift TT bike. The draft effect is turned off for these events. I do them at times when I want to ride a good steady-state threshold ride.
In the end I think Zwift racing is a good option to have to get in a good workout indoors. I doesn’t have to be with CVR though. Find one that fits your time schedule/goal for the session.
Congrats on your race Matt. I saw your name as the group coming behind to lap me while I was just doing an easy spin starting my recovery from strep.
Does CVR make mid-season adjustments to brackets? The winner of my C bracket only finished 19sec behind the A bracket winner.
I agree 100% that it’s more of a good workout opportunity than a “race.†They also work well as FTP tests depending on which race you do.
I was really surprised how much drafting plays a part in these. I got dropped in the first 5min of this morning’s ride/race and despite putting out the highest power to weight of the Bs and most of the As I still only got 8th in the group.
Nevertheless, it was a great suffer fest trying to claw my way back. I just need to brush up on my virtual racing skills
m.dixon if anyone else is racing from the West Coast.
TriowaCPA - how do powerups work? CVR site says disabled but you can take one in, then later is says all are disabled after you pass under the banner? Should the strategy be bring an aero power in then pop it at the finish line like most races? Obviously no gambling strategy if powerups aren’t generated during. Congrats on your races also btw, nice work.
TriowaCPA - how do powerups work? CVR site says disabled but you can take one in, then later is says all are disabled after you pass under the banner? Should the strategy be bring an aero power in then pop it at the finish line like most races? Obviously no gambling strategy if powerups aren’t generated during. Congrats on your races also btw, nice work.
The powerups areallowed to be taken into the race, but the second you pass under a banner (today the first banner was about 0:45 into the race) you lose it. Smart bet would be to use an aero or truck off the start. Some races don’t pass a banner under after a climb (watopia Hilly course) in which case a feather would be best because you can use it on the climb before hitting the KOM banner!