nycphotography

The Quarq is on another bike. I put my old Blue CXC cross bike on the kickr using the provided cadence sensor.

I also wondered if my fans (and power cords) could be causing interference w/ the ANT+ signal. I will move the fan wires away from the computer too.

SpeshulEd 

Woohoo!!!

I saw my first non-zwift person running on in Watopia yesterday. Not sure if the Z just didn't pop up next to their name or not.

redfooj

when will you add MUPs and real-world hazards such as leashed dogs and clip-pedal-difficulty simulation to the zwift world?

thats when ill pay the monthly fee

TimothyH

I have never experienced clip-pedal-difficulty in any world.

redfooj

Also a 1.2x speed multiplier for red-colored bikes to reflect real world experiences.

nycphotography

tried big gears (and moved the fan cords way from the computer)

worked much better!!

e30jean

Would be awesome if some of the popular real world stages get added to Zwift in the near future Otherwise I do love it so far and it works great with my elite trainer on macbook air and windows pc just fine.

jmX

I use ERG mode on a KICKR constantly and I think there's just a bit of a learning curve to it. The way to think about it is via cadence. Just try and keep cadence at 90 the whole time. Prepare yourself for the impact of an interval but dont try to adjust your power, just focus on keeping cadence at 90 (or whatever, some reasonable rpm). It should result in perfect intervals - more perfect than I get with most other trainers that have a 'softer' hit in ERG mode.

I bet you ran into Charlie...he helps schedule all our group events in Zwift and actually used to organize real races in NYC for many many years before Zwift. Most of Zwift is in California but it's nice having somebody out there to represent the east coast.

Ive been tempted to fly our art team out to Central Park and investigate doing a central park/manhattan/bearmountain course. I did the NYC Gran Fondo a few years ago and liked the scenery on the way to bear mountain, but also wished I could have ridden through times square and central park.

jmX

I snuck out a very early version of running in the iOS app you can get in the App Store. If you have a footpod you can give it a try using a hidden "easter egg" to unlock it. A user group called Zwift Runners on facebook has the details on how to unlock it. It's not announced and it's not prominent as I have a bunch of work to put into it still, but at the very least you can power a runner avatar on a treadmill.

jmX

I've seen those seemingly cause issues. It's best to get a cheap $5 USB extension cable off amazon and just put the dongle near the kickr. Also if you're on a mac you can just use the built in bluetooth instead of ANT if you want. Or, on any platform, you can grab the 'Zwift Mobile Link' app which acts as a bluetooth dongle for the game. Free download and lets you access buttons to do things in Zwift as well.

Chandne

I'm launching Zwift not from iTunes but I downloaded it through the Zwift website through my 2010ish Macbook Pro. It works quite well though I need to figure out how to find the regular courses and not simply join others, if that is possible. All I see are others riding and have to join one of those courses.

I'm paying for Zwift and TrainerRoad, though cannot effectively use Zwift yet. I started using a Minoura classic V270 trainer but the speed mapping is way off, so it is too frustrating to use. The speed mapping for that trainer needs some work. Maybe I'll say I'm using a CycleOps Fluid II and see if that helps. It currently shows around 8-10 MPH when I am at around 18-20 MPH. So I ordered a TACX Vortex and will use both Zwift and Trainer Road and see which I prefer.

Zwift is a pretty cool app and I am glad I found it. I'll likely only use it through the winter unless I get a promo to keep it all year, but I'm happy to pay for it while I use it.
@jmX: Great job with this. Try to get more Colorado climbs/course in time. We have short and long sustained climbs here, as well as different mtn passes that are just classic. It would be awesome to get those in...High Grade, Lookout, Flagstaff, Squaw Pass, Fremont Pass, Breckenridge to Vail Pass, etc. They may already be but I have not been able to see enough of the courses.

Dan333SP

I had to switch "dumb" trainer presets a few times to find one that seems accurate. I have a Traveltrac Fluid Comp, but that preset dramatically overestimated my power so I'm now using the Elite Fluid preset, seems reasonably accurate.

There are only 3 courses in the game, and unless you manipulate some files you're only able to join whichever one the Zwift servers are running at a given time- Richmond's 2015 UCI world championship course (this one is the least frequently used), London using the Ride London layout, and Watopia which is the most common and is Zwift's own virtual island.

They all have forwards/backwards options and detours you can select while riding, like Watopia's mountains and underwater flat tunnels.

To me, Zwift is less about riding wherever you want whenever you want and more about the social aspect of riding with lots of other people any time you log in. Virtual courses remain virtual no matter where they're trying to simulate, but lots of other riders make the game dynamic and interesting. I don't think I've ever logged on and seen less than ~500 riders on whatever course is being run. It'd be fun if they had 30 courses on rotation, but I'd still pay the monthly fee even if it was still just Watopia.

Chandne

Ah, I did not realize this. It seems they could easily add courses and run multiple courses simultaneously on a few different servers. I guess it would still be more fun if I could get my speed mapping right, but if I get bored with the same courses, I'll simply drop out. I like the social aspect but will see if that is interesting enough.

silversx80

Awesome . If you're anything like me, then you'll never do intervals outside again (with exception to sprints and the occasional hill repeat set). The pain is in the cave, and the reward is feeling even more powerful the next venture outdoors.

silversx80

So does this technically mean that I could launch Zwift on my iPhone, attach a foot pod, and run outside while logging miles into Zwift? Say, on the Richmond course, while running the Richmond course in real life?




Yo, dawg...

Dan333SP

silversx80

fiximacated. That's what happens when I get too excited about a joke.

FlashBazbo

Last night, my Zwift didn't automatically upload my workout to Strava (althought the settings are correct) AND, even though my iPhone was Bluetooth connected to my Zwift laptop, Zwift Mobile Link never connected to Zwift (after more than a dozen tries).

Was this a Zwift server problem? Did anyone else have the same issue? (I noticed that very few people during my session had their phone icons showing.) Is there a way to reset all of this and get things running smoothly again?

Dan333SP

How'd you even get a workout in if mobile link wasn't working? Do you use direct bluetooth on a mac?

I spent half an hour fiddling with a similar issue last night, but it turned out the issue was just a dying battery on my speed/cadence sensor and after that everything worked normally, including the link app and my Strava upload.

FlashBazbo

This is the first time (since upgrading my laptop) that I've had any problem with Zwift that I couldn't quickly solve. (Previous problems have had to do with pairing priorities.)

I have a Kickr Snap, using Ant+ (with an extension cable) with a Dell laptop. The on-screen behavior of Zwift was normal for the whole workout. I use Mobile Link on my iPhone and connect with the laptop via Bluetooth. It never connected last night, even after I un-paired and re-paired. The iPhone icon on Zwift had a warning triangle on it, but I was never able to make the connection -- even though the phone and laptop were Bluetooth paired and had a good signal.

After the ride, I saved the ride -- and it shows up on Mobile Link -- but it never went to Strava.

nycphotography

Yeah it was Charlie. Everyone knows everyone at that level in NYC Cycling... except for me because I'm a software guy and my interpersonal skill have atrophied pretty much to zero. Most days I'm happy if I just manage not to drool directly onto new people as I meet them.

SpeshulEd 

I'm not much of a runner, but I'd give this a shot if I ever stayed at a hotel with a treadmill. I must say, I think it's pretty neat to ride by people running in Zwift.

Going back to what Dan said above, I think Zwift is more about the social aspect than the courses. BKool offers tons of courses and courses you can upload yourself, but it gets very boring when there's no one else riding around you...with people on so many different courses, there was hardly every anyone riding the same course as me and it turned into just another trainer workout.

I was just reading up on this because my iPad dropped all of the other riders on the course and then failed to upload at the end of my ride a couple of times this past week. I've had rider dropouts before, but they all seem to come back after a second or two, this time it didn't. The support site said that this is most likely due to internet connectivity, which is possible considering the placement of the router and my trainer. The last few mornings, I've just double-checked my connection in the settings before logging into Zwift and everything has been ok.

That said, I did my first workout this morning after not doing them in forever, and there was never a rider within my view...the rider list displayed but no one ever came within 40 seconds of me and I never managed to catch up with anyone. Not sure if that was another iPad issue, or if it was Zwift - I was thinking it might be a new setting so if you're working out you won't be tempted to chase down other riders.

Dan333SP

I haven't done a set workout in a while, but I do know they deactivate boosts and drafting if you're running a programmed workout. Don't see why they'd also deactivate all nearby riders, though?

RPK79

If it failed to upload to Strava you should still be able to locate the ride file on your computer and upload it manually.

The only complaint I have about Zwift is that I'd like to have more feedback regarding my HR zones. If the HR bar on the bottom changed color depending on the zone I was in I would find it informative.

Chandne

I'm guessing they need to spend a couple of hundred grand on some powerful servers and will when they can afford it. I can see the social aspect being interesting. Hopefully they will add courses as the user base expands. I deactivated my account with TrainerRoad for now, but it did look very promising for pure training. I'll get my new smart trainer next week and focus on setting it up and giving Zwift a solid try for a month. It was just so frustrating seeing EVERYONE pass me like I was standing still and seeing my MPH at 8-10.

I have everything I need- laptop stand, long HDMI cable, fan, long USB cable, big screen, etc. Just waiting on that trainer now.