Originally Posted by
Hermes
If
nslckevin gets slammed on Zwift racing, I am dead on arrival. My power profile is steep. I was a 400 meter runner and sold sprinter. My 20 minute power is okay but not great. I have a great standing start at the track but but but, the first couple of pedal strokes, where I generate a lot of torque, are NOT, IMO, properly captured by a traditional power meter. And probably not that valuable in Zwift mass start racing. I would need an SRM scientific or track PM to capture the faster transient, higher power which is true for others as well. And what does Zwift do with accurate transient power even if you send it to them? Smooth or average it out?
I have spent the last 10 years of racing working on generating more speed from the same amount of power. Hence, my cost of speed curve for a particular power required is low. That work is rendered meaningless on Zwift. And I have very good skills hiding in a pack and minimizing energy use. Again, not valued by Zwift.
And I am unwilling to cheat - not valued by Zwift.
Hence…DOA.
In fairness, I am DOA in some real world situations and I accept that as well but try to pick my events where I have a competitive advantage.
You might be surprised. I race on Zwift with a teammate who has tons more outdoor experience than me. I'm ~10 kg heavier than him and have a higher 1 min and 20 min W/kg (similar 15s and lower 5 min W/kg) - higher in raw W in all categories due to my weight. There are a few specific circumstances when I can beat him - in a race with a lot of sandbaggers and a long, flat start (where I can use my raw W to keep up with the baggers' group after he gets dropped) or one that has a 15 min+ climb (like Epic KoM or Innsbruck KoM) or is specifically Innsbruckring where I can use my superior 1 min power on the legsnapper to get into a group he can't if that group exists - but otherwise he beats me at least 3 times out of 4 (probably more) and usually does so while coming in 0.2 W/kg less than me (we're both usually lower than everyone around us but he's lower than me even though I weigh more than him, not the other way around). And usually pips me on the primes. He's better able to read the group to know which moves to cover, better able to sit in the draft without working or getting stuck in the churn of front to back, front to back, better about positioning before primes so he can surf through the pack to pick up FTS points and still do decently at FAL (while I frequently find myself on the front shortly before the start of a segment and have to choose between losing momentum to drift back or just hammering it while eating wind for FAL points and forgetting about FTS). They aren't exactly the same skills as what you have spent a lifetime honing outdoors, but efficient riding is efficient riding and can often beat out someone who is trying to win via brute force (at least when it's coupled with crappy racing like I do it).