Bike Forums Zwifters?
10-20-22, 08:07 AM
#26
Sunshine
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 15,607
Bikes: '18 class built steel roadbike, '19 Fairlight Secan, '88 Schwinn Premis , Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross V4, '89 Novara Trionfo
Mentioned: 120 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 9993 Post(s)
Liked 6,390 Times
in
3,646 Posts
There is an indoor cycling forum here too, but yeah I would go here for anything first. Its c&v- the people are a wealth of knowledge, even on modern tech(though they dont always want to admit it).
10-20-22, 08:26 AM
#27
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 16,534
Mentioned: 449 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3449 Post(s)
Liked 5,375 Times
in
2,198 Posts
--If your smart trainer is really "smart," you'll only need one gear, i.e., no need to shift. At first, I spent a fair amount of time shifting gears until I realized that the trainer itself would provide resistance on "climbs" or when I needed to up the effort.
--I like following Zwift training plans rather than "just ride" or participating in group rides. The structure and interval training really makes time go so much more quickly than just spinning away. I might try more group rides this year or even races, but essentially I'm not particularly interested in the social aspects of the product (and they push the social bits quite strongly).
--At first, I used a crappy saddle that I had around, mostly because I wanted to keep the good saddles for bikes I ride outside. Big mistake! It was fine for 30-minute rides, but anything longer was very painful. I'm now running a Brooks C15 with cutout, my favorite saddle these days.
--I'm also running flattish pedals and toe clips as you can see in the pic above--it's my only bike with toe clips! I'm likely to switch to SPDs this year as that's what I run outside and toe clips will give me hot spots on longer (e.g., an hour or more) training rides.
--You will sweat--a lot! As others have pointed out, the use of fans, towels, sweat mats, etc., is essential (as is having a filled water bottle at all times).
Likes For nlerner:
10-20-22, 08:31 AM
#28
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Louisville, KY
Posts: 13,313
Mentioned: 32 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3847 Post(s)
Liked 2,665 Times
in
1,591 Posts
My old setup (with rollers on a platform providing motion):
My current setup (Elite Direto XR, stationary):
Both setups ran/run Zwift on a computer that sent the images to an overhead projector using the far wall as a ~11' diagonal screen.
My current setup (Elite Direto XR, stationary):
Both setups ran/run Zwift on a computer that sent the images to an overhead projector using the far wall as a ~11' diagonal screen.
10-20-22, 08:52 AM
#29
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Berwyn PA
Posts: 6,382
Bikes: I hate bikes!
Mentioned: 38 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 410 Post(s)
Liked 616 Times
in
207 Posts
So a couple of things I learned from using Zwift and a smart trainer a fair amount last winter:
--If your smart trainer is really "smart," you'll only need one gear, i.e., no need to shift. At first, I spent a fair amount of time shifting gears until I realized that the trainer itself would provide resistance on "climbs" or when I needed to up the effort.
--I like following Zwift training plans rather than "just ride" or participating in group rides. The structure and interval training really makes time go so much more quickly than just spinning away. I might try more group rides this year or even races, but essentially I'm not particularly interested in the social aspects of the product (and they push the social bits quite strongly).
--At first, I used a crappy saddle that I had around, mostly because I wanted to keep the good saddles for bikes I ride outside. Big mistake! It was fine for 30-minute rides, but anything longer was very painful. I'm now running a Brooks C15 with cutout, my favorite saddle these days.
--I'm also running flattish pedals and toe clips as you can see in the pic above--it's my only bike with toe clips! I'm likely to switch to SPDs this year as that's what I run outside and toe clips will give me hot spots on longer (e.g., an hour or more) training rides.
--You will sweat--a lot! As others have pointed out, the use of fans, towels, sweat mats, etc., is essential (as is having a filled water bottle at all times).
--If your smart trainer is really "smart," you'll only need one gear, i.e., no need to shift. At first, I spent a fair amount of time shifting gears until I realized that the trainer itself would provide resistance on "climbs" or when I needed to up the effort.
--I like following Zwift training plans rather than "just ride" or participating in group rides. The structure and interval training really makes time go so much more quickly than just spinning away. I might try more group rides this year or even races, but essentially I'm not particularly interested in the social aspects of the product (and they push the social bits quite strongly).
--At first, I used a crappy saddle that I had around, mostly because I wanted to keep the good saddles for bikes I ride outside. Big mistake! It was fine for 30-minute rides, but anything longer was very painful. I'm now running a Brooks C15 with cutout, my favorite saddle these days.
--I'm also running flattish pedals and toe clips as you can see in the pic above--it's my only bike with toe clips! I'm likely to switch to SPDs this year as that's what I run outside and toe clips will give me hot spots on longer (e.g., an hour or more) training rides.
--You will sweat--a lot! As others have pointed out, the use of fans, towels, sweat mats, etc., is essential (as is having a filled water bottle at all times).
10-20-22, 09:09 AM
#30
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Louisville, KY
Posts: 13,313
Mentioned: 32 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3847 Post(s)
Liked 2,665 Times
in
1,591 Posts
If you have a smart trainer, I like setting the trainer difficulty (should actually be called trainer realism) to roughly 30-ish%. That way I can still feel the difference on hills and things but I still get resistance to pedal against on downhills and can keep into a few gears as well (generally 54x14, going down to 13 or 12 on hard efforts in races or up to 15 or 17 on hills) but do most of my power modulation through how hard I push on the pedals or my cadence. Some people prefer to set the difficulty at 100% to match outside and do a lot more shifting than I do, but I like to not have to worry about that so much.
10-20-22, 11:09 AM
#31
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 16,534
Mentioned: 449 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3449 Post(s)
Liked 5,375 Times
in
2,198 Posts
If you have a smart trainer, I like setting the trainer difficulty (should actually be called trainer realism) to roughly 30-ish%. That way I can still feel the difference on hills and things but I still get resistance to pedal against on downhills and can keep into a few gears as well (generally 54x14, going down to 13 or 12 on hard efforts in races or up to 15 or 17 on hills) but do most of my power modulation through how hard I push on the pedals or my cadence. Some people prefer to set the difficulty at 100% to match outside and do a lot more shifting than I do, but I like to not have to worry about that so much.
Btw, I did the workout called “the wringer” just a bit ago. Very intense and highly recommended!
10-20-22, 11:15 AM
#32
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2020
Location: Great White North
Posts: 1,105
Bikes: 2013 Cannondale Caad 8, 2010 Opus Fidelio, 1985 Peugeot UO14, 1999 Peugeot Dune, Sakai Select, L'Avantage, 1971 Gitane Apache Standard
Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 497 Post(s)
Liked 386 Times
in
258 Posts
Is there still any cadence in setting up a bike forums C&V Zwift group ride as mentioned way above? I get best inspired riding in the group rides or races then just riding by myself or doing the training plans. The only training plans I enjoyed was when they did them in a group! ha ha
I've been Zwifting since 2017 and though I still enjoy it as an alternative to riding for real, come February I'm searching for inspiration so maybe riding with a group on a regular basis might be fun.
I've been Zwifting since 2017 and though I still enjoy it as an alternative to riding for real, come February I'm searching for inspiration so maybe riding with a group on a regular basis might be fun.
10-20-22, 11:27 PM
#33
Full Member
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: Southeast TX
Posts: 444
Bikes: 1947 Ciclo Piave, 1969 Colnago Super, 1972 Legnano Olimpiade, 1980 Mercian Vincitore, 1983 Gitane Interclub, 1985 Peugeot PGN10, 1986 Bianchi Vittoria, 1989 Vitus 979, 1990 Bianchi Axis, 1990 Specialized Sirrus, 2001 Colnago Dream B-Stay, 2007 Trek
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 155 Post(s)
Liked 563 Times
in
202 Posts
I've put quite a few miles on Zwift since I've been using it as recovery for the various surgeries I've gone through. Unfortunately, I've had major connection issues since their last update, so I haven't used it much lately.
10-21-22, 06:14 AM
#36
Senior Member
I started Zwifting last winter and love the environment and people. I've joined a club/team and have participated in the WTRL race league, making friends from around the world along the way. It's awesome.
I bought a used Kickr from a friend and use it with an AppleTV, first version, and the companion app. I seldom have a problem but I live in an area with good internet wifi and a low population so good bandwidth and no interference.
The cost is modest for the benefits imo.
I bought a used Kickr from a friend and use it with an AppleTV, first version, and the companion app. I seldom have a problem but I live in an area with good internet wifi and a low population so good bandwidth and no interference.
The cost is modest for the benefits imo.
Likes For Kai Winters:
10-21-22, 08:13 AM
#37
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2008
Location: North, Ga.
Posts: 2,348
Bikes: 3Rensho-Aerodynamics, Bernard Hinault Look - 1986 tour winner, Guerciotti, Various Klein's & Panasonic's
Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 144 Post(s)
Liked 317 Times
in
137 Posts
My old Cannondale from 1987 is permanently mounted on the trainer.
Likes For embankmentlb:
10-31-22, 06:02 PM
#38
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Berwyn PA
Posts: 6,382
Bikes: I hate bikes!
Mentioned: 38 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 410 Post(s)
Liked 616 Times
in
207 Posts
Ok. I am set up and have done a couple of rides. I think I am figuring it out......
Last edited by fender1; 10-31-22 at 06:13 PM.
Likes For fender1:
11-01-22, 12:30 PM
#39
Sunshine
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 15,607
Bikes: '18 class built steel roadbike, '19 Fairlight Secan, '88 Schwinn Premis , Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross V4, '89 Novara Trionfo
Mentioned: 120 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 9993 Post(s)
Liked 6,390 Times
in
3,646 Posts
11-01-22, 01:01 PM
#40
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2020
Location: Great White North
Posts: 1,105
Bikes: 2013 Cannondale Caad 8, 2010 Opus Fidelio, 1985 Peugeot UO14, 1999 Peugeot Dune, Sakai Select, L'Avantage, 1971 Gitane Apache Standard
Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 497 Post(s)
Liked 386 Times
in
258 Posts
