Free market economies and all.

Zwift bumped theirs 5 bucks a month. Grandfathered in people get to start paying that in another month or two, so 1 buck more...eh.

I knew if I waited long enough this thread would get interesting.

Fortunately for you there's always the option to simply stop paying for the service.

Zwift, trainerroad, strava... what you get out of the different applications is different for everyone. I myself think Zwift - even if it were $20 a month - is an excellent deal. It's a cheap way to keep me in shape - keep me motivated - and safe on the indoor trainer.

I'm confused.
Oh wait, maybe I'm not.

I mostly use it for the social aspect. For data analysis, I look to other sources. That said, I like it well enough to pay for the premium because of a few perks.

Is this where I ask what this thread is about?

I can't be the only one who enjoys collecting those silly strava trophies.

Whatever keeps us motivated I suppose.

You are definitely not alone. I sometimes squeeze in an extra ride just to make sure I get some dumb digital badge-- I always think of a paraphrased Who's Line opening- "Where the trophies are made up and the points don't matter."

And if it's one of the Rapha events, where they send an actual badge? Whoa baby. Rapha Festive three years running.

Wait - they do that?

Oh yeah.

I see you do the same with yours as I do with mine. Collect them! I wonder if anyone sews them onto a garment?

I put some sticky-back velcro on them, and slap one on my Lezyne tool-roll. It's currently sporting the Rapha Rising badge from last year.

But I can't imagine actually sewing them on anything.

I would not ditch Strava, but I use Cyclemeter as recording app. Does everything from a self-analysis standpoint that Strava charges for, and I have it set to send my rides to Strava when complete. I use the free version of Strava as I don't need analysis or ride capture in that app. I do enjoy seeing how my performance falls in line with others on segments in Strava. Cyclemeter custromer support is the bomb as well. I bought it for IOS and they transferred it over to Android for free and walked me through migrating all my data. All of that assistance for an app that is a less than 10 dollar investment once.

https://abvio.com/cyclemeter/

I am so friggin jealous of this.

If nothing else, the dumb digital trophies encourage me to try different routes.

I've thought about removing myself from the leaderboards. Most of my QOMs were gained due to wind assist or being one of a handful of women to ride a particular segment, and I really don't like taking them from people I know. But, meh. It's just a game and not to be taken that seriously.

It is a video game with a fairly involved human interface.