It keeps snowing here in Colorado. This month has seen snow on the ground for pretty much the whole month. It’s meant that any plan for riding trails has been shelved. However it has meant that I have been sticking to training on Zwift.
Zwift has different worlds you can ride in, but my favorite and the most developed is Watopia. There’s flat stages and hilly stages. Then there’s the Alpe du Zwift. The Alpe is Watopia’s Alpe d’huez. 22 hairpin bends up a climb of 3400ft. I’ve riden it only twice.
I can climb mountains
The first time I rode it I was massively underprepared for the challenge. I figured I’d jump on my bike and ride up in an hour, no problem. After around an hour I was only half way up and I decided to abort the effort. It took a few months before I tried it again.
The second time I finished it. I had planned to take a couple of hours. The route itself took about two and a half hours. The Alpe was around two hours. I was wiped out afterwards. I ended up taking a 20 minute break in the final stages, and getting back going was really hard.
If you’re going to do a workout on Zwift choosing a route which helps any challenges your attempting is a good idea. I’m currently working on the Everest challenge. You climb to the height of Everest and then beyond. When you’ve reached the top of the atmosphere you get the glowing ‘Tron’ bike.
Prize time
Doing my workouts on the mountain routes helps me get the required elevation. Since I’m doing the workout anyway it makes sense to get the elevation too. Also doing workouts gets you greater XPs than just riding along. Great if you are trying to level up to get a lighter bike or fancy pair of socks. When you reach the summit of the Alpe there’s a prize wheel which gives you a prize of either a cap, gloves, shoes or a wheelset.
Today was my third attempt to ride it. I chose my workout and selected the ‘Road to the sky’. My workout was due to take 56 mins. I knew this would be insufficient time for the climb, so I planned to complete 2 workouts. Both workouts went well. I took a toilet break in between them and eat a little snack. Unfortunately when I started the second workout my laptop started causing problems.
Why-fi?
For reasons which I don’t understand my laptop likes to stop recognizing the USB connection for my sensors. It usually chooses to do this when I’m in the middle of something I don’t want to have to start again. Today was no different. Half way up the Alpe and just starting my second workout my laptop dumped my sensors. I tried everything I could think off to get the ant+ back working but to no avail. In desperation I tried the Bluetooth link via the companion app. I had never used this before and I wasn’t filled with confidence. After trying a few times to get my trainer to pair I was off again. I dropped out a few times during the second workout, but not to the detriment of the workout.
I was able to complete my workout and to finish the climb up the Alpe. My final 3 hairpins were after the my workout had finished and my legs were feeling it. I didn’t improve on my previous time unfortunately, but I did have some good luck. At the top I was awarded the super light wheelset. I don’t know how much difference they will make but it’s nice to have got them.