Zwift Academy Week 3

     The Academy is going fairly well. I did the Segment Test on Innsbruck and had an 18.50 and an 18.000 in the two sprints. I saw someone beat my wattage for the 20 second effort but I didn't see anyone beat 19 seconds. So, I call that a win. My 20 minute ftp was only off by 3 watts doing 249 out of a 252 threshold. The second time, I sprinted and rode hard the last 10 minutes or so on the climb. As a result I have a 723 in the 30 second sprint leading second place at 695 watts. 

      Somebody beat my one minute and two minutes. I am currently in third place in both of those times. I also scored a 705 PI as a result of my two minute practice. ( I don't know exactly what that means but I am told 700 is pretty good.) I had a 440 on the kom forward climb. I beat my best time by 5 seconds, just under 1:54. Yes, only two minutes can tire out your legs. Segment 2 will be a two minute assault followed by the epic climb. I am currently waiting until Saturday for race #2 up Mt. Ventoux. As a sprinter, I hate this long test but we will give it a go.

     I have fallen behind on my artwork being busy with chasing my best efforts. There's still a long way to go until the Academy officially ends. But, I think I am performing much better than expected. Sprinting is taking away from my long efforts. But, at least I am still at the top in the long sprint efforts. I fear I won't hold onto the sprint wattage win in the 30 since the one minute is so huge now. For now, my average is higher than second place at almost 700. Maybe I have another chance. But this 30 and 120 are my best ever beating my 2018 times when I did manage a top finish. If I get beaten by a finalist, at least I won't get beaten by very much. Some numbers just seem unreliable, especially the 1500 watt sprints sound like a trainer glitch. But we will wait and see what the finalists can do.

     Here are some numbers from a website for what would be a top pro levels, measured as 100%:

5 second 1200 watts (78%)

15 seconds 900 watts (I did 94%)

30 seconds 722 (I hit 723!)

60 seconds 574 (I did 93%)

4 minutes 424 (82%)

I'm still trying to go a little higher in the one minute effort. The numbers above are for my weight. Still shows that some Zwift best efforts could be off a little. My power meter is very accurate. I think I can retire some day and look back and feel good about that effort. It is going on the wall, so to speak. 

   

Race #1 Win!

     Week one is over and I'm leading in the 30 and 60 seconds. I'm not far behind in 10 second, 20 second, and 2 minutes. Will try them all again soon, or should I say 'zoon'?

      Today's race was three laps of Richmond UCI. It is a tough course and I have never done three laps as much as I can remember. 22 entries led to a pack of ten at the front. I was determined to be in that group until I died. The first lap got really hard at the hills. I had to really dig in. We wound up with a group of 5 that would stick together until the final approach in lap 3. 

     On the downhill in lap 3, I opened up a gap and one rider came with me. We shared the front and kept 8 seconds or so ahead of the other three until the hill. From there, we extended the gap a bit, hitting both hills hard. The three behind us split up, which was the plan. Third place caught us on the last hill near the base. I was in the red as the other two riders opened a small gap and held it until the hill starts to level near the finish.

     I was determined not to let them go. I held my ground at 3 seconds back. As soon as I hit the level, I gave it a burst, then thirty seconds from the finish I started my sprint. It wasn't too strong but I built a lot of speed as I caught them at 200 to go. I flew by and knew I had it with 100 to go. It was getting blurry right as I caught them. Don't think they were focused on me but rather were looking at each other. It was almost the best way to dump the sprinter. They just didn't gain enough ground as I had saved my aero power-up from the very first banner.

     I only took two fourth place finishes last year. This felt really good, better than the two wins I got in the open races in Crit City this summer. This race was hard fought, even with going a bit slow on the flats. I thought I would have to settle for third place. So this win was a shocker, especially being over an hour long at 75 minutes. 

Zwift Academy Four

     My Zwift Academy is off to a great start. I've been lax on my sprint training but focused on my longer efforts. the goal was mainly for the time trial competition that never materialized. No biggie. My new focus is the long sprint, a full minute. This is usually where I can outshine. I won the one minute title in 2018. I go by total watts as anyone could potentially alter their weight in the w/kg chart. 

     I started with workout number 4 and laid down a good one minute effort of 531 watts. On day 2 I did some sprints after the eight minute maximum test. I did it twice. Once for a full six minutes (which is on the chart) and a second workout to do a more tired eight minute effort after a 3 second and 30 second sprint. The results put me in the lead from 3 seconds to 60 seconds! Now I've got a target on my back as top riders will see my numbers and try to beat them. But for now, I'm going to bask in my accomplishment. I will redo the one minute effort soon. I still have to do the four minute max test.

     Here's what the chart looks like:

     On the left, my efforts are in blue above the Zwift Academy Best orange line. I know the top contenders haven't done their one minute efforts yet. It is just to prove my thunder thighs can still rumble. After these first week efforts, I will finish the workouts but start to focus on the late October Events which are daunting. One ride will be the KOM forward, the Epic KOM at almost FTP and the max effort on the Volcano. The other ride is the Innsbruck sprint followed by a race up the mountain. (A little easier.)I'm trying to do my best as my age is getting up there. This year is already better than 2019. So, I'm almost in 2018 shape. Probably less distractions during the last six months of Covid.

     The four minute test went well at 349 watts, doing the reverse hill on Watopia in 4:12. All was going good, coasting down the hill after finishing the hill. Then, the lights and power went out. My Zwift! When everything came back on, I scurried to get the file on Strava...and the file included the whole climb. 349 watts worth. I uploaded to Today's plan. All was good. I didn't get the top four minute but I came close. (The 359 was top honors...so close). I'm hoping the week ends soon so I can lock a few numbers in. I currently have 10, 20, 30 and 60 seconds and almost the 5 sec and 2 minute times.