Zwiftcast

Episode 201:The Zwiftcast Is Back! What Did We Miss?

After a very long coffee stop, the Zwiftcast returns to resume the familiar mix of Zwifty chat and gossip. Simon, Shane and Nathan are joined by friend of the pod, Eric Schlange of Zwift Insider and special guest Dave Towle.

Quite a lot happened in Watopia and the wider Zwift world over the last two years or so. Simon picks out the big stuff and we put those through the Zwiftcast grinder.

There's a great chat with Olympian cyclist and now highly rated coach, Kristan Armstrong on how to get the best out of the new feature on Zwift, The Grade. 

Simon spends a few minutes explaining why the pod went away, why it's come back and where it's going next.

And we conclude with a look at the competitive scene on Zwift with the long called for retirement of Zee Power in Zwift-owned racing events as well as the curious appeal of a Beat The Bots ride.

Welcome back Listeners!

 

The Final Zwiftcast: Zwift Vs Wahoo+all the Zwifty news and chat

Simon, Shane and Nathan are together for the final time as the sun sets on the Zwiftcast. And they ask: Is Zwift’s Age of Dominance over?

Wahoo surprised the whole indoor training sector with the bombshell announcement that it was buying RGT, for some time the only like-for-like competitor with Zwift.

The Zwiftcasters consider several aspects of the deal . . . . will it spur the big Zee to greater urgency in its development of new features? What might it mean for the rumoured TrainerRoad deal? Could Wahoo’s undoubted power and expertise pose a serious threat to Zwift’s growth? 

And does Zwift have the bandwidth to handle its first serious rival AND the launch of its own hardware? There is certainly plenty for the Zwiftcast Trinity to consider.

Elsewhere Simon talks to a host of Zwift OGs . . . the Zwifters who were around right at the beginning, helping to build the community, establish racing and pioneer online coaching using the platform.

Simon does “Where Are They Now?” spots with David Lipscombe, Julynn Washington, James Gill and Christian Wiedemann. All are still Zwifting and many have strong thoughts on what they’d like Zwift to be doing - and their words are given greater topicality and relevance by the Wahoo deal.

Elsewhere, after the old Mining Town got nuked, then re-instated, Simon asks Shane and Nathan what else in Zwift they’d like to see nuked. 

There’s also speculation around the new Gravel Mountain route and a final goodbye.

Simon would like to thank each and every single Listener over the years and the scores of episodes, especially for the many private and public messages received after he announced that the Zwiftcast was riding up over the hill and into a slowly setting Spanish sun. Thanks for listening!

Ep 104: We go big on everything Zwifty - it’s Zwiftcast XL

Well, that was a hot mess, wasn’t it? Simon, Shane and Nathan chew over the whole #freeLuciano debacle as a packed episode 104 hits your podcatchers.

In the longest Zwiftcast ever, the trio also take assess the likely importance to the platform of Club Functionality, now it’s available to all Zwifters. Simon interviews Eddie from HQ, who we christen the King of Clubs.

Zwift is coming under pressure on disabled and differently-abled athletes as Zwifter Andy Shuttleworth starts a campaign to highlight the lack of representation in game. There’s news from inside HQ of what they plan to do on what is acknowledged to be a hot topic.

Is Zwift about to take over TrainerRoad? Only a very few people know for sure and it’s not Simon, or Shane or Nathan. That doesn’t stop them speculating on the likelihood and the wisdom of the move.

Zwift is making its most serious attempt ever to stop sandbaggers in their tracks in the racing sphere. HQ’s Flint McGinnis explains why the approach of Category Enforcement has been taken and how the scheme is expected to develop.

The Zwiftcasters look at the fairytale story of Academy Winner Jay Vine surging to victory in the e-sports World Champs while Simon goes off on one on the coverage. 

And finally, there’s a dose of schadenfraude, as the chaps ask what went wrong at Peloton and whether there are lessons for Zwift to learn. We hope you enjoy listening.

Ep 103: It’s all about the new things! Zwift Bike, Home Screen, Clubs and maybe Peak Zwift?

In a packed and busy episode, the emphasis for the Zwiftcasters in the New Year is very much on new things.

Will we hit a new Peak Zwift, beating last year’s over 49,000 concurrent riders? Simon, Shane and Nathan enter their guesses.

The new Zwift Bike was announced, well leaked, by Zwift in a strange way over the holidays. The Zwiftcasters discuss this, but more importantly, the features we now know about. They are excited.

There is a new Home Screen coming to Zwift, but contain your excitement because it’s a slow roll out. The Zwiftcasters have had a preview and they very much like what they’ve been playing with.

There is brand new functionality coming to Clubs and the podcasters reckon it will be a huge development as the community gets new - and simple - ways to organise their own events.

Elsewhere Simon talks to Mike Hanney about the new Zwiftaliser, the invaluable tool for diagnosing connection and other issues for Zwifters.

And there is a new set of tests scheduled to start the long awaited clampdown on the sandbaggers.

Along the way Simon, Shane and Nathan find more Zwiftiness to explore and debate.

It’s a long one - you’re gonna need a bigger pot of chamois cream! We hope you enjoy listening.

Episode 102: Neokyo - The Verdict, plus all the Zwifty news and gossip

With many Zwifters now having had the chance to ride Neokyo, it’s time for Simon, Shane and Nathan to deliver their verdict. They’re joined by veteran Zwifter Sarah LaRocque and Zwift Insider chief bidon washer Eric Schlange, and all contributors have plenty to say about the new extension.

He Must Not Be Named now has a regular ride on Zwift. L****e Arm****ng remains a highly polarising figure, but the Zwiftcasters debate whether it’s right now, after the passage of much time,  to welcome him onto the platform.

How long will YOUR expensive smart trainer last? The fate of massive mile muncher Tim Searle’s Kickr may have much to teach us. And still with tech, Simon, Shane and Nathan assess the prospects of a promised “revolutionary” new smart trainer.

OS deprecations might sound boring and technical - BUT it may mean your computer will no longer run Zwift. Shane explains why it’s a good thing.

And Simon talks to Eric Schlange later in the pod about his “crazy” idea for Zwift Insider to become the repository of verified Zwift World Records.

Zwifter Chad Tavernia may have a claim - with his seatless outdoor imperial century, which he’s now matched with an indoor ride of the same distance - and still no saddle.

We hope you enjoy listening!

Episode 101: Shiny New Things!

Simon, Shane and Nathan discuss the big new idea from Zwift  . . . .This Season on Zwift offers Zwifters a taster of what’s coming up in the coming weeks and months. This is a big change of direction from HQ, which has previously kept future plans close to its chest.

We now know we are getting a neon-fest of an extension to Makuri Islands. We know that there’ll be a new way to interact with the game with a much improved Home Screen. And we now know that Clubs is due to get a big jolt of new functionality.

The Zwiftcasters discuss the upcoming new features and analyse the implications of what’s a big decision for Zwift in how it relates to its community.

Game creator Jon Mayfield has given a rare interview to a Cycling Tips podcast and as always, when Jon talks, it’s worth listening. Simon, Shane and Nathan pick over Jon’s thoughts on his new role at the company and his thoughts on innovation in indoor cycling.

The Zwiftcasters discuss possible new moves from putative rivals this winter before moving on to discuss Zwift’s burgeoning relations with the UCI and ASO and how those manifest as the big new sponsorship of, and revival of, the women’s Tour de France plus the staging of the official e-World Champs to be run on Zwift next February.

Shane goes into rant mode about Zwift’s roll out of Strava’s Local Legends on the platform. He is not impressed!

And finally the podcasters discuss the arrival of He Who Must Not Be Named on the platform - for real. Should the community embrace him?

We hope you enjoy listening.

Episode 100: A century of Zwiftcasts!

Simon, Shane and Nathan celebrate the 100th episode of the podcast which has tracked the progress of Zwift, our favourite virtual cycling platform, from the very earliest days.

As a new indoor season dawns, the podcasters are in reflective mood, analysing what Zwift has got right, how sentiment in the community has ebbed and flowed over the past six years and how real friendships, including amongst the three podcasters, have been formed as we sweat over our trainers and talk turkey about riding a bike indoors.

We hope you enjoy listening.

 

Ep 99: Nathan braves a tornado as the Zwiftcasters chew through all the latest Zwifty news and chat

The three amigos are back together for the first time in a few Eps to chew through all the latest Zwifty news, chat and gossip. . . . in an episode recorded as Nathan nervously kept an eye on a tornado headed towards his studio!

Simon, Shane and Nathan kick off with a review of the first interview from Zwift’s newish in post Chief Product Officer, YC, before meeting the Zwifter who accomplished the magnificently mad ride of 100 miles standing up. Prominent Zwifter Chad Tavernia goes one better chatting with Simon, promising to repeat the feat inside. Good luck with that Chad!

The Zwiftcasters move on to discuss what can only really be described as a pretty chaotic game update in July - and Shane switches on rant mode. 

Auto-categorisation is a solution to sandbagging in racing long advocated by many Zwifters and now, thanks to Martin Carew at WTRL Racing, a nascent system is being tested in earnest. Simon checks in with Martin for a progress report.

The Zwiftcasters round off Ep 99 with a chat on the latest tech, including Elite’s Rizer device and Zwift’s decision not to attend the upcoming Eurobike show.

With an off-piste diversion into Speed Walking plus a little bit of news for runners on the platform, the boys wrap it up for this one. We hope you enjoy listening

Ep 98: A Conversation with Zwift's Chief Product Officer - the man with the plan

Welcome to this Zwiftcast Special Episode, an extended interview with the company’s first Chief Product Officer.

YuChiang Cheng, known to all as YC, was appointed in January and the move was hailed as “critically important” by Zwift’s CEO, Eric Min.

YC was put in charge of what seemed like almost everything . . . .from game design and art, engineering, research and development through content programming and live operations, plus a bit more.

It was clear that YC, whose background includes the development of the 28 million-player World Tour Golf game, was going to be hugely influential in Zwift’s continued growth and development.

So what does he have planned? Was the rapid deployment of the much-requested Return To Home feature soon after YC joined a mere co-incidence or a sign of things to come? Is Zwift working on a brand new platform architecture? Will new features roll out faster? So many questions.

Simon sits down with YC to see if the Zwift community can get some answers to these and lots of other questions.

We hope you enjoy listening.

 

00.00-02.10: Intro, including rules of engagement

02.30: What was your last decision in your last meeting?

02.50:Give us your 60 second career resume? (SPOILER: It’s longer than 60 secs) 

04.45: How did the opportunity at Zwift come about?

06.46: Do you ride a bike?

08.00: Have you identified areas where Zwift needs to change the way it works?

10.00: The Press release on your arrival stressed “accessibility” and “innovation”. What did that mean?

13.58: In seeking to widen accessibility there’s a feeling that the hard core cyclist will lose out to the casual fitness crowd. You are prioritising growth over development. How do you respond to that?

17.20: The last couple of updates have included “crowd pleaser” features. Is that your doing?

19.50: Is the company developing a Zwift 2.0? A new games engine? 

21.50: So is Jon Mayfield, in his new role, working on a new game engine? 

22.15: The golf game you were involved in featured performance improvements in exchange for payment. Will this ever be the case on Zwift?

23.10: Zwift Running has not been a conspicuous success. Is Zwift’s future multi-sport?

24.00: Why is hardware development so critical?

25.55:  Zwift is neither agile nor nimble. Do you feel the need to address this?

29.10: Has recruitment of talented development people improved? Why not offshore development?

32.20: Tell me about your working relationship with Jon Mayfield?

34.30: We see a number of big projects announced - then grind to a halt. Why?

37.50: Pace Partners, as an example, were a huge hit. But development of them has been glaciallly slow. Why?

40.15. Racing: At pro level, it serves Zwift marketing well. At community level, tools, features and functions are slow to roll out.Fair point?

43.30: Why are some Zwifters on very high end machines seeing low frame rates on Makuri? Is this directional, or a glitch?

48.00 Will Zwift ever lock down certain features to its own hardware?

51.00: Zwift hardware. When are we going to see something?

51.20: What has surprised you, both upside and downside, since you joined Zwift?

52.35: Golfers or cyclists. Which is the most demanding community? 

53.00: Does Zwift have a proper dialogue with its community?

55.10: Thanks and goodbye. 

 

 

 

Episode 97: Yumezi - was it worth the wait? The community verdict

Well, was it worth the wait? Yumezi has landed - the first new map, and the first new world in Zwift , for quite some time. Eagerly-awaited, much-delayed but now finally here, what does the community make of the new Tarmac with a strongly Eastern flavour?

The Zwiftcast abandons its usual format for a special episode soliciting opinion on probably the most beautiful world yet to be released by Zwift.

Simon, Shane and Eric Schlange from the Zwift Insider have their say, but perhaps more importantly the Zwiftcast flies around the world to hear from prominent members of the Zwift community on their reaction to Yumezi.

We also speculate on how the Makuri Islands might develop in the future.

We hope you enjoy listening.