Flat is Fast Stage 4! // Douce France // Category B Zwift Race

[@hoops202]

Great race and solid effort. I have a suggestion for saving that power for the sprint - im sure you know this already but worth saying as it's helped me - your power is quite spiky throughout the race which drains you over time - if you can find a way to flatten out your power and tuck in that draft, you'll have a lot more left for the end - try training sessions that focus on holding tempo / threshold, it should help . Good luck with the next one!

[@CaedmonCycling]

Hey, thanks! Yeah, definitely more training will help. I thinks it’s a downward spiral as I get tired when it’s harder to be efficient, which then makes me more tired haha. Some extra training and focus will hopefully improve my racing. Thanks 👍

[@marccale9890]

Could only bring myself to watch this now! Had Zwift crash on me just as we got to the viaduct. Someone else in the comments had it spot on with the advice about the end of B races. That's the bit I'm working on: building up strength to hold position as it ramps up before the sprint and to still have enough left when it really kicks off. That's one of the differences from the C races...I remember mostly sitting at 180 watts in the last half-mile waiting for someone to go if it came down to a sprint.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Hey, yeah that’s always frustrating! And definitely agree, B is more of a ramped sprint where C is a burst sprint. I definitely haven’t mastered it yet as my ramp leads to early burnout 😅 but trying to get better!

[@grantgalliger8578]

The bike sounds SO MUCH better now! Well played, hope you're enjoying it more too! :)

[@CaedmonCycling]

Yeah, it certainly felt smoother! Makes the overall experience more enjoyable 👍

[@MayhemZwifting]

Great effort and you beat more than half the group!!!🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@CaedmonCycling]

Thanks! Holding onto the front group is goal one, now I need to find a way to finish stronger too 👍

[@ImGlossy63]

Solid race!! That really escalated at around 2.4km!! Thought there may have been a counter attack and someone go long. I’m right there with ya as far as having no or very little sprint at the end of these hard, fast races.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Yeah, that’s become the recurring theme unfortunately in these races. The push 2-3km from the finish takes out all the legs I have left for any sprint. Gotta keep building and we’ll get there 👍

[@EvoZwifts-ex4nf]

Hey Caedmon! Good race 👍I’m no fan of those rollers or the cobbles either 😂

[@CaedmonCycling]

Hey, thanks! I really like the R.G.V. route for racing, but this direction is just way more brutal. No chance for an easy lead-in 😅

[@BryanMontgomery28]

Hate squeaks too. Sometimes it may be cleat/shoe related. Often its bottom bracket needs service. I feel same way when I race up. Burn all matches just to hang and never have much of any to get out of saddle and sprint. Baby steps

[@CaedmonCycling]

Yeah, I think I fixed the creaking for now at least! Baby steps, just trying to get better each race!

[@Danolsen93]

If you would like a "trick" i usually do in these races, i'd like to share. The last k or when the watts ramps. Don't try to "safe" watts, try ramp them up yourself at your pace. For me thats all from 300 to 500 watts the last k, and then go off feel so that what you leave all and a bit some on the road. Because yes. You have to be a really damn good cyclist to do well in B, those last pushes after a tough race is brutal.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Thanks, this makes sense! I need to focus a bit more on ramping the watts and not just spiking them a few times, which doesn’t really build speed. I think I need to move my way to the front earlier too if I can. I’m always off the back pretty early which doesn’t give me a chance to finish at least in the middle of the sprint pack. Thanks for the tip 👍

[@Paul.OKeeffe]

The last K was a killer. Great finish though. My turn on Saturday🙄🙄

[@CaedmonCycling]

Best of luck! All the features of this route are in the first half, so get a warmup in if you have time 👍

[@kevinderung8524]

great race...3.4 is solid AF

[@CaedmonCycling]

Thanks man! Been around 3.3-3.4 the past month. Excited to start seeing 3.5-3.6, hopefully soon!

[@a_diverge]

Was looking for you, but i think you did the later race. Great effort 👊😎 Think you would benefit from doing the Tiny Races...full sprints x 4.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Hey thanks! Yeah, I did this one at 4:10 EST yesterday

[@a_diverge]

I will be staying with the 1410est slot for now. Our winner finished low 33.

[@CaedmonCycling]

That’s always a fast group! I raced that time slot last week because we had a holiday in the US. I can’t race that normally since it’s during work hours for me.

[@a_diverge]

1310 group did it on 31 minutes. Have to work up to race with them .

[@brutalclimb]

I cleaned the bottom bracket inside n out this fall to see if i would gain watts. I did not.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Haha, I think it’s the same for me. But it did get rid of the annoying creaking I was dealing with, so at least there’s that 👍

[@fwschnaar3179]

4/5wkg’s in the Draft in the closing K’s…. Ouch! 👍🚴‍♀️🚴‍♂️🚴‍♀️🚴‍♂️… You need to get your Steering hooked back up 🤔…Too many times you were stuck out of the Draft, especially in the final K’s when saving those extra Watt savings would/could have helped 😳

[@CaedmonCycling]

Yeah, I need to figure out how to do it. I video with my phone, so I need an extra device to have companion app. That or buy a camera! We’ll see haha

[@aquicktake]

no maintenance for 3 years!?!? You are lubing your chain on a regular basis right? Since you're only using your bike on the trainer the only thing you really need to be concerned with is keeping your driveline in order. Keep the cassette clean, lube your chain, and periodically look at your cranks, and pedal stems for gunk. And, of course, wipe the sweat down.

[@CaedmonCycling]

Yes, I had lubed the chain, just never really cleaned it. I rode a lot more outdoors when I first got the bike but only twice in the last year. Certainly neglected the bike maintenance piece a bit too much. But that will change going forward 👍