So Is This B CATEGORY Racing Now?

[@RoadtoA]

❗ If you like my content and would like to support my content creation (besides subscribing!), consider getting into my membership program 🚴‍♂ There are five tiers: ➡ Tier 1 - Domestique - This tier will earn you a badge to all your comments under videos and during live chat (the longer you are member, the prettier the badge!) ➡ Tier 2 - Super Domestique - Everything from Tier 1 PLUS access to my private Garmin Connect group where you can see all my training/racing data and statistics and share yours! (you need your GC account so you can join the group). ➡ Tier 3 - Lead-Out Rider - Everything from Tier 2 PLUS I will follow you on Zwift so you can teleport to me in game (except when racing, for obvious reasons that's not possible). ➡ Tier 4 - Directeur Sportif - Everything from Tier 3 PLUS I will give you written shout-out at the end of each video. ➡ Tier 5 - Cycling Legend - Everything from Tier 4 PLUS I will personally thank you at the end of each video. You can join here: kzbin.info/door/gqQzVp5YsE0rFysyl4yT6Qjoin

[@TangibleBelly]

No one can resist the temptation of a mighty french croissant, the world's most beautiful buttery sin 🤣 Glad to hear you had a great holiday

[@RoadtoA]

Damn straight. I was walking our dog one morning in a beautiful French town of Saint Jean de Maurienne (by the way, a Tour de France stage started there this year!) and the smell of croissants was all around the street. There was nothing I could do.

[@TangibleBelly]

@@RoadtoA I've never been to that particular town but from your description I can see it with my eyes closed...and also smell it

[@RoadtoA]

@@TangibleBelly It's a beautiful town, recommended. And what's more, it's very close to some pretty dope climbs (Col du Galibier, Col de la Madeleine, Col de la Croix de Fer, Col du Glandon, Lacets de Mortvenier, even Alpe).

[@TicTacDave86]

I was in this race, managed a 12th place. I was last guy to stay with the group over the top of Box Hill. I was more celebrating the fact I got over in front group as I didn't expect to. You've got to remember this is probably the hardest, (or definitely Top 3) B race of the week. When there is a 6-7 minute climb its just way harder to keep up with the best guys in B as there is almost no draft (yes definitely a few are A also). Reality is, if you're not a strong B, or have high power over 5 minutes, then you will get dropped... thats just life, not always the fact that B is crazy. You cant have 25 categories so everyone can go up a climb together! Probably my favourite race of the week as there are so many people, it should be celebrated not criticised ... great challenge, i love the challenge, you just need a few more watts next time.

[@RoadtoA]

@@TicTacDave86 I am not necessarily criticizing the difficulty, I enjoy it too. But guys over 700 racing score (and definitely the ones over 800) shouldn't be there.

[@TicTacDave86]

@@RoadtoA same time next week?

[@RoadtoA]

@@TicTacDave86 probably not, gotta go to the office tommorow unfortunately, won't make it in time. But I'll do the ZWS on the very first prime time available (thu, 7:30 pm European).

[@sjcarson1976]

I was in that race yesterday. It was nuts. I finished 32nd. Lots a guys with A power, probably a few with A+ power, look at the winner with 5.0w/kg normalised power and an average heart rate of only 134bpm 🤪 Hopefully they will bring in racing score for all races soon. Or at least push those with a racing score of 700+ into category A.

[@RoadtoA]

@@sjcarson1976 I am glad I was not the only one having this experience. B racers with Racing Score over 800 is nuts.

[@andymiller54]

Great sprint after a tough effort at least! 💪

[@RoadtoA]

I'm a one trick pony! 😂

[@jamescarlphotography4523]

I did the A Cat of this race a few days ago -- the winner of my race (not me!) was 10 secs slower than the winner of your race. Only 20 of us in the race, though. You had some hitters in there.

[@RoadtoA]

@@jamescarlphotography4523 It was prime time, so it's kind of understandeable. That said, 802 racing score in B cat is...wild. 😅

[@quvenju]

Hey great video 🎉, what set up do you use for playing Zwift !? Apple TV !?etc

[@RoadtoA]

@@quvenju I use a gaming PC linked to a TV. But it is not necessary, I just want my riding as pretty/smooth as possible.

[@scottmccann4509]

It's always been the case of A's sandbagging. The jumps between "CATs" is too high, plus i believe there's never that many A's racing so they join B's just to have competition. Another issue is Zwift aren't picking up the sandbagging. I mean lots of races i've been in the W/KG exceeds the "CAT" but arent DQ'd. In your race you needed to hold a MINIMUM of 4 W/KG on that climb for 8-9 minutes just to hold on, and that's if you're in the perfect position to start and didn't have to catch up. I remember i "used" to be almost an A (Zwift power would tell me). However i would only get to the finish in the lead group 50% of the time and rarely place top 3.........If i was almost an A because i was over w/kg average for the race surely i would be one of the best?..........Now i got fat, lazy and lost motivation and dropped into C's (which are filled with average B's)

[@RoadtoA]

@@scottmccann4509 what bugs me the most is I feel like it got suddenly worse the last month. The last month I completely struggle to hold onto the main group despite putting out my best numbers ever. But as I wrote under different comment - racing score should fix this, fingers crossed!

[@daviddanser8011]

Tough one, according to Zwift I am almost A but I don’t think I could have kept with this group in B. These short races are crazy. So far I am liking the new racing score system much better. As I am pretty light the old category always has me rated far higher than what i could actually achieve in races. I don’t have a good 1m or 5m power only a good relative ftp so when i forced to A at some point i got destroyed by everyone. Even in B that happens on some routes. Hope the new system will be implemented everywhere soon.

[@RoadtoA]

@@daviddanser8011 I thought I was mid to high B too and here it was.:)

[@benfinesilver2250]

There’s B riders that do well in A Tiny Races. They don’t have 20 minute power, but can smash a sprint if they keep hanging. Might explain the “high” racing score.

[@RoadtoA]

@@benfinesilver2250 might;) but 800 is a lot

[@sigfreed11]

Hey Adam! Have you heard about the upcoming indieVelo Grand Tour event later next month? It’s a 5 day stage race with GC, mountain and sprint jerseys! It would make for some really great YT content and be a blast! Would love to see you there!

[@RoadtoA]

@@sigfreed11 hey! I unfortunately can't ride outside of Zwift as my indoor setup is based purely on virtual shifting. Sounds fun though!

[@sigfreed11]

@@RoadtoA ah shoot! IndieVelo DOES have virtual shifting - what trainer are you using it might very well work iV

[@RoadtoA]

@@sigfreed11 Zwift hub with Zwift play

[@sigfreed11]

@@RoadtoA the Zwift hub should connect just fine - as defined by George Gilbert himself! 💪🏻 the Zwift play however doesn’t work, so you’ll just need to use the +/- keys to work (or a 3rd party equivalent of the play controller - Zwift locks that stuff down through encryption)

[@Daniel-ng8fi]

how do you get that altitude thing at the bottom? Is that in your actual zwift window, or an addon for the video??

[@RoadtoA]

@@Daniel-ng8fi it's added to the video for better information

[@preludeshalyn]

I’m curious about the glasses indoors. Are they Rx?

[@RoadtoA]

@@preludeshalyn they are rudy project prescription glasses. There's no other reason for me wearing them besides the fact that I am blind without them. 😅

[@scottblunt5897]

I like the elevation graphic.

[@RoadtoA]

@@scottblunt5897 thank you!

[@dino5205]

how can we put this graph?

[@Me_Hall]

DUDE! Nice Zwift Power PBs! I did this one today too and got completely destroyed 😅 imo the most "unfair" a Cat B ride has ever felt. ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

[@RoadtoA]

@@Me_Hall Out of curiosity, which time slot were you racing?:)

[@SliZZn]

Hi, can u imagine, i Put down kinda the same power, but i am in category D. And even there its pretty hard to win with 3,3w/kg. The new racing score is crazy

[@RoadtoA]

What do you mean, that with 3.3wkg it is hard to win D race? How is it possible that with such power you are not promoted?

[@SliZZn]

@@RoadtoA i dont know, but i Ride on. Somehow at my last Race 15 minutes ago i was in C category. Maybe there are different racing scores :) i did 3.4 w/kg for 40 minutes

[@RoadtoA]

@@SliZZn that's B level power. There are two racing scoring systems. The original (ABCD) and the new, numerical one.

[@SliZZn]

@@RoadtoA maybe i am in this group cause i did only a few races. Maybe the system needs some races to find my real group. But If its B-level, then i will be in the last pack for some weeks :D

[@RoadtoA]

@@SliZZn Could you post (now I am just interested, if you don't want you don't have to) your MAP and FTP numbers from your Zwift profile?

[@Gsp_in_NYC]

I wish racing on Zwift was something I had the time or mental bandwith to worry about.

[@RoadtoA]

I wish that for you as well!

[@Gsp_in_NYC]

@@RoadtoA thank you! I mean it. I'm truly envious. Hope to get there. means things are good.

[@RoadtoA]

@@Gsp_in_NYC It is definitely a privilege to be able to pursue a hobby. Hope it gets better for you in this regard as well.

[@youhooku]

They are monster

[@RoadtoA]

They are good.

[@frannyyarina]

👌👌

[@RoadtoA]

@@frannyyarina 👀

[@benjapolcycling]

I can say you can expect 5 w/kg average for 5-6 minutes climb from high-end B race.

[@RoadtoA]

@@benjapolcycling 5 wkg for 6 minutes should be A promotion according to Zwift's guidelines.

[@benjapolcycling]

@@RoadtoA that could be, but i race myself and you can back track many race results of this course. you will see many results with 5.0 wkg for 5 minute power. Somebody race in my slot even show 5.3 wkg in B.

[@RoadtoA]

@@benjapolcycling Exactly! I don't blame the riders, I blame the system that allows them race in B. Which should be resolved with the racing score. The problem is it only takes like three or four really good riders behind whom others can draft to artificially inflate the whole groups' effort. I am aware that many riders in B are better than me, and that's perfectly fine. But of the As weren't there, those riders would be then the ones pulling and the whole groups effort would be more reasonable.

[@benjapolcycling]

@@RoadtoA my racing score actually drops a bit to 585 and i finish that race in 22:52 (13th place). So i guess it will just get harder 😆

[@zwiftleavesnotyremarks]

No one untoward in this field no unusually power either racing score has no relevance here 17.10 is the top end of Europe B racing. I've been doing this race 3 times a week for 8 months no major change in riders they are just pushing harder for GC times. You want to test yourself this where come. At the moment your low end B it's going to hurt your going to get spat out again and again never quit.

[@RoadtoA]

@@zwiftleavesnotyremarks Racing score might not have a relevance here but you don't get Racing Score over 800 without a) getting unusually strong 30s and 10 min numbers or b) consistently beating fields of A riders (which are largely in the 650+ range).

[@zwiftleavesnotyremarks]

You can beat A riders with out exceeding power limits. The 800+ guy is not the strongest rider in the race. Let you find out who you think it is.. 750+ will probably be the new A. Out of interest my score is 680 I'm nowhere near A power. Smart riding can take you along way, as generally 1 of the oldest guys out there you have to. Larkin good content creates good talking points

[@RoadtoA]

@@zwiftleavesnotyremarks I definitely agree my result wasn't due to race being unfair or anything. But I still believe there were racers who were misplaced.

[@zwiftleavesnotyremarks]

That's what racing score should address. Racing is not about power numbers it's where you finish. Food for thought lm 69kg I chase a 93kg rider doing 3.5 wkg for 1hr on a flat coarse what cat am i to keep up

[@RoadtoA]

@@zwiftleavesnotyremarks agreed. I think the racing score will be the step in the right direction.

[@lukamalic486]

I have said it before my score 639 , im not much of a B , having ridden Box more than once a power over 350w in a small grp will get you close to 7min , 6:30 a large grp , nit sure if 350w will get you 6:30 , Box is draftable at those speeds , need to keep working on 5w/kg for 5min

[@RoadtoA]

@@lukamalic486 I understand your point, but: 1) 5.1 wkg for 5 minutes in a time trial gets you straight into A. 5 wkg for five minutes after already having done cca 12 minutes of moderate effort is pretty much impossible for true B (at least as defined by original zwift parameters). In other words, I understand that is what it takes to stay with the group, my only point is it shouldn't be. 2) there were many people in the group whose racing score was well over 700 with some over 800. That's nowhere near B territory. But I definitely agree training 5 minute power is of an utmost importance for Zwift racing. Yesterday I did an outside test on a 5 min uphill segment and did like 4.7 wkg, so I'm not terribly off (then again, before this sudden difficulty increase I was often in top 20% of the B races).

[@lukamalic486]

@@RoadtoA problem with Box or even volcano , there are times 6w/kg is needed for 1min , can have surges not steady state

[@lukamalic486]

@@RoadtoA, your analysis is correct, but to stay with front its another algorithm

[@RoadtoA]

@@lukamalic486 yup, agree!

[@RoadtoA]

@@lukamalic486 that would actually be fine for me, I'm perfectly capable of doing 6/1 min!😅 it's the 5/5mins where I have problems.

[@NoStarDomusSC2]

Where is your strava reference? 😉

[@RoadtoA]

My...what? :)

[@NoStarDomusSC2]

@RoadtoA Strava it is. Nothing to do with your nutrition habits 🤣

[@RoadtoA]

@@NoStarDomusSC2 this went way over my head😂🇨🇿

[@NoStarDomusSC2]

@RoadtoA 🤣 Not using Strava I see. You should! Another great way to challenge yourself and keep track of your progress + many great digital happiness and achievements 🙃

[@RoadtoA]

@@NoStarDomusSC2 Still very confused. 😅 I use Strava but now I am not sure what I am supposed to do with it here.

[@E.M.B.R]

I think two things were at play here: 1) This looks like a primetime B race with 90+ riders. I was honestly surprised at the number of B-Cat riders finishing the Box Hill KOM in the 6:30 range. I've seen quite a few B-Cat races where the Box Hill KOM times are more toward the 7:00 min range so this was an extremely fast ascent for B category with some top-end, heavy-hitting B riders leading the charge. 2) There is no place to hide on Box Hill. No drafting or race strategy will save you here - either you have the 5-min / 10-min power to hold or not. You can save a little energy in the draft but if other riders are sustaining substantially higher power, the rubber-band will eventually break before you get to the top. That was a perfect storm of high-end B riders on a very tough course/hill. You may still have trouble on another B-cat race as well but this race setup to be one of the hardest B-category races you will see.

[@RoadtoA]

True. But the screenshot shown on the thumbnail is real deal from the race. There was actually riders in B with over 800 racing score. 😂

[@E.M.B.R]

@@RoadtoA For what it's worth, my racing score is 743 and I think I also would've been dropped on that Box Hill climb. Racing score seems to be giving very heavy weight to 30-second power in its formula so good sprinters are seeing very high scores that may not be representative of their overall capability. No question there were definitely some riders with A-class 5-min and 20-min power in this race though. Given your racing score is below 600 right now, you may actually have more luck in the Zwift Racing Score Races as the current top level breakpoint is from 650-1000. You could end up finding a more competitive race in the 525-650 ZRS pen than the old-style Category B pen.

[@RoadtoA]

@@E.M.B.R Maybe if I wasn't eating all those croissants...😂

[@rkclime4]

I'm sorry to bring this up again but the sound in your video has that weird "burping" sound again. Not sure what it is but it might be the mic picking up your breathing. 🤔

[@RoadtoA]

I think that is possible! I'll do more experimenting with the mic position.

[@brulsmurf]

meh, you get punished for having a big 1-minute power. I do over 700W for a minute when I'm fresh. But in the last minute of a race I won't even be able to half of that. Yet zwift does calculate my racing score with that 700W fresh.

[@RoadtoA]

@@brulsmurf zwift takes your 10 minute power too though, it's s combination of short term power and medium term power.

[@brulsmurf]

@@RoadtoA they should just look at how you finish in races.

[@RoadtoA]

@@brulsmurf That's how the soon to be released racing score is going to work!

[@RoadtoA]

The initial placement is just that, an initial placement. Beyond that, it's just your results.

[@brulsmurf]

@@RoadtoA not true, they take your power numbers as a minimum. So if you train on sprints in Zwift, you get a high racing score.

[@drewbuffington]

A CAT people generally come back weaker. You “lose your zwift fitness” coming back inside.

[@RoadtoA]

Do you? I can imagine a lot of people train a lot outside. What would be the other explanation of B getting suddenly WAY harder?

[@drewbuffington]

@@RoadtoA maybe you lost Zwift fitness riding outside? Idk. I don’t go outside, but all my friends coming back from the outdoor season are noticeably weaker, and generally fatter lol

[@RoadtoA]

@@drewbuffington I am riding both outside and inside. And to be honest, I don't think I lost fitness. I'm putting my best numbers recently.

[@foreveryoung8097]

Yeah right, just like all those A/A* racers coming back from outside season that "lost Zwift fitness" ripping B races before getting upgraded to A again.

[@RoadtoA]

@@foreveryoung8097 :))

[@sybrenkoninckx]

why are u wearing your hat? it makes u lose wattage and your glasses ? your not outside. all this makes u a tiny bit faster exausted

[@RoadtoA]

@@sybrenkoninckx hat keeps the sweat from dripping into my eyes/glasses. Glasses because I am blind without them.:)