So I did my first official Zwift race today, and man, I got humbled pretty quickly lol.
I’m around 272 lbs right now, down from 415, and I’ve really gotten into cycling over the past several months. I’m trying to get better at racing and eventually work my way up to Cat D.
The race was Downtown Eruption, about 12.5 miles with 900 feet of climbing. I finished 19th out of 23, just under 50 minutes.
At the beginning, I actually felt pretty good. I went out hard expecting everyone to take off, but once things settled down, I found a group I could hang with and started drafting. Made it through the first smaller climb without too much trouble.
Then we got to Volcano. 😂
I was sitting around 200 watts, which is already pretty close to my FTP of 212. I was trying to stay on someone’s wheel, but once the climb started getting harder, guys started passing me and pulling away.
And this is where I think I messed up.
Instead of just riding my own pace, I kept trying to increase my watts to stay with them because I didn’t want to get dropped and end up riding by myself. Eventually, my heart rate was sitting around 175, my legs got extremely heavy, and I just couldn’t keep pushing those higher watts.
I managed to average 200 watts for the 15-minute Volcano climb, but I was pretty cooked afterward. Then I still had the final climb to deal with.
I guess my biggest question for you more experienced racers is, what are you supposed to do in that situation?
As a heavier rider, I already know I’m at a disadvantage on climbs, but I also know drafting and staying with a group are important.
Do you just accept getting dropped and ride your own watts up the hill, hoping to catch someone on the descent? Or is it worth digging deep to try to hold that wheel?
I’m currently cycling around 6–7 hours a week, mostly Zone 2, lifting four days a week, and planning to race once a week. I’m also still losing weight, so I know that’ll help my W/kg over time.
But I genuinely want to become a stronger cyclist, not just a lighter one.
Would you guys stick with mostly Zone 2 and weekly racing, or would you recommend adding some threshold or over-under workouts to improve my ability to hold higher power and recover from those hard efforts?
I’m still pretty new to racing, so any advice from you guys would be appreciated. Especially any other Clydesdale riders who have figured out how to survive climbing against the lighter guys lol.