I’ve ridden more on Zwift so far this year than I have in either 2018 or 2017 both indoors and out. And I’m damn close to having ridden more so far this year than in both years combined. And while that probably says more about how rough 2017 & 2018 were, I’m super stoked, and really looking forward to seeing how my riding progresses for the rest of the year. And I credit a lot of that to not only Zwift, but to the great community that has started to crop up around Zwift lately.

Firstly, there’s the racing. I’ve tried one road race, and one CX race, but I was so out of my league, that neither experience was what I’d exactly call “fun”. But there are so many races EVERY DAMN DAY on Zwift, that it’s pretty easy to find one that suits your level of fitness. And yes, there are sandbaggers in Zwift, just like IRL, but Zwift itself makes it pretty easy to spot them as they storm off, and if you’re on Zwift Power, which you really should be if you’re gonna race on Zwift, it’s even easier. I’ve only done two races so far, but they were both a blast. I finished mid-pack in the Ds on one of 3R’s flat races, and actually managed third in one of the HERD’s beginner races in the Bs (the HERD reworks the categories for their beginner races).

The other thing that’s really helped keep me motivated this year is the amazing Twitch streaming community that has started to pop up around Zwift. There’s a whole raft of Zwifters who I follow on twitch, so I don’t want to link to any of them directly and leave some out, but I will highly suggest you check out the Zwift secion on Twitch.