[Shades]

Met up with some friends for a cycle around the Mendips; one of our group mentioned he’d been round to some people whose entire ‘cycling world’ was based around virtual cycling (eg Zwift etc). I don’t have space for a turbo or rollers so I’ve never fully investigated the world of virtual/on-line cycling. I enquired, “so cycling machines etc; Wattbike?”; his response, “no, bikes set up on rollers with screens etc”. Me, “so they never go out cycling in decent weather; I can understand indoor stuff for the winter and wet days?”. Him, “they used to do triathlons but now they just exclusively cycle on-line and never do any proper cycling”. Weird, but maybe there’s an angle to on-line cycling that the road just doesn’t provide?….or maybe these people just don’t ‘get’ what cycling is all about.

Topic

[Stebbo]

I ride alone 75% of the time,

I ride alone 75% of the time, but being outside is the pull. Countryside, sunshine wind in my hair, or not in my case 

[Daveyraveygravey]

It isn’t for me.  I don’t

It isn’t for me.  I don’t have space for an indoor set up, and I would rather spend the money on real bikes.  I am lucky enough to live on the edge of the South Downs, so have miles of quiet country roads on my doorstep, and of course the beauty of the Downs to go off roading on.  Not interested in racing, although I do “train” to an extent, as I want to get better and it adds another dimension to some rides.  

[dave atkinson]

yeah, i’m the same: i made a

yeah, i’m the same: i made a decision a couple of years ago to do all my actual training indoors for the same reason: it’s time-efficient and it means you’re not tied to a schedule when you ride outdoors. this year all my racing has exclusively been on zwift, and looks like it will be for some months yet. it’s not the same as outdoor racing, but it’s a lot of fun and the only way i can simulate the effort i’d put in out of doors.

[mtb_roadtripper]

I could see the competitive

I could see the competitive side of it become quite addictive. Also, I do 90% of my riding alone, which is fine, but I could see riding Zwift and challenging yourself against others, albeit virtually, would appeal too. 

[Nick T]

 Plenty of people use rowing

 Plenty of people use rowing machines despite never sitting in a boat. Each to their own I guess but there’s a whole load of other more efficient ways to keep fit that I’d enjoy much more than cycling as a purely virtual endeavour, personally. 

[SimonAY]

I probably do 70% of my

I probably do 70% of my riding indoors on Zwift nowadays. For no other reason than I live in central London and the only time you can get quality riding done outside is first thing Sunday morning. 

[Anonymous]

There are definitely people

There are definitely people who do spin classes (I include Peloton in that) religiously who don’t own a ‘real’ bike, never ride outside, possibly don’t even know how to.  

So it wouldn’t surprise me if there were people who treat it exactly like a computer game, train and race indoors, their enjoyment is about the game rather than about exploring countryside or beating their time up a real hill.

I’m a big fan of Zwift and especially this year all my ‘training’-type riding has been on it – I find it much easier to just hop on and do an hour’s hard work than plan a route, choose the right kit for today’s weather, pay attention to traffic etc.  And then when I ride outside it’s purely for fun, I don’t feel I’m wasting time if I just bimble along in the sunshine if I feel like it because the ‘work’ is done indoors.

[Author]

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