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# This Virtual Week (May 20-27, 2019)

Dan Empfield Mon May 20 2019

Last week was a first for me. I set up a second Zwift station in my workshop and my buddy did his first Zwift ride, the Hilly Vanilli. As I learn more about Zwifting, get better at writing workouts, I’m getting more (not less) enthusiastic about Zwift in particular and stationary multiplayer platforms (that also include BKOOL and Rouvy) in general.
Tuesday, 6:00am Eastern, we have a great ladies-only group, Ride of the Valkyries, Kelly Burns Gallagher will lead most of the time during the Summer months. This week, the all-new workout is Road Trip. Kelly is gauging the group’s threshold for stress, rest, and commentary, and every week we get a little closer!

Tuesday afternoon, 4pm Pacific (7pm Eastern) it’s Factory Work, another all-new workout. It’s so named because the profile of the workout in my workout building editor looks like a bunch of buildings with smokestacks. And (as a double entendre) the workout is designed to go with all the other Tuesday workouts to build, over time, little by little, a successful foundation. Factory work.
See that link? Factory work above? Click it! Click it now! Then click the + sign and it’ll turn to a checkmark and you’re entered. Likewise with any of these events you think you’ll do. Then you don’t have to wonder whether you remembered to enter them as you’re hustling to make the ride before it leaves.
Remember, both these Tuesday workouts are “structured training” workouts, which means as long as you keep pedaling you can’t get dropped, and you can’t drop anybody. Everyone rides together, according to his or her ability.
Thursday morning, 5:35am Eastern, is the very popular Slowtwith Rise & Grind. On this ride you can get dropped! But we have several categories, and you join the group that suits your abilities (A, B, C or D, with D the slowest – that’s my group).
Last week the Hilly Vanilli was contested over the Giro d’Italia’s TT course (twice in succession as it turned out). This is also a ride in which you can prevail or fail, and in this rare case the D group was better at staying together than either of the 2 faster groups. The D group starts at 3:55pm Pacific (6:55pm Eastern), followed 5min later by the C group, and 5min later by the B group. The rides all end at the same time, so, the D group rides 70min, C group 65min, B group rides an hour. The idea is to stay away from the group chasing you, and/or catch the group in front of you. It’s touch and go every week. A premium attaches to working together. I ride my tri bike on the trainer, but I’m virtually riding (the choice is made in Zwift) a road bike, because the draft works if you’re on a road bike; it doesn’t if you’re on a tri bike.

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