Can a beginner climb the tallest mountain in Zwift?

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Can a beginner climb the tallest mountain in Zwift?

In celebration of reaching 100 subscribers, I attempt to climb the legendary Alpe Du Zwift, modelled after the famous Alpe Du Huez climb in France. 1144m of elevation gain, 12km, can I do it?

[dannywalker]

Awesome job man. You inspired me to go do this ride today. It’s relentless but a great challenge. I have the Wahoo Kickr and added the Climb grade simulator recently. Not really worth the money but the change in geometry is at least a good distraction and reminds you when the gradient is changing.

[briang]

My goodness!!!! Bravo. This is without a doubt my new favorite cycling channel. Congrats on 100 subs. Mark my words. It’ll be 1k by end of the month. The fact that you set a goal an hit it is inspiring. ✊🏾✊🏾 As for setup it really depends on your budget. A decent used road bike and used Wahoo Kickr would be my recommendation. MOST IMPORTANT: Riding with a front suspension fork is eating up watts and efficiency. A lot… In all actuality, you completed that climb in about 87min.

[angrymikko]

Hub one is from the cheaper end but super handy because you can use any bike on it. Good job on the climb. Insane challenge.

[ThielemanMaarten]

Solid effort mate. As a heavier rider myself who's done a few Alpine climbs irl, Alpe Du Zwift is a wall.
Maybe a goal-time effort up Ven-Top? (A longer climb with even more elevation)

[mrnobody]

OoOoOh you're in the data analysis side of things, you're a cyclist for life now hahaha. Awesome :).

[Bergholtdk]

Very nice job pacing your self, your graph looks like a its done in ERG mode, and thats the most efficent way to climp the alp, steady power. And a sprint finish after 90 minutes of climbing.. You are a beast :D

[Qenny_p]

Direct drive reduce noise and give more road feel. Clipless pedals would help a lot also as they add to the pull section of the stroke

[chriswilce]

Well done mate. I missed out on climbing the Alpe in my target of 1hr by 32secs one week, was gutted!! But did it again the next week and got under my target time, you've just got to be super consistent on your watt numbers all the way up. I did a negative split, half just under what I needed and then half just over.

In terms of kit. I started with a wheel on trainer which was okay, but then upgraded to a direct drive (wheel off) trainer - Wahoo Kickr. It's so so much better. Way better feel and way quieter than wheel on. I also splashed out a bit and got the Kickr over the Kickr Core as you don't have to do a spin down as it auto-calibrates as you ride which is a really nice feature. I would also reccomend getting a 2nd hand road bike for your trainer as you asked (but not over an upgraded trainer first). It will put you in a better position for racing especially.

Enjoy your Zwift journey, it's addictive! Been going 1 year now and still enjoying it.

[felixwolff]

Great Effort! Trainer: Wahoo Kickr Core and as for the bike: that kind of depends what riding you like to do when you are not riding indoors. A gravel bike might give your the most flexibility, but of course that depends on what kind of riding you like. Canyon Grizl, Van Rysel RCX or something similar comes to mind. Generally your can pick up solid bikes in 1k-2k budget region with Shimano 105 or equivalent groupsets.

[Trevor.Adams]

It’s nice to see a cycling YouTuber who isn’t built like a pro racer. I’m slightly heavier than you and have just started riding on Zwift. I’ve not done Alpe de Zwift but I have actually ridden up the real life Alpe d’Huez in 1 hr 45m. I’m using a Wahoo Kickr and my Specialized Allez Elite road bike, but I’ve also used my Triban 9 speed road bike on the Kickr, just have to swap the cassette over.

[emberos]

Nice video and I love the fight and determination at the end. That said, on next go, don't make such a drastic shift in gearing when you want to push harder. Maybe move one or two gears but keep your rpm right in that same 80 - 90 range. You'll end up getting to the same higher wattage but it will feel far less like you are trying to push a mountain up the mountain. I honestly think you would've comfortably made it up under 90 minutes if you were less aggressive on the gear change in the final stretch.

As to trainers, it comes down to budget really. I just started doing Zwift in December and went with the Stages SB20 - it's very nice and super quiet which would solve your neighbor problem but as a full integrated smart bike, its not light on the pocket book. If you're just looking for a quieter / better trainer, something like the Wahoo Kickr would be a solid get.

[GHExploration]

Well done mate, zwift is a different beast for beginners like myself, been cycling 22 months now, progress is steady but it's the best thing I ever did.

[hh]

Well done! I have a cheapo TACX Blue Motion trainer that i use with my older road bike. I use the blue trainer specific tyre, there is very little noise. I have a spare real wheel which has the trainer tyre on it all the time. If I want to use the bike outside i swap the wheel. I have had it for about 4 years, its well used and still quiet

[leetaylor]

Good effort mate.
It has been proven that high cadence low gearing 90-105 RPM is the way to go when climbing.
In terms of trainer would recommend Tacx Neo 2/2T.

[johndenyer]

Well done. Wahoo Kickr for me have had it for about 6 weeks

[adamculli]

I got the Wahoo Kickr bike on Dec 14th, I'm totally new to cycling and didn't have a bike to start with, so it seemed like a good fit for me. So far I love it, close to 30 hours on it. I've done the Alp 3 times so far, I just barely got a sub 90 min the last time, you put in a great effort man, you'll crush it next time.

[MrGWils]

Nice vids bro. I have never used Zwift, it looks fun. I love going hard out on the hills. Your vid’s has me thinking of a new type of fun.

[CyclEdd]

Awesome job mate!!! 🤜🤛
You really dug deep there! Impressive! 🤩
Keep it up man! 💪

[ChrisGreen-hppl]

Excellent work mate well done, never an easy ride up there. Looking forward to see how u get on with a smart trainer!

[arollingman]

Awesome mate! I bought an elite suito a couple of months ago and It has been flawless. Tacx flux s is pretty good too.Also getting a road bike would put you in a much better position.
Keep up the great work!