HOME DISCOMFORTS
Typically, you might find a few thousand riders in Watopia. Today there were over 20,000
It’s late March and at a time when much of the planet is confined to their homes in some variety of lockdown, it’s a desperate situation to see so many businesses struggling. There are exceptions, such as purveyors of loo roll, video communication apps, mail-order booze clubs and home-fitness gurus (welcome back, Mr Motivator).
One company also faring well is online cycling training game Zwift. In normal times, as the northern hemisphere enters spring and cyclists emerge from their winter cocoons to ride in the sunshine, riders log less time on the platform. Of course, these are anything but normal times and the game saw an unprecedented surge in numbers, with riders seeking a physical and social stand-in for the now outlawed outdoor group ride. Typically, you might find a few thousand riders in Watopia on a Sunday morning at this time of year. Today, there were over 20,000 and my mate Tim and I were two of them, diving headfirst, at his behest, into the Über Pretzel, a 129km loop of much of the tarmac in the, at times, mountainous, subterranean, volcanic and desert world of Watopia. It would finish atop Alpe du Zwift – a 21-hairpin, virtual Alpe d’Huez towering over all climbs – and a climb we’ve decided to race each other on.
Herein lies my account of
