A perspective on E-Sport Cycling/Virtual Racing, health and well-being.
| Verification |
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| We are at an important moment in the evolution of E-Sport cycling. The UCI has awarded rainbow striped jersey's to World Champions in 2023 and 2024. National federations are awarding National Champion status annually. There are Race League and Local Club championships that have large participation numbers. The user community is expanding across multiple platforms with increasing interest by business stakeholders. Smart trainer and smart bike manufacturers are producing equipment at lower price points with better accuracy. |
| Cycling competition is naturally occuring element between people. It happens when two friends, or a group strangers sprints for traffic marker. It can happen on bike path, up a hill, down a hill, it just happens. Cycling competition can escalate to who is fastest to the top of monumental climb Alpe d'Huez in France. The competitive characteristic of people is what drives participation in E-sport cycling and Virtual Racing on platforms like Zwift, MyWhoosh, Rouvy, TrainingPeaks Virtual and others. E-Sport cycling platforms allow people to compete at all hours of the day, regardless of weather conditions outside. It is a beautiful gift of technology that opens the door to competitive experiences that include wins, losses, accomplishment and fitness goals. The benefit of participation far outweighs not competiting at all in this opinion. |
| Gaming is a feature of E-Sport cycling. There are points, scores, achievments, biometrics and other data-driven outcomes that contribute to gaming combined with cycling. Within this topic, self awareness of game-driven motivations is advised. Thinking about what you can control and what you can not are important in this game of cycling. You can control what you do to train and prepare, you can control your committment to your goals. You can not control outcomes of wins and losses, they are the outcomes that result from your participation. Be aware of what you do under your control, if you find your self not being truthful, or honest about your capability perhaps it is a moment to self reflect. Wins and losses are not the end of the world. |
| Verfication of your performance in E-Sport cycling will increase with your level of competition. If you are an Elite/Pro vitual racer, there are requirements to meet. This can be meeting an equipment standard of verifying your equipment has a pricision of less than 1% in power measurement. You must have a B-Sample or secondary power recording device such as a crank or pedal type power meter that captures data that can be compared to the primary recording device (smart trainer or smart bike). There is equipment that DOES not work for competition, like spin bikes using a crank or pedel power meter as a primary power recodring device. Such a setup does not interact with the software app, when other riders experience resistance on a smart device, a "dumb" trainer setup will not. Unfortunately for owners of Wheel-on smart trainers due to wheel slipping and/or accuracy this generation of trainers are increasingly not on list of accepted equipment. Equipment inaccuracy or failure can result with an advantage for one setup versus another. Invest in equipment, if you plan to be serious about E-Sport cycing and Virtual Racing obtain reliable, precise equipment so that your performance is accurate. This helps you as a competitor and it helps the sport overall with fairness. |
| Verifying your equipment and capability is something you can control. You can go through the process of performance verification with MyWhoosh for free. You can create an account with eBioPassport.com for free and begin populating the profile sections. These are two types of transparent data verification resources available to you and that allow others to review your capability and equipment performance. It is a dose of honesty and reality that is healthy for you and the community of competitors. We must combat an atmosphere or culture of "because Racer-A is not being truthful, then Racer-B doesn't have to be either" We must work together to spread transparency, truthfulness anf fairness. |
| Validity of your athletic ability is also important to E-Sport Cycling and Virtual Racing. Being truthful helps the sport overall grow in a healthy way. For example, if in real life you are a USAC national licensed racer with Category 4/5 or beginner level but in Zwift you are a Category A+ rider - something is likely wrong with your equipment. You should have a history of performance ability captured in Strava, TrainingPeaks, Intervals.icu that tell a story of your ability. If there is a discrepency between E-Sport competition and In Real Life (IRL) metrics, you should be honest with yourself and your competition community. If you have Strava, and Zwift ladder with your peers shows you on top with low watts or extrememly high watts but yet in real life your peers are often faster than you, this is a moment to self reflect. Gaming versus real life discussion is a difficult one but it a beneficial topic to understand about yourself. |
| Smart bikes and smart trainers are equipment that will eventually wear down or reach and endpoint. They are providing resistance against your power output and eventually your human body will breakdown the mechanics. It is within your control to monitor and maintain your equipment. Make sure you keep your equipment clean of excess lube, grease and dust build up. Make sure you clean and lubricate your chain. Make sure your equipment has the latest firmware and make sure you calibrate your equipment. When you observe unusual or abnormal metrics that seem questionable to you, your competitors likely also have the same thoughts in the form of suspicion. If you are training hard and making gains, your performance history will likley support these gains with steadily increasing trends. If your gains are captured by Zwiftpower.com that data trend can do wonders for you and the racing community. |
| The basics of a healthy mindset should not be lost at the cost of E-Sport Cycling and Virtual Racing. As in real life, competitive cycling related body dysmorphia, obsessive-compulsive disorder and eating disorder are challenges one should be aware of. These are challenges that come in life to be dealt with and not exclusive with competitive cycling. These are challenges that may come from competition or social forces, and are challenges that one should seek professional help or counseling for. Again, honesty and truth are the most important counter forces at play. Be kind to yourself, wins and losses are gaming outcomes but your health and well-being are the most important outcomes overall. |