During the pandemic, the world’s cyclists opened their eyes to a new way of exercising. From your own living room you could suddenly meet elite cyclists on the same terms. Much now suggests that e-cycling, as it is called, is here to stay.
There is only one kilometer left in the race. The bunch is starting to get really stretched out and it’s time to put in a new gear to get a nice sprint. Last curve now, only 500 meters to go. Stand up, keep pedaling. Faster. Faster!
It was a nice result. Among the top ten percent in the race. But even if you are satisfied, you see that you were beaten by more than 7,000 people. After a while of slow cycling to get rid of potential waste products and bring your heart rate down, you get off the bike. Three meters away you have your own kitchen where you take a large glass of water. 20 minutes later, you’re sitting on the couch, freshly showered, in sweatpants with a race in your body.
You have of course already figured out how this is possible. With digital bike races, exercise has found its way into many people’s living rooms. Quite a few living rooms actually. According to Technology Review, Zwift, the leader in the software that makes cycling training possible at home, had approximately 4 million users as of January 2022. There are also many indications that this is just the beginning.
We have spoken to Sweden’s own “Mr Zwift”. Yes, that’s actually his name – Karl Tiselius. He comes from a background as a multitasker in sports, but fitness has always been an important component. He studied at an orienteering high school as a youngster and then went on to start doing Iron Man competitions and other similar extreme races.
As part of it all, of course, he also took up cycling. He became part of the team called “Masklungan”, an elite gang from Dalarna. In order to be there, of course, it was required that you keep going and train all year round. But in Dalarna, the conditions for cycling in winter may not be quite perfect. A friend then asked “But why don’t you run Zwift?”. The year was 2016 and what would become a phenomenon was still in its infancy.
“When I started driving, there were about 1,000 practitioners. For me, who always has a competitive devil on my shoulder, it really was absolutely perfect from the start. Here there were races that started every five minutes,” says Tiselius.
Zwift came out in an early version in 2014 and since then has been on a huge journey but also actually managed to stay the same. The world you are in, via Zwift, still has the same kind of animated look and the technology itself, the programming, has been the same since the start. But the number of practitioners has thus increased considerably and the world has become larger. Real copies of London, Bologna and New York are now available to step on and most things have become more serious all around. Tiselius himself is involved in Team Swedish Zwifters.
The future also looks bright for Zwift, which raised an incredible $450 million in an investment round. In other words, there are many indications that Zwift is here to stay.
“I tend to liken it to Iron Man, which is an American company. So is Zwift. They have come up with something that has created a whole circus around them. For this to succeed, it needed to be a little commercial. It would not have been possible if it was a federation or an organization that started this. It is perhaps for better or for worse that it is an American company. But I think that is a big reason why it will stay for many years to come.”
“We can already see how several bike manufacturers are paying for their particular products to be available in the game for the practitioners to give to their avatar.”
However, in order to become one of everyone who cycles in the living room, some equipment is needed. Tieslius says that the start-up cost is relatively high.
“I usually say that you have to be prepared to invest at least SEK 10,000 to get started. It requires a bicycle, a trainer, a fan and little else. It’s certainly not a cheap form of exercise, but if you compare it to regular cycling, it can actually be cheaper, as you can, for example, have an old bike that weighs a lot as it doesn’t affect your virtual race.”
Is this a complement to traditional cycling, or is it a competitor?
“Both parts. There are many opportunities ahead and it is not long until we see major championships inside arenas. Cycling will now become an arena sport that can then compete with traditional races in terms of sponsorship and other bits.”
“But I would also like to add that Zwift is also introductory. There are many people who start cycling outdoors after cycling in the Zwift world,” says “Mr Zwift”.
In order to pedal around in the virtual world, something called a “trainer” is needed. You can probably explain it as a “resistance” you use instead of a rear wheel. Zwift themselves do not manufacture these but there is an open market for anyone to enter. One of the biggest companies when it comes to these products is Wahoo. Rlvnt is a Swedish retailer of their products and Totte Lindén, Nordic Sales & Marketing Manager, is convinced that this type of training still has more to offer and that interest will increase in the future.
“The development has already been enormous. We have been working with Wahoo since 2015 and sponsor the Swedish, Danish and Norwegian federations. We have arranged and sponsored the Swedish e-sports cup and this is a form of exercise and a competition format that is growing very much,” says Lindén.
Is this the future?
“Absolutely! Availability is an important factor as well as the fact that this is much the same as other training. If you can do it more by doing it at home, you do it. It doesn’t take as long, you can compete more and you shouldn’t underestimate the online community either. It adds a huge amount to the social part and makes it easier for those who want to drive together and have more fun when training.”
When something creates as much interest as Zwift has, several manufacturers of products also come forward. In addition to Wahoo, there are, among others, Tacx, Saris and Kinetic with products for consumers.
In addition to trainers, there are of course also several other products. Whole exercise bikes, which can be useful if you are a whole family exercising on the same machine. With a few simple changes, all heights and distances have been set to adapt to the cyclist, which of course is much better than having to get out wrenches and other tools to change ordinary bikes from one to the other on the trainer.
Other features include replacing the front wheel with a machine that follows the virtual terrain of your bike ride. So when you go on a serious climb, the bike will also lean uphill. Everything to imitate the real feeling as much as possible. However, many of the products available are not necessary to get started and Tobias Belforth, store manager for Sportson on Vasagatan in Stockholm, explains that what sells absolutely best are regular trainers and that those who are currently buying and are interested are those who also cycling outdoors.
“Buying a complete trainer costs SEK 40,000 and of course there are very few, if any, who start their cycling career by buying one. But instead you buy a trainer where you remove the rear wheel. But they also cost quite a bit. SEK 7,000-8,000 and up for a new one. So that’s quite a lot of money,” says Belforth.
“But on the other hand, we have bikes in the shop for SEK 164,000. So everything is relative.”
Is there room for more manufacturers of products?
“Sure! I think new ones pop up all the time and we are interested. But it is the price situation that determines whether something is successful. If you can sell an equally good product at a cheaper price, it will sell more. But it’s not easy to create something like that, the business has to go together as well.”
“Something I also think we will see more of is help with installation for customers. That you as a consumer can take your bike to a shop to have the rear wheel replaced with a trainer. It’s actually a bit clever to get that done and we in the stores can do a lot there to improve the customer experience by assisting with our skills. Maybe you can give it as a “discount” to potential buyers, that they get an exchange of tires for a trainer in the bargain.”
Tobias Belforth explains that the pandemic created a huge interest in this type of product.
In addition to trainers, they sell mats, fans and other accessories. He believes that Zwift and other players have a great future in Sweden due to our country’s geographical location. It is simply not as comfortable to cycle outdoors in February in Sweden as it is in Gran Canaria.
“Availability is the biggest advantage of this type of training and competition, and I think it’s especially big in the Nordics with regard to the weather. Luleå residents and others to the north have a hard time in the winter and getting on the trainer is a change from getting on the skis. If it’s rain mixed with snow, you can still cycle for a few hours if you want. You don’t have to freeze your feet and hands.”
“And that you can drive for an hour at any time. There is nothing to blame anymore, you can always run a race,” says Belforth.
Do you think this replaces regular cycling?
“No not at all. This is a complement. There is nothing better than cycling outdoors. No matter how good the graphics are in the video game, they won’t be as good as the real thing.”
But Tobias Belforth tells us that there are also other obvious advantages to cycling on a trainer online: the social aspect.
“You can meet friends and ride a bike inside a video game. It’s really crazy, but it’s really fun. If you see your friend’s name on the screen, you will run a little extra, so it is also a very good form of exercise. You can get as tired as you want.”
“The food is ready!” The family gathers around the table and munch on dinner at home in the kitchen. 30 minutes after the last plate is washed, it’s time to head to New York for another race. The fan runs at full power.
A friend is racing past. It has to pick up the pace before it’s time to put the kids to bed. Tomorrow is the time for the next stage. Then among dinosaurs in Watopia.
2023-11-10 11:15:06
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