Everyone has heard of Peleton but not many have heard of Zwift. Zwift is the fitness bike for cyclists and is designed, and designed well, to give the rider the same feel they would get on a quality road bike.

Zwift sent us their Zwift Ride with the Wahoo Kickr Core to test out, as well as a trial subscription to the Zwift community — and it really is a good-natured community. The Zwift Ride with Kickr Core is available to purchase online for $2,299.99 and then the Zwift Membership will sting you another AU$299.99 annually or AU$29.99 per month.

While I may not be ready for any serious riding event yet, the Zwift Ride has improved my fitness over the past month and that is really what it’s about for many of us. In saying that, the Zwift Ride is best suited for cyclists who loves to ride their road bike.

What I liked

  • So many events and routines to try and use
  • Smooth and quiet ride, just like a road bike
  • Very adjustable to your size and preferred riding position

What I didn’t like

  • App won’t install on Google TV devices — surely there are some Google TV devices that could be ‘whitelisted’ to run it?
  • Ongoing costs, even after a large outlay — but all companies do it so you won’t find a full service like this without ongoing subscription costs — a sub could be included with the large $bike$ outlay though.
  • Some Bluetooth connectivity issues — solved with sequencing turning on tasks.

What is it

Everyone has heard of Peleton, well, everyone interested in fitness has but Zwift is another story.  Zwift is a very niche fitness product designed specifically for cyclists, and that means all levels of cyclists.

They started by offering an indoor trainer that cyclists could hook up to (by removing the rear wheel and attaching their bike to what Zwift calls the Kickr) to train indoors when inclement weather prevented them from training outdoors.

Since my cardiologist put a hard word on me, I’ve been getting into the fitness/cardio space a lot more. So when Zwift came knocking, I was very receptive to checking out their system. After spending a few weeks with the Zwift fitness products, I have some thoughts on whether this may or may not be right for you.

Details and specs

The equipment we received on the review unit is the Zwift Ride with Wahoo Kickr Core.  This included the Tablet Holder, the Training Mat and the full Zwift Ride Smart Frame.

The Zwift Ride Smart Frame is designed to be suitable for almost everyone – it can accommodate riders from 5ft tall up to 6’6” (152-198cm) and a weight of up to 120kg.

The Smart Frame by itself weighs 25.4kg which is pretty good.  I originally set up the trainer upstairs but the interior designer of the household decided she didn’t like it there after all so I had to move it downstairs.  It was easy to do.

The Kickr Core from Wahoo on the other hand was much more awkward to move with its shape and weighed 18kg.  The Kickr Core uses electromagnetic resistance with a maximum power output of 1800W – easily enough for me.

The handlebars are the standard road cyclist handlebars with Play controllers that look like something from a gaming console.  Zwift does say that their product is gamifying cycling.  I’m not entirely sure of that but they are useful at times.  The handlebars also allow you to steer and change gears with ease.

Now, my lazy self would have preferred the option of aerobars because that is how I roll – I can’t do the resting thing on normal handlebars like the professionals do in le Tour.  This option is not available from Zwift but you can clip your own onto the Zwift handlebars (but you won’t be able to change gears or steer from there).

Zwift does say that any clip-on aerobar that fits a standard 31.8mm alloy handlebar without the need for shims can be used.

The Smart Frame includes two drop-in style drink bottle cages and a magnet-mounted Zwift Key that is used to perform all installation and adjustments of seat, handlebars etc.

The Tablet Holder is also used and to be honest I feel it should be included by default and for free.  I cannot imagine trying to use this trainer on a phone companion app rather than a large tablet.  It is in Zwifts best interest to provide riders with the best possible experience and using it on a tablet may well be it (aside from Apple TV but not everyone has one of those).

The pedals included for me were basic pedals that we had on our bikes back when we were kids.  Any pedal can be easily switched in or out though so if you have riding cleats or want a toe clip pedal you can pop your own in there as they use a standard pedal thread.  If Zwift leave this with me for a longer-term review I’ll be buying myself some toe clip pedals.

Setup

I will say the setup was super simple, but that may well be because the Zwift helper who came to install the bike at my house had done a lot of it before.  I ‘sort of’ installed it again when moving it downstairs and that was simple.

If you have a good road bike you can use the Wahoo Kickr Core trainer itself and your own bike by simply removing the back wheel and slotting your bike into the Core.  You may need to buy the Thru Axle Adapter to get the fit right but it will eventually work – after all this is Zwift’s bread and butter and their original use.

One issue I had with the setup is connecting the Bluetooth on the Kickr Core and the Zwift Handlebars to your device (tablet, phone or otherwise).  The initial connection was relatively easy but I then had constant issues with it not connecting to the handlebars each time I started the app and bike again after a layoff of a day or so.

In the end, I needed to update the firmware, done through the companion app on your phone and not your tablet which is strange but that’s how it’s done. You also need to start the Bluetooth on the handlebars and KICKR CORE before opening the app. This resulted in a consistent connection experience.

Riding

Now the ride is super simple and comfortable and that is because everything is adjustable to where you want, like and need it to be.  The seat can go up and down, tilt forward or back, and the handlebars up or down, forward or backward.  What else do you need?

The ride is designed to replicate that experience on a road bike and many serious cyclists like this setup that they are more used to.

Now I have not ridden many high-end road bikes in my life but I do recall how smooth and quiet the experience was.  The Zwift riding experience is smooth as well, with the noise levels being very quiet.  Not silent mind you, because you are still pushing a physical chain, but the noise level of around 45dB is enough to not be able to hear it when in another room.

The ride experience was very similar to that on a road bike, and that is what they aim for, and why so many serious cyclists prefer it over the other indoor training options out there.

The handlebar controls take a bit of getting used to with steering and gears controlled by the orange sections of the handlebars.  They aren’t the easiest buttons to press but the more I used them the more I got used to the type of press required.  

My steering wasn’t great, to be honest, but there was no running off the track in the events I was involved in.  The app will steer you back onto track automatically – which is good because I am doing it for my heart health so am more focused on getting the cadence and thus heart rate up and often forget to steer.

Zwift has a basic program to help you get used to the controls before racing or riding in a group, called Repack Rush.  You can do this as much as you want and it’s not just a great introduction to the bike but a great introduction to cycling if you’re relatively new like me.

App

I received a trial membership to Team Zwift as part of the review but this will cost you AU$299.99 per year to use yourself.  The bike cannot really be used without the app and subscription with no way to handle the resistance and cadence. Those buying this will most likely feel that $299.99 is not a massive amount to be able to get their rides in, even in the worst of weather conditions.

There are a vast number of different types of rides you can perform – I tried out as many as I could, with many not finished because there are so many that I’d never get through them all in the time of this review.

My favourite was the workout sessions – these are not a race but more of a workout with various cadence and watt targets at various ride stages.  You can use one of the Zwift-created workouts, a user-created workout or even make your own.   You can edit your saved workouts which is handy given my original workout was far too advanced for me.

There is also the option for training plans to target your training to a special upcoming cycling event, fitness tracking which is something I would use a lot more given the time to do it, and community events.

The community events include rides with others which occur 24/7 with “over a million other Zwift users.  These organised events start every 5-10 minutes and include all levels of intensity levels, no matter what level rider you are.  I’m a super noob novice so tried these are a very low level and found them ok, but not the workout I’m looking for.  I like to be more in control of my workout (if I want to skip a certain section I want to be able to).

There are also tours and events you can compete in along with partnering with others for training rides.  And finally, there are of course races – for everyone.  They are categorised although at times it still seemed like everyone was overtaking me with ease …

The app includes different worlds and routes for you to check out the scenery – realistic?  Nope, but in a 2010 Playstation world, yes.  The graphics do not seem all that intense, which is Zwift’s reasoning for not allowing it to be installed on Android TV (and in their defence there are a lot of very average Android/Google TV devices out there), but they could always white list some devices such as Shield TV which could perceivably run it.

There is an app for Apple TV but I do not have one of those handy to test it out on, but by all accounts, it runs perfectly well on the Apple TV.

I was able to cast my display to a TV though to watch it on a bigger screen but I’m not convinced of the value of this given it is still running on the tablet in front of you, 30cm away from your eyes.  Maybe if you didn’t have a tablet and were running the Zwift app through a phone instead, I could see the value. Maybe if you wanted to read a book while riding and viewing the TV this could be an option.

In the end, there are so many events and rides that you could try out and still have more to do, and each day you’d be going up against different users.  I barely scratched the surface and I dare say most users don’t.  They find what they like and stick to various machinations of that preference.

Who buys this?

The Zwift Ride with KICKR CORE is not cheap but it is worth the money for those it is targetted at — the serious cyclist. Whether this is someone who races or enjoys challenging rides with friends on weekends it does not matter. These folks all take their riding seriously and normally have bikes to match.

The problem is that inclement weather can make it difficult to get your training rides in, and no one wants to lose their physical conditioning due to a few weeks of bad weather. This is where the Zwift Ride with KICKR CORE comes in handy. It allows someone to get their full training sessions in on a bike that feels like they are out riding with their friends on a beautiful Spring day.

The bike is comfortable, quiet, and pleasant to ride. The chain runs smoothly with the pedals interchangeable so you can use your own pedals and preferences. It was also surprisingly stable, given the front sits only on a single pole.

If you are a serious cyclist or just someone who likes to ride but want to be able to do it from the comfort of your own home then the Zwift Ride with KICKR CORE is for you.

The Zwift Ride with Wahoo KICKR CORE will cost you $2,299.95 from the Wahoo Fitness store and the Zwift Membership subscription will set you back AU$299.99 annually. If you want the tablet holder, which I recommend, you can pick that up also in the Wahoo Fitness store for $89.99.