Wake Up Trainerroad!

He is pushing Zwift a lot… as is Jordan Rapp. But he’ll be honest when he tells you that serious athletes still use TR more. Even amidst their marketing of Zwift, they still recognize that TR is built for better results.

Best I can tell, Jordon is actually getting paid from Z to make workouts, plans, etc.

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Slowtwitch does push Zwift a lot, because Rapp works for Zwift and is heavily involved in Slowtwtich. I thought he was some sort of minority owner in Slowtwitch, but not sure.

I don’t care for the Zwift gaming aspect, but that is just me. Put something to watch on and go.

I like that TR is sticking to it’s core principle, make faster cyclists. Sure TR is coming out with new stuff. I was skeptical of the calendar, but use it now, not to its fullest. I’ve always felt, businesses that stick to their core principle will succeed (obviously not 100% of them). Sometime when a business diversifies too much and attempts to satisfy everyone’s needs then they lose focus and go out of business.

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Feature Request related the forum. The ability to hide entire threads like this one, and the Zwift racing one, and other TR versus threads. I’m sorry for my contribution which will bump this thread causing it to live longer, but these threads are getting annoying (and pointless).

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  1. Go to the bottom of any thread you don’t want to see.
  2. Click on the [Normal] button.
    • This might be different name/setting if you have your forum thread settings in a particular way for ones you viewed, replied, etc.
  3. Select [Muted].

image

It does require loading the thread once, but you should not see it unless you enter a the specific category that houses the thread after that point.

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Thank you Chad! Won’t see me on this thread again…

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All I know is this. Without TR I am a slower cyclist. And its the best excuse I have to put on some headphones, crank up the music, ignore the outside world for awhile and enjoy the pain.

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How do you import the TR rides into Zwift? Manual re-creation?

I agree to a certain degree , TR still is a great tool , it’s the only training platform that I’ve never unsubscribed to so this tells you I still hold it in high esteem , I think they should look at adaptive training , a training programme that constantly readjusts to what you’ve done and your goals , this would meet the needs of the athlete who has a variable amounts of time and with all the will in the world can’t stick to a rigid plan.
A face lift on the front page and an ability to choose the metrics you wish to see.

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What I’ve done to solve your problem (and previously mine) was I found a few work outs that suit i.e. sustained aerobic, VO2 Max etc and add them to my favourite selection. I’ve also created two that I particularly "enjoy :sob: " AKA recognise the benefit of, that I picked up from elsewhere in the WorkOut Creator tool and add them to my favourites. eg Russian Steps and Ladder of Death.

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I have only skimmed the replies so far (wlll read later).

However, regardless of which software is best, TrainerRoad needs to do more to make itself known.

The zwift way is to spend millions. Sufferfest do their macho thing, peloton appeals with hot chicks, TrainerRoad does a podcast.

That’s not enough attention grabbing guys.

In a 10 mile radius of me here are the approximate stats:

600 male cyclists
100 female cyclists.
Lets say 50% ride at least once per week.
Of these about 70 join a local cycling club.
Of these about 20 have an indoor trainer.
Of these about 10 pay for software training.
Of these 6 are on zwift, 2 on trainerroad and 2 on other.

The more attention you get the more income you will receive.

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I disagree about this thread being a waste of time etc.

This thread is important if it helps the TrainerRoad guys create a better product that survives in the long term.

Our customer feedback is important. But it is up to TrainerRoad to choose what to act on.

I don’t want it to die.

Most big companies that have gone bust would have cried out for this kind of dialogue.

I disagree :confused:

Zwift have done a good job getting pros and other influencers talking about them. Having said that, it’s something that irritates me and puts me off them. There’s no way the likes of Cav are using it as a serious training tool, despite what people are saying.
I prefer the approach of TR in not paying anyone to use it.

I don’t get the assumption in this thread that TR is on the verge of dying just because Zwift have obtained some funding? :man_shrugging:

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Yes. Recreated in training peaks.

I agree, but these days people have less loyalty, money is tight for many, and the “grass is greener” syndrome, can lead to falling customer numbers.
So businesses have to stay in view.

TR’s risk of falling numbers (which I don’t think is real btw-all signs point to growth not decline) doesn’t come from Zwift but more from the fact that over time, doing essentially the same plan/workouts year after year is going to lead to some folks “aging out” of the system. I’m in year 5 of serious TR use and while I’ll stick with them, i can definitely see the fun and excitement is not the same when it was new to me and it is getting harder and harder to stay motivated to do the same thing again and again. There is a temptation to jump from what amounts to $15/mo stock impersonal one size fits all training program to a real coach with some personal attention.

I don’t see them doing it as they seem dedicated to treating all customers equally but a “premium” membership that gave you a personal coach but still operating within the TR ecosystem would be an interesting move.

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I agree with STP and this is the double edge sword for any type of coaching relationship or training program.

After the big gains from entering structure programming then the small gains from getting good at it and doing several cycles (base-build-spec) athletes are going to plateau. And that is the folks that stick with it for 5-7 years and train hard (and smart). I doubt most have that type of dedication and attention span for training. So TR has to attract and keep riders and am sure they are acutely aware of how their customer base changes over time.

TR definitely helps with the hard and smart training. But unless the interface and programming keeps the guys in the > 5-7 year club around and the programs evolve to attract newbies then the system will eventually age out.

One way to stay relevant is to keep improving the interface. Another is to build additional plans. Another is probably some type of advocacy from dedicated TR folks to help others (this forum was a big positive step IMO).

NOTE on the interface – It is super stable for me and always sees the devices and works properly. Adding stuff that creates instability would be a mistake. Simple (and robust) is better and I think TR hits that point well.

The final obvious thing (to me) is some sort of low touch coaching. That is fraught with issues but reading the forum posts there are a large number of folks that don’t need a weekly coach but could definitely benefit from buying a few hours of human consultation. I don’t think this can be automated but possibly with ML/AI could be interesting.

Personally, I like the interface which is why I spend the few bucks each month. In some ways its a glorified interval timer the way I use it. The plans and workout library are a nice bonus and the calendar has been surprisingly useful to me and eliminated some paper. Couple small improvements to the workout interface and some additional analytics and I’m in the customer for life group.

FWIW here is what I use to manage training and racing:

  • WKO3+ (antique now but does what I need and long ago paid for and no need to upgrade)
  • Best Bike Split (not needed really but was an early adopter and I use the race intervals and aero tester)
  • TrainerRoad (or for Chad M – TRNRRD)

Dumb trainer or eMotion rollers, no smart trainer.

$0.02 YMMV Etc Etc Etc :-]

-Mark

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Deer Nate

Please don’t change a thing. I love your product and if we ever meet I’d give you a big hug!
Thanks

Mike

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Peloton isn’t trying to attract the same market that the others are. I’d argue even Zwift isn’t trying to cater to the exact same market as TR and Sufferfest, etc. Sure, Zwift will take your money, but I don’t think they necessarily care as much about making cyclists faster through structured training so much as providing a playground for everything from recreational to competitive cyclists.

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