NCC Zwift Guide

NCC and Zwift: Many Northampton Cycling Club members are active on Zwift. This page describes the basics of using Zwift with the NCC.

To enhance NCC members’ indoor experiences, the NCC offers group rides, races, and a Hill Climb/Time Trial series.

To see the NCC’s Zwift rides, please visit our Club Event Calendar.

Zwift offers free trials and works with a variety of equipment. Please check out this page for more information.

This page outlines the basics of using Zwift with the NCC and covers the following topics:

Club Events
NCC Zwift TT/Hill Climb Series
NCC Strava Club
Linking Zwift and Strava
Changing Bikes
Discord
Entering Weight in Zwift
Power Ups
NCC Jersey
ZwiftPower and NCC

NCC Zwift events generally occur during the indoor riding season (winter and/or pandemics).

Note: The phrase “While running Zwift” is used throughout this guide. It means that you are in the game and your avatar is on his or her bike. At this point, you have access to the Zwift menu and can make changes to your avatar’s appearance, change bikes or jerseys, look up achievements, etc. If you decide to make changes but do not want to ride, simply end your ride and discard it so it does not upload to Strava.

Club Events

The NCC is an official Zwift Club. On the discussion board and calendar descriptions of social rides and hill climbs/time trials, click on the link to sign up for an event.

NCC Zwift TT/Hill Climb Series

Traditionally, the NCC hosts a weekly Time Trial or Hill Climb. The NCC has a Zwift version of this long-standing event.

Rules:

Must be a member of the NCC’s Strava Club
Must have your Strava ride viewable to Everyone (otherwise we cannot
tally the results)
Must use a Time Trial bike for time trials. This prevents drafting. A time trial bike is available in the Zwift Garage. Please refer to the Changing Bike section later in this guide.
The use of Power Ups is not allowed in Time Trial events.
Ride Options:

1. NCC Group Ride, typically at 6:00 PM.
2. Ride any route or race that includes the TT or Hill Climb by 10 PM ET on the day of the group ride.

Honesty Policy:

Please remember, Zwift is a game and everyone participating in the TT or Hill Climb series is doing it for their own enjoyment.
Since Zwift uses power data (either from a power source or from calculated ZPower), riders are expected to have an accurate weight listed in Zwift.
If you use a power source (power meter or smart trainer), please calibrate it prior to the event.
If for some reason your times are unrealistic, the NCC may review your past rides to determine if the time is realistic. If needed, your placement may be adjusted.

Standings:

Each week, points will be awarded based on the number of competitors and your overall placing. For example, if there are 19 riders and you have the best time, you will be awarded 19 points, second will get 18 points all the way down to the last rider who will get 1 point.
At the end of the Zwift series, the rider with the most points will be awarded the NCC Zwift Series title.

NCC Strava Club

For the NCC to see your results for Hill Climbs/Time Trials or club races, you must be a member of the NCC’s Strava Club.

Please note that you do not need to be a Strava Summit member to join the NCC’s Strava Club. You can use the free Strava subscription to participate.

Sign into Strava.

If you need to create a Strava account, click here. Go to the NCC’s Strava Club.

Click Join Club.

Linking Zwift and Strava

In order for the NCC to see your Zwift results, your Zwift account needs to be connected to Strava.

For the steps to connect your Zwift account to Strava, click here.

At the end of your Zwift session, please remember to save your ride so the ride details will be sent to Strava.

Changing Bikes

To enter NCC Hill Climb and Time Trials, you must use a Time Trial bike. While running Zwift on a PC, Mac, or mobile device, click the “Menu” button.

Click on “Garage.”

Click on “Frame.”

Select your bike of choice and click “Close.”

For non-TT rides, please select a non-TT bike.

Discord

Discord is a free application that allows NCC members to verbally communicate during Zwift rides.

You can download the application on your computer or mobile device.

After downloading Discord and establishing an account, click on this link to join the NCC’s server.

When in Discord, make sure you are in the NCC’s server. Click on “Join Voice Chat” to launch voice chat.

When in the voice chat, you can see the other participants. You may also select an input mode using the gear icon in the General Voice pop up. There are two options: “Push to Talk” or “Voice Activated.”

For more detailed information on Discord and Zwift, please refer to this ZwiftInsider article.

Entering Weight in Zwift

There are several methods to update your weight in Zwift.

Companion app:

Click on your name.
Click on the Edit Profile button.
Enter or make sure your weight is accurate.

Zwift.com:

Edit your profile
Enter or make sure your weight is accurate

On Zwift on Mac or PC:

On the Menu screen, click the Edit Profile icon.

Edit your weight and click Save.

Power Ups

For details on Power Ups, please look at this ZwiftInsider article.

Please note that Power Ups are not allowed in Hill Climbs or Time Trials.

NCC Jersey

While running Zwift on a Mac or PC, press “p” on the keyboard and enter “NCCMAKIT.” You must use a Mac or PC for the first time you select the NCC jersey; you cannot use a mobile device.

After initially getting the NCC jersey, you may change jerseys, if desired, for non-NCC events, in the Zwift Garage.

Please note that the NCC is one of the few clubs on Zwift to have an official club jersey.

On PC, Mac, or a mobile device, click the “Menu” button.

Click on “Garage.”

Click Jersey.

Select the desired jersey.

ZwiftPower and NCC

ZwiftPower is for official Zwift events/races (not NCC Meetups or free rides). It monitors riders’ metrics for accuracy and appropriateness of the entered categories.

For results to count, you need a power source (power meter or smart trainer) and a heart rate monitor.

The NCC is an official team on ZwiftPower.

Here are the steps to join the NCC team on ZwiftPower: