Free options for speed/cadence combo only?

larkim

I don't do virtual riding very often, perhaps two or three times a month, though when I was running-injured last year I used a paid Zwift account to maintain fitness and enjoyed it.

If I need to train regularly I'll pay for Zwift, but if I just want to dip in every now and again for a bit of variety it would be nice to be able to use something like Zwift.

However, none of the free options appear to support a speed / cadence sensor only setup, but would need a powermeter instead (or a smart trainer), and I won't be affording that any time soon.

Am I missing something? Is there a decent free option (short of signing up to lots of free trials with different email addresses) that I'm missing for the occasional virtual ride / session?

daniel_b

I'm not a zwifter, and likely never will be, my choice in RGT which does need a legit power reading.

However I thought zwift had some kind of power estimation thing, where it could move you along if it knew the make and model of your trainer, and if you had a cadence and speed sensor attached?

Ah but you want a completely free option, so yes I think you may be out of luck.
Shame you have no power measurement as RGT has a completely free membership available.

larkim

Yep, that's my dilemma. I'm wanting something for free, which of course is selfish, but unless I could find some way of making my speed sensor pretend to be a power meter then RGT is unavailable to me.

Zwift is excellent for people in my position equipment wise, but as I'd only use it infrequently I can't really justify the monthly fee.

My kids use it with the free under 16s option but I don't want to cheat the system and use their accounts as that's not in the spirit of the free child account offer that Zwift make.

super_davo

If you're that infrequent then once you've created a Zwift account and stopped subscribing you get 25km free a month (i.e. somewhere between 30 and 45 minutes in practice).
If you want more than that then either juggle email addresses to get a second set of 25km or you'll have to bite the bullet and subscribe to something.

Rouvy does the same virtual power as Zwift for a fair bit less subscription fee. The headline month by month is only a bit cheaper but there are often special offers bringing it down particularly if you get a 6month or annual pass (my annual pass cost me £60).