My husband Dave spent nearly 2.5 hours on the trainer yesterday. To be more exact, the same man who can hardly bear 30 minutes spinning circles to nowhere “lost track of time” logging 32 miles and 3,389 feet of climbing—inside, on the trainer.

The reason for his sudden enthusiasm? He’s keen to explore the landscape of Watopia Island and, most recently, to line up for some new, scavenger-hunt-style events by Zwift. I kind of fear he’ll never get his bike out of the sunroom again.

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From its inception, Zwift tapped into the psyche of the cyclist: join a group ride, score some crowns, race your friends, all without leaving your living quarters. It also triggered the gamer in us all, rewarding our efforts and allowing us to unlock cool new routes like the Mayan Jungle by racking up miles. For some, it’s a magical combination with nearly infinite possibilities.

Zwift, knowing its riders well, recently unveiled ZwiftQuest, a series of orienteering race events that send riders—sometimes solo, sometimes in pairs or teams—around its various courses to bag a certain number of checkpoints. This makes the races less linear and more unpredictable, since a lot can change between each checkpoint and one tricky turn can change the leaderboard.

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It also makes the game inclusive to riders who have trouble keeping up with the peloton in more traditional races. In true adventure racing style, ZwiftQuest requires not only speed but also navigational skill to hit all the checkpoints in the least amount of time. Riders can employ any number of strategies (u-turns, power-ups, drafting riders, swapping bikes) to complete each quest to the best of their ability.

If chatter on the ZwiftQuest Facebook page is any indication, racers are swapping tricks and tips while spending more time—and covering more miles—in the saddle.

“We love how the elements of strategy, navigation, and racing come together," said Zwift spokesperson Emily Mullen. "Look for more events like this as we explore solo and group efforts that really reinvent cycling as a game."

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selene yeager “The Fit Chick” Selene Yeager is a top-selling professional health and fitness writer who lives what she writes as a NASM certified personal trainer, USA Cycling certified coach, Pn1 certified nutrition coach, pro licensed off road racer, and All-American Ironman triathlete.

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