From 400th to Top 25: Knights of the Roundabout - Tour de Zwift Stage 2

A late join on this one had me starting off on the back foot!

Fortunately there were hundreds of wheels and a massive pack to use as I worked my way back to the front of the ride. The Zwift draft dynamics are really helpful on a ride like this. If there is a long continuous string of wheels in front of you, Zwift allows you to cut through them pretty quickly when you make the effort to do so.

That said, even though I only started 15 seconds late on the ride, it still took me a solid 8 minutes to reach the front pack. Once back in the front pack, I settled and worked to be as conservative as possible, while still going fast. I was pleasantly surprised on the Petit KOM that I had decent legs... but legs not quite good enough to stay with the front group. On the decent, I started off in no man's land, so I laid off the pedals and waited for the riders behind to catch me. Once on the flats, more riders caught us and we had a pretty big pack heading into the final kilometers of the ride. I positioned well, and sent it the best I could, securing a top 25 spot.

All in all, it was a pretty good result after a really poor start. I am happy I just kept pedaling and didn't exit the ride, to wait an entire hour for the next ride to start.

I completed this ride on Tuesday, and did the B and C ride on Monday... so I am all done with Stage 2 of the Tour de Zwift. Not sure how I want to use the rest of the week, but I am enjoying the thought of flexibility in choices!

Have you completed Knights of the Roundabout on Tour de Zwift? How did it go for you? Let us know in the comments!

00:00 Ride Intro/Start
01:00 Catching the Tail End of the Ride
02:45 Cobbles
06:20 Catching the Back of the Front Group
07:45 Near the Front of the Ride
08:30 Settling into Pace
12:50 Up the Aqueduct
14:35 Down the Aqueduct
16:15 Sprint After Aqueduct
24:30 Up and Onto the Cobbles
27:30 Off the Cobbles
29:15 Les Intestins
32:50 Downhill
42:30 Up and Onto the Cobbles
45:20 Off the Cobbles
46:05 Balloon Field
50:25 Petit KOM
55:00 Final KOM Kick
55:45 KOM decent
01:01:00 10Km to Go
01:08:05 5Km to Go
01:13:20 Final Cobbles
01:13:50 Final Km
01:14:50 300m to Go
01:15:15 Post Ride Recap

Channel Note:

Welcome to Rough Draft Cycling — the unfiltered cycling channel from Luke Walton. From Zwift races, to open road, gravel, and MTB miles, Luke brings you real-time, breathless race commentary, raw training insights, and the in-between moments that make cycling addictive. No voiceovers. No scripts. Just stream-of-consciousness suffering, tactics, and the occasional bad Dad joke.

What you’ll get here:
Live Zwift race commentary, breakdowns, and power-based analysis
Honest training tips: pacing, tactics, and watts/kg improvements
Road, gravel, and MTB rides with on-the-bike narration
Race recaps, questionable strategy choices, and lessons learned
Community-driven motivation for cyclists chasing progress, not perfection

Why subscribe?
Improve your Zwift racing and IRL cycling performance
Learn how to read a race, surf wheels, and avoid classic tactical mistakes
Stay motivated with authentic, unfiltered rides and training sessions

Every great ride starts as a Rough Draft. Hit subscribe, clip in (or drop in), and let’s draft some cycling stories together.

#zwift #zwiftcycling #zwiftrace #zwiftride #zwiftlive #gozwift #zwifting #zwiftculture #zwiftracing #zwiftriders #zwifttraining #gozwiftcycling #zwifter #zwiftpower #zwiftworkout #zwiftrace #roughdraftcycling #cycling #cyclinglife #cyclinglifestyle #bike #bikelife #bikeride #stationarybike #indoorcycling #cyclingtraining #cyclingracing #bikerace #indoorbikerace #stationarybikerace