Racer to Racer: Shayna Powless

Shayna Powless is used to leaving people in the dust, whether she’s racing on the road, dirt, gravel, or Zwift.

She recently won the True Grit Gravel Epic and placed fifth among the women in the Unbound Gravel 200-mile race.

On Zwift, her team placed second in the 2020 Virtual Tour de France, and she took an individual second place in a Zwift Classics race called the Richmond Challenge in 2019.

Powless, a pro cyclist with Team Twenty24, first found Zwift a couple of years ago when it was introduced to her by her coach. Now it’s become an important part of her training, helping her prepare for the intensity of the challenges ahead.

“I’m looking forward to racing road National Championships in a few weeks, as well as some other road and gravel races later this season!” says Powless. “I’m also hoping to compete in the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships on Zwift again.”

We asked Shayna to share some of her racing tips and talk about how indoor and outdoor riding can work together.

For more from Shayna, follow her on Instagram, like her page on Facebook, or visit her website!

Zwift: How long have you been racing on Zwift, and how did you get started? What was your first race like?

Shayna Powless: I began racing on Zwift in early 2019 during a time when it was too rainy to ride outside. My coach suggested I hop in a race for training which was an open B category race in the New York world. I remember it being very fast and intense!

Z: How does your experience racing on mountain bike trails, gravel, and the road compare to Zwift racing? Are there any tips you’d give to someone used to racing on the road?

SP: Zwift racing is different in many ways from racing on the road, MTB, and gravel mainly in that Zwift races are usually relatively much shorter (about an hour or less). Other factors that make Zwift racing different include the use of PowerUps, heightened draft effect, and pre-start wind-ups to get off the line quickly. I think racing outdoors helps with the endurance aspect and paying attention to race dynamics while racing on Zwift. On the other hand, I think racing on Zwift helps with the top-end intensity that you need often when racing outdoors.

For those used to racing outdoors and who aren’t as familiar with racing on Zwift, my top tips would be to know the course you’re racing on, always pay attention to what’s happening around you, use your PowerUps wisely, wind up your power a few seconds before you start, and never stop pedaling unless you’re supertucking.

Z: I hear you won a gravel race recently featuring lots of climbing – the True Grit Gravel race. Congratulations! How did Zwift play a part in your training for that?

SP: Thank you! Living in Florida where there aren’t a lot of hills, I will occasionally do climbing training on Zwift such as going up Alpe du Zwift or do races that I know include lots of climbing.

Of course, climbing inside isn’t exactly the same as climbing outdoors, but having a Wahoo KICKR smart trainer that mimics gradient changes and a KICKR Climb to adjust the slope of the bike make it extremely useful and definitely better than no climbing at all! Overall I’m honestly surprised at how it’s helped me with climbing outdoors.

Z: How does your team work together in Zwift races?

SP: Our team always goes into races with a plan via insight from our team director. Sometimes we even have designated roles during the races, similar to IRL races. We also communicate before, during, and after races via Discord, a group call app.

Z: What’s your favorite Zwift race course and why?

SP: My favorite Zwift race course is Champs-Élysées (in Paris) because of how fast and fun it is! I’m also a decent sprinter on Zwift so the flat race finish suits me quite well.

Z: Do you have any pre-race rituals? How about post-race?

SP: Pre-race rituals include warm-up tunes, a gel, and talking with teammates.

Z: If you could invent a Zwift PowerUp, what would it be?

SP: It’d be a flying one!

Z: Do you have any favorite workouts that help you in races?

SP: Some of my favorite workouts that help me in races include sweet spot (just below Functional Threshold Power or FTP) and sprint intervals.

Pro tip: The Zwift Racing training plan was created to help you get used to the demands of racing on Zwift. Check it out under Training>Plans. It includes workouts that focus on training at the “sweet spot” around 85-95% of your FTP. You can also create your own custom workouts.

Z: What’s one thing you would tell new Zwift racers to help them perform their best?

SP: Always do course research before you race! Oftentimes, winning on Zwift comes down to who knows the course the best, similar to IRL races. I get to know the race courses by pre-riding them and/or watching YouTube videos of people riding them.

Pro tip: Click here to find race recons for many of Zwift’s routes, and get a head start on the competition!