2026 feels different

This year feels a little uncertain, but there’s also a strange level of motivation, enjoyment and routine that’s come with it.

I’ve been fully dedicated to esports cycling since I got hooked at the end of 2022, but I think I’ve reached the point where there honestly isn’t that much more to achieve. “2026 feels different.”

I’ve placed as high as 8th at Worlds. Realistically, if the platform and format stay as they are, I’m probably not making any meaningful inroads on that. Simple reasons: I don’t have the raw power for MyWhoosh or the short-term physiology needed to make the podium.

While I prefer points races, the reality is the cream usually rises to the top in those. Random athletes don’t win a points race, where every segment accumulates points. A scratch race on Zwift is almost the polar opposite. More draft, kinder to lighter riders, and races that can genuinely come down to a split-second decision or moment of chaos.

Making the Top 20 to travel to the UAE for Worlds is obviously still a goal, but having already done it, it’s far from the end of the world if it doesn’t happen again. The trip itself is amazing — spending time with like-minded athletes and consolidating a spot near the top of the scene — but honestly, I don’t think I’d care that much about my actual performance if I made it again this year, especially with my documented struggles on Elite Justo trainers and in warm environments.

And if that’s the case, it’s hard to justify the level of sacrifice I’ve put in over the last two years.
That said, I think I’ve found something important recently. By stripping things back and focusing on enjoying it, I can still train really well, hold good shape, and do the same hours without it feeling like a sacrifice.

Nationals gave me a lot of confidence in that regard. I went in flying with fun as the only focus of the lead-up. I won convincingly at a live event, it's almost the final tick of things I hadn't yet done in esports. I have the jersey (on Zwift and TPV, MyWhoosh lost it 😂) for another 12 months, so the year is somewhat of a success regardless of what else happens.

Anyway, part of the reason things feel more sustainable is stepping away from SRC. SRC just sucks for me personally. Showing up week after week — last thing on a Sunday night (before work Monday morning) — with effectively no chance of winning eventually wears you down.

I know the goal should be personal improvement, but it’s hard to be truly motivated or race freely when you know you’re not realistically in contention. Especially compared to Zwift events where I can race aggressively, dominate weaker fields sometimes, and enjoy the gameplay itself.

Because honestly, the gameplay matters too.

SRC just isn’t that engaging to me. You psychologically lose a few percent before the race even starts, and in events where you need to be operating at 110% just to get close to the top 10, that matters. Then you add unnecessary dynamics like wind and the awful steering inputs that still somehow exist despite the prize money involved.

So many people seem sucked into the hamster wheel of it all. Or maybe they really enjoy it.

Maybe if it was Sunday morning instead, with fewer weigh-ins and a feeling that success was actually attainable, it would become an enjoyable part of the week. Maybe even more so if it was possible to actually get the prize money out of the Link app.

One thing I’ve loved this year is not having to weigh in much. Even for resilient people, it becomes draining. When you’re good enough to almost feel competitive — but not quite good enough to win — you’re regularly thinking about that extra 6 watts (1.5%) at threshold that might be the difference between hanging on or getting dropped. It’s definitely been nice having my weekends back.

Instead, I’ve really enjoyed building my weeks around things like WTRL TTTs with the strongest guys on Zwift. They’re such a good stimulus and foundation session for the rest of the week.

Then I can sprinkle in events that interest me — ECRO (occasionally), RWB bunch rides, random races that take my fancy — and suddenly training feels fresh again. Add in the new season of Career Mode on TrainingPeaks Virtual and the next few months will probably take care of themselves. Although honestly, TPV isn’t doing it for me right now.

It probably has the best customisation options out there for actually getting specific, engaging work done, but Zwift’s community, upgrades and overall gamification are still streets ahead of every other platform. Career Mode is still a fun little side quest though.

And speaking of side quests, I’ve got this whole “50 days to 5km” mission filling the gap right now.
Part of the reason I started it was because there’s just such a long stretch between Nationals and Worlds. It gives me a couple of months to focus a bit less on riding, come out of it with a good aerobic base but still room to build, and honestly just see what I can still do after four years away from running.

It’s going surprisingly well.

I think I’ll run a pretty respectable 5km on May 31 off very limited running. More importantly though, it’s helped me reconnect more with a lot of good mates again, and after about a month of consistently getting a few hours done each week, my body is finally starting to tolerate running again. Which is good, because running absolutely sucks when you don’t do it.

Will I keep running afterwards? Probably not. It definitely hinders my cycling training!

But at least by then we’ll be into June, and hopefully the rest of the season will start to have a bit more clarity.

I’d probably do MWC again if it happened too. Financially, just participating was better than working for a few weeks, even if surviving on no sleep for the week was brutal and the racing itself sucked from the back of Category 1. Still, those championships actually flowed really nicely into my Worlds build in 2025, and I’d possibly structure things similarly again.

The one genuine motivational carrot that’s disappeared though is the idea of the esports Olympics.

That goal meant a great deal to me.

The possibility of that was genuinely what kept me hanging on so tightly to my standing within Australia and the world rankings. I was doing everything possible to stay relevant long enough to qualify. But its postponement has definitely changed my feelings toward all of this. Because realistically, I don’t know if I can keep hanging onto this level for another five-plus years.

Or maybe I can.

And maybe I will.