Zwift’s new Climb Portals will enable you to ascend virtual versions of famous real-world mountains, summits and passes that will feature in the 2023 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes.
The new in-game feature recreates eight climbs, including the Col du Tourmalet.
The feature is part of Zwift’s partnership with A.S.O., organisers of the Tour de France and the Tour de France Femmes, which also sees the indoor training app as the official training software partner for both races this year.
Beam me up, Zwift
During July, the Climb Portal entrances will be branded with graphics for both races.
When you ride your virtual bike through one of the virtual portals, Zwift says you will see “a road surface that floats in a vast, colourful expanse”.
The climbs will be visible and illustrated by a ribbon of colour going off into the distance.
Much like the graphics you see on stage previews, the climbs will change colour to represent the gradient variations of the climb.
Zwift says the pitch and direction of the climbs “perfectly match” their real-world equivalents.
Where in Zwift are the Climb Portals?
There will be Climb Portals in two of Zwift’s virtual worlds. One will be outside the volcano in Watopia and the other in France.
Zwift says the climbs through the portals will change through July from when they are first available on 30 June at 12pm PDT (8pm BST).
Zwift says there will be a total of eight climbs taken from the two races and included in the new feature.
To access the portals, you can choose the portal climb from a dedicated tile on the Zwift homepage, from within the routes list, or in-game when riding in Watopia or France.
There will be a flat section once you enter the Climb Portals before you start climbing.
Climb Portal First Ascent Challenge
To accompany the portal feature, Zwift will run the Climb Portal First Ascent Challenge.
This challenge requires you to finish two on-demand stages, each of which will have four different climbs to choose from.
The first stage will include the Côte de Trébiac, Col des Aravis, Col d’Aspin, and Puy de Dôme.
The second stage will include the Côte de Domancy, Côte de Pike, Col du Platzerwasel and Col du Tourmalet.
Why include the Col du Tourmalet?
Zwift says it has included the Col du Tourmalet as one of the Climb Portals ascents because 2023 is the first time the Tour de France Femmes will tackle the Pyrenean Hors Categorie climb.
The men’s Tour de France has climbed the Col du Tourmalet 88 times since 1910 and, as a result, is one of the most famous climbs of the Tour de France.
