Zwift vs Load Shedding: The Reality of Indoor Cycling in South Africa

Picture this: you’re deep into a Zwift race. Heart rate is through the roof, legs burning, and you’re holding onto the lead group by sheer grit.

And then — darkness. Silence. Everything cuts out.

Race over. Progress gone. Mood ruined.

It might sound dramatic, but here in South Africa — especially in places like Rustenburg in the North West — this is not a rare occurrence. It’s just another day of riding in the era of load shedding.

And honestly? Sometimes all you can do is laugh.

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Why Zwift Works So Well for South African Cyclists

Zwift has quietly become one of the best training tools for South African cyclists — and not just because it’s fun. It solves problems that are very specific to life here.

It offers:

• A safe training environment with no traffic and no safety concerns at 5am.
• Structured workouts and proper race opportunities.
• A global community that makes riding alone feel anything but lonely.
• Consistency — regardless of weather, darkness, or whether it’s safe to ride outside.

For many of us, indoor riding isn’t just a backup plan. It’s a core part of training. Whether it’s early mornings before work or squeezing in a session after hours, Zwift makes it possible to stay committed and consistent no matter what life throws at you.

Which is great. Until load shedding throws itself at you instead.

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The Reality: Load Shedding Changes Everything

For those outside SA, load shedding is the controlled shutdown of electricity in certain areas to prevent the national grid from collapsing. In practical terms, it means:

• Power goes off — sometimes on schedule, sometimes not.
• Internet drops.
• Your trainer, fan, and devices all shut down instantly.
• Your ride ends, whether you’re ready or not.

And when it happens mid-race? That’s where things get genuinely painful.

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When the Power Goes Off Mid-Race

There’s nothing quite like it. You’re pushing hard, fully locked in, chasing a result you’ve been working towards — and in a split second, everything disappears. No cooldown. No finish line. No data saved the way you wanted it.

Just:

• A dead screen.
• A silent trainer.
• And a deep internal scream.

That frustration hits differently because, as any cyclist knows, effort matters. You’ve earned that ride. You’ve put in the work.

And load shedding doesn’t care.

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The Emotional Side of It

Here’s what people outside the cycling world don’t always understand: we invest far more than just time into our training.

There’s discipline, mental focus, weeks of progress tracking, and personal goals that mean something. A race isn’t just a race. It’s the result of getting up early, saying no to things, showing up when you didn’t feel like it.

So when a ride gets cut short — not because you cracked, not because your legs gave out, but because Eskom decided so — it’s not just inconvenient. It feels like something has been taken away that you actually earned.

That feeling of “if only I could rewind this ride” is something every South African Zwifter has felt. More than once.

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But Here’s the Thing: We Adapt

If there’s one thing South African cyclists are genuinely good at, it’s adapting. We’ve had to be.

Over time, most of us learn to:

• Plan rides around the load shedding schedule using EskomSePush.
• Keep devices charged and battery backups ready.
• Train early mornings or late evenings to hit the safer windows.
• Use mobile data when the internet drops so Zwift can keep running.
• And when all else fails — laugh it off and go again tomorrow.

Because the goal doesn’t change. Keep showing up.

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Final Thoughts

Zwifting in South Africa comes with its own unique set of challenges. Load shedding may interrupt races, kill momentum in the moment, and test your patience in ways that feel wildly unfair.

But it also builds something most cyclists don’t talk about: resilience. The kind that comes from adapting, problem-solving, and choosing to show up anyway.

Because when the power stays on, the legs feel good, and you actually make it to the finish line — it feels that much better.

If this helped, I would love to hear from you. Drop a comment, tag me on Instagram, or send me an email at my.endurance.diaries@gmail.com. You can also read more stories on the blog.