Züri Velo Cup Winter Quest

The Wintervelocup is the winter continuation of the Züri Velo Cup essentially the third edition of the format, simply in a thick jacket instead of a short-sleeved jersey. From December to March, nine municipalities around Zurich become a personal winter quest: those who collect them all remain active outdoors throughout the cold season instead of sweating it out on the roller in the "pain cave."

Who is it for?

• Amateur cyclists who want to ride outdoors even in winter—with a clear but relaxed goal.
• Everyday and recreational cyclists who need an extra boost of motivation to avoid being glued to the sofa in December, January, and February.
• Community & groups of friends who want to "pull each other out" – without the stress of racing, but with a shared winter challenge.

How does it work?

• Checkpoints instead of segments: Nine selected municipalities around Zurich serve as checkpoints. A municipality is considered "collected" if your GPS recording passes through it, starts there, or ends there.
• Gradual reduction over the winter:
  • Period: December 21 to March 21
  • Every month, 3 new communities are activated – a total of 9.
  • Previous communities cannot be made up for after their time window has expired – this keeps the incentive to really stick with it.
• Digital participation:
  • Register online once and connect your Strava or Garmin account to Winter Quest.
  • Your rides are automatically imported, compared with the reference zones, and evaluated as checkpoints—thanks to LaceUp's GPS matching.  
• Finisher instead of race stress:
  • Anyone who collects all nine municipalities between December 21 and March 21 is considered a finisher of the Winter Quest.

What distinguishes the Winter Velocup from theZüri Velo Cup?

1. Focus: Checkpoints instead of race tracks

• Summer: Collecting road bike segments from the "Züri Metzgete" and World Championship routes – more performance-oriented.
• Winter: Collecting communities as checkpoints – free choice of route, no competitive element, more exploring and traveling through everyday winter life.  

2. Mechanics: Trophy/Geocaching instead of Segment Cup

• Summer Cup: Segments with strong references to professional tracks, giving you that "I've driven the World Championship track" feeling.
• Winter Cup: Works like a trophy/geocaching for sporting events —communities are digital goals that you work to achieve.

3. Structure: Seasonal challenge with rhythm

• Summer: Collect segments over several weeks, often spontaneously planned.
• Winter: Clear monthly structure —three new communities each month, with limited availability. This creates a light, playful "pressure" to actually go out.

4. Evaluation: Experience and consistency rather than speed

• Both formats do away with traditional race timing – but the Winter Velocup focuses even more strongly on:
  • Keep at it instead of aiming for the best time
  • Finisher status, points, and badges instead of ranking by speed.

Benefit: Motivation to get on your bike outdoors in winter

The Winter Velocup addresses precisely the problem that everyone is familiar with: short days, cold fingers, declining motivation. The format creates concrete added value here:

• Low barrier to entry:
  • No start time, no mass start, no racing stress.
  • Just three rides are enough to collect all the municipalities for a month—everything else is a bonus.
• Constant motivation boost:
  • The monthly activation of new communities provides a recurring reason to get on your bike.
  • If you miss a community, you feel it immediately—that motivates you to overcome your inner demons in time.
• Gamification instead of a sense of duty:
  • Points, badges, and finisher status turn winter training into a game – "Which community am I missing?" instead of "I should go cycling again."  
• Outdoors instead of on wheels:
  • An explicit alternative to indoor cycling: fresh air, quiet streets, new perspectives on familiar areas.
  • This preserves the connection to the region, and participants get to experience Zurich and the surrounding area in a completely different season.

In short: the Winter Velocup turns the dark months into a fun, structured winter challenge – and keeps the community active outdoors until theZüri Velo Cup returns.

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