The ECRO Offseason is winter racing on ECRO: a run of monthly series, open to every rider with an ECRO account. It runs separately from the ECRO World Tour. Offseason results never touch World Tour standings, teams, contracts or ECRO$.
Where this page doesn't cover something, the ECRO World Tour rules apply.
1. What's different from the World Tour
- No license. An ECRO account is all you need. Offseason results count without an ECRO Rider License.
- No miss rules. Race as many rounds as you like. Missing a round costs you the points you would have scored, nothing more.
- No teams. Riders only. No team classification, contracts or transfers.
- No ECRO$. No virtual prize money is awarded.
- Monthly series. The Offseason runs as one series per calendar month, with no transfer windows. Every rider is recategorized for each series.
- Smart trainer for everyone. Every category races on a smart trainer. A power meter can't be your primary power source.
- Rules can change. The Offseason is where rule changes for the 2027 World Tour get tested, so rules may be adjusted mid-Offseason.
2. Monthly series
The Offseason runs as a series each calendar month. Each series has its own standings, and every series also counts toward the combined Offseason ranking (see section 6). Race dates, start times and routes for every series are on the Offseason calendar.
3. Entering a race
- Find races on the Offseason calendar and join them in Zwift. Offseason events are public on Zwift, and your Zwift Racing Score sets your pen. You can ride up a category, not down. A result counts only if you had an ECRO account with Zwift connected when the race started. Results from before your account existed never count, so create it before your first race.
- Each race has up to 5 time slots. Only the first time slot you finish counts.
- All categories start together in a single pen.
4. Equipment and profile
- Heart rate monitor: required in every race.
- Power source: every rider, in every category, races on a smart trainer as their primary power source. A power meter can't be your primary source, and ZPower is not permitted.
- Categories A and B: your equipment must also be photo-verified in the ECRO app.
- Bikes: TT bikes are not allowed in road races. They are allowed in the ITTs.
- Weight: keep your Zwift weight accurate and update it at least weekly.
- ZwiftPower: your activity must be public. A result that is still private 24 hours after the race starts is disqualified (Rule 1.2), and the DQ is final.
5. Categories
You race in one of five categories, set by your performance rating from ZwiftRacing.app:
- Category A: 2000 and above
- Category B: 1700 to 1999
- Category C: 1400 to 1699
- Category D: 1100 to 1399
- Category E: below 1100
Recategorized each series. Riders are recategorized for each monthly series. Your category locks when you finish your first race of the series, at your rating at that moment, and stays locked for the rest of that series even if your rating changes. Until your first race of a series, your category follows your rating. Your Offseason category is separate from your World Tour category.
Ratings. Offseason races count toward your performance rating like any other race on Zwift.
Wrong category. Racing in any category other than your own earns a time penalty that adds up across the Offseason: +60 seconds for the first offense, +120 for the second, +180 for the third, and so on (Rule 2.2). Your result is moved to your correct category.
6. Scoring
Race points. Every round scores by finishing position within your category, using the Day Race Class 2 table in the World Tour rules. The ITTs use the same table. Every finisher scores.
Series standings. Each series has its own standings per category. Your series total is the sum of your round points. There is no minimum number of rounds, so everyone who races is classified.
Series points. When a series ends, every classified rider earns series points by final position, from the Day Race Series GC table (Class 0-2 column) in the World Tour rules.
Offseason ranking. One combined ranking per category across every series: your round points from every race plus your series points from each series. Most points wins.
7. Disqualifications and verification
The World Tour disciplinary code applies, except Rule 1.1 (license):
- Rule 1.2, private profile: activity still private 24 hours after the race start. Final.
- Rule 2.1, duplicate entry: only your first finished time slot counts; later ones are disqualified.
- Rule 2.2, wrong category: time penalty, see section 5.
- Rule 3.1, smart trainer: every rider, in every category, must use a smart trainer as their primary power source.
- Rule 3.3, dual recording: Category A podium finishers may be asked for a dual recording.
- Rule 4.1, admin DQ: misconduct, suspicious power data, or no response to a verification request within 48 hours.
Automated analysis runs on every race and checks for sticky watts, power anomalies, heart rate and power mismatches, and microbursting. If you're flagged, you'll be notified and may be asked for equipment photos, pairing screenshots or power files.
8. Appeals and changes
- Appeals follow the World Tour process: within 7 days, by email to admin@ecro.app with "APPEAL" in the subject line.
- Rules may be adjusted during the Offseason as ECRO tests changes for the 2027 World Tour. Every change is announced before the race it applies to, and this page is updated.