ZZRC Andi's 900th Lead

ZZRC Chain Reaction Sub 2 — My 900th Lead Celebration!

What an unforgettable night it was! I had the immense pleasure of celebrating my 900th lead with the incredible ZZRC community, riding with a fantastic squad of 153 riders. The Big Flat 8 turned into a whirlwind of joy, laughter, and some friendly competition that I, quite frankly, couldn’t have asked for a better party!

As soon as we left the pen, my screen lit up with messages of congratulations—it was heartwarming to see the camaraderie and support from all around. Lars hit the nail on the head with his cheeky comment: “that’s a lot of chameos!” And then there was Arjen, who brought a lump to my throat with his touching message: “Thanks from the full Zwift community, Andi!! Great work.” Moments like these remind me of the spirit of our community.

But the night took an even more exciting turn when Leah Thorvilson, the former pro cyclist and Zwift Academy award winner, joined our ride to help celebrate this milestone! Her presence made the celebration feel even more special. She asked if I remembered my very first lead for ZZRC, and of course, I do! I took over from Dimi on the Monday night Sub 2, and AJ threw me straight into the deep end, but the amazing crew I rode with made it all worthwhile.

With so much support from our ZZRC family who turned out in full force, I decided to kick things off with a fun 70s quiz after giving everyone some time to settle in. The answers started rolling in quickly, especially when I asked, “Which 70s rock band wrote the songs ‘Dreams’ and ‘The Chain’?” Vinny was lightning-fast with his answer—Fleetwood Mac!

Everyone was engaged, and even though The Real Bernie complained that they were born in 1987 and didn’t know any of the answers, we soon caught on that they were just playing coy! Goodness, did that make me feel old; I had already left school two years before they were even born!

Meanwhile, our crew at the back was performing some real magic. The blob was swift tonight, the draft was powerful, and it certainly put our sweeps to the test. Of course, our resident ZZRC comedian Lars stole the spotlight with a couple of hilarious jokes:

“Why do you never see hippos hiding in trees? Because they are very good at it!”

And this gem: “To the person who stole my copy of Microsoft Office, I will find you. You have my Word!”

We were laughing well when two tough quiz questions took a little longer to answer. One of them was about Chaka Khan, which led to some amusing spelling errors! Another stumper was, “Prior to Toploader, which band released the single ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ in 1972?”—the answer was King Harvest.

A fun fact of the night was that Prince was only 18 when he signed with Warner Music in 1977!

Did anyone spot the surprise in the ride? Zwift added “Go Andi Go” along the route as part of my celebration—what a special touch! Huge thanks to Zwift for making the night even more memorable.

As for the prizes, Vinny took home the first reward, and David Barrie won the second.

Here’s to more milestones; can’t wait for the next one—1000th here I come!