On July 1, 2024, indieVelo will transition the platform to open beta, taking another significant step forward. Here's your opportunity to help shape the future of cycling esports.
Cycling esports platform indieVelo marked one year since its inception on June 3, 2024, with the release of version 2.52. That’s right, 52 game update releases in 52 weeks, built on a promise of “transforming cycling together.”
This rapid development and steely-eyed focus on defining the future of virtual sport raise the one overarching question that the over 25,000 committed athletes drawn to the evolving race platform want to contribute to answering: “Imagine if online cycling were an Olympic sport.“
“indieVelo’s core purpose is to define the future of virtual sport. It aims to collaborate across the industry in building the highest-quality and most valuable online cycling technology to benefit everyone, no matter where they ride. We’re doing that not by having a community but by being a community—the committed athletes who use it drive 100% of indieVelo’s roadmap,” says indieVelo founder Dr. George Gilbert.
Gilbert was the Chief Commissaire at multiple UCI Cycling Esports World Championships and the former Chairman of the Zwift Cycling Esports Commission. Before founding indieVelo in June 2023, he asked several thousand online racers and enthusiasts what their Olympic dream for cycling esports would look like.
The one answer he heard more than any other was the assurance of credible and tactically interesting racing.
“Until now, we’ve been doing that behind closed doors,” Gilbert announced.
However, on July 1, 2024, he revealed that indieVelo is advancing its vision by transitioning the platform to Open Beta, marking another significant step toward making it a reality.
As a fully open beta, anyone can download it on PC, Mac, Android, or iOS (iPhone and iPad) from https://indievelo.com/downloads, try it out, and give their thoughts on how they want to shape the future of virtual sport. AppleTV will be available for all users soon.
Gilbert affirms that every feature and function on the indieVelo platform results from user requests and suggestions. Recent consistent feedback from riders, coaches, and event organizers is the ability to hold bigger rides and races.
From Gilbert’s perspective, “That also means getting more feedback and therefore being able to develop the technology that everyone wants faster. By opening indieVelo up, everyone wins!”
Most cycling esports enthusiasts will agree that success in International competition requires unquestionable credibility. That is why designing and building the next generation of online platforms with purpose-built racing and performance verification features is critical.
“Credibility isn’t something you can add later; it needs to be baked into a platform’s DNA from Day one. Whether it’s accuracy, fairness, or tactically interesting racing, indieVelo’s North Star imagines online cycling as an Olympic sport and builds the software needed for that from the ground up,” says Gilbert.
Gilbert acknowledges that while other cycling esports platforms excel in certain key aspects, indieVelo is developing world-class technology to enhance its offerings in the evolving landscape by acting as a service provider.
By focusing on developing the next generation of technology and acting as a partner to supply other companies with it, indieVelo is intentionally different from other platforms.
That approach hasn’t changed, says Gilbert. “By choosing to collaborate rather than compete, indieVelo can spend all its energy on what matters to the riders: providing great software that allows them to train and perform at their best.
This development encompasses one of the best physics engines on the market and includes virtual simulations of real-world elements like wind, weather, braking, and cornering. Additionally, indieVelo offers race features not found on any other cycling esports platform, such as customizable event creation, results-based rider categorization, and ratings and rankings. The platform also features robust performance verification along with a host of other purpose-built online racing features.
Gilbert says the unprecedented rapid development shows no signs of slowing down.
What’s next for indieVelo? “To keep listening to the community!” says Gilbert.
“Everything you see and experience in indieVelo directly results from the suggestions made by the riders, coaches, and event organizers who use it. Moving to a fully open beta aims to get more feedback on what technologies to develop next—I can’t wait to see what we create together!”
Currently, indieVelo will not charge users until at least next year. The primary focus remains on technology development, and gathering feedback from a wide range of riders, coaches, and event organizers is crucial for this process.
For those able and willing to contribute financially, the indieVelo Founders Club provides an opportunity to donate and help keep the servers operational. In addition to the satisfaction of supporting the development of a new virtual sport, members will enjoy several benefits, including having their name displayed in-game, access to custom team kits, and the latest release on AppleTV.
Click here to find out more and join the Founders Club: https://indievelo.com/checkouts/indievelo-founder/
Semi-retired after more than 20 years as the owner and director of a private Orthopedic Physical Therapy practice, Chris now enjoys the freedom to dedicate himself to his passions—virtual cycling and writing.
Driven to give back to the sport that has enriched his life with countless experiences and relationships, he founded a non-profit organization, TheDIRTDadFund. In the summer of 2022, he rode 3,900 miles from San Francisco to his “Gain Cave” on Long Island, New York, raising support for his charity.
His passion for cycling shines through in his writing, which has been featured in prominent publications like Cycling Weekly, Cycling News, road.cc, Zwift Insider, Endurance.biz, and Bicycling. In 2024, he was on-site in Abu Dhabi, covering the first live, in-person UCI Cycling Esports World Championship.
His contributions to cycling esports have not gone unnoticed, with his work cited in multiple research papers exploring this evolving discipline. He sits alongside esteemed esports scientists as a member of the Virtual Sports Research Network and contributes to groundbreaking research exploring the new frontier of virtual physical sport. Chris co-hosts The Virtual Velo Podcast, too.
What a wonderfully insightful article Chris!
It’s going to be VERY interesting to see how esports cycling develops over the next year and I’m really intrigued to see how indieVelo acting as a ‘Provider’ is going to work. Exciting times ahead!!!
For the first time we can say that there are several viable options! You’re not the only one intrigued. Thank you for your support, Tim!