ROUVY is an indoor cycling platform which uses immersive HD video and augmented reality technology to allow users to ride real routes from around the world, complete with responsive gradient changes to create an authentic riding experience that’s almost as good as riding in real life.
The platform currently has over 1,500 routes (and counting) – including famous world Tour routes and plenty of cycling’s most iconic climbs. And now, thanks to a new feature, users can upload their own routes and ride them with the same immersive, authentic experience as you’ll get on ROUVY’s own carefully created routes. An update announced in the autumn of 2024 saw the indoor cycling platform roll out new functionality in Beta mode which uses AI technology to create a 3D world around routes recorded and uploaded by users.
So how does this new route creator work, and what could the benefits be for triathletes?
What is the ROUVY route creator?
The ROUVY route creator is an extension of existing functionality on ROUVY, which previously allowed users to upload a video of their favourite route and ride it on the platform with a first person view. However, the new route creator brings a whole new level of immersion and augmented reality to these user-created routes.
ROUVY riders can record their favourite routes in real life, using a GPS-enabled recording device (e.g. a GoPro) and upload the video to the platform. ROUVY’s AI system then gets to work, creating a 3D world with shade, depth and accurate gradients along with reactivity to other riders/traffic. In a nut shell, the route creator turns your own personal favourite routes into a smooth and immersive ROUVY route – without the need for any technical knowledge from the user.
Is the new route creator available now?
ROUVY rolled out the route creator in its early Beta-testing phase initially to a small number of subscribers, before showcasing it at Rouleur Live in November 2024. And now the ROUVY route creator app is available for all ROUVY users with an active or paused ROUVY subscription.
What are the benefits of being able to upload my own routes?
First up, the new route creator means there’s going to be a whole load of new routes on ROUVY for you to explore – created by the community, for the community. That brings even more variety to your indoor training. And it could also be useful for getting local knowledge for routes to check out if you’re planning to head to a location in real life.
The route creator could also come in handy if you’ve got a specific event or ride you’re training for and you’ve got the opportunity to recce it once in real life. Record it while you’re there, and then you can train on the route as much as you like once you get back home.
It could also be a game changer for small, grassroots event organisers to share route details – could this be the end of downloading random bike route GPX files every time you enter a race?
How to create your own route on ROUVY
The process to upload your own routes to ROUVY is relatively straight forward! Follow the steps below or watch the embedded video.
Step 1: Record your route in real life. Currently a GoPro with GPS is the only compatible device for this, but ROUVY say compatibility with other devices is in the works. Make sure your GoPro is mounted to your handlebars (you can also record from a car or motorbike with the camera mounted) to get a smooth video.
Step 2: Upload your recording into the route creator app. Once your recording has uploaded, you can smooth out any stops (such as at traffic lights or junctions) so you get an uninterrupted experience when you ride your custom route on ROUVY. When you’re happy with your route, you can submit it for processing – ROUVY handles this on their platform, so you haven’t got to keep the route creator open. It usually takes around 24hrs for processing to be completed.
Step 3: Bring your route to life. Once the route has been processed, you’ll be presented with a 3D augmented reality version of the route which you can then customise. You can set up the shadow positioning so it makes sense with the light conditions, choose your lane positioning and set up the range of visibility ahead once other users are riding on the route.
You can also have fun dropping in route banners, roadside fans to cheer you on every time you ride and all sorts of other fun elements. If you played the video game Rollercoaster Tycoon as a kid, you’re going to have a lot of fun with the new route creator.
Another cool feature here is the ability to set up time splits and segments within the route for training. So if there’s a hill you want to practice blasting up, or a fast, flat sprint section you want to PR on – you can track your progress.
Put simply, this stage of the route creator process gives you the opportunity to get creative and make your custom route just as immersive as ROUVY’s pre-loaded routes.
Step 4: Save your creation. The route will be saved to ROUVY’s servers (which your hard drive storage will probably appreciate), but you have the option to keep it private so you can ride solo. Or save it as public so others from all over the globe can join you on your favourite local loop.
The ROUVY route creator gives you the freedom to relive your favourite rides, train with specificity for a certain event and share your local loops with the rest of the ROUVY community.
