The Sufferfest: The Rookie

     In The Sufferfest’s latest download, The Rookie, you ride for glory, honour and victory….just not necessarily your own. In The Rookie you’re suffering for the greater good--the glory of your team. You take on the role of the eponymous rookie, an amateur who shook the Ministry of Suffering to its very foundations by winning the Tour of Sufferlandria 2014. So you’re the first Sufferlandrian to win a place on a world tour team (Giant-Shimano) and it’s your job to ensure a win.

Length: 55 minutes

Format:  after a 9-minute warm-up, the race in The Rookie is divided into 3 x 10-minute stages., with about 3 minutes of  recovery between each stage. The emphasis in The Rookie is on speed and surges, with only a few climbs. You’re also challenged with “tasks” as you help out your team, such as dropping a competing rider or getting your leader back out front.

Music: with the exception of a lone polka track, I loved the music in The Rookie. It’s a mix of pop, rock and electronica and it’s fun and upbeat. (I think I especially enjoyed the music since I’ve been underwhelmed with the music in the new Virtual Actives).

Footage: there’s some brief footage of Barcelona near the start, but the majority of The Rookie features footage from the Tour de Suisse. More than in any other Sufferfest, The Rookie really made me feel like I was weaving in and out of the peloton. Unfortunately, this comes at a cost (and I apologize that there’s really no elegant way to state this): there’s a lot of butts in your face in most of the shots. I think I really noticed this in The Rookie since I’ve mostly been spinning to Virtual Active workouts lately, in which the footage is thankfully butt-free.

Difficulty: The Rookie hits my difficulty “sweet spot”. It challenges you without destroying you.  You push hard during the 10-minute race stages but the 3-minute recoveries keep it do-able. This is how I prefer to work out on most days—on those days when I want to really challenge myself, I have lots of other Sufferfests  to turn to. The Rookie made me realize that as much as I adore Virtual Active rides, I do work harder spinning with the Sufferfest. I think it’s a combination of the music, the insults and the threats from the minions. 7.5/10 for difficulty.

Other Random Thoughts:  The Rookie has all my favourite elements of a Sufferfest ride: a great storyline, awesome music and laugh-out-loud moments. It plays like a documentary, full of interviews with people singing your praises (and the competition quivering in fear) and it held my attention and focus for the full 55 minutes. I really got a feel and appreciation for all the team strategy that goes into winning a race (or stage) and I loved being able to hear some of the riders shout out directions or instructions from time to time (which is a Sufferfest first, I believe).  Since I’ve been doing so many Virtual Active rides lately I couldn’t help but compare the two brands during The Rookie. I love them both but The Rookie really made me appreciate what The Sufferfest brings to the table (the music, the challenge, the humour) and also what I miss about Virtual Active when I do a Sufferfest (the trainers, the beautiful butt-free scenery). 8.5/10.  

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      In a few days I'll post my wrap-up of Virtual Active's Bike Series 2. Then I think I'm going to re-visit Bike Series 1 so I'll post reviews of all those rides over the coming weeks.