On top of tracking your rides, one of Strava’s most iconic features is the virtual leaderboard. Complete a segment with the fastest time and you become the KOM or QOM – King or Queen of the mountain. But what if you’d rather just compete with your friends rather than the entire cycling public? With Strava’s latest app update, you can do just that.
Thanks to the new Group Challenge feature, you can now create your own challenges with up to 25 of your closest friends, teammates, colleagues, or anyone else that follows each other on Strava.
Options include challenges like the ‘Most Activity’, the ‘Fastest Effort’, or the ‘Longest Single Activity’ in a given time frame. That time frame can be set from 1 to 365 days, and all Strava supported sports are eligible for Group Challenges. Only those athletes that have accepted the invitation can view and compete, meaning this is your own private competition within Strava.
For athletes who don’t pay for a Strava subscription, this feature will be available three times before the app cuts you off and asks you to subscribe. Once subscribed, you’ll have unlimited access to Group Challenges.
What else is new?
In addition to Group Challenges, Strava’s updated Maps tab makes it easier than ever for you to find new segments or routes. Everything for both is now in one place on the app, and with the new Segment suggestions, the app gives you six options to get the most out of the app:
- Visit popular spots: A sampling of the most popular segments in the area.
- Discover new places: Popular segments in the area you haven’t matched
to yet. - Break your record: The segments where you’re close to beating your
personal record. - Climb the leaderboard: Segments where you’re close to getting a top 10
spot on the leaderboard. - Go for a workout: Find nearby tracks, areas for interval training, and other
areas where the community trains. - Become a legend: Segments where you’re close to becoming the Local
Legend.
To get the full experience, again you’ll need to have a paid subscription which start at $5 a month when billed annually.
