With Zwift’s new expansion, Urukazi, releasing soon, I thought I would do a speculation article about this new expansion.
What Exactly is Urukazi?
Urukazi is Zwift’s latest expansion to the Makuri Islands, which was announced in the This Season on Zwift press release in September. Urukazi is supposed to be a serene coastal area that has a variety of different surfaces and scenery. Based off of the teasers, this looks to be a pretty nice and relaxing expansion. The expansion will likely include a lot more gravel than the other places in Zwift.
Release Date
Zwift has stated that the new expansion will be releasing in November, so the update will likely drop on the 16th or 23rd. These are both Wednesday’s which is when Zwift updates are typically released. It is also in the middle of the month and around the same time that Zwift released Neokyo. Expect the update to drop around 10 AM PDT, or 6 PM for those in the UK.
First Chance to Ride
Makuri Islands will likely be the guest world for the day that the game release is released. Riders will likely be able to ride the expansion when it is released. Event organizers will probably not be able to host rides on the world until early December or late November. Zwift will also be hosting the Tour of Makuri Islands and Race Makuri Islands event series throughout the month of November. The tour will be a leisurely ride while the race will be, well, a race.
How Many Routes?
At the first release, expect to see around 8 routes. In December, January, and February there will likely be more and more routes released to keep Zwifters interested during peak Zwift season. Don’t expect any new roads for at least 6 months after this release drops.
New Surface?
Zwift also stated in their press release that there would be a new surface that has never been used in Zwift. In the same press release, Zwift basically told the public what the surface would be. The new surface will almost certainly be “packed sand”. I would expect this surface to have a higher rolling resistance than any surface that has been seen in Zwift.
How Many Miles?
In this new expansion, there will be 12 new miles of roads. While that may not seem like much, when you add all of the different routes together, there is a lot of distance to be covered. There will also be a uber route, a route that covers all of the roads of Makuri Islands. This should be around 80-100km long.
What About Mt. Fuji?
Many riders were requesting a big climb in Makuri Islands. Unfortunately, it seems that that request will have to wait a bit. It is highly likely that Zwift will include a larger climb in a upcoming expansion, but it is at least 6 months out.