Perhaps a little late, as this would have been perfect for the never ending stream of “lockdown challenges”, but it is still a very cool feature and one that I think I will be using immediately. So what are Strava Group Challenges all about?

Group Challenges are a fun way to find motivate yourself and your friends on Strava. Group Challenges allow you to set a goal and a timeframe to see who can reach the challenge goal and beyond. A little limited, in terms of the types of goal today but remember this is the first iteration of the feature so I am sure it will become more sophisticated in subsequent iterations. Within the Group Challenge experience, you can keep track of progress, see how other athletes are doing, and view a stream of photos from the challenge. Group Challenges are private and can only be viewed by athletes who are participating in the Group Challenge at that time. Currently, Group Challenges are only available on Strava mobile apps. The interesting point here is that photo’s can be added… Used imaginatively this could help create much more imaginative challenges.

Participating in a Group Challenge

If you are lucky enough (!!) to be invited to a Group Challenge, you will receive a notification to join and will be able to see the challenge by navigating to Groups > Active. If you are not a subscriber or on a trial, joining a group challenge will use up one of your free challenges (non-subscribers get three free challenges. So yes this is aimed to be a subscriber feature!). Navigate to Groups > Active to see which challenges you’re currently participating in. Select Challenges from the Groups tab to view your previous Group Challenges under “Past Group Challenges.”

In order to compete, you will need to ensure that you understand a few aspects of Group Challenges. Navigate to Groups > Active and tap on an individual challenge to review the following:

• When does the challenge start?
  • You will see the date range for the challenge at the top of the Challenge details screen, below the title and description.
• What is the goal, distance, or minimum activity needed for the challenge?
  • Tap the ellipses button in the upper right-hand corner and then click Challenge Guidelines. Here you will see how to compete in this challenge based on the goal type.
• What sports are applicable for the challenge?
  • Tap the ellipses button in the upper right-hand corner and then click Challenge Guidelines. Here you will see what the applicable sports are.
  • Activity privacy controls must be set to “Everyone” or “Followers”.

To leave a Group Challenge, go to the Challenge settings screen and tap Leave Challenge. If you are not a subscriber or on a trial, leaving a group challenge will not give you one of your free challenges back.

Want to have a go?

I shall be setting up some “test” challenges to see what’s possible and maybe tie them into some virtual training plans. If you would like an invite then get in touch and I can add you to my list 🙂