Indonesia’s 'Strava jockey' trend goes viral, but buying exercise achievements comes with potential pitfalls, say experts
Users of the Strava exercise app are making a quick buck selling their running and cycling accomplishments to clients with more money than time. Legal issues could arise if false data is used to gain monetary benefits, a lawyer says.
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JAKARTA/ SINGAPORE: Newly graduated from high school and waiting for an entrance test to join the police in September, Jakarta teenager Wahyu Wicaksono found a way to make some money from his love of running.
He became a “Strava jockey”, clocking up running achievements for others on the popular exercise tracking app for a fee.
“I am active on (the social media platform) X and it (the Strava jockey trend) is booming there,” said Wahyu, 17, who started advertising his Strava jockey services almost two weeks ago.
“My hobby is to run so I thought I should take advantage of the situation and make it a business.”
His fledgling venture bagged eight clients in the first six days.
Wahyu charges 10,000 rupiah (US$0.62) per km to run at “Pace 4” (1km in four minutes). For every km run at “Pace 8” (1km in eight minutes), he charges 5,000 rupiah.
Clients pay up before he starts running and he runs using either his own Strava account, or login details they have given him.
His most lucrative job so far, he said, has earned him 100,000 rupiah.
In Indonesia, the trend of selling high-performance Strava data has gone viral, with Strava jockeys selling records on the app of their running, cycling and other exercise accomplishments in exchange for money or items such as energy bars.
“If it’s not on Strava, it didn’t happen” is, after all, a motto associated with the app, which allows members to follow one another, and share and showcase their exercise achievements.
Strava users can also take part in virtual “races” to compete for leaderboard positions against other members covering the same distance.
Although the app boasts more than 100 million paid and free subscribers in over 190 countries, according to Strava’s website, there are no major reports of the trend catching on elsewhere.
CLIENTS “ALL OLDER THAN ME”
In Indonesia, the phenomenon appears to have started from a tongue-in-cheek post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that went viral on Jul 3.
“By the way, I’m opening a Strava jockey service!!” the X user @hahahiheho posted, along with an image meant to resemble a Strava screengrab. “But the person who will run is my brother/family member who is a great runner. The price is dependent on the pace, km, etc. DM (direct message) me.”
The image turned out to be of a route from the Grand Theft Auto San Andreas video game.
The post gained over 890,000 views and 2,500 reposts within five days, and the idea caught on among Strava subscribers looking for performance – and bragging rights – without the pain of exertion.
Wahyu, who goes by the Instagram handle @jokistrava, said his clients are generally older professionals with busy schedules.
“I don’t know their exact age, but they are all older than me. They have day jobs and are unable to run,” he told CNA.
Also doing brisk business is Bogor teenager Satria, 17, who started the Strava jockey account @Satzzyy this month on X “just for fun” after seeing @hahahiheho’s viral post.
Satria, a high school graduate looking “to kill time” while applying for university, netted four clients within five days.
His services start from 5,000 rupiah per kilometre. If a client wants him to run at Pace 4, he charges an additional 20,000 rupiah per kilometre for up to 10km.
“If someone wants me to run more than 10 km, I’d rather refer the client to my friends (fellow jockeys),” he said.
“I have taken part in marathons before, so running is my hobby … I’ve got nothing to lose,” said Satria, who asked to be identified by only his first name and has not told his parents about being a Strava jockey.
DESIRE FOR VALIDATION
The trend, however, has its detractors and a lawyer said legal issues could arise if athletes use fraudulent data to fool sponsors or gain monetary rewards.
Mr Chaidir Akbar, a 42-year-old sports influencer and Strava member since 2013, believes the sharing of impressive Strava data stems from the growing popularity of running in Indonesia.
More people became health-conscious after the COVID-19 pandemic, and celebrities and influencers also took up the sport, he noted.
In Indonesia, a Strava subscription costs 85,000 rupiah a month or 549,000 rupiah a year, and the number of users hit 1.2 million in 2021, according to industry media platform Business of Apps.
“Based on my observation, people use Strava data to post on their own social media accounts to get validation such as likes, comments and reactions or engagement to make them look good,” said Mr Chaidir.
“So Strava jockeys have observed a demand for people to have Strava data without (putting in) much effort.”
To Mr Ricky Safir, 51, a sports marketing manager for an accessories brand, the phenomenon “contradicts the sporting spirit” and sportsmanship.
“Running is a trend and immature people need validation … or to push for a certain self-image,” he said. Some of them have turned to Strava jockeys as a solution, he noted.
Psychologists agree that the need for external recognition has fuelled the demand for Strava jockeys.
“The desire to appear more capable or successful can sometimes lead individuals to engage in dishonest practices,” said Singapore-based psychologist Shawn Ee. “This behaviour can be driven by underlying insecurities or a desire to mask one's true abilities.”
It can also create a self-perpetuating loop of expectation, he said. “For those who regularly share their fitness activities, there might be a self-imposed pressure to continuously improve or maintain a high level of performance.”
Clinical psychologist Annabelle Chow agreed “it can be stressful to maintain (statistics) after getting a ‘fake’ high score”.
“In the long run, we feel pressured to sustain this act with money. Our motivation to exercise may fall, and we are no longer working out for the purpose of being fit,” said Dr Chow, who is based in Singapore.
Meanwhile, Strava jockeys could risk overexertion, sports medicine specialist Andi Kurniawan told news platform Detik.
WHEN IS IT UNLAWFUL?
Hiring a Strava jockey could be unlawful when the purpose is to gain monetary benefits, said Mr Glenn Wijaya, a Jakarta-based corporate lawyer at Christian Teo and Partners.
Individuals with brand sponsorship agreements who use manipulated data may be in breach of their contracts, he said.
If financial losses to the sponsor can be proven, the individual may be subject to legal action and forced to pay the brand under Article 1365 of the (Indonesian) Civil Code, which covers compensation for unlawful acts that cause another person damage, he noted.
To avoid risks, sponsors can draw up contracts with clear anti-fraud clauses and strict sanctions for violations, he said.
However, legal issues may not arise if nobody suffers a loss from the use of false Strava data, he said.
For Strava jockeys like Wahyu, the gig is simply a way to earn income from an activity they already enjoy.
Wahyu's ambitions are modest. “My target is just to have one client per day,” he said. “This is a pleasant job because running is my hobby.”
