my first spin class -- etiquette??

[spiderman]

so, after years of thinking about going to the spin class
at my lbs, this morning i broke out of my routine
and went down to the shop where i'd taken my fixie
and my big yankee rollers with such good intentions 6 weeks ago.

the start was a comedy of errors...
one of the bands came of the rollers and i couldn't get started,
but the guy leading the class
is a real classy guy.
he came over and helped me get started...
after some gentle spinning
i felt like i settled in pretty well.
by the end i was doing one legged drills--
--starting and stopping without any trouble...
and doing sprints, standing, etc.
i felt a little out of place riding rollers
with everyone else on a trainer,
but still it was fun and a good workout for me.
anyone else out there ride their rollers at spin class
or am i doing something that is against every grain
of cycling/spinning class etiquette???

[justinf]

Go shirtless with white bibs. You can't go wrong with that.

[chuckred]

Just don't throw the guy next to you into the wall - that's not good etiquette, no matter how loud he's grunting.

[BumbleBeeDave]

Set up your rollers in a spot where if you DO by chance come off of them you won't take out someone else. That's really the only thing I would be concerned about if I was an instructor (which I will be, starting in a few weeks.)

BBD

[Ginger]

Of course, there have been some pretty big spin class crashes off of other trainers...

Since etiquette is all about consideration for others...

Why not contact the leader of the spin class and see what he thinks. He's actually seen you on them in the class and has a far better idea about if you should be riding them in the class or not or if you'd get more out of the class on a trainer.

:)

[spiderman]

and was glad to see me at the class.
there was room aplenty around me just in case.
he's a builder/beautiful finish work
and asked permission
to measure the rollers
so he can make a set like them!
can't wait to see what he comes up with...

[Fixed]

don't tell any one there you ride a real bike
cheers imho

[saab2000]

Stare at the eye candy.

[Ginger]

Stare at the eye candy.

You know that's creepy. :)

[spiderman]

all the serotta custom bikes
filling the room...
i'm betting there are more custom bikes
in that spinning class
than any other class in america!
...there must be a dozen...
and i wasn't even riding one of mine!

[julia]

Go shirtless with white bibs. You can't go wrong with that.

heheheehheehe

ewww wear a t-shirt UNDER the bibs

[ThasFACE]

Related question: what does everyone do with the spin bikes at the gyms as far as adjustment goes? For those who have a fair amount of drop on their road bikes, do you try to simulate the position on the spin bike? Or do you set it up differently than you would out on the road?

[Marron]

I think as long as you don't make a pest/hazzard of yourself you should be fine, but I think doing the rollers might be stretching the tolerance of some groups. You know you probably won't fall but the people around may be less certain. That could be an unwanted distraction.

[Chad Engle]

ThasFace:
I spin in the winter over the lunch hour and I try to set it up as close to my normal position as I can. Doesn't work the best for jumps and such, saddle is a little high. But I figure I don't do jumps while on the road so I'm not too worried about perfect form in the class.

[Fixed]

all the serotta custom bikes
filling the room...
i'm betting there are more custom bikes
in that spinning class
than any other class in america!
...there must be a dozen...
and i wasn't even riding one of mine!
bro johnny g hasn't been there yet?

i rode one a lot one year

[BumbleBeeDave]

Related question: what does everyone do with the spin bikes at the gyms as far as adjustment goes? For those who have a fair amount of drop on their road bikes, do you try to simulate the position on the spin bike? Or do you set it up differently than you would out on the road?

. . . set one up to approximate your road bike IF you don't have any special fit/sizing issues. In classes I was in, it was not all that unusual for women to show up who were petite and there was difficulty adjusting the bike small enough for them.

My largest problem in a "regular" spin class with spin bikes was not with fit. Instead, it was almost impossible to objectively keep track of your effort and fitness. There would be a dozen or so spin bikes in the room and every one would have different resistances for the same setting because the brake pads that drag on the flywheel--and thus supply resistance--were different on all the bikes. Or they had been installed at different times and had different wear. You're supposed to turn the knob to tighten the pads on the flywheel for more resistance. But there were no click stops on the knob, no calibration markings, and all the pads had different wear, so even with my heart monitor on, it was very difficult to tell how hard I was working unless I could reliably get the same bike for every class, which rarely happened.

Additionally, even with a heart monitor you have to make sure you have a coded transmitter or there is so much crosstalk from others nearby that you can't really make yours work.

I like the class where you ride your own bike on a stationary trainer much better because you can guage your effort more consistently. After all, it's the same bike you've ridden outside all summer with the same gears.

BBD

[Too Tall]

Ettiquette? Forget it, you are just being social and adding some spice to your routine. I'd reckon your class appreciated what you are all about. Fuggetaboutit you are fine. Keep having fun.

[Fixed]

the spin bikes are hard to get a fit (for me) and I'm not that picky .imho you want it to feel like your real bike have fun good place for singles cos they'll think you a stud
cheers

[SWorks4me]

bro johnny g hasn't been there yet?

i rode one a lot one year

What in your picture did you ride a lot last year...please clarify.

[ThasFACE]

I like the class where you ride your own bike on a stationary trainer much better because you can guage your effort more consistently. After all, it's the same bike you've ridden outside all summer with the same gears

I might have to track down a class like that.

I go to spin classes every so often and I always set up the bike as close to my road fit as possible (not with a ton of drop, but certainly far more than the typical spin class goer), and more often than not I get instructors commenting on my bar height before they even see me on the bike. I don't know why I get this, but I usually get something to the effect of 'you may like that position out on the road, but inside you don't need to be aero so you should sit more upright.' I usually then explain that I set up the bike the way that I do because I am more comfortable that way, and at that point I usually get snippy comments.

I asked the question earlier about bike adjustment because I wasn't sure whether I was being dumb about it, but now I think that I'm just running into as*hole spin instructors.

good place for singles cos they'll think you a stud

Agreed. I do feel extremely badass/studly when I go, but that's relative to the Upper East Side trophy wives who fill most of the spin classes.

[fiamme red]

Don't shout "FIRE!" (unless there's really a fire, of course).

Don't complain about the music -- the instructor doesn't want to know that he has bad taste.

[whitecda]

the Upper East Side trophy wives who fill most of the spin classes.


a great class!

[sellsworth]

..... instructor (which I will be, starting in a few weeks.)

BBD


Are you going to wear your zebra kit while you teach? If so it would be a nice way to keep your class sizes small!

[Peter P.]

I never heard of spin classes where you bring your own bike and set it up on a trainer, let alone bring your own rollers. Clue me in on these.

[DarrenCT]

is it a party foul to wear assos bibs to spin class??

[DarrenCT]

I never heard of spin classes where you bring your own bike and set it up on a trainer, let alone bring your own rollers. Clue me in on these.

we aren't that advanced in connecticut it seems...

btw, where the hell is meriden compared to greenwich ct?

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . and at that point I usually get snippy comments. . . . but now I think that I'm just running into as*hole spin instructors.

If an instructor would make any snippy comments about you, your bike adjustments, or your riding style, then they don't deserve to be teaching class. Everyone should be welcome and he should realize you're there to do YOUR workout, not his.

I had exactly ONE class from a guy like you talk about. He talked through the whole class, telling us how we should be trying harder, then dropped the name of a local hill that is NOT that hard (for locals, it's co. 159 up to Mariaville) and telling us about how hard it was and how he had to stop and get off his bike and almost puked, etc. I finally got tired of this, spoke up, and asked him if he'd done Putnam? Crawford? Ennis? Sterling? Cass Hill? How 'bout West Mountain? Lake Desolation? He knew where they were and the answer was no and he got real testy in the middle of class. What a poser.

I made a mental note and made sure to avoid him in the future.

BBD

[mflaherty37]

I always did fart too much for indoors...

[KeithS]

Peter P. Queried

I never heard of spin classes where you bring your own bike and set it up on a trainer, let alone bring your own rollers. Clue me in on these.

In the frozen north we don't get our fancy road bikes outside for a couple of months. Spiderman is in IA and I'm in MN. Very common here in my area, not much else happening in a bike shop anyway when they are predicting a foot of snow. My Fierte hangs on a hook with it's pretty orange training tire until about April 1 or so. I spin at the shop 3 days a week. Coach Troy gets a bit stale, the 4th or 5th time through, but it was about 9 degrees out when I left there, cooling down is efficient at least...

Did a virtual 20 mile ride this evening on a Kurt Kinetic.

[ThasFACE]

I had exactly ONE class from a guy like you talk about. He talked through the whole class, telling us how we should be trying harder, then dropped the name of a local hill that is NOT that hard

That is precisely the kind of experience that I usually have. Way too much talking, way too much 'encouragement,' and definitely way too much poseur posturing. Unfortunately it seems like most of the instructors that come through my gym are of this ilk (some are pretty good, though). Makes me think that I should change gyms.

That said, I wonder whether, as cyclists, we are overly sensitive to this kind of crap instruction. I sort of get the feeling that many people in spin class benefit from non-stop instruction/'encouragement'/posturing/whatever, which means that the offending instructors are probably not likely to adjust their behavior any time soon.

Either way, I often find myself very annoyed in spin class. Thankfully there are usually quite a few lovely distractions in the class with me...

[Bruce K]

I guess I'm lucky.

The gym I go to has 20 spin bikes and usually half of any spin classs is populated with some of the people that I ride with or who ride with our club.

Most of the instructors fall into that category as well.

Since all the instructors have had the same classes for well over a year now we all know who teaches in what style so you know what you are going to get both effort and communication -wise each night.

Also, most of the plans are based around work-outs produced by a local cycling coach and aren't just Johnny G specials.

We actually have a lot of fun and there is even some good natured trash talk on occassion.

The rest of the women and men in the classes don't seem to mind the antics when they occur so all is pretty good.

BK

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . I wonder whether, as cyclists, we are overly sensitive to this kind of crap instruction. I sort of get the feeling that many people in spin class benefit from non-stop instruction/'encouragement'/posturing/whatever, which means that the offending instructors are probably not likely to adjust their behavior any time soon.

. . . that many do need "encouragement" but this guy was just obviously condescending. Others noticed, too.

At the lbs where I go we have one lady instructor who make second half of class "clothing optional" and she has been known to go to offending male spinners and strip off their shirt while they are pedaling if they don't cooperate. Funny as h*ll! Another lady has "strip sprints"--she rotates the sprints around the room and after you do your sprint you have to strip off one layer of, well, whatever you have on. Also fun! but unfortunately she won't be leading this winter--pregnant and due in April!

BBD

[djg]

So like this one time ... in spin class ...

I was chatting with a spin instructor who wasn't really familiar with rollers in a downtown gym -- the guy seemed fascinated so I brought them in. Spent a whole class riding the rollers and nobody seemed to mind. I didn't do the little popcorn jumps, but then again, I don't do them anyway.

I thought spin class etiquette had mainly to do with not staring at abbreviated jog bras on one's fellow (but not fellas) spinners. Plus, I eschew white bibs.

[ThasFACE]

Another lady has "strip sprints"--she rotates the sprints around the room and after you do your sprint you have to strip off one layer of, well, whatever you have on.

Hmmm, I think that I might put up with a little bit of bad instruction if the spin instructors at my gym did this...

[sspielman]

Hmmm, I think that I might put up with a little bit of bad instruction if the spin instructors at my gym did this...
+1...boing!

[spiderman]

Ettiquette? Forget it, you are just being social and adding some spice to your routine. I'd reckon your class appreciated what you are all about. Fuggetaboutit you are fine. Keep having fun.

there's more going on in a class like this than i ever imagined.
i think i made the rollers look more difficult than they really are
and the consensus was that i was working harder than everyone else...
i do have to admit
it was the quickest, most enjoyable hour on the rollers
i've ever had!

[Peter P.]

we aren't that advanced in connecticut it seems...

btw, where the hell is meriden compared to greenwich ct?


Meriden is just about smack dab in the center of the state. I-91 North splits the town in two. It's northeast of that "trailer park" you call Greenwich ;-)

By the way, you planning to go to the grand opening of the Signature Cycles boutique in Greenwich tomorrow?