What you wish you knew when your Peloton® Bike or Bike+ got delivered
Getting a Peloton® Bike or Bike+ delivered can be a life changing experience. It can also be stressful with lots of options and tons to learn. Here we’ll discuss some topics that first time riders should know after their bike has been delivered that most people don’t discuss.
Like leaving the hospital after having your first child, the moment that the delivery person leaves you with your new bike can be extremely stressful. It’s all in your hands now and no professionals are left to help out.
In many large cities, the Peloton® delivery staff will help you get setup which can be extremely helpful. However, in less populated areas Peloton® uses 3rd party companies to deliver their bikes, and the delivery of your bike is simply a delivery leaving some of us with tons of questions like how do these shoes work? How do you find the correct the seat and handlebar adjustment settings? Should it be this hard to clip in? The list goes on. Here we'll cover some of the most helpful items for new Peloton® Bike riders so you’re not alone.
First Steps for a New Peloton® Bike/Bike+ Owner
- Check Everything
- Shoes and Clipping in Basics
- Seat and Handlebar Setup
- A Little Pain in the Saddle
- Get a fan!
Check Everything
The delivery person has left your place. What do you do now? First things first. Look over everything. Look around the bike and get familiar it. Check out all the ways that you can move and adjust things. It’s also important to check to ensure that the bike was not damaged when it was assembled and delivered. My own bike had the monitor damaged on the edges when it hit a doorframe during delivery, and the bar holding my monitor was cut deeply with a razor knife when the builders were removing the bubble wrap from the parts. If you don’t find these things immediately, you could have issues getting Peloton® to help you solve them. Luckily for me, I saw them quickly and Peloton® sent replacement parts and an installer to fix them.
Many people find that some bolts are loose and components on the bike move during the initial ride. Could this really be an issue with a new bike? Yes, even with a great company like Peloton®. This is especially true when the bike is delivered by a 3rd party. Luckily, a toolkit is supplied with every bike that includes all the wrenches needed, and all bolts are easy to find and tighten.
It may seem crazy, but the best thing to do is to check all the bolts to make sure they’re tight. There are many benefits here. You'll get to know your bike better and you'll have peace of mind that it will work well and was not damaged in delivery.
Shoes and Clipping in Basics
Now that your bike is all tightened up and ready to use, you need to understand the shoes. In a future post we'll cover more details about clipping in and out, how it works, and why you do it. For now, lets discuss how to ensure you can clip in and out safely. We’ll assume you have your clips installed on your shoes, properly tightened and you're ready to ride. The first thing that most people notice is how hard it can be to clip in and out of the pedals. The main reason for this is that Peloton® sends bikes out with the pedal tension set verrryyy tight from the factory. We find that this tight setting can make learning to clip in/out difficult for new riders, especially those who are smaller or lighter weight.
Is the tension adjustable? Yes it is! Peloton® sends a small Allen wrench in the tools with the bike that can be used to adjust the tension on the clip. This is not a setting that has a specification and some level of testing is required to dial in your preference. Loosen the adjustment screw on the bottom of the clip ¼ turn at a time and clip in and out each time that you make the adjustment.
The mechanism should be tight enough that your foot never comes out of the clip while riding but loose enough that it isn’t hard to clip into the pedals. Your body weight should easily pop the cleat into the pedal when you stand on the pedal. You’ll find a dramatically improved experience and less likelihood of hurting yourself once this is adjusted properly.
Seat and Handlebar Setup
Next, you’ll find that Peloton® has done a great job with walking you through the basic seat and handlebar setup the first time you login to your bike. You’ll be greeted with a few videos to help you get many of your settings close for your first ride. Your seat height, handlebar height and seat position can all be adjusted to fit your needs. It’s important to note that the videos are just a rough starting point. These seem to get the seat height close but the handlebar height and seat position forward and back may need adjustment as you complete your first few rides. Continue to adjust this as you ride to ensure your comfort. Getting these adjustments right is critical to both your overall success on the bike and to your health.
A Little Pain in the Saddle
When we discuss comfort, its important to discuss the seat. Peloton® has a great bike seat, or "saddle" (experienced cycler talk), for starting out. This seat can work for many riders but it would be expected that it may not work for all. At the same time, it's expected that some “fatigue” will occur in your nether regions as you begin to ride more and more. The bike is fantastic and can drive you to quickly outpace your body's ability to deal with the "fatigue". Getting used to riding will take some time and the “fatigue” will tend to subside for most over a few weeks. This is normal and in almost all riders it goes away. A few options exist if you find that the original seat is just too uncomfortable. After all, it would be a shame to stop using this amazing tool because of the seat. First, you can look into a reputable pair of bike shorts. Many nice boke shorts will have pads in the seat of the shorts to help with fatigue. The next option is to just add a seat cover. A seat cover is a simple add-on. Many have gel in them and can be quite comfortable. Finally, you could swap the seat itself. The seat mount is designed the same as any bike seat and can simply be switched out. These seem like simple changes but they can make a huge difference in your experience.
Get a Fan!
This topic seems pretty straightforward, but it's definitely worth bringing up. Fans can make a huge difference when riding. Without the wind, it's amazing how much your body begins to sweat even in your climate controlled house. After my first ride I messaged a friend and celebrated but also called my bike the sweat machine. This is a testament to the work the bike is doing in your body but also illustrates the need for something to help keep you cool. As you look at fans it's important to keep your space, ease of access and amount of airflow in mind. The VeloQuip dual fan kit covers all these bases and more.
VeloQuip Peloton Bike/Bike+ Dual Fan Kit
We truly hope this post helps you in your journey and look forward to seeing you on the leaderboard!
