Colin Irving set out to bring a little more fun to indoor cycling.
A longtime competitive cyclist who had to train indoors during grim northern winters, he was bored on traditional Spinning and other indoor bikes. They didn't feel like an outdoor ride because the handlebars didn't move. He couldn't simulate curving mountain climbs and the full-body engagement he felt while riding outside. He wanted something better. He wanted something fun.
"Even when training was hard, I loved riding my bike outside," he said. "But it got to a point where it was so hard to get motivated to ride on my stationary bike for training."
Fast forward more than a decade (and countless sketches on cocktail napkins) later, and Real Ryder indoor bikes are no longer just an idea in Colin's head. The bikes are slowly but surely taking root in cycling studios and gyms from North America to Europe, challenging riders with a 5-in-1 workout that targets not just legs but core and upper body while torching calories (up to 400 more than in a traditional Spinning class!).
On Thursday, Tallahassee's first and only RealRyder studio opens in Midtown with 10 days of free rides from dawn till evening. I will be teaching there, and in training on them I've learned firsthand how much fun and challenging the RealRyder is compared to other indoor bikes.
Half an hour on the RealRyder feels like an hour on a traditional Spinning bike, yet the time flies by. They are Badass bikes, for sure.
This weekend, in anticipation of the studio opening, I called up Colin in California where RealRyder is headquartered to get the inside scoop on how the new revolution in indoor cycling came to be.
Check it out:
Tell me how this all started. Why create a new indoor bike?
I raced bikes for most of my young and adult life, and that was really what drove me forward. My motivation was really just trying to create something fun.
I've always felt there is more to cycling than pedaling. To me the stationary bike is essentially a pedaling machine. And to me we have created a riding machine. My principal goal was to make something that was more fun and emotionally engaging. That was what I felt was the limitation of a Spinning bike and really all stationary bikes. But as soon as I started putting my business plan into words, ultimately I don't think you can separate the fun and engagement factor from the beneficial and physical advantages factor.
There's a lot of things out there that are good for us physically, but we don't do them for long or very often because they aren't fun. And to me, riding a bike is inherently fun. From childhood up, when you teach a kid to ride a bike, they become obsessed with it. Whether it's competitive or recreational, there is something very compelling about balancing and steering a bike. You take the training wheels off, and that first ride is rough but they hone their skills. They learn to ride smooth, they learn to steer and balance, and before long they can stand up and ride.
Did you anticipate the physical benefits of the RealRyder compared to stationary indoor bikes? Because that full-body workout is very appealing, I think.
I knew it would be a great workout tool, and I knew the stationary bike didn't really prepare me for riding outside. Stationary bikes don't really address the full range of what's required to be a good cyclist or athlete or even a good recreational rider. It's very good for lower-body strength and conditioning, but riding a bike outdoors is a full-body workout.
It's harder to stand up and be in control on a RealRyder than it is on a regular indoor bike. You need to be focused and engaged, and you have to coordinate and sync your upper and lower body. And your core either has to be strong, or it has to be coordinated with your upper and lower body. A huge milestone for me was that moment when I realized I had sort of mastered the RealRyder. I could ride it and stand up and lean it, and it felt very enjoyable. But I can also work so much harder on this bike and burn so many more calories. You can completely control how much and how hard you work.
How long did it take you to create the RealRyder?
Not very long once we started working with engineers. But I had the idea floating around in my head for about 15 years. It just didn't occur to me to pursue it aggressively because I'm not an engineer at all. I had a ton of sketches. I'd write down descriptions to try and hone in on what I was trying to do. My sketches were literally cocktail napkins or sketches on a ripped-out page from an old training log.
I met the right person at the right time, and that was four years ago when I met Sean Harrington. We were both rehabbing from some sports injuuries at a fitness club. He told me he had designed a few stationary bikes. We just hit it off, and a week later we were having coffee and we really started. ...That first prototype took a month to assemble and cost a few hundred dollars in old bike parts.
The next one was basically a Spinning bike mounted on a series of perches and pivot points. That's the one we showed to people. We would invite people to ride in my garage. And that was the one we used to really see if it was real and would have market appeal, versus being something just for me. That was the real test. I knew cyclists like me would like it, but I needed to see if it would work in the fitness market and for non-competitive cyclists.
So how many RealRyders are out there now?
A year ago we had broken 1,000, and so we're probably at 4,000 or 5,000 now. They're really kind of popping up all over. Sales are steadily going up. North America is definitely our No. 1 market, and Canada is a close second. Italy is our third-largest market. I really think this is probably the big push year for us. Not everyone gets it and is willing to take a chance on a new piece of equipment, and that is particularly true in the fitness industry. I think there are people buying them now who loved the concept two years ago and now they have seen us weather the startup and continue to sell.
There you have it, Badasses, the Real story behind the RealRyders. And if you're not in Tallahassee, check out the RealRyder site for a list of fitness facilities that offer the bikes.
Coming tomorrow: A few of the Badass CEO's latest favorites...Even Oprah would aprove!