Update:
For $125 a month unlimited, I get my money's worth here. I'm in love with this place. I took my first class ever with Annette, and her class is a challenge, so initially, her class was not for me. I just took her class again on 10/17, and now that I'm strong, I LOVED IT! Highly recommend checking her out.
Mark Wilson is still my favorite. He plays the best music, teaches a challenging class, and has a terrific personal style. I also enjoy the class of Lori Margolis who was trained by Mark. I took a Saturday class substituted by I think Kim Hutchings.
I've been spinning at Pedal South Pasadena for seven months. I love it more all the time.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
I drove by Pedal Spin Studio in South Pasadena every day from the day it opened because it's on my route to (and naturally from) work. I tried spinning for the first time about 15 years ago and enjoyed it.
A midlife crisis and their $69 unlimited month introductory offer finally got me in. My first class ever was a Saturday 10:15 with Nakia. I'm glad she was my first instructor. She's terrific. She challenges first timers, for sure, but in a positive way.
I'm a teacher, so I have to be at work early and I'm wrecked at the end of my day. My workouts have to be in the morning, so I'm thrilled Pedal has a 5:30 a.m. class. The first time I was able to get myself up for one it was a Thursday and Annette was the teacher. She had us do a visualization and the theme was escaping something negative that was chasing us. That is one style of class and I'm sure it's what some people respond to. I didn't care for it personally, though I got a terrific workout and she is excellent at what she does.
Best for last. Mark Wilson. Not only do I love his music selections, he gives us inspirational talks at the beginning and end of class, has us cheer for newcomers and keep-coming-backers, and makes you feel like part of a special club (but not an exclusive club, because we're all welcome -- and a club that plays fun music). Mark's 5:30 a.m. class is my favorite. It sets me up for a terrific day and gives me a great workout. He has corrected my form for me and adjusted my bike mid-class. I feel like I can work at my own pace without being called out, but he will say something to the whole class like, "Find the beat," or "Some of you need to add road, I'm not mentioning names," and it's just the right amount of push for me. I don't like instructors to be bullying, but I don't want to feel like they don't see me as an individual student who needs feedback either. I like Mark's approach. I know he'll let me know if something's wrong, but I know that he'll let me go at my pace. He has tons of regulars, which is a testament to a terrific instructor.
Friday morning, 5:15 a.m., I'd just woken up. I was getting dressed for class and thisclose to talking myself back into crawling back in bed. Then, I remembered Mark's Sermon from Sunday Brunch class the week before. He said when you miss a class, it's easy to miss another, and once you miss a couple, then it's easy to miss more. He gave the example of someone who did just that. As a teacher myself, I love when students tell me something I said or did that affected them positively. I hope Mark reads this. Those words were exactly what I needed to hear and they've stuck with me. Ten minutes later, I was on that bike!
Everything else I have to say has been said by everyone. The studio is wonderfully clean, the bikes are great, the staff is helpful, friendly, and welcoming, the towels are perfect and come with the class, the water is icy cold. The parking sucks. I love Pedal Spin! My sister lives in Glendale and goes to the Montrose location, but she's heard me rave about Mark's class so much, she's coming with me to Sunday Brunch this weekend. I have neglected to tell her there will be no crepes or mimosas. read more