SobbaCycle riders pedal at home

When SobbaCycle was forced to shut its doors due to the coronavirus outbreak, owner Perrey Sobba decided to bring the classes to her riders’ homes.

Since closing on March 16, SobbaCycle has moved its fleet of spin bikes from the studio into the homes of its riders, renting out all 24 of the Whitefish studio’s bikes and another dozen from the Missoula studio.

Each morning, the riders get a prerecorded video class, led by Sobba or Marlow Schulz, the main instructor at the Missoula location and another Whitefish native.

While at first Sobba said she wasn’t keen on the idea of renting out her bikes, the decision came easier as time moved on.

“That was something that as we were closing we had a couple people be like, ‘Oh my God, can I take a bike home?’ At first it didn’t feel right to me, it was something I quite frankly struggled with,” she said. “So much of what we do is beyond the bike, it’s about coming together and having a shared experience. Then it became more and more apparent that this situation was going to continue on longer than we maybe anticipated.”

“The response was really incredible,” she added. “People were really grateful to have a bike at home, have an outlet and just stay connected.”

SobbaCycle opened on the corner of First Street and Baker Avenue in 2018 and regularly hosted 25 to 30 classes per week. The Missoula location opened last year.

Closing shop was not an easy decision to make either, Sobba said, but one made in the name of safety.

“At the end of the day the health and safety of our staff, riders and community is of utmost importance. It got to the point that if we kept the doors open, people were going to come and ride,” Sobba said. “While we want to provide that physical space for people during this crazy time, it got to a point where it didn’t feel safe anymore.”

It’s been necessary to adapt to a new situation, Sobba said, but that doesn’t mean things have been easy.

For one, hosting video classes was its own adventure.

“It’s been a learning process, since we are not a digital production company,” Sobba said. “So it’s been a little homemade.”

But outside of the technical details, Sobba said there’s something inherently different about leading a class versus a camera.

While she provides energy during her classes, she said she also relies on the energy she’s getting back from her riders.

“It’s been quite an adjustment in the fact that you don’t realize how much energy you get from other people in the room,” she said. “Teaching to a completely empty room has required us to dig pretty deep. It’s emotionally exhausting. You want to be able to give that experience without physically getting anything in return.”

The move to a virtual space has been helpful for a business that relies heavily on membership as well as drop-in traffic during the summer, Sobba said, noting the income from renting bikes has been a needed bump in this downtime.

The online classes aren’t restricted to those with a SobbaCycle bike, either. Sobba says the prerecorded classes are available as part of a monthly subscription plan or an a la carte, pick-and-choose option.

Classes are available at www.sobbacycle.com.

In difficult times, Sobba stresses the importance of exercise, whether it’s led by her or any other fitness professional.

The key, she said, is to move.

“I think movement is just crucial now more than ever. I think for anyone and everyone, just trying to find a little time in the day to move your body to get outside, get some fresh air and just sweat a little — for me it’s meditative and a way to reset,” Sobba said. “I think a lot of us being at home more than normal is causing us to be more sedentary. Whatever way you can find that movement, there’s so much content out there on the internet.”

Montana is a good place to weather this storm, she added.

“I think we’re all feeling grateful to be in a place like Montana where we have a little more space and fresh air and not go too crazy during the quarantine,” she said. “We’ll keep pedaling away until we see an end in sight.”