Bill Stevenson
August 15, 2018 17:26
I started at CycleBar as soon as it opened in the spring of 2016. The studio was well maintained, always clean, the instructors were terrific, and the entire team always had a positive vibe and were in a word, extraordinary! There was a feeling that everybody was joyful and proud about their association with CB Easton. I am a fitness member at a big box gym that also offers studio cycling throughout the week and I still felt that CB was worth the additional costs because everything about it was awesome.
Fast forward two and a half years and things have changed quite a bit. The studio isn't as clean as it could be, and certainly not like it used to be. I seldom feel welcome there unless I am greeted by one the original instructors or a couple of the newer ones. There are days when the front desk staff don't even raise their heads to acknowledge I have walked through the front door (I've seen it happen to others as well). The length of each class was quietly reduced from 50 to 45 minutes with no reduction in price nor an explanation of the benefit of the change. I know, you're thinking five minutes is no big deal, but if the instructor starts late and/or ends a little early it becomes a big deal. I've had rides where we were only active for 40 minutes. One of the instructors whose classes I took the most, because he aligned best with my schedule, was fired to the sadness of many of the riders and the shock of the other instructors. One of the four changing rooms is now used for storage which at times creates a unnecessary wait. The towels provided on the bikes weren't always completely dry. There just doesn't seem to be the customer centered energy that won me over originally. To use the words of a former rider at CB Easton, it just doesn't have that premium feel that it did when it opened.
Please don't think this is just a casual critique. I don't know my exact ride count, but it is between 220 and 240. I was the first rider to reach 100 rides (I'm not offering that to pat myself on the back, but rather to illustrate that at one point I had a great deal of enthusiasm for CB Easton). Also, I am certain that I left rides on the table from a 100-ride package that had a one-year expiration date. A year should've been ample time to use them, but I just couldn't force myself to drive there for something that wasn't as good as it used to be. And besides, rides shouldn't expire. They give away hundreds, if not thousands of free rides to new riders, but a rider who pays for rides has to deal with an expiration date?
I'm not one to leave negative reviews, but I received an email yesterday asking me to leave a review with the inaccurate assumption that because I was an unlimited rider the review would be 5-stars. When I responded and said if they wanted to know why I left I would be happy to speak with them. They were sorry to hear that I had cancelled, that they always want the utmost for their riders, and if I ever wanted to rejoin their family they would love to have me. Why would I rejoin if you didn't care why I really left? To Christina, Lacie, Megan and Gabby, none this is a reflection on you. Your bring it every time I have taken your classes!! Everyone appreciates that you don't phone it in!