Report: Peloton will have rowing classes with members in-studio, and still plans to have at least some rowing classes on app

Forbes has published an article about Peloton instructor Ash Pryor that also contains some interesting information about what is to come for rowing at Peloton.

First, Peloton plans to open up rowing classes to in-person participants at the Peloton studios. Though Peloton celebrated the grand reopening of Peloton Studios New York (PSNY) in August of 2022, rowing classes have never had in-studio members. Live rowing classes only launched earlier this year, and have exclusively been offered in the coach-to-camera format.

However, the Forbes piece mentions that Peloton “hopes to invite members into the studio for live classes soon.” The potential timeline for this is currently unclear, as Peloton has not made any announcements regarding the matter. It is also worth noting that rowing and strength content are filmed within the same studio at PSNY. Thursday through Monday strength classes do have participants in-person, but the studio is small – so there are only eight spots for strength members. Considering the size of the rower and the potential lift involved with moving devices in and out of the studio, there may be even less spaces for a live rowing class.

As a reminder, rowing is currently only filmed from PSNY – not at Peloton Studios London (PSL).

In addition, Forbes reinforces that at least some rowing classes will be added to the app. Currently rowing content is only accessible for those who own the Row – the classes cannot be taken or even viewed via the app or web browser. Forbes states:

While rowing content is only available to those who have a Peloton Row right now, the company does have plans to share classes for app users at some point in the future.

Note that while they do not say a “limited” number of classes, it is not clear if this was just lost in translation for the article. Previous statements from Peloton talk about releasing a small number of classes to the app – not the entire rowing library.

As a refresher, when the Peloton Row was finally launched and began its presale phase in September of 2022, Peloton shared that rowing classes would be locked to Row owners at launch. In replies to social media comments, Peloton stated that the full catalog of Peloton rowing content would be locked to Row owners, and that existing members would only be given a small selection of classes to take on other rowing devices. Even as the rower started shipping in November, Peloton did not share any information about if and when the content would become available to members who don’t own the Row. However, a Peloton product designer confirmed in a Reddit “ask me anything” thread in December that rowing classes will eventually be available on the Peloton App.

At this point it is likely that Peloton is waiting for the new app tiers to launch before they add rowing content, as it could make up some of the locked & premium content (at a higher cost) that will not be available to all levels of users.

Lastly, Ash reveals to Forbes that she was recruited to Peloton via direct message:

The instructor vetting process is lengthy and intense. When Peloton direct messaged Pryor to let her know they were looking for row instructors (yes, that’s how she was recruited to her role,) she first had to confirm it was not spam. From there, the interview process was intense. She sent in videos, flew back and forth from Ohio to New York to audition in person, a process that continued for months before landing her role on one of the biggest fitness platforms in the world.

Ash also shared how much she values the live classes at Peloton:

“I have loved the live classes. I’m a different instructor when I’m live,” Pryor said. “Seeing those names on the leaderboard, especially in my 6 a.m. classes, is thrilling. I love rowing because you can find it at any age. It’s for everyone. Grandma’s rowing. Auntie is rowing. Family means a lot to me.”

We will share more information about in-studio rowing opportunities and the release of Peloton rowing classes to the app as they become available.

You can read the full write-up on Ash Pryor via Forbes.


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Katie Weicher
Katie Weicher is a writer for Pelo Buddy. She purchased her Peloton Bike in 2016 and has been riding, strength training, and yoga flowing ever since. You can find her on the leaderboard at #kweich.

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