ABU DHABI // For sport and recreational riders, spending hours outside in the heat seems so uninviting that they feel the only option is to cycle indoors.
“The fact that you are indoors and you can do one hour of cycling could be appealing to a lot of people,” said Peter Pastijn, 41, co-owner of The Room at Zayed Sports City, where core business is The Cycling Room, a place where long-distance cyclists meet indoor cyclists in Abu Dhabi.
“I’m originally from Belgium, the land of cycling, where The Cycling Room was born,” he said.
A spinning master instructor, former professional squash player and Belgian national squash team coach, Mr Pastijn imported the cycling tradition from Belgium.
“The Cycling Room is a brand my wife and I created about five years ago,” he said. “I used to be a professional athlete and use a stationary bike as a complement to my training. We came up with the idea of making a community place where people of different levels can train.”
Spinning is an indoor cycling brand, he said, while The Cycle Room is home to spinning classes. He has been into spinning for the past 19 years.
“It’s a place where people meet and ride their bikes,” he said. “A lot of people who don’t cycle outside will start with spinning. But a year and a half later, they know so much about cycling they will buy a bike and start riding outside.”
The Cycling Room studio can accommodate 26 people, including the instructor. It started out with 15 classes a week a year ago, and now has 18.
“We teach them about safety, how to set up a bike, and basic techniques – breathing and pedalling,” he said. “If your bike set-up is wrong, you will damage your joints, and you will be injured.
“One also needs to be taught how to pedal because a lot of people speed up so fast but are not burning anything.”
On September 20, 110 “riders” took part in the second international spinning marathon, six hours of non-stop exercise.
Individuals register for the entire six hours of riding or participate as a team and share a bike.
The first event was held in June, with 95 riders.
“Abu Dhabi can become more cyclist-friendly,” Mr Pastijn said. “Some months of the year riding outside is tough. But there is a nice cycling path in Al Wathba. The good thing about Abu Dhabi is that they could make pretty much anything happen. It has made cycling accessible to people so it’s one of the reasons why we decided to come here.”
The new 16-kilometre Al Wathba Cycle Track hosted its first competitive event for amateur cyclists on August 16. The loop track will be extended to include an additional 100km of pathway.
"If Abu Dhabi is to invest in anything to make it cycling friendly – although it's nice to have tracks like Yas Marina Circuit or Al Wathba – it would be nice to have dedicated cycle paths more," he said.
“How do we create an awareness for cyclists and their safety?” Mr Pastijn said. “In Belgium, the cycling tradition has been there forever. The weather in the UAE is a factor that prevents people from riding more often. But I am confident Abu Dhabi will find a way to offer everything – including cycle paths and other facilities – to its residents.”
rruiz@thenational.ae
