A Closer Look at RINSE CYCLE

Ask anyone who frequents local fitness studio RINSE CYCLE and you’ll find that people go pretty far on these bikes that go nowhere. I had the chance to talk to RINSE CYCLE owner, Kari Coffindaffer all about RINSE.

What is RINSE CYCLE?

RINSE CYCLE is an independently owned indoor cycling studio based out of Dayton, Ohio. A schedule of rides is published each week on their website and app. To sign up for a class, you first purchase either a single ride pass or any number of ride package options. You don’t need special shoes to ride at RINSE, and there’s no reason to dress to impress – the room stays dark lit mostly by candlelight. RINSE CYCLE features great music, no mirrors, and no metrics. There’s also no weight loss talk, and no mention of calories or fat burning. Strength is the focus of the ride.

“We hope people leave feeling strong because of the connection they have built within themselves,” explains Kari.

How RINSE got started

RINSE owner, Kari Coffindaffer, was a student athlete through college and an avid runner afterward. “Movement was always my outlet,” explains Kari. “It was my safe space for me to feel like myself, and the best possible version of myself that day.” Years of sports and running took their toll, however, and after six orthopedic surgeries, her doctor cautioned her that it might be time to find a lower impact activity.

Remembering how much she enjoyed cycling classes while living in Cincinnati, Kari tried to find a similar type of studio cycling environment in Dayton but came up empty handed. “I kept thinking someone should open something like this and then it turned into ‘I should open it,’” explains Kari. Around this time, she was unexpectedly let go from her job, and feeling heartbroken, she went on a run to clear her mind. She did, in fact, experience a moment of clarity and rushed back home to sit down and write out her vision for what would become RINSE CYCLE.

“I wanted people to also have that safe space where they could move with confidence and, if they wanted to, they could also use it as a time of connection, process, and healing,” explains Kari.

RINSE’s history

In February 2017, RINSE CYCLE got its start in a garage. Kari didn’t have a space yet for her brand new cycling studio, but a stationary bicycle manufacturer offered her a deal she couldn’t pass up. By March, she was filling up these garage rides, pop up rides around town, and had the opportunity to take over a space in the Fire Blocks District. “I didn’t need perfect, I just needed to keep going,” explains Kari.

For nine months, Dayton locals sweated it out in the Fire Blocks while Kari’s gym grew from 11 bikes and 1 instructor to 26 bikes and 5 instructors. After moving into their Midtown space on South Patterson in June 2018, RINSE settled into its permanent spot, hitting its stride with loyal cycling enthusiasts filling out its weekly scheduled rides.

Of course, Covid caused this and nearly every other business to tap the brakes. Kari and the RINSE Crew pivoted by renting the bikes out to homes around Dayton and launching an on-demand subscription fitness channel. Since Covid has become less prominent, things have gone much closer to normal, with all the bikes and riders back in the studio.

Reflecting on RINSE

At RINSE, Kari and her team of instructors encourage riders to go a little faster and try a little harder than they did last time. “I love to push limits and watch people do things they couldn’t have pictured themselves being able to do,” explains Kari. “It is absolute magic and fills me up in the biggest way.”

Owning a successful business is another way to push your limits, and Kari offers this advice: “Starting something like this can’t be completely about what you provide to other people. It has to be about what it gives to you and what it means to you. When things get hard, you still have you. Oh, and get a therapist. You can’t go professionally where you are unwilling to go personally. The way you care for your business is capped at your ability to care for yourself.”

RINSE CYCLE CLUB

Dayton

760 S Patterson Blvd, Dayton, OH 45402