Little help here!
Peloton says woman too short to ride
Peloton is coming up short. Pamela Rae Schuller, an Upper East Side comedian, says she had to abandon plans to purchase the popular exercise bike after the company informed her she was too small for its product.
Schuller, who stands 4-foot-6, received an e-mail from a company rep in October saying that Peloton bikes’ minimum height requirement is 4 feet, 11 inches.
“Even in heels, I don’t think I can make that work,” said Schuller, 35. “I just want to ride a Peloton without my little legs dangling.”
In their missive, a company rep identified only as Shantee thanked Schuller for “being an important part of Peloton” and wished her “the best of luck” on her future fitness goals. “You are too short to use our product, but thanks for being a part of our community. Even though you are not included,” Schuller scoffed in a tweeted response. The fitness giant, which reported $1.8 billion in revenues last year off its $1,895 videomounted, trainer-facilitated exercise bikes, has exploded in popularity during the pandemic.
It now has more than 1 million subscribers.
“I don’t want to cancel Peloton. I want to grow with them and partner with them,” Schuller said. “They are the industry standard and, if they did more with accessibility, other companies would follow and we would all benefit.”
Schuller, who does not have dwarfism but says she “forgot to grow,” has long found ways to manage and mitigate living in a world of taller people. Her apartment has six step stools to help her with things like reaching her microwave and the cabinets above the sink.
She can get around on the subway OK, although on crowded trains strangers will occasionally use her head as an arm rest. “I do wish they would create turnstiles that don’t hit my boobs,” she added.
In a statement, Peloton told The Post it is “committed to the research and development of new features that enhance accessibility to all of our products and platforms.” The company has been around since 2012.
“This world is not accommodated to us,” lamented Michelle Kraus of Little People of America, citing clothes, furniture and cars that present unique challenges.
Kraus said that while the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 covered basics like prohibiting employment discrimination and gaining equal access to public spaces, smaller people are on their own for many of the daily workarounds required to live their lives. Smaller people who want to drive typically use pedal extensions.
“You can’t go to Toyota saying you have to make a car that is specially designed for us,” Kraus said. “That is not a reasonable ask.”