The Cycling Pigeon, located on Eagle Rock Boulevard, was created out of Coco Fausone-Wilson’s wish to open a studio that went against the edginess of spin culture, Fausone-Wilson said.
According to Fausone-Wilson, The Cycling Pigeon is named for the Pigeon pose in yoga, which is one of the two primary classes offered, alongside cycling sessions. The studio has also started offering mobility and strength classes, Fausone-Wilson said.
“People have an idea of spin in their mind, and what we offer is so different from that,” Fausone-Wilson said. “There’s a very aggressive part of spin, but there’s also this really great opportunity to cleanse stressors out of your mind and your body.”
Eloise Sundal (senior) said she worked at the Cycling Pigeon and that a big draw for the studio is their outdoor cycling classes.
“It’s nice to work out outside, because sometimes it feels like you’re at work all day staring at a screen, and then you go to the gym to lift and you’re still inside, and then you leave and it’s sunset,” Sundal said. “[Outdoor cycling is] a really cool way to work out.”
Fausone-Wilson said The Cycling Pigeon’s outdoor cycling classes started during COVID-19, but grew so popular that the studio decided to keep the classes going.
“We have this faux grass, this amazing covering and our parking lot is private,” Fausone-Wilson said. “When you walk through the gates, you step into this oasis studio. It became such a vibe that it was something on its own — it wasn’t just a temporary fix until we got back inside.”
Sundal said Fausone-Wilson’s husband and daughter both taught classes at the studio, contributing to the familial feeling.
“I worked at the front desk, and [I] was just building connections with the people who went there,” Sundal said. “Coco truly knows everyone who comes in the door, so it doesn’t feel like a big chain.”
Yoga instructor and psychology professor Zachary Silver said the clientele of the Cycling Pigeon feels more like a big family working out together than people who just showed up for a workout class. Silver said he loves his Occidental community, but also feels a draw to the greater LA area.
“To be in a space like [the Cycling Pigeon], where people are coming from all over the city in hopes of investing in their physical and mental wellness — and being able to support that — is something that feels really great to me,” Silver said.
Silver said he uses his experience teaching psychology at Occidental to improve his yoga instruction.
“I think that [my psychological experience is] something that is relatively unique within the space of a yoga studio,” Silver said. “I think of my yoga practice as being very scientifically driven, and I share that with people when we’re on the mat. I talk about the ways how we breathe and how we think can influence how we feel.”
According to Sundal, classes at the Cycling Pigeon emphasize progress, not perfection.
“Wherever you’re at fitness-wise, you’re not going to be judged for it. There’s an acceptance that we’re all doing the best we can rather than having a really intense view of how you need to work out,” Sundal said. “It’s not going to be easy all the time, but you’re going to have people around you, supporting you, […] and it definitely makes people happier, moving their body every day.”
Sundal said she organized a collaboration with her sorority, Alpha Lambda Phi Alpha, for sorority members to take a class with Fausone-Wilson.
“We’re in such a unique location and time in our lives to explore Eagle Rock, and so having a place that’s a five minute walk from campus was a really cool collaboration opportunity,” Sundal said.
Fausone-Wilson said growing up in the Silver Lake and Echo Park area has made her want to emphasize neighborhood outreach in her business. According to Fausone-Wilson, she remembers Eagle Rock as an empty strip with few businesses.
“It’s definitely a part of my upbringing to be on the Eastside,” Fausone-Wilson said. “I’m really thankful that I get to contribute to the shops and stores that are here. It’s sad when [neighborhoods] transform and there’s nobody local that’s holding it down.”
Contact Quinn Sumerlin at sumerlin@oxy.edu
