Peloton remembers tape and tape + tape machines After dozens injured, 1 child dies

“We’ve heard of children with tape-related injuries before, but many of them have to do with acceleration. This is different, ”CPSC Communications Director Joe Martya told WIRED. “I want to emphasize that our technical assessments continue, but some of the factors that appear are that there is only one belt on the list, the lack of protection at the back and the large gap under the motor belt.”

Peloton declined to comment on specific Tread + tape design elements, asked us frequently asked questions posted on its website, and included the following statement: “We are working to make changes to the Tread + reminder to address adult risk. users, children and pets are thrown under the Tape Motor and suffer serious injuries or death. “

The company said it will offer a full refund to any Tread or Tread + customers who request it, and has also offered to take the type of tape to another (supposedly safer) place in the customer’s home.

Serious injuries, and sometimes reminiscent, are not common in this product category. CPSC tell The Washington Post In 2019 there were 22,500 tape-related injuries in the US and the agency received reports of 17 deaths involving tape trains between 2018 and 2020. According to the agency’s website, stair machines, elliptical machines, have been remembered for the past decade. , shelves for weights, pull bars and braces for straps. One reminder was the Schwinn brand elliptical machine made by Nautilus, a global manufacturer of fitness equipment. In that case, however, only nine reports noted that the shoe plates had disintegrated and that the most serious documented injury was a knee injury.

“I think there are two reasons why peloton incidents get that attention,” says Ray Maker, author of the popular fitness blog. DC Rainmakerin which he writes about technological products for runners, cyclists and triathletes. “It is likely that the death of the child will consume this within the remit of the Product Safety Commission compared to other injury-type scenarios.”

“But I also think it’s the numbers they’re remembering and the size of the company,” Maker continued. “If you look at most tape manufacturers today, most are the largest conglomerates and have different numbers of models, so it’s harder to link them to a particular model. The peloton has only two models, and they have all been recalled. “

Maker said it has used a large number of tapes, but while other tapes may suffer from the same problem as the Peloton Tread +, some tape manufacturers have chosen to install bars that are low on the back of their wheel. which in theory would prevent children, pets, or objects from being caught under the tape.

Jeff Douse, who ran a Houston-based executive program and studio boutique race called RacePace, at one point invested 25 Woodway 4Front tapes for his gym because the tape belt taps provided runners with better shock absorption. Douse says the inherent risk of any ribbon belt tape is that “as these slates come toward the end of the ribbon type and rotate around and go under, the slats actually begin to separate and create gaps where someone could probably stick a finger.” .

According to Douse, depth should also be taken into account in terms of height or distance from the bottom of the motor belt to the floor. He invested the Woodways, for $ 10,000 each, because they were as low as the floor, so anyone in charge of cleaning the floor under the machine tried to get under it. Peloton Tread + seems to have more room, along with Douse wheels on the front of the motor belt and adjustable levels on the back—This means that it may be fairly easy to get there, but it can create “potential sites of vulnerability.”

Guardian

It is unclear at this time what Peloton’s next move will be. The company says it is making changes to the listed lists, but these designs will have to be submitted and approved by the CPSC before Peloton can resume sales.