Guide to Peloton Special Events

Every year you can expect to hear about Peloton special events. These are recurring events that are tied into a monthly theme celebration, holiday or Peloton-specific celebration. 

With the recent announcement about the All for One “Festival” for 2022, I thought now was a good time to do a calendar view, if you will, of these annual events. That is, I’ll go through each month of the year and roundup the regularly scheduled Peloton special events. 

I figured devout Peloton users like myself will like having this information in one place. Therefore, they can plan ahead for something like a Peloton homecoming. Or, they can make a note of new special event badges that they’ll be able to earn in the coming days, weeks or months.

Special events badges

It’s important to point out that you can earn these special event badges whether you take Pride classes, for example, in June during Pride Month or in January. In other words you don’t need to take classes during the special month to get the badge. The badges are always attached to the classes, regardless of when you complete them.

Finally, if you’re ever curious about which special events you’ve earned badges for in the past, you can find that easily. Where? Under Achievements in your profile. There, you’ll see Special Events and the badges listed. Keep in mind: they are NOT listed in chronological but rather random order.

Here is my article on how to earn Peloton badges. 

List of annual Peloton special events

When I first got my Peloton bike in 2016, there were just a few regularly scheduled annual Peloton special events. This includes HRI or home rider invasion in the spring. That morphed into the annual Homecoming Event in May.

However, since then, monthly themes and special events have really exploded. So, read on for a month-by-month of the yearly special events you can expect from Peloton.

January special events on Peloton

At the beginning of the first full month of a new season, Peloton will have a seasonal launch challenge. So in January you can expect the Winter Launch Challenge.

You need to get a blue dot every day in January to earn the special event Winter Launch Challenge badge. It’s also the start of the annual challenge that measures how many minutes you exercise during the calendar year.

More about Peloton challenges here.

Also in January 2022, Tunde resurrected her Speak Up Ride on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, as she did in 2021. I imagine this is going to become an annual thing on the MLK Day holiday.

You can use the Peloton search feature to find other Speak Up rides and classes.

February themed events on Peloton

February is Black History Month. On the Peloton platform, they refer to these themed classes as BHM.

So, if you’re going to search for the annual collection of Black History Month classes in February, be sure to use the acronym BHM. Finally, yes, there are special BHM event badges to earn by taking these Peloton classes.

March Peloton special theme events

Women’s History Month is celebrated each March, including on Peloton. Like Black History Month is abbreviated BHM, so are the Women’s History Month classes abbreviated WHM.

There are two WHM classes that have stuck in my mind and which I will go back to time and time again. One, Becs Gentry’s 45 min WHM Celebration Run from 3/8/21. It’s an outdoors, audio-only class on the app. During that class Becs told the story of Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon. 

Two, Christine D’Ercole’s 60-minute WHM Celebration ride from 3/8/20. At first it appeared that the ride had been purged. Because when I searched using the acronym WHM, it did not show up.

However, then I decided to talk another approach. First, I went into classes. Second, I used the filter to select 60 minute classes, then Christine and then theme music. Only two classes showed up–including that WHM ride from March 8, 2020.

If you can, definitely take it. Christine shares such a positive message.

Finally, yes, each year we get a new WHM special event badge.

April special events

The only special event or theme I could find for April that repeats is the Spring Launch Challenge. As you know Spring officially begins at the end of March. But like with other seasonal challenges, Peloton launches the following month. 

To earn your Spring Launch challenge, you’ll need to use Peloton every day of the month. Honestly, with the advent of the Just Walk, Ride or Run option on the app, that’s even easier to do now. 

Finally, in 2022 Peloton launched the Rock 22 challenge in April; it went through May. You had two ways to earn badges. One, if you took a specially labeled rock class, you got the Rock 22 badge. Then, if you took one of these classes over a specified 22-day period, you earned a second, different Rock 22 challenge badge. It included rock and roll fingers. 🤘

May themes and special events

As I mentioned at the top of this article, years ago you could expect the Home Rider Invasion to swarm the Peloton 23rd Street studios each May. Then HRI became Homecoming but it still happened in May.

And it’s still going on. So look for special Homecoming-theme classes in May, for which you’ll earn special badges. 

Also, at one point Homecoming was an in-person celebration. Then, 2020 happened. Maybe with the Peloton studios reopening in 2022, in 2023 Homecoming will be back to being in person.

May also brings Mental Health Awareness. Instructors like Kendall Toole, who has been open about her mental health, taught classes specifically to address mental health.

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

May is also Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI). There are a number of Peloton instructors connected to this celebration personally. This includes Aditi Shah, Sam Yo and Emma Lovewell. 

Classes during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month usually feature musicians of the same background. That could range from K-Pop bands like BTS to classical musician Yo-Yo Ma. 

In 2021 Peloton introduced apparel specifically designed for AAPI. It was a lovely collection featuring beautiful floral motifs like iris, lotus and peonies.

While you can still read about the collection here, the clothing is completely sold out. However, I did find a few pieces on eBay. 

June Peloton celebrations

One of the biggest celebrations on the Peloton platform in June is Pride Month. It’s a chance for the company to celebrate LGBTQ+ members of the staff and community.

Expect to see lots of rainbows on clothing and more during June. I know I always enjoy waiting to see what Jess King will be wearing. In 2022 she did not disappoint, with a custom-made Brittany Allen outfit. Of course, you’ll earn special badges for any of the Pride classes you take. 

Peloton also celebrates Juneteenth in June with specially themed classes and has done so since 2020. Classes range from a Juneteenth run with Marcel Dinkins to a Juneteenth bootcamp with Adrian Williams.

Finally in June 2022, Peloton introduced the Get Out and Move Challenge, with a special badge. It encouraged members to take their workouts outdoors with the app. That challenge went from June through August 2022.

July special events

While the United States celebrates Independence Day every July 4th–and the Peloton studios are usually closed–in 2022 Peloton had one special event in July. And it was celebrating the one-year anniversary of Peloton’s expansion to Australia. 

So instructors put together a series of classes featuring Aussie music. Of course, there was a new badge to earn, too. It’s the Peloton Australia Anniversary Badge.

Here is my article about Peloton hotels in Australia and Asia. 

In addition, the Peloton Summer Launch challenge is for all of July. Use Peloton on every day of the month, and you’ll earn the Summer Launch badge.

All for One Classes on Peloton

Finally, in the past Peloton would hold its All for One Classes in July. Pre-2020, this was usually a ride that featured every single Peloton instructor. That is, one would start and ride a song, and then another would join in. And so on until every bike instructor had led a portion of the class.

In 2020 they did the All for One digitally. So, instructors would “hand off” the ride to another instructor that had recorded their portion of the ride separately. Then, it was all edited together.

All for One was in July in 2021. But in 2022 it’s moved to August. More about that in the next section.

August Peloton specials

In 2022 Peloton is making a big deal in August about two things. One, the official reopening of the Peloton studios New York (PSNY) and Peloton London Studios. When I attended in June and wrote about my experience, it was during the “soft” opening.

Two, the All for One Music Festival. So, instead of instructors teaching all together, Peloton has assigned an artist to each instructor for different classes. Even the Peloton Lanebreak video game will have new music tied into the festival artists.

Right now here is the list of artists that classes will feature:

• Alanis Morissette 
• Amber Mark 
• Becky G 
• Becky Hill 
• Big Sean 
• Bob Moses 
• Carrie Underwood 
• Chase & Status 
• Florence + The Machine 
• Flume 
• Green Day 
• Ibeyi 
• John Mayer 
• KAYTRANADA 
• Latto 
• Lil Baby 
• Maggie Rogers
• Maroon 5 
• Muse 
• Nicky Jam
• ODESZA
• Purple Disco Machine
• Rascal Flatts
• RÜFÜS DU SOL
• Saweetie
• SOFI TUKKER
• Swedish House Mafia 
• T-Pain
• The 1975
• The Beach Boys
• Thievery Corporation
• Tove Lo
• Wu Tang Clan

Of course, there will be a special All for One Music Festival badge.

September special events

September is Latinx Heritage Month. So it’s no surprise that Peloton rolls out special Latinx classes during this time.

Actually, in 2021, these classes spilled over into October. Because, technically, this heritage month goes from September 15 to October 15. So there are plenty of opportunities to earn this special Latinz Heritage Month badge.

However, it’s not the only time that you can ride, run, flow or workout to Latin music. Plenty of instructors teaching in Spanish, English and German have Latin rides. 

Finally, in 2020, Peloton introduced an apparel collection for Latinx Heritage Month. While these items are sold out on the Peloton store website, you can still find a few on eBay. 

October special events on Peloton

With Fall starting at the end of September, you can expect a Fall Launch Challenge (and a corresponding badge) in October. Workout once for each of October’s 31 days, and you’ll earn the badge.

However, the biggest thing in October at Peloton is Halloween. The instructors tend to go all out with costumes. And I mean they teach classes in these costumes.

Perhaps my favorite costumed ride ever was one that Matt Wilpers taught. He had dressed up like instructor Olivia Amato, complete with a tiny sports bra, glitter on his skin and a brown wig. It was hilarious. The year before he taught class as Cody Rigsby!

Of all the special events, Halloween appears to be the only one that doesn’t have a badge. I checked my own achievements and didn’t see any, and I went all the way back to 2018 badges.

November Peloton themes

We got our Peloton bike in late November 2016, which means I had to wait for Thanksgiving 2017 to experience the Turkey Burn workout classes. The idea with these classes is this: if you’re in the United States, then you’re likely going to eat a lot of food on Thanksgiving. So why not have a reason to get on your Peloton bike before or after the meal. 

When searching for Turkey Burn workouts, I discovered two things. One, now there are many different versions of the original Turkey Burn rides. This includes Turkey Trot runs and a Turkey Burn yoga flow. So all kinds of Turkey Burn workout classes to choose from.

And, two, the Peloton search programming needs some improvements. Because when I typed in “Turkey” to locate these classes, it mostly returned results for instructor Chase Tucker classes. And you likely know that Chase Tucker left Peloton in Spring 2022.

Finally, if you’re hoping that Peloton will do something for Black Friday in November–including a sale on equipment–keep hoping. In all of my years in the Peloton community, I’ve never seen or heard about a Black Friday sale.

I was wrong. Here are the Peloton Black Friday deals for 2022!

Peloton special events in December

Not surprisingly, the special events on the Peloton platform in December are all holiday related. For example, in 2022 Peloton introduced the concept of “Stacking Stuffers,” a play on the term stocking stuffer. These were short classes that you could stack throughout the month (or whenever, to be honest) to get a well-rounded workout.

Yes, there was a Stacking Stuffers badge. According to the achievements page in my profile, I earned that badge nine times.

Some of the classes included Christmas yoga, a hip hop Holiday run and more. You’ll find these holiday classes in two Peloton collections. One, the Holiday Collection. And two, Stacking Stuffers 2021 collection.

You may also have other holiday-themed classes in December, with instructors dressed up in holiday attire. For example, there is a Kristin McGee Pilates class where she’s wearing antlers. Also, there is a holiday fun run from 2019 (it’s still there!) with Matty Maggiacomo on the Tread, dressed up as the Grinch! Finally, there was Christmas yoga and Christmas cycling classes in Spanish with Mariana Fernandez and Camila Ramon, respectively.

Peloton Cooldown

Also in December, you can expect to receive your Peloton Cooldown. No, it’s not something that happens after class. Instead, it’s a roundup of all of your achievements throughout the year, in a cute little video. Peloton calls it your year in review.

Last year I got my Peloton Cooldown in the days before Christmas. I did find the timing curious, though. How can you give me a look back at the year when the year wasn’t over yet? Perhaps Peloton should be releasing the Cooldown in January? We’ll see what this year brings. 

Final thoughts on Peloton special events

This was fun to take a trip around the calendar, researching all of the different Peloton special events throughout the year. I think I’ve put together a pretty comprehensive guide to these classes, themes and heritage month celebrations. However, if I’ve missed anything or made any factual errors, please let me know.