Best practices for indoor cycling long rides

[mandalay_lady]

So, we keep hearing about fans as the key to indoor cycling. Why's that? I mean, I’ve done long rides in a hot box and survived just fine. Is it really about performance or just a comfort thing? Some folks act like without a fan, you're doomed. Are they really that dependent on airflow? What’s the actual science behind these claims? I get that cooling helps, but is it necessary to drop cash on high-tech stuff? Has anyone actually measured performance gains from fancy fans versus just sweating it out? Feels like there's a lot of hype with no solid proof.