Full Spectrum Cycling started because three guys in Milwaukee liked riding bikes and talking too much.
Sven (that’s me), JK, and Tony have been recording together for years now, first in various makeshift setups and eventually at the PodcastMKE studio in Riverwest. The show was never supposed to be a polished production. It was supposed to sound like three friends at the shop arguing about headsets, mocking each other's tire choices, and occasionally remembering to talk about cycling news.
The name came from the idea that cycling is not one thing. It is fat-bikes and road bikes. It is commuting in the snow and racing in the mud. It is a $50 Huffy and a $5,000 custom frame. If it has two (or sometimes three) wheels and you are having fun, it is on the cycling spectrum.
Over 300 episodes later, the format has not changed much. We sit down, crack a beer, and talk. Sometimes we have guests: Jeremy Prach talking about building something real in Milwaukee. Mark Peterson calling in from Utah. Seeley Dave updating us on his latest bikepacking sadventure.
The show started as an offshoot of fat-bike.com, which is still my day job in a sense. But over time Full Spectrum Cycling grew into its own thing. We cover the Milwaukee scene because we live here: Riverwest 24, the new pump tracks, the bike lanes that almost get built (and when they did what’s up with that?), the shops that open and close. We cover gear because we are all tinkerers. And we cover the culture because that is what actually matters. The bike is just the excuse to get together.
JK disappeared for a while, then came back. Tony became a dad again and somehow still shows up. I started building cargo bikes and trying to figure out how big a tire I can fit in a specific frame. Meanwhile, the show rolls on!
That is the story. No venture capital. No marketing strategy. Just three guys who like bikes and talking. If that sounds like your kind of crowd, you are in the right place.
Listen to the latest episode