Road Adventures of Cycling Men of Leisure
Adam and Michael’s friendship is built on a shared love of cycling. From tough trails to leisurely rides, their adventures are filled with stories, banter, and authentic connection. Their podcast blends entertaining anecdotes, heartfelt conversations, and cycling excitement—welcoming you into their community and the joy of the open road.
Road Adventures of Cycling Men of Leisure
Tall, Grande, Venti… And A Whole Latte Opinions
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Road Adventures of Cycling Men of Leisure +
Get early access to new episodesA warm floor, a borrowed basement, and a hardwired cable set the scene for a conversation that mixes honesty with humor. We open by acknowledging a tough week for the family, then steer into what so many professionals are feeling: a job market where interviews stack up, portals show hundreds of applicants, and patience becomes a skill. From there, the conversation swerves—smoothly—into the strange poetry of Starbucks sizes and what clever naming says about branding, identity, and the rituals we buy.
That detour unlocks the story of how our cycling miles evolved into investing miles. We revisit dollar-cost averaging, dividend plays, and the surprising value of owning a sliver of the places you frequent. There are hard lessons, too: why Topgolf’s rapid buildout strained the model, what Callaway’s partial divestment signals about refocusing on core strength, and how a humble convenience chain—Casey’s—quietly delivered outsized growth. Pensacola, Florida, takes a bow in our Listener Spotlight with its layered history and flight training roots, because curiosity still fuels this community.
We balance the heavy with light: a burst of dad jokes, a proud homecoming moment, and the nerves of first drives that remind us how practice builds confidence. We also level with you about our plans—some group rides are paused until work settles—but the community heartbeat stays strong. And to thank those who want to support the show, we’re offering a clean, simple option: early access 48 hours before the public drop, while keeping every episode available to everyone.
If you love coffee debates, road stories, and practical investing talk that skips the hype, queue this one up. Subscribe for early access, share it with a friend who needs a lift, and leave a quick review to help others find the ride. Your support keeps the pedals turning.
Support
Adam and Michael’s friendship has grown through years of shared miles, challenges, and laughter on the bike. Their passion for cycling has carried them through life’s twists and turns, creating a bond full of stories, jokes, and unforgettable rides. In their podcast, they bring that same spirit to the mic—sharing adventures, trading banter, and welcoming listeners into their cycling community. Whether tackling steep climbs or cruising open roads, their conversations capture the fun, friendship, and freedom that cycling brings. Tune in for stories that celebrate the ride and the camaraderie that makes it unforgettable.
and Remember,
It's a Great Day for a Bike Ride!
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Welcome to Road Adventures of Cycling Men of Leisure. I'm in a different place today, but as usual, I am Adam, and I am lucky enough to be joined with my good friend, Mr. Michael Sharp. How are we doing? You know, I'm doing pretty good. Pretty good. I've been working like uh like a dog and uh and uh and trying to get all kinds of stuff done before uh before I do some work trips. And so um, but uh I'm in the basement today. As you see, I'm not in my normal uh place. As I teased on the last show, um I'm kind of redoing the podcast studio, and it's just taken longer than I actually part of it's not my fault. I ordered a bunch of pieces to be able to put all the equipment in the in the closet and so it wouldn't overheat. And a lot of stuff on back order, you know. So but uh it'll get there.
SPEAKER_03:Cool. Yeah, it's uh I don't know, you could have hung one of those ragbri pictures up behind you or something, you know.
SPEAKER_02:You know, I should have actually uh you know that's a good idea because I'm gonna be down here.
SPEAKER_03:You've got them there, they're framed. I've seen them. You could have like slapped one up on the wall and not like the wire coming out here because I love the wire.
SPEAKER_02:That is yeah. Well, see what it is is is for those of you on YouTube, let's see if I can do this very well here. For those of you on YouTube, oh yeah, look at that. So when I redid my basement, I knew that my nephew, who loves to play video games, comes down here. And so I put in the wall an RJ45 computer jack, and I never thought that I would use it, uh, but nevertheless, here I am using it. So that wire runs down and to my computer, and so as you know, um podcasts uh take a little bit of data. So uh just a little. Yeah, and so here we are, and and uh I had to plug in as opposed to being wireless. So but yes, this is where I am. I will not lie. Um whoever put this heated floor in, that was me. Genius. Genius, because right now I'm sitting in the basement uh recording a show with my good friend, and my feet are nice and toasty. Earlier today at work, turned on the heated floor, so it would be nice and warm down here. So uh guy's a genius who built this down here.
SPEAKER_03:So I'm I'm sure he is. Or not.
SPEAKER_02:How have you been?
SPEAKER_03:Um well, I'll be honest, it has not been uh a great week for me. Um that was a rhetorical question. I I know. Um my family and I had um some tragedy occur in this last week. And um yeah, I I uh it's it's something that I definitely would like to share uh with our community. It's just too too recent and too raw. So I think maybe I will address that on our next episode. Okay. Um but needless to say, yeah, it's it's uh been trying for everybody. So we'll just leave it at that. All right.
SPEAKER_02:Well, I told you uh many times on the phone. Um I sent the smoke signals, um, and uh obviously my thoughts are with you and your family, and we will we will share that with the community next time. So thank you. I appreciate it. So um I think everybody also wants to know how is the job search?
SPEAKER_03:Well, I got up this morning, took my daughter to school, and came home and sat back on the couch.
SPEAKER_02:But you did have an interview, right? I mean, I don't I don't want to be dishonest.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I I had an interview on Monday and um talked with another headhunter yesterday. No, I had an interview on Tuesday, talked with another headhunter yesterday, am talking with yet another headhunter tomorrow. So I'm talking with a lot of people. Um that doesn't really, you know, equate to anything, but some people are seeing my resume and going, hey, you know, I think part of the problem is that this is not a good job market. And I know um it's kind of been floated out there that the job market is awesome right now and all that kind of thing, but um it's it's not such a great and maybe it's a maybe it's a maybe the job market is awesome um for fast food employees, maybe the job market is awesome for baristas, uh things like that. But the job market for professionals, I don't, you know, business professionals, I do not think is that good. Because I will go and apply for a job and some of these sites will tell how many people have applied. Hey, Michael, you have applied for this job. And, you know, 417 other professionals have applied for this job. And I'm like, wow. Wow. Now I don't mind competition, but you know, some of these numbers that I'm reading are just like, you gotta be kidding me. Um, so I I uh, you know, it's uh it's a slow process. I've never it's never been this slow of a process for me, but you know, um probably a good thing after last week or after this, yeah, this last week, uh that I didn't have a job, but um we're gonna keep at it because you know something doesn't come available, I'm gonna be driving a bus in cold Michigan.
SPEAKER_02:I was just gonna say, uh no, no, two things. First of all, to be the barista, you probably need to like coffee. And so since you're not a coffee fan, or you do like cold coffee, iced coffee, I apologize. You do like iced coffee, but I think you need probably a passion for coffee. I can't see that I can't see that interview going well. Okay, Michael, please tell us what is your favorite Starbucks drink? Uh half calf, decaf, choco, choca, mucka mucca.
SPEAKER_03:No, I would say a grandeal with two shots of rumpches of with two shots of rump. Yeah. There you go. Uh I believe Trader Sam's. I tried to think of what you ordered and I couldn't come up with it. It starts with a C, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, Carmel Macchiato. So let's be honest.
SPEAKER_03:If they said I don't know what that is, we'll go. I don't know if I want to work for a place that doesn't know the basics in coffee.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I don't I don't think that would I you know what? I'm gonna say that of 417 people, you aren't doing very well at Starbucks either, my friend.
SPEAKER_03:So I think if I'm applying at Starbucks as a barista, I think AI is gonna weed me out long before I ever talk to a manager.
SPEAKER_02:Honestly.
SPEAKER_03:I like the smell of coffee. Now, I think you're flawed in your thinking, though. I used to work with a guy back in the day when I was bartending. I am definitely flawed. Well, you said it, I didn't. Back in the day when I bartended, I worked with a guy who did not drink alcohol. And it wasn't because, you know, oh, I overindulged back in the day, I'm in AA, anything like that. No, it was he never started, uh took a couple drinks, didn't like the taste of it, never got into it, but was a phenomenal bartender. Okay. Um, he knew all the drinks, customer service was stellar. So I don't know necessarily if the actual drinking of it is required. Because honestly, you when you're hiring a bartender, you really would love to find those bartenders who aren't drinking.
SPEAKER_02:With all due respect, you're in an interview at Starbucks, which by the way, is never gonna happen. I know that, but this is just fun for me to talk about. But you're in an interview at Starbucks, and the manager or hiring manager or whatever says, and how would you answer the customer if they said, Could you please explain to me how a karma macchiato tastes? How would you answer that?
SPEAKER_03:It's like I would say, sir, Mr. Hiring Manager, I would say, imagine the best coffee you've ever had. Pour chocolate syrup on the top of that. Caramel.
SPEAKER_02:It's a caramel.
SPEAKER_03:Well, have you, Mr. Hiring Manager, have you ever tried it with chocolate syrup? Because that pushes it over the top. Yeah. And he's gonna tell you see, right now, as a hiring manager, you are going to destroy my creativity. As an artist, I can't work here.
SPEAKER_02:Well, and he's gonna tell you that the chocolate is a mocha karma macchiato or mocha latte or whatever. But uh in America, maybe it isn't.
SPEAKER_03:But is it in Peru? You ever been there, huh?
SPEAKER_02:Yes, Peru has good chocolate. So well, listen, if it gets to the Starbucks, I'd hope you take the bus driving job first.
SPEAKER_03:So um, yeah. Uh yeah, I I uh I could mix drinks, but not, you know, the whole and you know, the size thing, that's just stupid. I'm sorry. What is a little one called? Uh tall. A small one is called tall. Yeah. What's a medium one called? Grande.
SPEAKER_02:Grande. What is a large one called? No, it depends. There's vente, but then they also have a trenta, depending on what here's my problem.
SPEAKER_03:The small is called tall. Yes. Well, that's just what an oxymoron or something. A small. Oh, I want a tall. No, I want a small. That's English. Now we go to the medium, which is grande, which is Spanish, which does not mean medium. Look it up. Spanish dictionary. Does not mean medium. And then all of a sudden we switch to large or extra large, and now we're speaking Italian. Well, uh what why who came up with that? Why can't you just say I'd like a small, a medium, a large? Why are we trying to throw all this international stuff? Or if you were going to do it, why didn't you just sp stick with the Italian or something? Why is it tall, grande, vente? I mean, it makes no sense. That's like people who wear de brimmed. It makes no sense. Oh my gosh. Now you got me going on this thing. See, now you went down a road you shouldn't have gone down.
SPEAKER_02:Starbucks founders were heavily inspired by Italian espresso bars where drink names aren't just sizes. Short, traditional espresso-based drink. A tall is a slightly larger American-style coffee. A grande literally means large in Italian. Look it up.
SPEAKER_03:But not in Spanish.
SPEAKER_02:Originally, Starbucks only had a short and a tall. Uh, when they added the bigger size, they didn't want to call it large. They leaned Italian, so they called it grande. The branding moment. Here's where it gets clever and a little chaotic. Once grande existed, calling the biggest size large felt so basic. So they stayed with the Italian lane. The vente was born. Vente equals 20 in Italian, which is a hot vente equals 20 ounce. A hot vente is 24 ounce. Yes, this breaks the rule. Barista Trivia Alert. So this is I'm giving you history for your interview. I will give you the grande.
SPEAKER_03:It's also Spanish, but okay, fine. You're gonna say it's Italian. That's good. What about the tall? Uh well, okay. We're speaking English. Now we go to Italian. I'm not I'm not versed in Italian.
SPEAKER_02:Well, but they needed uh a short, went to a tall, so they didn't you change?
SPEAKER_03:I it's just ridiculous. I'm gonna charge you six, seven, eight dollars for a cup of coffee, and we're gonna call it something crazy.
SPEAKER_02:Five dollars and thirty-five cents, and you know what? It's the best five dollars and thirty-five cents I spend every morning.
SPEAKER_03:Uh okay. Anyway, bente, small, medium, and large, because they're too good to just speak English like the rest of us. But that's okay.
SPEAKER_02:If we're if we're finishing the trivia for those who may be curious about the Trenta, the reason where the trenta this is interesting. I did not know this. I had to look it up. Trenta equals 30 and a 31 ounce iced only. So that's how they got Trenta. So uh those are 31 ounce iced only.
SPEAKER_03:So does that mean you can get a Trenta only and 31 ounces of iced only?
SPEAKER_02:An iced drink, not a hot drink.
SPEAKER_03:So you can't get a hot drink that large? No. Why? You got the glass? What makes a difference?
SPEAKER_02:Well, you'd have to buy a tall and a vendor.
SPEAKER_03:No, I'm just saying you've got the glass already. Does it it shouldn't matter whether it's ice or not?
SPEAKER_02:It's plastic, it's like a plastic cup.
SPEAKER_03:So well, you've got it already.
SPEAKER_02:Would you like the bottom line for your interview? Starbucks exists because Italian inspiration plus brand identity plus clever uh psychology equals. It's not clever.
SPEAKER_03:That is not clever. But I guess they sold you, so it's okay.
SPEAKER_02:Uh which will which we'll go into our subject after Listener Spotlight.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, that was slick. Let's move on. All right, listener spotlight. Um, we didn't have anybody guess.
SPEAKER_02:No. Fool them all.
SPEAKER_03:I guessed, if you remember. Boston. No, it wasn't Boston. That was a couple of what'd you guess? What were the hints? Again, give me the clues again. Uh permanently settled in the 1600s. Uh this town.
SPEAKER_02:I did guess St. Louis. That's right. I guess St. Louis.
SPEAKER_03:This city. Uh, five flags have flown over it. Uh, the story of Ron Burgundy would not be the same without an influence from this city. And the city likes wings. And you had actually said Detroit because of red wings.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, Detroit because of red wings, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:And then we looked up the history after recording, and Detroit only had four flags. So I was wrong. I already know I was wrong. Womp, womp, womp. Well, I already knew you were wrong, too, but that's okay. Well, yeah, but you you kind of played along nicely. I mean, you were you.
SPEAKER_03:I don't want to. I'm not like you. Well, Grande's actually Italian, you idiot.
SPEAKER_02:I didn't call you an idiot. I'm helping you with your interview. I want my friend to get back back to normal. I mean, we we we we another subject we're gonna talk about, we can't even do because uh, I'm not doing it without you, and B, we need you to have some money.
SPEAKER_03:Gotta be some money.
SPEAKER_02:Maya, you want to go to high school or you want daddy to go on a bike ride?
SPEAKER_03:Anyway, don't worry about college.
SPEAKER_02:You can go be a barista and make up things and I'm gonna throw a I'm gonna throw a dart for a guest. Five flags, wings. I'm gonna go with Buffalo, New York.
SPEAKER_03:Five flags, I don't know right offhand, but it's I'm gonna say it probably did have uh it had at least four. I don't think it had five.
SPEAKER_02:I just said that because of buffalo wings.
SPEAKER_03:And that I was gonna say I got the buffalo, the wing part, but um, yeah, I think they only had four. Okay.
SPEAKER_02:All right. So I was just trying to be entertaining. Next, go ahead. Give us the give us the all right.
SPEAKER_03:Well, I'm glad uh I fooled everybody. Uh, but uh the listener spotlight for this week was in fact Pensacola, Florida. Not even close.
SPEAKER_02:I know what you're gonna say. Is it true?
SPEAKER_03:Wait, wait, wait, wait.
SPEAKER_02:Pensacola.
SPEAKER_03:I'll give a minute, talk amongst yourselves.
SPEAKER_02:It's still dealing with hockey, isn't it?
SPEAKER_03:Do they have a lot of hockey in Pensacola?
SPEAKER_02:No, but I I wanna say that Go ahead. I I'm gonna go.
SPEAKER_03:Let me just spare you the uh the agony, it has nothing to do with hockey. So here's how we came up with it. It was first settled in the 1600s, 1698. Um technically. It was settled, there was a settlement there in 1559, which actually would predate the oldest city in the United States, which is St. Augustine, Florida. However, that settlement was destroyed by a hurricane. And so they didn't get around to rebuilding a settlement until like 1698. Five flags have flown over that city. They include Spanner, uh, the Spanish flag, British flag, French, the U.S., and they were part of the Confederacy. So um the city likes wings. Um it is initially the primary training base for the the initial primary training base for the U.S. Navy, the Marine Corps, and the Coast Guard pilots. They all go down there to this is a plane, this is a helicopter, kind of the basic stuff before they get into, you know, the top gun type stuff. So and the story of Ron Bergman, Bergundy, excuse me, would not be the same without influence. I thought you were gonna say San Diego.
SPEAKER_02:Keep it classy, San Diego.
SPEAKER_03:That's right. Um, the reason for that is Bill Curtis, the guy that narrates that movie, is from Pensacola, Florida. Really? Mm-hmm. You you know who Bill Curtis is, he's got that voice. I do actually, yeah. Yeah. So there you go. Um, thank you, listeners from Pensacola, Florida. Um go out and enjoy the beach. I'm sure it's an awesome day to bike ride there. So uh I've been there several times. It's uh beautiful.
SPEAKER_02:Thank you, all of our audience, listeners, support, community. But this time Pensacola, Florida. Uh okay. So I said this will bring up to our next episode about let's go to Starbucks. Now let's bridge the gap to Starbucks. Starbucks, you and I met in 2016. Ragged. Technically, we met earlier than that, but in person we met in 2016. Yeah, on a phone when I was asking, do I need a bike lock for Ragbri?
SPEAKER_03:Are you sure I don't need a bike lock? Someone's gonna steal my bike. No one's stealing your bike, dude.
SPEAKER_02:I think that the, by the way, as a sidebar, I think the only time I remember bikes being stolen at Ragbri, physically actual stolen, not people got drunk, left them at a bar, thought they were stolen.
SPEAKER_03:We've heard that's somebody grabbed the wrong bike, yeah, rolled it like you know, 20 feet and then stuck it someplace that's like, oops, not mine.
SPEAKER_02:I think the only time I remember hearing a proven, even made it to the paper story was those four treks that were stolen, um, and then they re found them like like 100 miles away or whatever. Um, because one of the guys supposedly had an air tag in the bike.
SPEAKER_03:So uh but was that a real story though?
SPEAKER_02:I thought it was.
SPEAKER_03:I thought I thought we actually uh And it may have been, it may have been. It's just you know, we go to these rides and you always hear people's like, you know, there's always like the scuttle butt, so to speak. Stick with a navy term, scuttle butt. Um, you know, where people are like, oh, you know what? There was been some bike stolen, you know, and it's it's not they weren't actually stolen, somebody misplaced it, somebody's like running around, my bike's been stolen, and then you know, the mill starts, it's like, oh, somebody's bike got stolen and all this. So um it does happen. Uh we kind of make light of it. Uh it's one of those things that when you look at how many miles, how many thousands of miles we're you know, edging towards 6,000 miles, I think that you and I have ridden together, um, all across states and all sorts of towns and communities. And the number of bicycles that have been riding with us, I mean, it's less than half a percent that's ever been stolen. If that, I mean, that's probably high.
SPEAKER_02:So I just asked ChatGPT, is there any known articles of bicycles being stolen at Ragbri? Um, it says incidents of theft uh reports. There are multiple police reports, but compared to the 50 plus years of riding, it is so minimal. So it's kind of weird.
SPEAKER_03:So that's exactly what I'm saying. Here's the other thing. I know you're not a skier. I spent many years out. Colorado skiing, love skiing, it's great. Um, you know, you take your skis when you go into the you know, go in to have lunch or whatever, and at any given time there's 300, 400, 500 sets of skis just right out there in the thing. And you know, you don't really, you don't see people locking those up. Now you could take them and check them into a thing, but it's one of those things. It's like I don't know. It just the the it does happen. It is just such a small, like you said, such a small percentage. It's like minuscule that the odds of your bicycle or skis being stolen, something like that, is probably you've probably got a better chance of, you know, getting struck by lightning or winning the state lottery or something.
SPEAKER_02:No, Mr. Foxworthy, it's not illegal to pull your boat, but you lost your skier about a mile, you know. No, I'm uh but anyways, you and I uh met in person after hearing my bike lock conversation. And to be fair, we were asking you everything about packing and what we should bring and should we collaborate and yada yada yada. Yep. And and so and when I was doing my century ride, this story's been told a multitude of times. But just in case you are a new rider, we know we I mean new listener, we know we have a bunch of new listeners, so I love it. Um, I was doing my first century and I was dragging beep, and you said, Hey, you can ride with me. You said grab my wheel. No, you didn't say grab my wheel. You said you you said you can ride with me, and we began talking about investing.
SPEAKER_03:Um which is a weird thing, by the way. Yeah. We're out here in Iowa, century day, tootling along. The weather's nice. I don't know. That's just a weird thing to talk about, you know? Let's talk about investing. I I don't know. We have had miles of conversations about investing. It just seems odd that that would be like, you know, hey, look at that corn over there, or how about that combine, or you know, something. But somehow we got stuck on investing and and uh asking each other, what do you invest in? What do you you know?
SPEAKER_02:I think you're undermining your undermining your your uh your intentions. You knew that I was, and I'll just say it, I'm not afraid. You knew that I was kind of weak. It was 70 miles in. Uh, I was pretty pretty big boy at that time, pretty overweight. And um I think you were just grasping at straws of just stuff to talk about. You're like, what are you into? What do you do? What's your hobbies? And I said, Oh, I like to play in the market. And that's I think that's how the okay. I think that's how it was.
SPEAKER_03:Maybe and maybe that is, but it's it just seems kind of you know random. Yeah, but yeah.
SPEAKER_02:I mean, we could have talked about like you know, corn. How do those legs feel? Shut up.
SPEAKER_03:Big boy like you get along on this bike. Uh the bike is fine. Shut up. That would that would not have helped. Yeah, this you're gonna get the point.
SPEAKER_02:So so we started uh talking about investing, and then of course, um, I think at that time I told you I was gonna said, I'm gonna invest in a little coffee company out of Seattle. They call it Starbucks. Um I've had a love-hate relationship for the last 10 years. So uh uh when Ron was running it, things were going well for a while, and they flooded the Asian markets and they started losing money like crazy. So uh part of my love of Starbucks is because I uh I started saying, well, if I'm gonna put my money here, I might as well help myself out, right?
SPEAKER_03:So um, but uh yeah, and by the way, I do have a little, very little amount of money, but I do have some money invested. I am technically a shareholder of Starbucks. Great. Wonderful because you came to my house one time and we were headed into Kansas City, and it's like I need a coffee. My coffee coming out of my pot is not good enough. I don't have a grande glass or a vintage glass or six shots of El Guacamole or whatever it is. I don't know. Apparently, my coffee's not good enough for Adam. So had to stop by and we stopped by there like three times this one trip. And I'm sitting out because you do it, you know, online or whatever, and then you run in, and I'm sitting there, and while you're in there, like six cars pull up, they run in there and they're coming out with coffee. And I'm like, these people are just a bunch of addicts. I mean, I you'd have thought it was some kind of drug house out there where they're just, you know, passing stuff out or something. And then at that time, I was like, if all these people are gonna be spending five, six, seven bucks on a cup of coffee every single morning, I want a piece of that action.
SPEAKER_02:So well, we uh we welcome you into our club. We'd welcome you more if you'd buy drinks and and and I'm not drinking the Kool-Aid, I'm not part of the cult.
SPEAKER_03:I will just take advantage of the cult.
SPEAKER_02:So got me thinking, uh, how's the market? How how are anything anything uh I know this is not an investing show, but you know, we talk about all kinds of things. Anything hot? I mean, I know that gold and silver is hot, but besides actually physically getting a lump of coal or a lump of silver on your back, anything you anything anything spiking for you?
SPEAKER_03:No, not right now. I'm just right now I'm just sticking with my current investing and investing on a regular basis on what I currently have. I have not branched out for probably six months into anything new. I have been bulking up over the last probably eight months in uh places like Home Depot and Lowe's.
SPEAKER_00:Okay.
SPEAKER_03:And I invest in both of them. I will because last time I'm not for seeing, I don't know, nobody does. We're just talking here. This isn't investment advice or anything, but um the last time the market plummeted and interest rates went out of control and all that, Home Depot did really well. And Lowe's kind of lagged behind. Well, you know, at some point in time in the future, that's gonna happen again. And Lowe's learned a lot from that last thing. So I invest in both of them, and both of them pay a pretty, especially Home Depot, a pretty healthy dividend, which uh I'm getting to the age where dividends are not a bad thing. So so I'm bulking up in those two those two big areas.
SPEAKER_02:Also oil, but so if if our community doesn't know about you, um you enjoy the shareholders' meeting of Berkshire Berkshire Hathaway every year. You got me to switch my Pepsi, which I will publicly once again thank you. Uh I had a decent chunk of change uh in Pepsi. Uh it all started with uh a guy I used to know who was working for PepsiCo uh and Frito Lay. And um the dividends for those guys for a while was pretty good. And you know, they own Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, and depending on your market, don't get me wrong, but you know, Frito Lay and all that, all the you know, all this stuff.
SPEAKER_03:And I think healthy fried chicken.
SPEAKER_02:Oh yeah. Um is that really chicken though? I'm just kidding. Um, but um, so I decided to start investing, and for a while I was doing um what do they call that? Uh 25 bucks a week. Uh dollar cost averaging. Dollar cost averaging. And so I did it for years, and then I would reinvest the dividends and do the drip and go back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. And then the European market, they decided we're not gonna sell sugary smack drinks over here. And I started watching a decline. And at that time, you said, What about Berkshire Hathaway? And I came home and I sold everything, and I bought Berkshire Hathaway. Well, at least then the Pepsi Co Fund. Um, and uh, and then Berkshire Hathaway shot up, and I watched Pepsi shoot down. So, of all the ones I've not done well on, because trust me, do not listen to Baransky's uh uh investment strategy. Um, I have definitely had some duds like oh, I don't know, iRobot that I recently got a thing from one of my investment companies.
SPEAKER_03:Didn't they go out of business?
SPEAKER_02:Yes, and what they said is on your behalf, we sold everything for you. Yeah, they waited till the end when it was worth 0.00000, and I'm not kidding, 0.0002. And they're like, we put the four cents in your account. I was like, oh, well, that's great. Now, to be fair, uh, you and I, uh and our friend Joe, we we uh we a little bit of our money, I won't speak for you, I'll speak for me. A little bit of my money is in in a company called Stash, because it's kind of like a fun way of like having an app where you can buy quarter shares, percentage shares. And they have a gimmick where they say what? Fractional shares. Fractional shares, thank you. And they have a gimmick where they give you free stock. I mean, if you play the game and everything. So, you know, they call it a stock party, and they obviously they want you to share the code with your friends, be like, hey, you could have free stock too if you jump in at 20 bucks, you know, or whatever. And so um, it's been it's been a uh, you know, I I actually it's been well. I've done well. So, but yes, iRobot was one of those things where like, well, all these little vacuum cleaners are coming out and and all these little you know things of robots are I'm gonna put a little money there. Yeah, well, I I could have burned it, it would have been the same, same experience.
SPEAKER_03:Has that company went out of business, or did they just take it from public, pull it private, and we'll continue to try to rebuild it?
SPEAKER_02:Uh I regret to tell you that iRobot, one of the last standing American companies building these little floor sweepers and all that, went out of business. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Okay, well, there we go. Um but that leads me to what you were talking about earlier. Yeah. Um, I'm glad that worked out for you. Um, I have some winners and losers. I mean, it's like anything else. Uh anybody who's like, yeah, I play the market and I I you know hit big here and I hit big there, those are the same people that go to Vegas. Every single time they go to Vegas, they win money. No, no, they're not telling you the full story. Uh they'll tell you they're big wins. They won't tell you, last night I made, you know,$2,000 on the blackjack table. They don't tell you the two nights before they lost$7,000. But um, yeah, there's gonna be winners and losers. But we have invested while being on the road, yes, bicycle adventure. We have invested out in the middle of a state somewhere uh because we had a brilliant idea or what we considered a brilliant idea. Have we not?
SPEAKER_02:We have, and and uh we thought it was this is the next big thing.
SPEAKER_03:Well, it might be the next big thing, but is it the next big thing that's gonna make money?
SPEAKER_02:You know, I am uh in the basement, as you know. I uh do not have my full board, but if I did, I would be playing the trombone sound. Can you give us the trombone sound? That's not the trombone sound. Oh, here's a better one. Oh, yeah, yeah. How about how about negative ching jing j-jing ching?
SPEAKER_03:Take the take so we know where the trombone is, but that's all right.
SPEAKER_02:We were uh we were on a bus on Rag Bry. We had we had uh loaded up, we loaded up eastbound and down. Actually, it was westbound and down, but um we were westbound across the state to to ride east across back to our cars. We were on a Bransel bus, Bransel Charters. And we were rolling down the road, and we said, look at that. That wasn't there last time, and it was a brand new topgolf. And we said, Oh, top golf. You know what? They're going up like crazy everywhere. Let's see who owns them. Turned out to be Callaway Golf, big company, old company. Yeah, yeah. So we said with our stash, which you can set just if you don't know, you can uh by the way, if you want to sign up, let me know. I'll send you a link. Uh if you don't know, you can actually say, Oh, I'm gonna sign up and buy five bucks a week or 20 bucks a week or whatever. Maybe you're a big baller, maybe like a hundred bucks a week or whatever.
SPEAKER_03:So let me say we are in no way, shape, or form sponsored, get paid by stash. Um, you I mean, you can do it with any platform. So just to throw out the legal legalese there that we are not.
SPEAKER_02:Uh you're always with our lawyer. I mean, you know what? Maybe you should be applying for a lawyer job. Forget the barista. Starbucks is not for you anyway. So have you. Well, you know, I I could be a lawyer.
SPEAKER_03:I mean you play one on TV. I don't have that degree, but come on. How hard is it? You just gotta watch what you say and don't say too much. You could just print one, right? Isn't that what everybody else does? Just brand. I can put one right over there on the wall with my other ones, which are real. Yeah. I mean, pick a school. Don't you can't get too crazy. You can go, oh, I went to Harvard or something like that. You know, pick a school. I went to uh Do we cheat on how Southern Mississippi State got a degree in law, specializing in corporate finance law. How about that?
SPEAKER_02:What's the one on TV? New Hampshire State or something like that, or ham. No, it's uh yeah, I don't know what it is. The Phoenix was Phoenix, uh University of Phoenix was for a while, but yeah, there's another one.
SPEAKER_03:It's is it I think it might be New Hampshire. Now I did take some classes from the University of New Hampshire, but it's not wasn't not the one you see advertise on TV.
SPEAKER_02:So thank you, Mr. Sharp, for making sure that I don't say anything stupid. And we're not sponsored by by Stash, but we said, okay, let's do it. And so we both jumped in. And I honestly, to tell you the truth, we did it on the bus. We rode across the state of Iowa. Everybody went home safe, thankfully. I appreciate that. Um, and then like nine months later, we got together, we were doing something else, and you said, Have you checked out your top golf? I said, you know, honestly, I just like the Ronco dehydrator. I said it and forget it. I just left it alone. And I will I logged in and I saw the the trending chart going down, down. I said, I'm gonna hold on just a little bit. And finally I I I I stopped. I'm like, okay. And then um I may have my my facts wrong, but I think recently didn't I think about five, six months ago they sold it.
SPEAKER_03:Callaway sold it to someone else. Um it did, I mean, I still own mine. Uh I haven't invested any in it for quite a while. But uh, I think the problem with that was is they were just putting these massive complexes in everywhere. And it's a fun place to go. But I mean, I've been there a couple of times with my family over the last five, six years. Um, it doesn't seem to be a thing where you get, I mean, you get some people that will go on a regular basis, but overall, you I don't think you have enough repeat customers to really fuel. And you made these big, massive things. I mean, they're double deck or triple deck, you know, yeah, it's just ridiculous. So I think if they would have slimmed them down a little bit, had a little bit more control on it, and really, I mean, I don't want to brag, but I am a lifetime member to Top 12. I got the card approved. And I say that because you go there and everyone gets the lifetime membership. But I think if they would have made it smaller, streamlined it, and gave you, and maybe they do now, I know in the past they've never given you some incentive to, you know, hey, why don't we go there for date night or something or whatever instead of once every three years, you'd go, you know, three or four times a year. I think that would have helped them.
SPEAKER_02:But you know, and and you and I have uh occasionally had to apologize on this show. So I have a fact here. As of January 5th, I believe the sale was announced four or five months ago when you and I looked into it. But just for factual data, as of January 5th, Leonard Green and Partners is the majority owner of Top Golf, having acquired a 60% stake from Top Golf Callaway brand and a deal valued at 1.1 billion with a B. Topgolf Callaway brands retained 40% stake and will rebrand to focus on its golf equipment business now. Um, so they're going uh this is good.
SPEAKER_03:This is good for you. Callaway's gonna get back to what they do best: golf clubs, golf supplies, that kind of stuff. They still have a 40% stake in top golf, but you know, this hedge fund or whoever is buying it uh has the majority stake. So if they're able to turn it around, that'll be a plus for Callaway, and then Callaway can really focus on golf club technology and things like that. So I I will tell you right now, I foresee Callaway moving up uh over the course of the next three years. I think you'll more than make your money back. Okay, and if you stick with it, I think you would uh see a profit. I think it's all good. But again, I'm not a financial specialist anymore, so what do I know?
SPEAKER_02:Before we leave the uh financial story, I think there's uh a little bit of kudos that is needed, but the first time I flew to make sure I say this correctly, the first time I flew to Kansas City, Missouri, I was picked up by my good friend, Mr. Sharp. We drove to your house. Yep, and then in Kansas, by the way, yes, and your wife said, Why don't we take him to that new place we've been going to in Missouri? And I was like, Missouri? We just we're in Missouri, what's going on? And we began talking, and I said, Look, or or something about Casey's. And your wife, your wife said, How come you guys don't invest in Casey's? And I was like, I don't know. And so I said, I didn't even realize, you know, I looked it up and their stock price and everything else, and yada yada yada. Uh let's go a little bit like let's see, or five years later. So your uh wife is a genius.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, okay. Whoa, whoa, whoa. We're gonna have to do some uh production on this too. Yeah, editing, yeah. Where's that beep?
SPEAKER_02:Now, so currently, and I don't want to say how many shares, but currently the share price from the time that she said that, and I bought in, and you bought in, by the way, is up a hundred and fifty one point sixty three percent. Wow.
SPEAKER_03:Way to go, chess. Way to go, chess. Genius. So she she hit that one really well. But um, for those of you that you don't know who aren't located in like the Midwest, uh, Casey's is a convenience store. Uh it's similar to a uh Quick Trip uh if you're down in the Florida area, Wawas, um, something like that. So Roadrunner based upon where you're might be.
SPEAKER_02:Kind of weird. They don't have uh their dividends are quarterly and their share price is phenomenal. Their dividends don't put that one in your retirement for that's because they're a growth fund.
SPEAKER_03:They're not an income fund. Gotcha. So you're gonna be looking at the the uh you're gonna be making the money on the growth of the of the uh share price versus the payouts, which is great. I'm just getting to the age where, you know, I need to start looking at more income-based stuff, is what your financial advisors will tell you.
SPEAKER_02:So and I think my my uh the reason why I never even considered Casey's, I mean we've we laughed and laughed and laughed the first time. I think they're called um uh what they what come and goes go to. They changed them to uh Magnum or Magnuson or Magnum, something like that. But um we laughed, you know. First I went to Ragbri, I saw the come and go sign and then Casey's. And I think it was Ragbri that kind of turned me on to how popular convenience stores are. I mean, um, you know, not that I live some prissy life, but we you've been you've been to my town. You said where's the convenience store? We don't really have a lot of convenience stores here.
SPEAKER_03:Your convenience store that you have the main one in town is owned by the grocery store Myers.
SPEAKER_02:Yep, yeah, that was which yeah, we don't I mean Yeah, I mean the like I know there's the speedway is uh is biased.
SPEAKER_03:You don't have a lot of speedways, roadrunners, wah wahs, quick trips, you Casey's, you don't have any of that stuff.
SPEAKER_02:No, no, there's one speedway in between my house and my job, but you'd have to get off a freeway. I mean, I would never do that. I mean, there's you know, we we've we you've teased me for years are called party stores. I mean, it's just like uh you know. Like packaged liquor, but they also have like a fountain soda. But when I went to your house and they had that brand new Casey's, I mean, you had a I mean, not seriously.
SPEAKER_03:I mean, it was a pizza place, it was um they sell donuts and pizza and sandwiches, and they have the walk-in beer cooler and candy and everything.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, so that's I mean, you have to tell your wife next time you say, you know, Adam gave you some kudos on the show. So although although she does listen, so I mean, uh, thank you for the investment advice. Now, if you have any others, Chastity, um, please send them my way. So she's she's got your number, she'll call you and let you know what you should be investing in. That's right, that's right. Um, well, listen, um, in the spirit of a week of hell that you had, I liked what you had an idea uh when we were talking. Uh well, let's let you kick it off. I don't want to steal your idea.
SPEAKER_03:You know, when I was a kid, dads told jokes. Okay, they weren't that good, but but over the course of the last 20 years, they've got a term for those type of jokes, and they're called dad jokes. Uh I was talking with my daughter, and um I I I made a joke, and she's like, Oh, that is such a dad joke. And I'm like, it was a good joke. Um so we disagreed there when that's okay. But I just think it's interesting with dad jokes, and I started thinking, it's like, you know what? Every once in a while we should add a little levity and a little humor to our show, and uh do some do a little segment on dad jokes. Fair enough. Because as I tell my daughter, dad jokes are not necessarily bad jokes, and now you kind of understand why she thinks it's horrible.
SPEAKER_02:You know, the older she gets, the cornier she's gonna think they are.
SPEAKER_03:Well, she's a captive audience at this point in time, so deal with it. That's right. So I thought we would share some dad jokes. I've got some good one-liner dad jokes here.
SPEAKER_02:I've got some I I actually, you know, when I drove the bus, even though you won't accept the job that I've offered you multiple times to I'm holding out for a better offer.
SPEAKER_03:I haven't taken it off the table. Let's just leave it that.
SPEAKER_02:You shouldn't because things aren't looking good. And so pretty soon. I will uh I'll get you uh CDL and we'll you'll be driving. You'll be get you a nice hat, like a de Brim or something like that. But uh no, drivers don't have hats, but well and have hats that say let's on the side. But uh I used to have a dad joke that I would say because I took a lot of students, young students. We did these group trips, and you know, kids are scared sometimes when they ride buses, especially if they're not yellow, they're used to yellow buses, and my buses are white, and so they're kind of like looking around. I'm like, I'm like, hey, I'm like, how are you? And like they're looking at me like, oh my god, this guy's talking to me. And I'm like, well, what do you call a fish with two knees?
unknown:I'm like, what?
SPEAKER_02:I go, a two-nie fish. And then they would go. And so that's kind of made me, yeah. That's my that's a dad joke that I've said a long time.
SPEAKER_03:Well, let me let me give you a couple. All right, or I'll give you one, you give me one, whatever. Adam, do you know a joke becomes a dad joke when it's a parent?
SPEAKER_02:You know, I only know 25 letters of the alphabet. I don't know. Yeah, I don't know why.
SPEAKER_03:Did you know that you do you should not trust an atom?
SPEAKER_02:Atoms are made up of everything.
SPEAKER_03:Exactly.
SPEAKER_02:Um this one's funny, but kind of insults me.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, then it's even better.
SPEAKER_02:I told my wife she should embrace her mistakes. She hugged me, she hugged me.
SPEAKER_03:Did you know melons don't get married? Because they can't elope.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, they can't elope. I love it. Uh I'm reading a book about anti-gravity.
SPEAKER_03:Really?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, it's impossible to put down. No, that's bad.
SPEAKER_03:Do you know what a cow is with uh no legs?
SPEAKER_02:Hamburger.
SPEAKER_03:Ground beef.
SPEAKER_02:Ground beef, exactly.
SPEAKER_03:Although, did you know spiders are smart? Did you know that? I'm trying to get I'm trying to understand. Yeah, yeah, you're not going to. Because they can find everything on the web.
SPEAKER_02:Why don't eggs tell jokes? No idea. They'd crack each other up.
SPEAKER_03:Oh. Um do you know what a fish is with no eyes?
SPEAKER_02:Uh dead on my plate. No, it's a fish. No eyes. No eyes. I used to hate facial hair. But then it but then it grew on me. Oh, that's bad.
SPEAKER_03:Did you know a penguin builds its house by e-gluing it together?
SPEAKER_02:Uh gluing it. Uh why did the computer go to therapy? No idea. Too many bites from its past.
unknown:Oh.
SPEAKER_03:You know, a uh pony with a sore throat is a little horse. I can't even say that with a straight voice.
SPEAKER_02:That's actually pretty funny. I changed my Wi-Fi name to tell my wifi I love her. Now now my phone asked me to do it every day.
SPEAKER_03:You know why skeletons are calm? No. Because nothing gets under their skin.
SPEAKER_02:Uh-huh. Here are some cycling dad jokes. Why don't bikes or why don't bikes ever get tired? Oh, this is not good. Yeah, this is it's kind of it says, why don't bikes ever get tired? It should be why don't bikes ever fall over. Because they got two tires. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:I would have known that. Um I was afraid a book on phobias wouldn't help.
SPEAKER_02:I was afraid of book on phobias. You know, I got hit in the head with a bike once. I don't doubt it. It was a psychological accident.
SPEAKER_03:Oh. I used to be addicted to soap. Did you know that?
SPEAKER_02:I didn't think we were going to talk about that on the show. Yeah, but I'm clean now. Okay, good, good, good. You know, my bike and I are in a serious relationship. Oh, I know that. It's been a long ride together.
SPEAKER_03:You're you have a very unhealthy relationship with your bike.
SPEAKER_02:Let me probably have more pictures of my bicycle than I do family members.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, yeah. Here's my bike sitting next to a tree. Here's my bike at the lake. Here's me laying with my bike at night in my tent. It's ridiculous.
SPEAKER_02:Why don't bicycles ever tell secrets?
SPEAKER_03:I don't know.
SPEAKER_02:Well, they might spill the beans and lose their chain of thought.
unknown:Wow.
SPEAKER_03:Uh do you know why bees have sticky hair? No. Well, it's because they use a honeycomb.
SPEAKER_02:I don't know if this is funny actually. My bike isn't broken, it's just going through a phase.
SPEAKER_03:A picture went to jail. You know why? Because it was framed.
SPEAKER_02:I have two more.
unknown:Okay.
SPEAKER_02:They're bike themed. So I figure it's a cycling podcast. Well, and leisure and and investing and all kinds of good stuff. But I tried to fix my bike at home, but it turns out it was just spinning my wheels.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. Uh did you know a fake noodle is called imposta?
SPEAKER_02:I did. Actually, there's um there is a printing company on Grand River. You've been on Grand River before. There's a printing company that every day, I mean, they put a lot of work into it. They they they put dad jokes on the on the marquee. Oh, okay. And and it wouldn't be so bad if they had a digital screen and then it'd be easier to like load a bunch of. They got it like written on like a whiteboard. They have those things where they push the suction cup on the letter and slide the letter off. Oh, that's a lot of work. That is a lot of work. Oh, they've got to get to the digital edge.
SPEAKER_03:What's your last one there?
SPEAKER_02:I told my derailer a joke. It didn't shift its mood at all.
SPEAKER_03:My last one's for you, buddy. All right. You know why golfers bring two pairs of pants?
SPEAKER_02:Because one has a hole in it, a hole in one?
SPEAKER_03:Uh, in case they get a hole in one.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, exactly. Something like that. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:All right. Well, you know, after that, maybe my daughter has a point about our jokes are not that good.
SPEAKER_02:Well. But there you go. Oh. Speaking of your daughter, we'll transition to your daughter for a second.
SPEAKER_00:Okay.
SPEAKER_02:Saw the photographs of the homecoming. Um, very, very classy. She looked very classy. Oh boy. Uh, how did that feel as a father? I saw the photograph of you and your now looking very adult-like daughter. Freshman in high school, by the way. How did that how did that feel?
SPEAKER_03:Um, you know, it made me feel proud. Um, she went with uh whole group of her, you know, girlfriends.
SPEAKER_02:Um except that guy with the back to the future glasses.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, yeah. Yeah. Uh that's Mason. Okay. Um, he's another one of their good friends. Um, so they went over to a friend's house and all got made up. Um, you know, it's one of those things that it's like it's cool to see her grow up, but then it's like that dress could have been a lot lower. And uh you could have messed up your hair a little bit and maybe made your makeup not look so good. Um, but uh, you know, I was proud of her because she did look nice and she holds herself very well. But on the other hand, I was like, better not be any guys at that dance looking at you because I'm gonna go flip a chair and I'm gonna be that dad. But uh, you know, it was it was it was fun. She had a great time, but yeah, it I try to deal with it as best as I can. I try to be as supportive as I can. Um I try not to be that overbearing one that's like, well, that's you're not wearing that, it's too short. But I mean, and it really wasn't short, but as her father, I'd like to see it, you know, down to her ankles. I think that'd be appropriate.
SPEAKER_02:Like an um uh uh, you know, remember uh this when you and I were growing up, the song Gangster's Paradise, and then Weird Al did uh Amish Paradise. Yeah, I'll never forget in the video. I yes, for those of you who remember, they did music videos, they showed um an Amish woman in like a magazine, it was supposed to represent an adult magazine, and and the ankle is like listed up like an inch, and I just like I was like, whoa! I was like, that was so funny, racy. Uh, you know, um, I must tell you that life works in funny ways because as the friendship that you and I have, um, it's true, it's a valued friendship. And normally, I must tell you, if you were not going through something that you'll share on the next show, oh, I would have piled it on thick after I saw the photos. But due to your current circumstances, I was like, oh, I can't say nothing. Because uh when when your wife was kind enough to share the photos, I was like, Oh yeah, the dance is going on, but but then I thought, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Well, I I appreciate the restraint. Um, and I didn't need to be reminded because I it was like, whoa, but she looked very beautiful, by the way.
SPEAKER_02:And and and I understand she's an excellent student. And and so um, how's driving? You guys are driving?
SPEAKER_03:Uh yes, she's she is one of the youngest, if not the youngest peop person in her class. So like all of her other friends are like 15. Um, and just by the way, her birthday fell, she's only 14. But um, she has been driving, um, you know, with obviously adult in the car, you know, that type of thing. And I think we got her scheduled for some driving. She's already taken the test, but driving uh lessons through an instructor other than ourselves. Um, but she's a very good driver. She's I was like, we went to Payola the other day and I was like, oh, you're doing a great job. And she's like, really, this isn't that hard, Dad. I mean, you know, you push on the push on the gas, the wheels go around, you push on the brake, the wheels stop, uh, you watch out for the sign. I was like, she broke it down all very like very basic, very analytic, you know. It's like, yeah, you're right.
SPEAKER_02:I am not insulting your daughter by any means fashion form with what I'm gonna say. It is easy until someone who's not paying attention pulls out in front of you, and then the reaction time. So I mean, um, which we could hold the bus driving job for her too, but I'm gonna need her to be 21.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, let's let's give that a few years. How about that?
SPEAKER_02:Let's try. Actually, you can be 18. I think I say, but but but we'll just tell her it's like she's gotta go to college, but uh yes, go to college. Um I'm gonna bring something up here. So I love um transparency. You know, you've been friends with me long enough that I love transparency. We um we never got into our show to make money. Now we appreciate those who have supported us along the way. Absolutely and we went down to Podfest. Um, and when we were there, we learned a few things about monetization and some options, and we really honed in on um the idea of giving something back for those of us, those who uh who are financially supporting the show. Well, that turned into kind of a cluster, and I kind of blame myself, I kind of blame the platform, the software, but but nevertheless, it falls up falls on I'm the technology one and of the show. You are the legal aspect to make sure I don't say anything stupid. Um well, less stupid. Um but uh so what I'm trying to say is there were eight or nine individuals who were, and we mentioned them at the end of the show, and we talk about you know, our our people who have been supporting us for a long time. Um, and so the idea was is that we'd come up with a subscription service. And and when we learned that what we could do is a couple different things. We could have said, you know, take 75% of our old episodes and back catalog them and then make that a paywall where somebody could have said, if you want, you can listen to the last 20 episodes, but if you love the show so much, just as I have podcasts that I'm like, oh, I can't get enough, and I just keep listening and listening. Um, and then if you would like to pay pay the money or pass the paywall, you'd get the old ones. Well, we didn't like that because we thought, you know, there's there's brag, many brag shows out there. There's you know, different interviews we've had with different directors, uh, bike manufacturers, and so we didn't like that idea. And so we thought, okay, then there was an idea where we could have a paywall where they'd get like unheard of shows. And we didn't like that either because we thought if we're gonna sit here and put together an outline and give some ideas, we want to share with everybody, not just somebody who would bring a you know a five-dollar bill to the table or whatever. But then there was something that was what if you gave early access um to the people who are willing to open their wallets to help you support and and and kick the can down the road. And you and I really like that. We're like, that's pretty good. That way everybody still gets the same thing. But if you want to hear the the men of leisure, uh leisure talk, or maybe we have like something fun, like a route release, or we have something such as um uh anything you can think about of getting a 48-hour jump. So that was what we decided. We would, you know, the traditionally the show comes out on Sunday at four o'clock um Eastern time. Um that's three o'clock for uh central. I'm just kidding. But um, and so um then we thought, okay, well, why don't we offer a subscription service and we'll turn it on? So you and I went through the motion, we were down in Florida, um, we kicked it on. Well, what I didn't understand is there was a thing called listener supporters, and then there was a subscription service, and we tested it, and it was really convoluted. And and so in the beginning, it was you would go to this one link, although it showed it as two different links. It turned out they were kind of routing back to the same link, and then it was do you want to join the subscription or do you want to join the listener support? And so everybody else was on the listener support, and we were like, this isn't good. I mean, this is this is really crazy. And then you even tried it and you got locked out, and so then we had to get a hold of support. Um well, all that to be said, um I worked with the with the platform, which we've said before on this show. It's called Buzz Sprout. Um, and by the way, BuzzSprout does a great job. I have nothing negative to say. It was just the way that they the setup options were, and it wasn't real clean and concise. But now I'm happy to say that all those things are are over with. The subscription is turned on. So for those of you who say, you know, we want to help the guys out, we want to help kick the can down the road, we'd love the show, we want them to keep doing it. You can join the subscription page. You're gonna get the show 48 hours early. So that's Friday at four o'clock. So if you're like, hey, I got a road trip, um, I want to help the boys out, and we'll uh we'll do that. So for for five dollars, uh, you can have the show early. Um, and if you want to break that down, that's about two dollars and fifty cents an episode.
SPEAKER_03:So um so well we do do two, generally we do two special episodes a year. So that's true.
SPEAKER_02:Could be better than that. But but just to be clear, that we we felt um, because we it really in the beginning, you know, we never got into it to to make money. As a matter of fact, I'm not lying. I promise you, anyone who was on the Bragg team last year, including that flask you have behind your head. I hope you don't have that up for your interviews, by the way. That flask behind your head is from from all the guys on our team. Bill was was instrumental and and so um and and wonderful, wonderful team. Um, you know, I know there's lots of teams this year for Bragg. I'm so excited to see that. Um, you got the chain gang, you got uh Sarah and Walter, they got Safety is Sexy. Uh I'm loving seeing some of the new teams. I'm I'm I'm really excited about it. Um, and so uh cycling men and women of there too, don't get me wrong. Um, but I I'm I am excited about that. And so, you know, there's there was a lot of people who helped us out, but I promise you the money that we got, we actually turned around and bought t-shirts and stickers and and swag bags, swag bags, and wristbands, and all kinds of stuff. And so, um, and so that's been really great. And so I just want to be clear that you and I were feeling like we wanted to give something back for those who were giving us something. And so you're getting something for your money for those of you who want to subscribe. So long way of saying that, but uh, I just wanted to explain because I do know that a few people got tied up into the some of our longtime listeners got tied up into the we apologize for that, but we've got everything figured out now.
SPEAKER_03:And yeah, and that and that's what I mentioned like when we went down to Podfest, we're probably in the 10 to 15 percent range of podfet of podcasters out there overall, who in no way, shape, or form got into this to make money. We're still not trying to monetize. I mean, a lot of people are creating books and are doing live stream and and doing different paid things, and it's like that's we're we're building community, we're having fun, that type of thing. So um we appreciate everybody who's giving. Um, like Adam said, we do take most of that and we give it. Back to the team in the form of shirts and swag bags and things just to make um the event a little bit more fun and a little bit more festive and and that type of thing. So we certainly thank everybody for their support and also for sticking with us while we made that transition.
SPEAKER_02:I got one more thing, and then I'm gonna turn the flow over to you for either a listener spotlight or anything else you have. Um I want to address the elephant in the room. Um, a few people have written me asking me, hey, you guys haven't talked about what rides you're doing. I gotta just be transparent with you. Until my friend uh lines up some income, um, and you'll get there. I mean, don't worry. Uh even if I give you the bus driving job, I gotta give you vacation time to go to cycle with me. So um, all kidding aside, uh once once you re-establish, then we'll figure out what we're gonna do. And um, but we've talked about a few things, you know. Um uh we did have one of one of the community members reach out to us about Ode RAM. So we looked at that and thought, well, maybe even if that's just a one-day thing, um, it's a long one day, but but but um that could be something we might be able to do. So once we figure out something, we'll we'll we'll communicate. Just want to be transparent. Right now, everything's kind of paused.
SPEAKER_03:So yeah, and it's um, you know, I'm gonna get a job at some point in time. Um, you know, it's not all about the money, it's also about having the vacation timer being able to get off in time to do that. And unfortunately, the summer biking season is coming up quickly. Um, we'll see. I mean, just like I said, we're having a team at at Bragg regardless, and we've got a team captain already, and we're gonna have some fun with that. And who knows what else we'll do, but we'll get something figured out.
SPEAKER_02:Now remember, what are the three sizes of coffee and stuff? I'm just kidding. Um small, medium, and large. Welcome to America. All right, we'll go with that. So uh your turn. Now that my my rants are done, I just wanted to mention those two things. Thank you for indulging.
SPEAKER_03:Um no, thank thank everybody for um coming along with us. Thank the community out there. Uh, we can't do it without uh their support. And I'm talking non-monetary support. I'm talking, you know, listening to the podcast and participating with our listener spotlight and all that. We uh we certainly appreciate it, and that's and that's why we do what we do. So perfect.
SPEAKER_02:Sir, uh, would you like me to give you in my best way that I can without a board? Yes, you're getting very good at this. Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time for listener spotlight.
SPEAKER_03:That's right. Uh this listener spotlight or the spotlight for this episode, I have the following clues. Uh this city or town is located at a historical Key River crossing. Uh-oh. Yeah. The town's name was merged with another town after a major disaster, and then later it changed that name. Like 75% of the towns in this country, it changed its name. Um it played an important part in the early military of the area. Uh, this no this town knows something about free falling. Uh if you visit in the first few days of January, I would not order a salad. And don't forget the sunscreen when you plan to visit this city. There you have it.
SPEAKER_02:Okay. Um it was so close to St. Louis until you said the sunscreen.
SPEAKER_03:Uh yeah, we can we can go with with that.
SPEAKER_02:Um it's completely yes, but well, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:A couple of river crossing, uh, that would work. So actually, it wouldn't, but that's okay. We won't get into the technicalities of that.
SPEAKER_02:Um while you were talking, don't answer and keep a straight look on your face right now. While you were talking, and you mentioned free falling, I couldn't help but think about Tom Petty. I knew you would. So I looked up where Tom Petty was originally from. Gainesville, Florida. So anyways, um with that being said. Is that your guess? Well, just because I cheated.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. Yeah. I think everybody would expect that from you at this point.
SPEAKER_02:Where is my sensor? Oh, I don't know. Yeah, I'm loving it. No board, you can't censor me. I wonder if Riverside has a sensor button. I think there's something. Okay, fair enough. Uh how about I just be quiet? Uh, that's a beautiful idea. Uh all right. Well, listen. Um we uh Oh, wait a minute. What was this? Can I play this? I don't know.
SPEAKER_03:There you go. That's all I have. You're driving you crazy, you don't have your sound effects.
SPEAKER_02:No, I don't have nothing. Um wait a minute. Adam Baranfield.
SPEAKER_03:Okay. Now you stepped over the line. We're about ready to wrap this up. Uh perhaps we'll play the new theme song next uh next episode. What do you think of that?
SPEAKER_02:Oh, I was gonna I was gonna ask you about those, but uh I uh I've been leaving you alone. So all right. Well, listen, uh, as always, my friend, uh excellent to be with you uh to our entire community out there. Uh, you know, we we uh thank you uh from the bottom of our hearts. Appreciate you, appreciate what you uh what you do for yourselves and your family and for us, and we look forward to uh interacting and seeing you. So um with that being said, not here. I'm in my basement and I have a door wall, as you know. But somewhere in the world, in Santa Florida, yeah. It's a great day from the
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