Thankfully it wasn't my wedding anniversary (Amy and my 25th is Sept 23rd) but the 5th anniversary of indoorcycleinstructor.com!
Wow - what a ride this has been. Everything started back on August 2nd 2008 with this post. Well actually all this probably started 6 months before I published that first post. I had become intrigued with the thought of starting an Internet radio show, after listening (and become addicted to) sales and marketing Podcasts while driving between customer locations.
As a travelling sales guy, I spent my days "interviewing" prospective customers. A typical 30 minute meeting would consist of me asking a series of questions of my prospect and then listening to their responses - but rarely was this reversed, where the person would be asking me questions. So I thought; why not create an Internet radio show / Podcast that featured interviews with experts and personalities connected to my real passion, Fitness & Indoor Cycling?
How tough and/or expensive could this be?
Well it wasn't as difficult as it may seem and I think I spent about $50.00 in total to get started. The whole Podcasting thing really came into its own around 2008. iTunes was firmly established as the Podcast feed reader - although there were dozens of similar services competing for this space (most are no-longer) - and at the time the iTunes store was one of the top five places on the Internet where people searched for content specific to their interest. So beyond Google and YouTube, the iTunes music store was the place to be.
Of course we needed a website. The open source, blogging software WordPress was becoming very attractive to Podcasters. It was most importantly free, easy to use and automatically created the special RSS feed that connected indoorcycleinstructor.com to The Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast in iTunes.
So I bought a $30 headset mic, registered the domain $9.95 and signed up for some cheap hosting @ $5.95 a month. But nobody warned me about how much time I would need to invest in all of this š
I've done some simple studies on how much actual time I invest to produce one 30 minute episode:
- 2-3 hours recruiting each guest for the show, spread over days, weeks or for a few - months or even year. The folks at RealRyder have theĀ distinctionĀ of being the most elusive to date. I'm still working on a few that couldĀ eclipseĀ them... stay tuned.Ā
- One+ hour consisting of a dozen emails and one (sometimes two) 30 minute pre-calls to sort out the topic and questions.
- One hour for a late cancellation & rescheduling
- 60-90 minutes for the actual recording session
- 2 hours post production; editing to make each guest sound good (I swear I have removed at least a million "uhms", "you knows", lip smacks, sniffs, etc...), creating and uploading the MP3 files, creating the post and then promoting the episode.
272 episodes x apx 9 hours = around 2,400 hours!
But they've been totally worth every minute as long as you've enjoyed them!
When I started all of this I had a concern that we'd run out of things to discuss. After all this is just Indoor Cycling... what's there to talk about?
As it turns out a lot. As I look forward I see that we've just scratched the surface.
There's lots more coming during year 6 here at the Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast
*Note to self - add calendar reminder for 9/23 so you don't miss that anniversary... and don't forget to find something special for Amy.
John is a member on the AFS (Association of Fitness Studios) Advisory Council.
Holding certifications from; Schwinn, Heart Zones, Team ICG and Life Time Fitness, John's held regularly scheduled cycling classes between 1998 and 2015 when he moved to Florida.
When the weather permits, you'll find him riding and leading outdoor groups by himself or with his Tandem partner (wife) Amy.
- Q Factor – What is it and should you care? - November 29, 2024
- ICI/PRO In Staffanstorp Sweden - November 17, 2024
- Shiny (sweaty) Happy People - November 14, 2024
Note to self (also) …. acknowledge something you’ve read and appreciated. I forget this all the time. If only I could talk the ball ‘n’ chain into riding stoker we’d have some fun…..
Happy 5 Year Anniversary ICI! Thank you everyone for being here with us and for making these years together possible. We appreciate you all.
Now, by the looks of the headset I see downstairs, that can’t possibly be the $30 one anymore!
You are also too humble to tell our listeners and readers how many hours you put into making sure things go as smoothly as possible here at ICI. (He goes crazy when the website is down, or you cannot access things as quickly or as easily as he would like you to be able to.)
As I type this, John is working on updating the website and is continually seeking new and cool content.
Here’s to many more great years together. Thanks again everyone!
I’ve known you for almost five years now John and it’s hard to believe you EVER though you’d run out of things to talk about. š
Congratulations to you and your accomplishments and regards to “Saint” Amy!
Allen
Thank you for your hard work and dedication. I’m thankful for the site, the content, the people and the conversation. You’re awesome, John!