Sep 7, 2020 · 1h 10m · how-i-built-this
Rad Power Bikes: Mike Radenbaugh
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gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions
This episode of How I Built This chronicles how Mike Radenbaugh transformed a teenage DIY bicycle project into Rad Power Bikes, the leading direct-to-consumer electric bicycle brand in the United States. Through relentless mechanical iteration, resilient supply chain management, and accessible utility positioning, Radenbaugh built a micro-mobility powerhouse.
How this conversation actually went
Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Guy holds 32.5% of the talking time here. How this is scored →
Guy as informed peer 2.3 Guest teaching 1.8 Guest disagreement 0.3 Guy pushing back 0.1
speaking balance: gold is Guy, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 48:14 Debunking the 'cheating' myth of e-bike riding
Mike strongly rejects the widespread criticism that e-bike riders are 'cheaters,' countering that riders cycle significantly more miles and achieve greater overall exercise.
Hardest push from Guy ▶ 44:20 Pressing on cash exhaustion after crowdfundingGuy presses Mike on the financial reality of selling Indiegogo pre-orders near or below cost, asking how the company survived without running out of cash.
Biggest teaching moment ▶ 57:10 Explaining the punitive impact of Section 301 tariffsMike educates Guy on how 25 percent Section 301 import tariffs threatened their entire operating margin because specialized e-bike supply chains do not exist domestically.
Guy holds their own ▶ 2:06 Applying Seth Godin's purple cow marketing theoryGuy demonstrates his brand strategy acumen by connecting Rad Power Bikes' word-of-mouth virality to Seth Godin's purple cow framework and comparing it to Tesla and Allbirds.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
| Chapter | Topic | Guy as informed peer | Guest teaching | Guest disagreement | Guy pushing back | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book Promotion: Guy Raz's How I Built This | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Guy Raz delivers his book promo and introductory monologue, sharing personal experience riding a Radwagon cargo bike and connecting the brand's growth to Seth Godin's purple cow marketing concept. Mike appears only briefly in an introductory audio teaser describing a brake-assembly manufacturing mishap. | |
| Off-Grid Roots and Early Craftsmanship | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Mike recounts his off-grid upbringing in Humboldt County's Lost Coast, describing his father's craftsmanship on round houses and fixing well pumps. Guy acts as an attentive, supportive interviewer probing into family background and financial circumstances. | |
| The 16-Mile Commute and First E-Bike Inventions | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Mike explains his technical journey retrofitting a mountain bike with an Asian sit-on scooter motor and motorcycle lead-acid batteries to manage his 16-mile high school commute. Guy asks clarifying questions about battery range, voltage, and components. | |
| Woodshop Conversions and the Teepee Trade | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Mike narrates trading his first e-bike build for a canvas vegan teepee and tailoring subsequent builds to specific physical needs, such as a neighbor with late-stage Lyme disease. The dialogue is lighthearted and warmly conversational. | |
| College Years and Co-Founding GolfBoard | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Mike discusses attending Humboldt State and co-founding GolfBoard after a serendipitous beach collision led to backing by Laird Hamilton and Don Wildman. Guy tracks the timeline and asks about Mike's minority equity position and departure. | |
| Fat-Tire Epiphany and Teaming Up with Ty Collins | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | Mike explains the epiphany of pairing heavy fat-tire frames with electric powertrains, recruiting his preschool friend Ty Collins, and targeting the federal 750W legal threshold with throttle assist. Guy connects this with the broader market context. | |
| The Viral Indiegogo Campaign | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Guy questions how a team with zero platform or industry connections generated 320,000 dollars on Indiegogo in 30 days, pointing out the crushing fulfillment liability. Mike attributes the momentum to Ty's marketing prowess and word of mouth. | |
| Manufacturing Delivery and Launching Direct-to-Consumer | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Mike recounts discovering reversed brake handles upon container delivery in Seattle and transitioning from Indiegogo subsidization to direct-to-consumer Shopify sales at 1,499 dollars. Guy presses on cash flow survival during the post-campaign pivot. | |
| Utility Positioning, Angel Mentors, and Founder Dynamics | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Mike reframes the 'cheating' stigma around e-bikes, explaining health and utilitarian advantages over leisure cycling, and details early mentorship from angel investors Hugh Holman and Mike Gerton. Guy asks pointedly about co-founder friction between polar personalities. | |
| Institutional Investment and Tariff Headwinds | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | Mike details bringing in Zulily/Blue Nile founders for seasonal inventory liquidity and describes the existential shock of Trump-era Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports. Guy explores how supply chain diversification to Taiwan mitigated margin compression. | |
| Pandemic Surge, Operational Scaling, and Urban Mobility | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Mike details managing early COVID-19 fallout from their Seattle epicenter before demand exploded by 297 percent year-over-year as commuters fled public transit. Guy explores future brick-and-mortar strategies and carless city visions. | |
| Youthful Leadership, Grit, and the Long-Term Mission | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Guy reflects on Mike's remarkable scale at age 30, asking the signature 'How I Built This' question regarding luck versus skill/grit. Mike affirms that while timing helped, tireless work and an early-mover advantage were fundamental. |
Statements from this episode (15)
Radenbaugh: First Rad Power Bikes customer paid with a teepee
“The first customer I had actually ended up trading the bike for a teepee, like an actual, like, teepee that I lived in for a summer on my parents' property.”
In 2014, Most E-Bikes Were Limited by European Regulations
“Most of the e-bikes that were out there in the market were built for European standards, actually, right around 2014, and so they were 250 watts of power, they didn't have throttles, they had really skinny tires”
Radenbaugh: 750W is US federal legal limit for unlicensed e-bike classification
“750 watts is the federal legal limit for e-bikes to be treated like a regular bike, so you can still ride them.
Without having to get a license for it, right?
Exactly.
You don't need a license, you don't need registration, you don't need a driver, yeah.”
Rad Power Bikes raised $320,000 in pre-orders in 30 days on Indiegogo
“Within 30 days, right, we had done, I think over 300 people had signed up, so we did 320,000 dollars in pre-orders.”
E-Bikes Inherently Drive Multi-Unit Sales Because People Prefer Riding Together
“You know, you don't want to buy one Ski-Doo. You want to buy two so you can go with your friend. You see the same thing with e-bikes, which is, it's a lot more fun to go ride with a pal.”
Radenbaugh: Rad Power Bikes Made $1.5M in First-Year Sales
“We had in the first year, so in, in, in, in, in, in, in, we did a you know, a million and a half in sales. So we did 300,000 on crowdfunding and a 1.5 for the year.”
Radenbaugh: Unresolved Co-Founder Tension Inevitably Creeps into Team Performance
“And so one of the big learnings I've kind of taken away from the last awesome five years with Ty has been like, acknowledge the tension and address it head on. Like, don't let it build up pressure because it, you might think it's not creeping out into the rest…”
Rad Power Bikes faced chronic summer inventory stockouts from cash constraints
“The second reason, every single summer we were out of stock and we, for long periods of time, weeks on end. So we were cash constrained, like we needed to be able to order more inventory near the tail end of each year to be prepared for the upcoming summer.”
2018 Section 301 tariffs eliminated Rad Power Bikes' entire profit margin
“In mid 2018, right, we were growing up really fast. And we had a lot of bikes on order compared to our balance sheet. And all of a sudden tariffs hit us really hard. E-bikes were part of the section three Oh one tariffs. So like I said, we had all these bikes …”
Radenbaugh: E-Bike Supply Chains Will Never Exist in the United States
“The supply chains for electric bikes, they don't exist in America. They're not going to exist.”
Radenbaugh: Rad Power Bikes generated nearly $100M in 2019 sales
“We were nearly a hundred million in sales last year.”
Radenbaugh: Rad Power Bikes saw sales spike 297% in April 2020
“So April of 2020, we've done 297% more bike sales than we did April 2019.”
Radenbaugh: Rad Power Bikes grew over 100% annually for five years
“We're a business that has grown a hundred more than a hundred percent per year for the last five years.”