Sarasota SpeaX marks a format change rather than a typical guest interview this episode, as Brad Hannon and Trey Martell sit down with Vic Cipolla, owner of DD Roasters, to make it official: Vic is joining as the show's new full-time third host. The three talk through how the decision came together, framing it less as recruiting a stranger and more as formalizing a relationship that had already been building through Vic's earlier guest appearances, and they discuss the practical upside for his business, namely that people now recognize him around Sarasota from the podcast itself.
The conversation doubles as a check-in on where the show stands after winning Platinum for best local podcast in SRQ Magazine's rankings, an honor the hosts had mentioned before but revisit here with more reflection. They talk candidly about the tension between producing long-form conversation and the reality that short clips travel further online, and they lay out plans to lean more into current-events coverage and YouTube collaboration features going forward. A move to a new studio, a warehouse space the hosts keep intentionally vague about, gets teased as part of the next chapter.
Brad and Trey also float names of past guests they could see stepping into occasional co-host roles down the line, including Eric Arroyo, Rachel Borack, Alexander Ronzino of ReWork Capital, and Donald Carlson, suggesting the show's rotating-chair format may continue even with Vic now anchoring the seat full time. Away from the mechanics of the show, the three trade personal updates and reflect on how much of Sarasota's arts scene, its orchestra, opera, and theater community, they have learned about simply by doing the podcast for this long.
With no guest roundabout question or Rapid Fire Gauntlet this week, the episode plays more like a conversation between longtime friends settling into a new arrangement than a milestone announcement, though the hosts are clear that Vic's addition marks a real shift for Sarasota SpeaX heading into its next stretch of episodes.
What you'll take away
- Vic Cipolla, owner of DD Roasters, moves from occasional guest to permanent third host of Sarasota SpeaX.
- The hosts credit the show with winning Platinum for best local podcast from SRQ Magazine.
- Plans going forward include more current-events coverage and expanded YouTube collaboration features.
- The show is moving to a new studio space, described only as a warehouse at an undisclosed location.
- Brad and Trey name several past guests, including Eric Arroyo, Rachel Borack, Alexander Ronzino, and Donald Carlson, as possible future guest co-hosts.