Eric Jankowski:  Efficiency Expert, Whiskey Blender, 380-Mile Failure

Eric Jankowski: Efficiency Expert, Whiskey Blender, 380-Mile Failure

From On a First Name Basis by Chris Saunders

May 15, 2026 · 1h 10m · Season 1 · Episode 9

About this episode

Dr. Eric Jankowski discusses themes of learning and collaboration through personal experiences in mountain biking and whiskey blending.

A 24-hour mountain bike race, a 380-mile bikepacking “failure,” and a custom whiskey blend might sound like unrelated stories, but they all point to the same theme: how we learn, how we collaborate, and how we get better without wasting effort. I’m joined by Dr. Eric Jankowski, director of the Micron School of Materials Science and Engineering at Boise State University, for a wide-ranging conversation that stays grounded in real moments, real trade-offs, and real joy. We talk about the Smoke...

People in this episode

Host: Chris Saunders

Guest: Eric Jankowski

Topics covered

  • mountain biking
  • collaboration
  • learning
  • efficiency
  • whiskey blending

Keywords

  • mountain bike race
  • bikepacking
  • whiskey blend
  • learning
  • collaboration

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Micron School of Materials Science and Engineering

Places: Boise State University

More episodes of On a First Name Basis

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the On a First Name Basis podcast page.