The Lab
February 24, 2026

Spike Analyzer Tool

Do Your Homework on Every Spike Cycle

Volatility ETFs move in cycles: from an all-time low, to a spike peak, back to a new low. The Spike Analyzer tool breaks down every cycle in a vol ETF's history and shows what usually happens next.

Trading a vol or inverse ETF mid-spike without studying its history is the trading equivalent of buying a car you've never sat in. UVXY alone has 85 completed spike cycles in its history. Each one is a complete story: a fresh all-time low, a rally to some peak, a series of pullbacks along the way, and a final reset back to a new ATL. Knowing how many pullbacks the typical UVXY cycle has, how deep they tend to be, and how long the whole episode usually lasts is the difference between sizing a position with conviction and panic-clicking on every red bar.

That's what the Spike Analyzer's Cycle Analysis mode is for.

What the Tool Shows You

Six surfaces. The dropdown lets you flip between cycles in one click; the rest re-populates instantly.

Selector

Cycle Dropdown

Every cycle in the ticker's history listed with its date range and peak spike. Click to load any one, including the live cycle.

ATL Details

Anchor Stats

The ATL price that anchored the cycle, the date it printed, and how many trading days the cycle ran.

Spike Details

Peak Stats

The cycle's high price, its peak spike off the ATL, the current spike, and the biggest single pullback.

Pullbacks

Threshold Histogram

Counts of every drawdown at seven thresholds, from 10% to 50%, so you see how many real drops the cycle absorbed.

Chart

Cycle Visualization

The rally plotted from ATL through the cycle with the peak and pullbacks marked, so you see the shape, not just the count.

Audit

Pullback Log

Every peak-to-trough event as a row: peak, trough, drop percentage, and recovery, or still down if it never bounced.

How Traders are using the Spike Analyzer Tool

1

Walk every cycle

Pick a vol ETF and step through every cycle in the dropdown to build a feel for its typical peak, pullbacks, and duration.

2

Find the topping pullback

Read the last entry in each completed cycle's Pullback Log, the drawdown that took it to a new low, to see how deep a rollover usually ends a cycle.

3

Calibrate stops by the histogram

The pullback histogram shows how many 10%, 20%, and 30% drops a typical cycle absorbs while still climbing, so your stop is not hit by normal noise.

4

Compare across products

Run the same walkthrough on UVXY, UVIX, VXX, SQQQ and the rest. Their cycles look fundamentally different.

Study every spike cycle before you trade it

Open Spike Analyzer Tool

Get in Touch

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interested in learning more about our tools.