blogs with balls 3: we don’t have balls in nascar, but we’ve got nuts

Lugnuts, of course! That was the joke I meant to tell but forgot due to those yummy Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea Vodka half & half (the other half is lemonade, FYI) cocktails. 🙂

I attended Blogs with Balls 3 in Chicago on Saturday and spoke on the panel titled “Democratizing Sports Media: How Blogging Players, Fans & Leagues Are Changing the Game.”

As expected I had a great time meeting new people and getting the opportunity to talk about NASCAR. The whole thing was streamed live over the internet by Justin.tv, it was recorded so there’s playback. So if you’re curious about what I sound like and what my hand gestures are like check out the videos below.

I think I said most of what I wanted to say but of course there were things that I wished I had said as well. One of the things I wanted to stress the most was that in my world it’s not about what NASCAR needs to do to help the fans, they’re doing everything you can think of to give fans more, it’s about what I need to do to stand out and build my audience. I need to promote myself more and educate people on my brand of blogging, which is kinda different.

Also, my biggest thing is that I need sponsors, plain and simple. I want to partner with brands and figure out cool & custom ways to get them the results they want. I’m open to everything, as long as it means I get to continue to write about my experiences in the world of racing.

And finally, there are no rules in blogging. It’s what you want it to be, if you want to be known for writing about rumors, or known for investigative journalism or known for enjoying cupcakes (like me) then you can do that. It’s always about figuring out, and working, what comes naturally to you and figuring out your audience.

I want to thank the Blogs with Balls 3 crew — HHR Media Group and Modern Hombre –for including me this year’s group of speakers. It was a pleasure and an honor. Also, huge thanks to Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea Vodka for the delicious lunch & drinks. And to the Proctor & Gamble brands for sponsoring the entire event, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Old Spice and Febreeze. I still think they should of brought some Venus razors for the ladies, but maybe when the female sports bloggers band together and put their own panel together we can get them in the mix.

🙂

I recommend that anyone in the sports media world come to a Blogs with Balls event, it’s a great chance to put a face to a name with some of the best sports bloggers out there. It’s an EXCELLENT networking event.

All of the videos below are just from my panel. I hope you dig it. 🙂