Trouble in Turn2

The second half of the On Pit Row Steve Wronkowicz let’s us in on the origins of “On Pit Row”, Bill Elliott and why facts are cumbersome.

How long have you blogged? If memory serves me right, we didn’t even have a website of any kind until about a two years ago. Our first website was pretty lame really. We added the blog shortly after starting the website.

What made you start blogging? Why do you blog? Originally we felt we needed the website and the blog because, “all the cool radio talk shows had one”. We knew that our radio show only reach a small segment of the population. By adding the website and the blog we knew we could reach and interact with a far wider group of race fans.

How did you get started with your radio show, On Pit Row? One of our original co-hosts, Bill Clark, was doing a general interest morning radio show on WCWA-AM in Toledo, along with running an advertising agency. I have known Bill since our high school days and he was doing the advertising for the “day job”. We concocted a scheme to do a 15 minute bit about photography on the morning show.

I would fill in as a co-host on the morning show from time to time and my love for racing became a topic to fill some time one morning. A little brain(less) storming later we thought it would be a great idea to add a NASCAR segment. We found a sponsor in a local John Deere dealer that was supplying shoes to some of the race teams. Along with the sponsorship came my first co-host; the female marketing director for the John Deere store, who’s name I’ve long since forgotten.

In 1999 we lost the sponsorship and the co-host. That is when I recruited Charlie be the new second banana. And the rest, as they say is history.

Where do you blog from? Actually, now from just about anywhere, but mostly at home. Notebook computers are an amazing thing. Many times I find myself blogging while something else is happening in the background; whether it be a baseball or hockey game on the radio or a race on television.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan? My father built and drove dirt modifieds while I was growing up. I loved spending time in the garage while a race car was being built or rebuilt. I couldn’t wait for Saturdays and ABC’s Wide World of Sports. I always hoped for some form of racing coverage. In 1969, I started following the career of LeeRoy Yarborough. Back in those days it was a real challenge to get any kind of racing news. I think that was part of the fun—the hunt.

Do you attend races, and which ones? The Michigan races and Indy have been on our agenda because of their proximity. We would like nothing better than to do the whole series, but right now, we still the “day job” thing. We have gotten much more involved with ARCA since we started doing our sister show—INSIDE ARCA. That affiliation may open some doors for us to expand our time at the tracks.

What is your fondest NASCAR memory?

Man you served that one up; Bill Elliott winning the Winston Million. Charlie probably would have guessed Bill’s championship, but I think winning the Million changed NASCAR forever. Just like Winston putting big money into the sport in 1972, Bill winning the million bucks, legitimized NASCAR as a big time sport.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community? Blogging helps fill in when we aren’t doing a show. Only doing the radio show once a week made some stories get old before we could talk about them. The blog allows us to address topics on a more immediate basis. I’ve met some real characters in the blogging community. I have had to learn their sense of humor. I am always excited when someone new comments on one of my posts.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online
community? Yeah—Charlie, what a moron.

How much time per day do you spend blogging? Probably not enough. I spend about 2 to 3 hours a day reading what others have written. Charlie constantly yells at me for not commenting more on other’s blogs. But, I’ve never been one to comment as a way of letting someone know I read their stuff. I usually don’t comment unless the post really hits a nerve with me. Likewise I usually only write 2 to 4 posts a week. I can’t post for the sake of posting, but if something hacks me off or touches me somehow, I’ll write about it.

Charlie is always picking on you. Have you ever lost it and gone Robby
Gordon on him?
There are times that we have had some real battles, but I can never remember taking a swing at him. He is a black belt after all. Plus he usually takes the unfair route and uses facts to support his claims. I just spout my unsubstantiated opinions. He always tells me I make his argument for him, but I remember several times that I’ve tricked him into switching sides of an argument. And he calls me an idiot.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your show or blog?
I am constantly amazed at having the ability to talk with people in the NASCAR world. Being able to call the NASCAR office or a race team and set up an interview with an official, driver or member of a race team is quite astonishing to me.

Charlie has mentioned how impressive your cell phone is. What’s that about?
This really gets Charlie’s goat. I remember when my daughter made fun of me because I only had ten or so names in my cell phone and she had over a hundred friends. Well I now have phone numbers for media members such as Jeff Hammond, Larry McReynolds, Lee Spencer, Dave Despain and David Poole. Legends like Bobby Allison and Harry Gant and drivers such as Boris Said, Michael McDowell, Dave Blaney, Marcos Ambrose and Jeff Burton. I wouldn’t be able to have any of these without the help of all the great PR people I deal with to set up our interviews.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or
outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
This is more of a radio show story than a blog story, but It makes me shake my head every time I think about it. Two yeas ago we were doing our show from a local sports bar that was next to the Toledo MudHens baseball stadium. It was a game night and our normal phone connection wasn’t working properly. We had to go to plan B to keep the show on the air. Charlie, Bill and I reverted to our cell phones to call the radio station. The bar was too noisy because of the pre-game crowd so we headed out onto the street to do the show. While we were on the sidewalk we were joined by the local mounted police clip-clomping down the brick street with their horses, followed minutes later by the fire department, sirens blasting. If that wasn’t enough great radio, we got caught talking about a dead pigeon hanging from a nearby roof when we thought we were off air. Ya have to love live radio.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your
blog? Two things—first, our on-site producer BethAnne is really responsible for this whole thing getting started. I was unsure about doing the whole ON PIT ROW thing to begin with, but she pushed me to do it and I’m forever in her debt for that push. The second thing is that ON PIT ROW is a compilation of two other phrases; “On Pit Road” and “Press Row”.

It’s time to get to know everyone’s favorite NASCAR astrologer, Clance fromChurch of the Great Oval.

How long have you blogged?I started blogging in June 2005.

What made you start blogging?
I started blogging just to practice my creative writing skills. I have dreams of being a classic novelist, you know.

Why do you blog?
I love to write. Creativity is a very important aspect of my Self. I enjoy the interaction with other blogger and fans. I keep hoping it will raise my I.Q. a little, but so far it’s staying about the same, give or take a few points. Writing clears my mind.

Where do you blog from? The Outer Limits, or near the Strawberry Wilderness Area in Eastern Oregon.

Your predictions are very unique. How do you make them?
I’ve studied Astrology for 28 years or so. I used to hand cast all my horoscopes which takes a lot of time and mathematical precision. Due to the wonders of technology, there are some really good programs out there to input data into, which makes the work a lot easier and much more precise and accurate.

The NASCAR driver’s horoscopes are all based on their actual Natal charts with 6 month outlooks and daily projections. Solar, Lunar, and Planetary aspects change on a daily basis, so having a computer program do the math, helps a lot.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
I’ve been a fan since 1995.

Do you attend races, and which ones?
My first race was the Inaugural race at Las Vegas in 1998. I generally attend Las Vegas, Phoenix, and both Fontana races. My daughter recently moved close to the Sonoma track, so I hope to add it to my schedule next year.

Do you have a favorite driver?
Tony Stewart is my driver, and I really like Ryan Newman a lot. I also like Robby Gordon, Kevin Harvick, and Juan Pablo Montoya. Dale Jr., of course. ( I would never want the Jr. Nation mad at me. I’d lose half my readers.)

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
I love the interaction between other bloggers and fans. I am a huge people person and enjoy the many different personalities and perspectives that make up the fan base.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community?
I hate sploggers, people who steal my posts and try to make money off them on their own websites. That ticks me off to no end.

I don’t enjoy how ugly the flaming of driver’s gets.Every driver in NASCAR is enormously talented and I think a certain amount of respect should be reserved for them. There are a lot of sick people out there who also take out their anger on unseen people in forums, etc. I hate that part of it. I don’t even want to see it.

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
Blogging can take a lot of time. I spend 4-6 hours a day when I am in full swing. At least. It takes me about an hour and a half to run the driver’s aspects and then interpret them in a way that is valid for their lives and the races. On the days I post race day horoscopes I am looking at about 6 hours just for the ’scope’s.Then there is the time spent reading other blogs,news and RSS feeds.It can be very time consuming, but I love it.

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success? I think the horoscopes brought a unique aspect and flair to the NASCAR community. I posted Tony Stewart’s ’scope the first time I did it, and a NASCAR journalist actually left me a comment that “No one was interested in that. Write something interesting.” I have certainly proved that was wrong. I actually got an apology a couple years later from her.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.
I have had a lot of cool things happen. Ryan Newman gave me a holler in a pre-race interview once. Several driver’s have referred sponsors to me for various promotions. You would be surprised at how many teams subscribe to my ’scope’s in advance. I have received tickets, DVD’s and other fun and wondrous NASCAR oriented stuff, and invites to some awesome fund raiser’s. I enjoy getting to run contests for sponsors. Getting paid a fair price for a link or a post even happens on occasion. $250.00 for a link? Well, sure. Takes up an entire few minutes of my time, and that’s a pretty good hourly wage.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
One gal wrote a long email about how she knew Tony Stewart and she were soul mates, and would I use my astrological “power” to bring them together. I also have one guy who, every year just before Daytona, leaves long comments and emails me about Alien’s taking over the world, and how NASCAR emissions are destroying the planet. He was actually the guy who convinced me that Kyle Busch was an Alien:), which started my “NASCAR Alien Takeover” series. The funny thing was, that one day I did an Alien post and cartoon, and the guy left me a chapter long comment on my blog. The next day was the dedication and groundbreaking of the NASCAR Hall of fame. That night there were over 800 sight reportings to 911 of strange lights over Charlotte. I loved it.

If you could change one thing about NASCAR what would it be?
I would drop the fall California Speedway race and add another road race to The Chase. I would also like to see some of the longer races shortened up a bit. Fox would broadcast everything. The spelling of NASCAR,should be NA$CAR.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?
I used to work for Directv. Sunday’s were quite often a mandated work day, and I was ticked that I had to miss the races. I asked for a religious exclusion because I was missing my Church services at The Church of the Great Oval. I got the exclusion and Sundays off. So came the name of my blog, the Church Creed, and the rest of the LugNutZ congregation just evolved. I actually went on later to become a legally ordained minister. One of my dreams is to offer Invocation before a big race, and perform track weddings.

I was lazy this weekend and never lined anyone up for this week’s Know Your NASCAR Bloggers Series. Ah, the beauty of not having an editor, deadline and no pay. The interviews will resume next week, but for now I thought I’d compile some of the best answers from the bloggers I’ve featured so far. It’s an incredibly diverse group that defies all stereotypes about NASCAR fans. Here’s a sample:

Why do you blog? Or what made you start blogging? I decided to start a Ryan Newman Fan blog because I was tired of scouring the internet looking for any news that I could about Ryan Newman and Penske Racing. I could find the info, but I really wished that it was all laid out in one location. I decided there had to be other Ryan Newman fans that wanted the same thing. I knew nothing (and probably still don’t) about blogging or running a website. But I try to have as much information about Ryan Newman on my site as possible. In fact it could be said that it has become obsessive.[Mike Pratt-Ryan Newman Fan]

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
I have been a NASCAR fan for 7 years. I’ve been aware of NASCAR my entire life and knew the major driver’s names and what not (plus Jeff Gordon is from Vallejo, CA which is only 20 or so miles from where I grew up) but it wasn’t until Dale Earnhardt’s death that I really focused on the races. I’m sad it happened that way. Around that same time the MTV True Life documentary “I’m A Race Car Driver” was aired and that really pulled me in to the sport. It was really fascinating to me all of the tradition and pomp and circumstance that goes into each and every race.[Valli Hilaire-The Fast and Fabulous]

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
If you’re asking me, not enough considering I cover all major forms of motorsports not just NASCAR. On average I’d say about 6 hours a day. Keep in mind that’s not just pounding on a keyboard, it includes filtering through over 150 news and blog RSS feeds several times a day. It’s good to be “King,” or rather good to be retired and have the time to dedicate to an enjoyable pastime.

Of course if you were to ask my family the question they’d just roll their eyes and point at the dummy in the corner hovered over a keyboard.[Marc Boland-Full Throttle]

How did you get the name for your blog?
I have several student loans to pay for so I sent out notices for the opportunity to have the exclusive naming rights for my blog. I spend several days and nights pouring over sponsors who were willing to be the exclusive sponsor of my blog that…seriously it was less spectacular than that. I wanted the name to be something that truly stated who I was and what I was all about. Plus, I didn’t really like “What’s this Thing Called NASCAR All About?” Hey, that sounds like a cool name too. Maybe I should have gone with that instead. The real story…Trixie came from my alter ego. Trixie grew up in a trailer park and is proud of her redneck and hillbilly roots. Trixie lives in a trailer park and loves NASCAR. I know this may buy into the whole stereotype of a NASCAR fan, but if you have visited The Park, this is so far from the truth.[Amy Peterman-Trixie’s Trailer Park]

What is your favorite NASCAR memory? My favorite NASCAR moment was in 1995 at MIS, I was walking in the garage area, not looking where I was going, and ran straight into Bobby Labonte. BAM! Embarrassed the hell out of me. But Bobby was the one who apologized. What a gentleman.[Charlie Turner-On Pit Row]

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
The freedom of expression the blog affords, and the community itself. I enjoy reading other bloggers on the same subjects, and being able to exchange ideas and information, without the interference we so often find on the forums. There is nothing I don’t enjoy about the NASCAR online community. Every entry, and every comment–on my own blog or on someone else’s–is as interesting and enjoyable to me as opening Christmas presents was to me as a child.[Jim Grady-Rev’ Jim’s Rants]

With the blog, as I mentioned earlier having a venue for entertaining and informing. And again, the circle of crazies I’m part of and partner with is a lot of fun.

Another aspect is being able to encourage other to blog. Everyone once in a while I hear “you’re a leader; you’re an inspiration.” The former I find highly amusing. I’m just me. No big deal. That said, if I can use where I am to encourage good writers, so much the better. We’re all equals in cyberspace. Hit totals don’t matter. I have yet to see a Sitemeter link on a tombstone. Only quality matters. To have a helping hand in getting good stuff out there… that’s sweet.[Jerry Wilson-Restrictor Plate This]

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community? That’s a tough one. I would have to say that at times there’s some additional pressure from blogging, and when time constraints come into play I hate it when I go long stretches without writing a word. Like right now for example. My personal schedule has been so swamped that I haven’t written anything since Texas. Not that I haven’t had it in me, just my time for the Lounge has been significantly strained. At that point, I’ve had to prioritize everything that needs done with it, and unfortunately writing has been a little lower on the list than I would like.

Another thing that I dislike are some of the views out there. Not that I don’t respect them, but at times I wonder what planet some of the folks are on. Whether it’s NASCAR fixes races, to some other out of this world comment, the common sense factor is definitely missing. It’s these types of comments that people who aren’t familiar with the sport pick up on, and causes them to stereotype NASCAR and its fans. I’m all for free speech, so don’t get me wrong, but it pains me to think that some people really are that out of touch to think some of the crazy things they do.

One final thought on this, and one thing that pretty much ticks me off, is when someone from some PR company comes and gets a blog at Thunder Lounge. They are there for one purpose, and one purpose only. That purpose is to garner free advertising for their client. From my point of view it’s an insult to me, to our community and to our readers. It says in my mind, “Well, you’re not good enough for our advertising dollars so we’re going to take advantage of you for free.” That just ticks me off to no end. While you can’t necessarily blame the actual people being represented, like they really know what their PR folks are doing every second, somewhere it has to stop. I don’t mind folks blogging and participating that have their own main site. That’s fine by me. But when someone is there to put up one or two posts about their main site or promotion, don’t participate, and never come back, I have issues with it. Needless to say, those blogs are removed really quickly [Luke Poland-Thunder Lounge].

Do you have a favorite driver?
My favorite drivers are Ricky Rudd and Dale Jarrett. So right now, I’m a fan without a driver. It actually sucks…I can’t currently find the driver that compels me to throw my support behind him. [Darren Fauth-One Bad Wheel]

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.
A couple of years ago my wife got me a JINX T-shirt that says “Nobody reads my blog.” That made me laugh. Then I cried into my new shirt because it was true. Did you know the salt in tears can really help break in a new T-shirt?[John Newsom-The Spotter]

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)? Not really other than the occasional solicitor who thinks I could benefit by placing their logo on my site. One offered me a whopping $75.00 blatantly in an email. I wrote back with my usual wit and sarcasm that I accept, my terms are $100 per day paid in advance for a full year. I never heard back! If I could earn a living blogging I’d sell my house and move down near George![Michael Bills-NASCAR Eclectic]

“I have been asked if I was married. I got a 2 or 3 thousand word ‘manifest’ on the evils of the sinners who live in California and how God is going to make them pay by destroying California and have it fall into the Pacific. I sometimes get people emailing me complaining about certain things in NASCAR and asking me to pass it along to NASCAR - I really don’t have a direct line to NASCAR, honestly. I also get people who sometimes email me their NASCAR rants and then thank me at the end for listening to them. It is like they just need someone to vent to and they choose me.”[Bob Ellis 4Ever3]

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?

I served four years of active duty military service with the United States Marine Corps, to include service in Iraq. Additionally, I still provide operational support to our services.[Tim Zaegel-Do You NASCAR?]

In addition to the NASCAR work, I write comic books. Really. And I’m one of the nation’s foremost experts on the solid waste industry [ seriously]. I’ve done a lot of writing outside NASCAR, some of it in areas far afield from NASCAR. But I’ve NEVER had more fun writing than blogging.

That, and I’m really Kyle Busch. That’s why I’ve been planting pro-Kyle propaganda all along. See, conspiracy theorists? We really are out to get you![Jay Busbee-Yahoo]

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to answer the questions for me. It’s been incredibly fun for me to get to know more about this crazy online NASCAR galaxy. And yes to those paying attention, if this post were a sitcom, this is the point where you would recognize that episode was just a montage episode and the writers mailed it in. It’s also usually a telltale sign the show is about to jump the shark. I promise that I won’t let that happen to this blog.

Tune in next week when we interview Digger the Gopher.

Do you know Amy Peterman? Maybe not. But I bet you know Trixie, of Trixie’s Trailer Park and NASCAR Bloggers FT Digest.

How long have you blogged? I have been blogging about three years now. I can’t even believe I have kept The Park going for that long.

What made you start blogging? Why do you blog?
What I started out blogging, it was a way to keep myself busy during the day at work. At the time The Park was born I worked in an office where I finished most of my work with two hours of being at work. I needed something to keep me busy so voila here we are. Even after moving on from the job, I continued blogging. My friends, family, and co-workers just didn’t get the whole NASCAR thing. I mean someone actually told me the only reason I was a NASCAR fan was I like to watch cars crash. But as well know, there is SO MUCH more to NASCAR than crashes and I wanted others to know that.

What are your goals for your blog?
I achieved one of the goals already. I started out with only my husband and another friend of mine reading The Park. Now I have a few more readers who not only lurk, but stop by and comment. I guess my ultimate goal would be to parlay The Park into a gig that could pay the bills. I know that it’s a lofty goal for me, but hey you just never know until you take that leap of faith.

Where do you blog from?
I usually end up blogging from home most of the time even with a 4-year old boy running around the place. Lately I have been working on my blog at work which sounds bad, but there are some down times where I have the opportunity to work on The Park.

How did you get the name for your blog?
I have several student loans to pay for so I sent out notices for the opportunity to have the exclusive naming rights for my blog. I spend several days and nights pouring over sponsors who were willing to be the exclusive sponsor of my blog that…seriously it was less spectacular than that. I wanted the name to be something that truly stated who I was and what I was all about. Plus, I didn’t really like “What’s this Thing Called NASCAR All About?” Hey, that sounds like a cool name too. Maybe I should have gone with that instead. The real story…Trixie came from my alter ego. Trixie grew up in a trailer park and is proud of her redneck and hillbilly roots. Trixie lives in a trailer park and loves NASCAR. I know this may buy into the whole stereotype of a NASCAR fan, but if you have visited The Park, this is so far from the truth.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
I watched NASCAR while growing up, but the whole NASCAR passion didn’t manifest itself until about 2003. I have been consumed by NASCAR ever since.

What races do you attend?
The only ones I have attended are the ones at Texas Motor Speedway. I was able to attend the first fall race at TMS back in 2005. I would love to be able to attend other races, but at the moment Texas is the place for me to get my fix. I am hoping to make the pilgrimage to Daytona 500 one of these days.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community? I love being able to discuss my opinions about virtually anything involving NASCAR and not feel like I am offending anyone. I have tried to participate in other blogging communities, but felt I had to hold back on my opinions. The NASCAR blogging community is one who values and respects your opinion even if they disagree with you. We may disagree about topics and/or drivers on a daily business, but in the end when we as a NASCAR nation are attacked (i.e. comments from political officials) we all come together as one.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community? I think the only thing I don’t enjoy about blogging is the guilt I feel when I don’t post on The Park. Since becoming a contributor on another site, I feel as if I need to come up with some thought provoking post, but I don’t always have it in me. I worry that I won’t have anything interesting to say and others will feel like I don’t belong who don’t have a clue what I am talking about.

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
It can vary on a daily basis. Most days I spend about 4-5 hours. I don’t know if this is a lot of time or not enough time, but if I could I would spend more time fine tuning some things on The Park.

Do you have a favorite driver? As with all NASCAR fans, we all have that one driver we cheer for every weekend. My favorite driver is Tony Stewart. But Tony wasn’t always my number one driver. When my passion for NASCAR started back in 2003, I was a Jeff Gordon fan. There I said it. So how did Tony come into the picture? I needed a driver that could give me more of what I wanted out of driver and Tony fit the bill. I liked his attitude towards his racing and towards life. I guess ultimately I like bad boys and well I don’t see Jeff Gordon as a bad boy.

Is there one thing that was a key to your blog’s success? One key has been staying true to The Park’s personality. In the beginning I wanted The Park to be a blog anybody would want to read, but found it was too time consuming for me. I decided to focus on NASCAR and intertwine bits of my own life throughout.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog. Well it all depends on what your definition of cool is. I guess being profiled on another blog is a cool thing. I never thought of myself as a writer. I knew I had something to say, but I just never knew people were interested in what I had to say.

Another thing was to have a local sports radio show link back to my blog on their site. It was the first time my site was linked on another site other than on a friend’s blog.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)? I can’t say that I have any strange or funny stories about my blog. The only one I have that I like to share with my first time readers is the post about the Big Green Book Bag. I didn’t have anything of value to say so I decided to take out my green book bag and took inventory of the items. This is my favorite post to date with the exception of the Trixie Awards post.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog? I work as an academic advisor for a major university in Texas. I don’t usually talk about my job on The Park because I want to protect the innocent, guilty and the complete morons that I am for an interesting read and I would love to one day turn it into a book. Trust me, you think NASCAR is unpredictable, you should try telling a student he or she is not going to graduate with a degree.

Rapid Fire: In one or two words, how do you feel about the following:
Kyle Busch? Sprint Cup Champion
Top 35 Rule? Get rid of it
Car of Tomorrow/Today? A work in progress
Race that Dale Jr finally wins? Get it done already (sorry, I know that was more than two words, but it’s how I feel)
Tony Stewart’s 2009 Destination? Not at Joe Gibbs Racing
Night Races? Bring ‘em on!

• Cue the Duck Aflac announced they will sponsor Carl Edwards in 2009. Supplemental insurance is extremely important when you break your neck doing a backflip and can’t work. Is something like that covered? I am already predicting a commercial with Edwards and the duck doing flips after a win. Either that or Edwards can take a fake swing at the duck. As part of the contract, the answer to all Aflac trivia questions is now “Carl Edwards”. The deal is also apparently the second richest sponsorship deal behind Amp and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Of course Earnhardt Jr’s deal with Amp is essentially for co-sponsorship, as the #88 hauls in additional cash from the National Guard.

• Bruton Smith bought another track, this time Kentucky Speedway. It’s a good pickup, but with Tony George owning Indiana Avenue and ISC/France Family owning Illinois Avenue, it will be very hard to get the Red Monopoly and build hotels. Since he already owns North Carolina Ave, I would have made a play for Pennsylvania Ave now and Pacific (Northwest) Ave later.

• Tom Bowles of SI.com has an interesting take on Michael Waltrip Racing.
  

  It’s no secret the driver mortgaged his financial future to move ahead with this program and that he took on an investor (Robert Kauffman) in October to salvage the team’s long-term future. But if all three sponsors bail — this is the final year of NAPA’s agreement with the No. 55 — all the investment money in the world won’t keep this program on track. And with a tough economy making sponsorship difficult, this could be the biggest-level program that winds up biting the dust.

  I guess Napa can only make so many self-deprecating commercials about how bad Waltrip runs. I don’t have the inside scoop that Bowles does, but I was surprised by this. Given SI’s credibility, I have to believe there’s some truth, but my guess is that if MWR can keep all three cars inside the top 35 Waltrip can make it work to stay in business.

• Dale Earnhardt Jr had a few interesting comments on the future of JR Motorsports. He’s considering moving his Nationwide team to Cup in 2009. If NASCAR’s second-tier series is just as costly to operate that’s a serious problem for all parties.

  He also had this to say about Martin Truex Jr:
  

  “Why would he want to come drive for me?” Earnhardt Jr. asked. “He’s in good stuff now and he’s going to have great opportunities from other people. And I would never do that to him.”

  To me, that’s a subtle way of saying DEI should be looking for a driver for 2009. Junior was clear that he wouldn’t hire Truex, but if you look at the link to the story it’s titled “Friends don’t let friends drive junk”. That could be interpreted as not hiring Truex for a startup Cup team, or implying that something is already brewing with another top Cup team.

• Just four races after a crew chief shuffle at Ganassi Racing, there is another one this week. Prior to Talladega Jimmy Elledge moved from the #41 car to Juan Pablo Montoya’s #42 team. Now Elledge has left Ganassi and Montoya is not happy. Elledge is pretty well regarded in Cup and will turn up somewhere if he hasn’t already struck a deal. One place that makes sense is JR Motorsports, since Elledge is Earnhardt Jr’s brother-in-law, although that might be too much family even for JRM.

  Meanwhile Brian Pattie moves from the Ganassi Nationwide team to head up the #42 crew. Montoya has one top ten (2nd at Talladega) while Ganassi as an organization only has two all season. Obviously things are not going well at Acronym Racing (That’s CGRwFS for the uninitiated) and Ganassi has already ripped his organization once this year. Instead of shuffling around internal crew chiefs among the teams, it might be time to look outside the organization for a different perspective.

Off the Beaten Path

A chance for me to discuss whatever else is on my mind this week. Hey, if Peter King can write about his lattes every week…

• I don’t get very political, especially in this space, but it’s inescapable right now. I saw a report that the presidential candidates have raised over $900 million dollars. It’s mind boggling and we’re not even to the official presidential race. Worse, the entire point of donating money to a candidate is for them to burn through it. With so many problems in this country and abroad, imagine how many causes a billion dollars could go to.

• I saw Zodiac last weekend. A pretty good thriller/mystery with a lot of good actors too. It’s based on the true story of the Zodiac serial killer in California and focuses on the investigation. Jake Gyllenhal and Mark Ruffalo are both really good. My one complaint was that the movie ended with a postscript. I have a TV that’s at least ten years old and I couldn’t read what it said. Even if I wanted to throw in a spoiler here, I couldn’t.

• Have a great and safe weekend and be sure to get plenty of rest on Saturday night. We’ll all need it on Sunday afternoon.

This week it’s time meet the ringleader behind Yahoo’s popular NASCAR blog From the Marbles, Jay Busbee.

How did you get into NASCAR blogging?
Through a very fortunate series of events. I had been running a blog focused on southern sports called Sports Gone South for about a year or so. I did a few NASCAR posts here and there—you can’t really do a sports website without them—and I was having some success, getting links from places like Sports Illustrated. Around this time, Yahoo! started putting some serious coin and effort into its blogs, and I decided I’d like a piece of that action. I kept pestering Jamie Mottram, Yahoo!’s blogs editor, for a gig. One week before this year’s Daytona, he offered me a tryout on the NASCAR site. I’d already scheduled a getaway weekend with my wife to South Beach in Miami during Daytona weekend, so I took the laptop along, bought my wife a five-hour trip to the spa, and blogged my ass off for the whole race. And so here we are.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan? I’ve been a fan ever since my mom’s relations in Richmond took me to the old Southside Speedway. I have no idea who I watched there, except that I do remember that they’d run these series of races, and somewhere along the line they’d allow amateurs onto the track to race one-on-one. I’m sure some of those guys went on to have some success in racing, but I distinctly remember one who surely didn’t…because he put on his left-turn signal entering Turn 3.

Anyway, back to the question…I’ve always been more of a stick-and-ball guy. I knew who everybody in NASCAR was, what their teams were, what the big stories were, but it was a Sunday-to-Sunday kind of fandom, not the 24/7 kind that I’m into now. Make no mistake, I’ve got a fever…and the only cure is more NASCAR.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
I enjoy the fact that the NASCAR blogosphere is still rather uncharted territory. We’ve got your site, mine, three or four other major ones, and that’s about it. Compare that to football, baseball or basketball, where there are literally hundreds of blogs fighting for eyeballs. We’ve got a lot of opportunity to stake out our own turf. Me, I’m taking the smartass-idiot-in-the-back-of-the-class territory.

I love the fact that there’s no shortage of storylines to write about, and no shortage of ways to explore the major storylines of the season. In its purest form, NASCAR is one large race with 35 pit stops, and that’s the kind of long view I’m taking. Ideally, when you get to the end of the 2008 season, you’ll be able to look back at what we’ve done at the Marbles and see that we’ve riffed on every major event of the year, and had fun doing it.

And yeah, I do get a little pleasure out of tweaking some of the NASCAR sacred cows. More than once, I’ve compared Kyle to the Intimidator knowing full well that #3 Nation will go completely insane. What I want everyone to get is that it’s entirely possible to respect the hell out of these guys while still laughing about what they do.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community? Not that it’s a problem, but it is something to be aware of—in blogging, there’s no room to lay back on your laurels. You stick the landing on a funny or insightful post, and the next day it’s gone, and your readers are saying, what have you done for me lately, blog monkey? There’s a real risk of burnout, so you’ve got to be careful to compartmentalize your blog work—don’t work on your blog from 7am to midnight, or whatever. If you don’t keep your love of your subject fresh, it’ll show through in your work. Readers can tell when you’re phoning in a post.

Also, as everyone has seen, there are a fair share of absolute idiots who have figured out how to comment on your posts. I don’t care if you don’t like my favorite driver, I don’t care if you hate everything that I write. Matter of fact, I love it when folks like that come to the site and can put up a good fight. But all it takes is one racist/sexist/homophobic moron to confirm every pathetic stereotype about NASCAR. That’s what drives me insane. That, and the very simplistic, with-us-or-against-us mindset that some fans bring to the table. I wrote a post a couple weeks back saying something to the effect that Kyle Busch’s checkers-or-wreckers style is exactly what NASCAR needs right now, and more than one commenter said, “If he killed somebody, would you be saying how wonderful he is then?” Of course not, you fool. See some shades of gray in the world.

It seems like sometimes your readers miss the satire in your posts. Is it hard to convey humor through writing? The hardest thing about humor is that what one person finds funny, another finds stupid or dull or asinine. One of my favorite regular bits is “Pit Chatter,” where I create little scripts and backstories for what’s “really” going on between the drivers. It’s goofy and ridiculous—Kyle Busch communicates only through text messages, Junior weaves his sponsors into every sentence he speaks—and the first couple times I did it, some people really didn’t get that it was a joke. I got called dishonorable, which I didn’t understand, and told that I should write for Cartoon Network, which I took as a compliment. I love those dudes.

I think that a lot of my readers didn’t quite know what to expect when I came on board. My first major post compared NASCAR drivers to NFL players (the Super Bowl had just concluded). And while some folks got the joke or understood that it was just a kind of lighthearted cross-sport post, others got horribly offended that I would dare demean their beloved drivers by comparing them with lowly football players.

There’s a certain segment that’s never going to get what I’m trying to do—have fun with the sport and its participants, giving everyone a place to air their thoughts on their favorite (and least favorite) drivers. And that’s fine. But there are more that are understanding what an amazing opportunity blogs offer all of us to talk NASCAR. It really is a sports bar with a seating capacity in the millions. No beer or hot wings, unfortunately, although we are working on that.

How much time per day do you spend blogging? Probably six hours a day, plus trolling all the NASCAR sites, listening to the big podcasts, watching some TiVo’ed races and programming. There are worse ways to make a living.

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success?

Two things, actually. One is the association with Yahoo! Itself. It’s the Number One sports site on the web, so when they link to one of my posts, I get the population of a decent-sized city coming to the site—which is nice. But my bosses have always stressed that we shouldn’t just lay back and wait for those spikes, that we should try to create a community of our own. And I think that community will be the true key to the blog’s success.

The site is getting to the point where it’s rolling along just fine even when I’m not there. Every race, we run an open thread called “Running Wide Open,” where people can vent about what’s going on during the race. And when I look at all the comments and conversations getting going on those posts, I’m like a proud papa watching his kid take his first steps.

And then some idiot comes in and goes “NASCAR’s stoopid! It’s nothing but rednecks turning left!” and I’m like the disgusted papa who has to clean up an overflowing diaper.

Do you have a favorite driver?

Tony Stewart. I love the guy’s attitude, his skill behind the wheel, and the fact that you never quite know what the hell he’s going to say next. I do a lot of journalistic sportswriting outside of the blog, and I can count on one hand the number of reliably good interview subjects I’ve met—guys like Charles Barkley and Chipper Jones, who never take a question off. I haven’t yet had the pleasure of interviewing Smoke, but I can’t imagine he won’t be on that list.

Which races do you attend during the season?

Both Atlanta races; I live in Atlanta so that’s easy enough. I’m also hoping to get to more this season and in the future—I’d love to do a Marbles on-the-ground report from Daytona next year.

What is your favorite track?
Talladega, first among the superspeedways. Like everybody else, I like short track and road racing, but there’s something about the big dogs that makes them can’t-miss events for me.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.

The coolest thing hasn’t yet come to pass, but hopefully will before too much longer. I don’t want to jinx it by saying anything, but a couple of somebodies who I’ve written about several times on the site are interested in coming on board and having their say.

For now, though, the very cool thing is getting to meet a whole community of fun, knowledgeable, laid-back but very dedicated NASCAR fans. There’s momentum building now; we’ve got inside jokes and regular features up and running. Plus, I’ve managed to convert a couple of my stick-and-ball pals to at least taking a vague interest in NASCAR, which I count as a victory.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
Like most other bloggers, I’ve had a few people assume that I have a lot more access than I do—“You tell Junior to shut up until he wins a race,” “Can you give Tony Stewart my email?”, stuff like that. I also love the conspiracy theories—NASCAR, Toyota and the Illuminati are joining forces to put Obama in office, or whatever.

One of the funniest things to me is how many people regularly swear off NASCAR because of whatever perceived injustice has been done to them—bringing in Toyota/women drivers/restrictor plates/commercials/et cetera. If all these people actually did quit the sport, NASCAR would be down to, like, ten fans.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?
In addition to the NASCAR work, I write comic books. Really. And I’m one of the nation’s foremost experts on the solid waste industry [ seriously]. I’ve done a lot of writing outside NASCAR, some of it in areas far afield from NASCAR. But I’ve NEVER had more fun writing than blogging.

That, and I’m really Kyle Busch. That’s why I’ve been planting pro-Kyle propaganda all along. See, conspiracy theorists? We really are out to get you!

Even if you don’t know who Luke Poland is, you’ve probably seen his footprint in the NASCAR blogging galaxy. He is the creator of the Thunder Lounge which hosts several of the top NASCAR blogs. And in his choice free time he also voices his strong opinions in his writing too.

How long have you blogged? I’ve been blogging in one form or another since 97/98. Whether it was what was originally termed as a weblog, or eventually spawning into what is now considered a blog. Of course it hasn’t always been about NASCAR, but in terms of writing and/or collecting that’s where I kicked it off at. In regards to NASCAR I’ve been on the web since 2004 with Thunder Lounge. It was brought up to a full blog in 2005.

Why do you blog? Or what made you start blogging? Honestly there were several reasons. Some are personal, but overall I just wanted to share my insight and perspective with anyone who would listen. At the time there were few truly good blogs out there talking about NASCAR, and most of the “chatter” on the forums that were around then seemed to lack focus and true understanding of how things really are. They were all more conspiracy and lunacy than anything, and it really left little doubt as to why at times NASCAR fans are singled out and stereotyped. From being so far out in left field, not well written, or what have you it really looked bad on the fans as a whole.

As time progressed with version 1 of Thunder Lounge, I just got tired of the few fans out there giving the majority of us a bad rap. So I reincarnated Thunder Lounge into a more traditional blog and let the big dog eat.

Not only do you blog, but you also do a lot of work behind the scenes. Explain how the Thunder Lounge community works. I definitely work my tail off behind the curtains to ensure our site and services are always available and on par. Overall, Thunder Lounge is made up of four distinct parts. Naturally you have exclusive content from Thunder Lounge, and also our events at the track. However we’ve expanded recently to allow readers to sign up and start their own blog for free. They get their own domain (username.thunderlounge.com), can select their own theme for their site, and run their own blog without having to worry about installation, upgrades, hosting, compatibility, or any of the other headaches of typically running their own blog. Another cool aspect is that it doesn’t necessarily have to be a blog. They could start their own fan site, and create as many pages and/or posts about their driver as they want. It is truly an unlimited potential in terms of creating their own pit box on the web. They can upload their own pictures, videos, or audio clips, and share them with the world. And we’re adding new features all the time.

Finally, our fourth aspect is our featured sites. Some of the top NASCAR bloggers have entrusted their content and sites to Thunder Lounge, and have hopped on in our community. While these folks are still a part of our community, they also have a few extras along with it. They have use of their own domain name, they get more upload space, themes, plugins, and other goodies as well. For now this service is on an invite-only basis, and not just anyone can signup for it. However we do have plans over the next several months to bring some of these features to normal users as an upgrade to their existing free service. Whether it’s just a domain, a custom theme, or whatever, we’re going to have a lot of additional options so that bloggers can customize their own Thunder Lounge experience.

We’re also working on some other really, really cool things as well. I’ll have to leave it at that as a teaser for now, but you’ll know when it hits.

Where do you blog from? That’s one of those questions I consider as an “open door”. The “educated derriere” in me wants to say from my beloved Mac, made by the good folks at Apple, running OS X (Leopard, for the record). However, the best way I can answer this is “from the heart”. When I write something, whether it is a full article/post or a comment, it’s always straight from my heart. Right down in the guts. I refuse to tow any “lines” like some mainstream sources, and whatever it is that’s on my mind is coming out. Like it or not, at the time I write it that’s what is honestly in my soul.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan? I’ve been in love with the sport since I was little. Being a Tarheel born and bred isn’t a bad thing. I can remember my Dad taking me to some of the tracks as a kid. He worked for Pepsi, and would frequently be onsite at different tracks handling various things. One of my most fond memories from back then was sitting on the pit wall at Rockingham, watching the people walk by. It’s been a long road since then, but here we are.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community? I enjoy the opportunity to write and share my thoughts, and to put some honest, heartfelt content out there. If someone reads and enjoys it, that’s the icing on the cake.

I also really enjoy the interaction with fans from all over. You won’t find better people out there than those that are involved with NASCAR.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community? That’s a tough one. I would have to say that at times there’s some additional pressure from blogging, and when time constraints come into play I hate it when I go long stretches without writing a word. Like right now for example. My personal schedule has been so swamped that I haven’t written anything since Texas. Not that I haven’t had it in me, just my time for the Lounge has been significantly strained. At that point, I’ve had to prioritize everything that needs done with it, and unfortunately writing has been a little lower on the list than I would like.

Another thing that I dislike are some of the views out there. Not that I don’t respect them, but at times I wonder what planet some of the folks are on. Whether it’s NASCAR fixes races, to some other out of this world comment, the common sense factor is definitely missing. It’s these types of comments that people who aren’t familiar with the sport pick up on, and causes them to stereotype NASCAR and its fans. I’m all for free speech, so don’t get me wrong, but it pains me to think that some people really are that out of touch to think some of the crazy things they do.

One final thought on this, and one thing that pretty much ticks me off, is when someone from some PR company comes and gets a blog at Thunder Lounge. They are there for one purpose, and one purpose only. That purpose is to garner free advertising for their client. From my point of view it’s an insult to me, to our community and to our readers. It says in my mind, “Well, you’re not good enough for our advertising dollars so we’re going to take advantage of you for free.” That just ticks me off to no end. While you can’t necessarily blame the actual people being represented, like they really know what their PR folks are doing every second, somewhere it has to stop. I don’t mind folks blogging and participating that have their own main site. That’s fine by me. But when someone is there to put up one or two posts about their main site or promotion, don’t participate, and never come back, I have issues with it. Needless to say, those blogs are removed really quick.

How much time per day do you spend blogging? Typically I spend at least two hours a day with it. As of late, I’ve had to take those two hours and use them for other things involved with Thunder Lounge. Hopefully things are going to start settling down soon to where I can move those back to writing, and still keep up.

Do you have a favorite driver? Sure I do. Although I have and wear lots of swag from various drivers. I do try to keep my personal cheers out of Thunder Lounge though, as I want to keep my writings on neutral ground. I really try to make sure the reader knows that when I write something that it isn’t because I’m a fan of whoever, and I’m writing because that’s what I honestly think from neutral ground. I will note that my main driver is not amongst those with Chase eligibility, but there’s hope.

There are very few drivers I truly dislike, and would rather see laps down to the field. For the record though, while those few I wouldn’t mind seeing out of contention, I never want to see anyone hurt. It’s nothing personal, any they may be the greatest person in the world, but they’ve come off on my bad side for one reason or another. None of which are currently full-time in the Cup Series, though.

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success?
I honestly don’t feel that there is any one thing that can have a finger put on it. There have been so many things and people that have helped out along the way that one person or action can’t be singled out. Whether it’s Marc over at Full Throttle, Charlie and Steve over On Pit Row, or one of the countless other people out there that have helped out in one way or another. The list to thank is so long, but we truly appreciate and thank every one of them.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog. I would have to say the coolest thing is the people I’ve met and interacted with. Whether it’s meeting some crazy Sailor that’s shacked up in the Philippines now, or other really great people involved with the sport in one way or another, it’s the people that really make the difference.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)? Sure, and some are really out there. I’ll get emails from people wanting a job at Hendrick or Roush for example, or messages like, “You tell Matt Kenseth that next time Flippy comes at him, to take him out.” Then I also get a lot of “promotional” requests as well. Like a free DVD for blogging about it, or what have you. Typically I try to keep the endorsements out of it for things like that. If I like something, I’ll tell the readers about it, but not simply because you’ll give me one for free. Now if it were a free truck, or a Mac (and it better be a Pro with a 30″ ACD), then I might have to reconsider [laughing].

If you could change one thing about NASCAR what would it be? Public perception of the sport and its fans. While it’s slowly changing, there are still a lot of people out there that just don’t “get it”. All they see are left turns, left turns, left turns. I guess it’s much easier to mock what we don’t understand than it is to check it out. Maybe it stems from the fear that if they do, they’ll like it.

If you have never read The Spotter, you are missing out on John Newsom’s great insight and wicked wit. As a news reporter, John also has a unique perspective on blogging, journalism and where the media is headed. And of course, he’s funny.

How long have you blogged?
Let’s see … I started blogging in Feb. 2005, shortly after I became assistant sports editor at the News & Record. It’s 2008 now, so that’s, what, three years?

Why do you blog? Or what made you start blogging?
Self-preservation, mostly. At the time, the N&R was hopping on the blog train, and I didn’t want to miss it, and the Sports editor wanted me to do one. I knew a bit about racin’, and Greensboro is in NASCAR’s best (or second-best, depending on how you count it) TV market. Three years ago there weren’t many NASCAR blogs. The Diecast Dude and the Scottish Racer were about the only two out there, and I figured I had some great untapped niche. But then thatsracin.com unleased its pack of blogs about a week before The Spotter went live, so there went that plan.

I probably could have given it up when I moved back to the newsroom (I’m now the online news reporter) in January because I was really burned out on blogging toward the end of last year. But it was a new year and a new start, and I couldn’t give up completely on making fun of Fat Tony and various hapless drivers. Might as well do it on company time.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
I was vaguely aware of racing when I was a kid. I grew up in Richmond, and I remember one time I went to the old Richmond Fairgrounds with my friend Dan Peck and his dad. (There used to be a Peck Iron and Metals sign on I-95 coming into Richmond, on the south side of town. That was Dan’s dad’s family business.) I pretty much forgot about from racin’ when I lived in NYC and Texas, but I really got into it when I moved to N.C. in 1995. So I’d say I’ve really been a fan for about a decade or so. In other words, I’m a complete NASCAR Noob.

You work for a newspaper and have a blog. What is your take on blogging compared to traditional journalism?
The Buzz Bissinger-Will Leitch fracas has consumed a lot of virtual ink over the last week. And because I’m a fair-minded journalist with a foot in both worlds, I see where they’re both coming from. (I’m going to confine what follows to Sports, though the same pretty much goes for News blogs vs. news reporters.)

Fact of the matter is, print and blogs are both journalism. Blogs and traditional sports writing are a lot more alike than people seem to think. They both deal in facts and opinion. They both use the written word. The blog guys love to trash the MSM and the dead tree media or the buggy whip makers or whatever you want to call newspapers today. But print journalists are the ones out there doing much of the original reporting. They’re the ones talking to the coaches and the players and the agents and doing a lot of the heavy lifting on the reporting end. They also still have big platforms. The daily papers aren’t as powerful as they once were, but they still have a lot of readers and reach and more than a fair bit of influence. A lot of people care what Ed Hardin writes, for instance, and the N&R gets praise or grief (grief, mostly) for which stories make the front of the section and who gets their name in the paper.

But the newspaper guys unfairly slam blogs as some sort of bastard love child of gossip and slander. Blogs are more than just a looser, more fun form of writing. They’re also a new publishing platform, cheap and easy for anyone who has a computer and a way to put words on the virtual page. Blogs are essentially columns without a set length or regular publication date. You have to remember that newspaper columnists have plum jobs. They’ve paid their dues from preps to college to pros. Most columnists have a lot of clips in the bag before they get their column, and you have to pry it out of their cold dead hands. Bloggers haven’t paid their dues in that same way, and that bothers a lot of journalists.

There are a lot of funny and interesting bloggers out there, and my Google reader is full of them. But there are a lot of awful ones, too. Just like newspaper columnists.

While I’m on the topic, Buzz Bissinger is a wonderful journalist. “Friday Night Lights” is a tremendous book. But he acted liked a complete horse’s ass on Bob Costas’ show. He acted like every cliche of Old Media. If you’re going to rip someone — and there’s plenty about Deadspin and other blogs you can hate on — at least do some research first.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
Most of what I write now involves tragedy — I write a lot of briefs about people who are shot or stabbed or robbed — and the word “police” is in just about every story I produce. The blog lets me write about something different and in a different format.

Another difference between blogs and newspapers has to deal with style and tone. Newspapers use a fairly formal format — everything has to be sourced, there are certain style conventions, news stories take a hard lead and features take a soft lead, etc. etc. In the blog, I can write pretty much whatever the hell I want. I also can use the word “hell” without having the editors meet it to death over the course of an afternoon. Hell. Hell. Hell. Man, that feels good.

As for the blogging community, I’ve gotten to e-know some folks. I actually met one — Bram Hume of Backstretch Motorsports is also from Greensboro. He’s a big, funny guy who knows a ton about racing.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community?
All they ever write about is NASCAR, NASCAR, NASCAR. Just for once write about something else, mmkay?

Humor is a big part of your blog. Is it hard to convey humor through writing?

You say I’m funny. You mean funny like I’m a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I’m here to amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny?

“From the Marbles” is pretty funny. Black Flagged Online (aka The Onion of NASCAR bloggage) is very fresh and smart. Full disclosure: I went to William and Mary with Jay Busbee, one of the “From the Marbles” bloggers. J.D. Gibbs is another W&M guy. We rule NASCAR. Take that, UVa.

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
Maybe two or three hours per week. I used to do a lot more when I was back in Sports and was working with Dustin Long, our racing writer and blogger. But I don’t follow racing as closely, so I’m not as up on the day-to-day as I was. As I mentioned earlier, I was really burned out on blogging at the end of last season. I went with the three-times-a-week Five Laps format this year just to keep the writing load manageable. I don’t want to hate what I do.

Do you have a favorite driver?
Juuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunior!!!!!

My least favorite should be pretty obvious. *cough* Shrub *cough*. I also admire these drivers for different reasons: Denny Hamlin (also from Richmond), Kevin Harvick (who’s driving the repainted No. 3), Tony Stewart (who can drive anything) and Juan Pablo Montoya (because black cars look completely cool, and because he, too can drive anything on four wheels. If Tony Stewart were Colombian, he’d be Montoya.)

Which races do you attend during the season?
None. I went to the spring race at Richmond a few years back and had a blast, and I covered the one and only Busch race at Martinsville a couple of years ago before it was NAFTA’d north to Canada. (That’s the first thing from Martinsville that hasn’t been boxed up and shipped south.) But I’m the cheapest bastard alive, and I’m not much on crowds. Now that Digger’s at the track, there’s no reason to leave the couch.

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success?
My blog’s a success? Where did you hear that? The fact that you peddle such untrue rumors must mean you’re a blogger.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.
A couple of years ago my wife got me a JINX T-shirt that says “Nobody reads my blog.” That made me laugh. Then I cried into my new shirt because it was true. Did you know the salt in tears can really help break in a new T-shirt?

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
In one of the first comments on my first-ever post, a guy ripped me for driving a Volvo and for never having been to a race. I got to school him pretty good.

But for the most part, I’ve been pretty surprised at how smart and funny my commenters have been. Take a peek at the comments at the thatsracin.com blogs, and you’ll be convinced that the English language had gone there to die. At the Letters to the Editor blog at the N&R, spelling, grammar and logical thought all are curled together in a corner, whimpering. I never thought The Spotter would be more civil than anything our Op-Ed folks did, but it is.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?
I play a level 70 dwarf hunter on World of Warcraft. Alliance FTW.

This week it’s time to avoid trouble and get fabulous. That means a few questions for Valli Hiliare of The Fast and Fabulous.

How long have you blogged?
I’ve been blogging about my personal life for about 8 years, but for NASCAR it’s been since 2006.

Why do you blog? Or what made you start blogging?
I started writing “The Fast and the Fabulous” when I was a web producer for a newspaper website. I managed our motor sports page and I wanted another space to post information that you couldn’t find in regular news articles, things like where a driver would be appearing before the race or commentary on what a driver’s wife was wearing, things like that. Eventually I left the company and they didn’t care enough about the blog to want to keep it so I took it with me and have been growing it ever since.

What are your goals for your blog?
My goal is to become popular and to just do more in general. I want to go to more races, so that I’ll have more to write about and build upon some of the connections that I have to give my audience more unique content. I really want to be able to write my blog full-time and quit my day job. That’d be heaven on earth.

Where do you blog from?
I blog mostly from my cubicle at work. If something crazy happens on the weekend and I have to write something I will do it from my computer at home, but I really like being elsewhere when I write, it just makes me feel more structured I guess.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
I have been a NASCAR fan for 7 years. I’ve been aware of NASCAR my entire life and knew the major driver’s names and what not (plus Jeff Gordon is from Vallejo, CA which is only 20 or so miles from where I grew up) but it wasn’t until Dale Earnhardt’s death that I really focused on the races. I’m sad it happened that way. Around that same time the MTV True Life documentary “I’m A Race Car Driver” was aired and that really pulled me in to the sport. It was really fascinating to me all of the tradition and pomp and circumstance that goes into each and every race.

NASCAR is granting access to more bloggers this year. How has your experience been with using press passes?
Hmm. This is funny. I write about this every time I attend a race using media credentials. The first time I received credentials it was because I was associated with a major local newspaper and there were no questions asked, but it really depends on which track you’re going to because every one of them has a somewhat different way of judging who gets credentials. I had to do a lot of convincing with the Auto Club Speedway to give me credentials as a blogger when I was with a newspaper, they didn’t quite get it. Now I’m lucky to have an affiliation with Pole Position magazine which has made it ten times easier to get credentials. I know that there’s no way I’d be getting any kind of credentials if I asked for them on my own.

I think that once someone breaks through and becomes known as a major NASCAR blogger on mainstream level then that person would be able to get credentials without any fuss or extra affiliation, but until that happens I think you still need a traditional media partner to do it.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
I love knowing that people like what I’ve written and that I’m not the only one who feels a certain way about any given subject. I definitely feed off the validation I get from the feedback I’ve received from
visitors to my site and other bloggers. I think the NASCAR blogging community is great because everyone is so nice and welcoming, everyone’s willing to swap links and use each other for content.

How did you get connected with Pole Position Magazine?
The publisher contacted me directly, he liked my site and my writing and he wanted to expand the magazine’s coverage of NASCAR wives and girlfriends. It’s been a great relationship for me because it’s
allowed me to do so many things now that would have taken me a heck of a lot longer to achieve on my own.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community?
Hmm, the only thing I don’t enjoy about blogging is that feeling of the clock is always ticking. At every racetrack there’s a “Deadline Media Room” and that’s where all of the newspaper writers are seated
for the races and they all have their own set deadlines to get their story in, but for me, as a blogger I always say that my deadline is right now. It’s not 5 hours from now, or 10pm each night, it’s right this minute and it never stops. That’s the thing that causes me some anxiety and I always feel a million times better when I put something up on the site, but then the minute after it’s up I’m thinking about
what I’m going to write next.

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
It’s sporadic. I don’t write every single day of the week, but when I do it probably takes me all told, including research, linking, cropping photos, about an hour per post. I usually already have the idea of what I want to write about in my head so it comes out pretty quick.

Do you have a favorite driver?
I do and it’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. I like a lot of other drivers but he’s gotta be my fave.

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success?
I think it’s my perspective and writing about things that maybe other people don’t think about. Plus NASCAR WAGs have become so popular lately that I think that’s had a major impact on my blog, everyone is so curious about NASCAR drivers lives away from the track.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.
Every time I’m at a race and I get to be on pit road during the pre-race ceremony that’s a huge cool thing to me. I am always in awe of the event and getting to be so close to the drivers is the coolest
thing ever. I also like being in the media room when the top three finishers meet with the press after the race. It’s really cool just to be in the same room with those guys, I don’t think I could ever get tired of that. And because of my blog and now my association with Pole Position I’m attempting to go to at least one race a month this year starting with the Coca-Cola 600 in May.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
Anytime someone leaves a comment addressing the person I’ve written about in the blog directly it cracks me up. I totally don’t understand that at all and I find it funny. One woman wrote multiple comments to one NASCAR wife as if she thought the wife had written the blog entry herself. It was crazy.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?
I don’t know, I guess it would be that I’m from Northern California and I’m black. When people meet me they’re always taken aback by the fact that I’m a NASCAR fan. I always have to explain myself, which can get a little old sometimes, but I also kind of like it because I like to challenge the stereotypes people have about NASCAR fans.

This week’s blogger is Tim Zaegel of Do You Nascar?. Well of course we do.

How long have you blogged?
Not very long, actually. Do You NASCAR is actually the first blog that I’ve written, and I just started back in October of 2007.

Why do you blog? Or what made you start blogging?
I really don’t know. My brother hooked up with b5 Media to start writing about fishing (www.gettingreel.com) and told me that they had an entire sports channel over there. I had always wanted to write about sports, so I e-mailed the editors and asked for their NASCAR opening.

Where do you blog from?
From my home. I just recently moved from St. Louis, MO to Virginia.

How long have you been a NASCAR fan?
Since sometime in the early 90’s.

Do you attend races, and which ones?
I typically go to the Nationwide races at Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis, and we also get out to a Cup race in Richmond once a year. Other than that, I just sort of pick ‘em out at random.

What do you enjoy about your blog and the NASCAR blogging community?
It’s a much more tightly knit community than I could have ever imagined. It’s amazing how much support you tend to get from people that the average reader would see as your “competitor.” It’s really not the case at all.

You recently started a series called “Loose in Turn 3″. What is that all about?
Honestly, I just wanted to do something different. I envisioned something a lot like nascar.com’s “Track Smack”, and I think we’re achieving that to a certain degree, but I also think that it’s maybe a bit more attractive because as bloggers, we’re not worried about offending anybody in NASCAR, so we really have a level of grammatical freedom that those writers don’t.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about blogging, or the NASCAR online community?
Maintaining the blog can be overwhelming at times. Sometimes I’m not entirely sure whether to deliver the news, or keep it strictly to my opinions, or what. Overall, though, it’s something that I really enjoy doing with my spare time.

How much time per day do you spend blogging?
It depends, really. Sometimes I can write a bunch of blogs to have them post throughout the week, and other nights I find myself cramming at the computer until I realize it’s time to hit the rack. On average, I’d say probably somewhere around an hour and a half per day.

How did you get involved with B5 media?
Back in October they were really expanding their sports channel and were in need of quite a few writers. Like I said, I just e-mailed the editors and provided them with an example of my writing, and here I am today.

Do you have a favorite driver?
Tony Stewart

Is there one thing that was key to your blog’s success?
Well, hell … I didn’t know it was a success yet! lol … Seriously, though, I’m still a long way off from where I want this blog to be, but as for the success that I have garnered, I’d have to give you the ever-so-generic hard work answer.

Name something cool that has come as a result of your blog.
I think the coolest thing is probably just seeing your pageviews in the morning and realizing how many people just typed in www.doyounascar.com to read what I had to say.

Do you have any strange or funny stories about your blog (funny or outrageous comments or emails from people, etc.)?
Honestly, not really.

Which is your favorite NASCAR track?
Bristol, without a doubt.

If you could change one thing about NASCAR what would it be?
Oh, boy. Well, let there’s an entire laundry list out there, that’s for sure. But, if I had to narrow it down, I’d have to say that I’d make some drastic changes to the Nationwide Series. I’d limit drivers that compete in “x” amount of Cup races to only be able to drive in like 3 Nationwide races. NASCAR just hasn’t afforded these guys in the Nationwide Series that ability to succeed in the upper echelons of racing, and it’s evidenced every year by the lackluster performances from these rookie classes.

What is something your readers wouldn’t otherwise know about you or your blog?
I served four years of active duty military service with the United States Marine Corps, to include service in Iraq. Additionally, I still provide operational support to our services.

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