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It is with a deep sense of nostalgia and regret that I officially announce the retirement of RacingPress.com.
Racing Press served the motorsports community for over a decade, serving as not only a portal for racing news, commentary, and photography, but also as a publishing outlet and training ground for aspiring new racing writers and shutterbugs.
Years before the word "blog" became part of the daily online lingo, Racing Press (nee "Racing Point of View") was one of a handful of self-published, self-financed racing commentary sites. It came about as an outlet for my own frustrated dreams of becoming a racing journalist. I had taken courses in college in journalism, law, and ethics but I did not pursue the degree or pay dues at a major publication.
As the RPOV blog developed and its readership grew, it was noticed by a startup racing magazine called "MotorSportsNews" and, after rapid negotiations, I merged my blog site with the print magazine and RPOV became "MotorSportsNews Racing Press." The magazine was slick and professional, and when we debuted at the Indianapolis 500 we received great reviews, both for the writing and for design. Sadly, MotorSportsNews went out of business after only a couple of issues, and I was stuck self-publishing Racing Press again.
In 2000, I allied Racing Press with the upstart Rivals.com network at the height of the dot-com boom. Rivals promised an avalanche of revenue for Internet publishers like myself, and I somewhat greedily and enthusiastically signed on. Racing Press quickly became the #1 racing site on the Rivals network, culminating with the awarding of "All-Star" status (the only motorsports site on the entire network to receive the honor) and an all-expense-paid weekend in Las Vegas, complete with showgirls.
The Rivals.com era was the peak for Racing Press, as I and my partner Earl Ma built and expanded the site until it rivalled (no pun intended!) the "legitimate" racing media's websites for content and readership. We debuted "Racefan Radio," once again pioneering an Internet genre with a daily news podcast which eventually became a weekly Internet radio show hosted by Rick Albarran. Racing Press contributers were recurring guests on nationally syndicated radio shows, including a "guest expert" role on ESPN Radio following the death of Kenny Irwin at New Hampshire International Speedway.
Unfortunately, with the dot-com bust came the "re-imagining" of Rivals, and soon the racing sites were phased out - the promised financial boom of yore evaporating with the boom itself. Again, Racing Press became self-sustaining, and this time it would stay that way. I had had enough of trying to secure patronage for myself and my partners and vowed to continue out of pocket.
It was around this time that Earl Ma and myself began submitting our work from Racing Press to the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association (AARWBA) annual journalism contest. We both became members around the time that Rivals dropped us as part of our new drive for self-realized legitimacy. Starting in 2002, we began taking home awards on an annual basis for writing and photography - for five straight years from 2002 to 2007, both Earl and I left the annual event in Indianapolis with new awards. Earl also ended up winning the prestigious Catlin Award for his photography, and the Rolex watch that was part of the prize became one of his most cherished possessions.
During this time frame we opened Racing Press to other potential writers who were in the same boat we were - full of desire and passion but without a job in the industry. Since we had no income from Racing Press we could only offer the equivalent of internships, but we took the time to simulate as closely as possible a "professional" publishing environment, complete with peer and editorial review, writing workshops, and accreditation with AARWBA for regular contributors. We wanted to give these folks the help and opportunity we never had, and we were rewarded by seeing several of our Racing Press "interns" go on to continue their careers with "legit" media outlets such as RACER Magazine.
Unfortunately, the heavy financial and time commitments began to wear on me at about the same time as Earl was diagnosed with cancer. Racing Press began to lose its luster as Earl slowly lost his battle with the disease and I started running out of money. In June 2007, Earl passed away days after I last saw him at the Indy 500. Without my right-hand man and facing up to my financial burdens, I reluctantly put Racing Press on what turned out to be a permanent hiatus.
The ten years I spent publishing Racing Press were times I will never forget. I proved to myself that through hard work and dedication I could earn a place in the media centers of the racing world. I rubbed elbows with the elite in all forms of American racing and lived to tell the tale.
For those Racing Press supporters who stop by and read this message, I wish to thank you for your loyalty, generosity, and support. None of us at Racing Press could have done what we did without you.
Tony Johns
Publisher - RacingPress.com
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RacingPress.com
