Top 10 Reasons NASCAR Fans Should Join Twitter

Twitter is the hottest social network of the moment, but many people still haven’t signed up for an account. Many fans are waiting to see if this is a fad or something that is going to stick around for a long time.

My advice is to stop waiting. Regardless of Twitter's future, there are several ways NASCAR fans can benefit from using it right now. Many are still learning about me, but I am a huge fan of David Letterman and his “Top 10 List,” so I decided to compile my 10 reasons why every NASCAR fan should start using Twitter.


1. Keep Track of Breaking NASCAR News. One of my favorite things about Twitter is it keeps me up to date on all the NASCAR news that’s important to me as a contributor and a fan. If you follow the right people, you will always have the latest news instead of waiting until “NASCAR Race Hub” comes on later in the evening.

2. Fast Answers. If nobody you know is around to answer your question or get a fresh perspective about a driver, team or sponsor, then Twitter is one of the best ways to get a fast response. Simply tweet your question to the community, and within minutes, sometimes seconds, you’ll have an array of responses from your fellow NASCAR followers. Who knows, it could even spark a larger discussion that gets you some attention, which could lead to more followers.

3. Stay in Touch. Whether it’s a business contact you made on a business trip or a friend from down the street, connecting with them on Twitter is an easy way to stay in touch. You’ll always know what they’re up to, and you can engage in a brief discussion through a Direct Message or @ message. Even if it’s someone you see all the time, you might get to experience a new side of them by following them on Twitter.

4. Meet New People. But you don’t have to follow just people you know. You can make new friends from the social site. When you create your Twitter account, the site will ask you for your interests. Just by typing in that you like NASCAR, it could get you an easy 50 followers. Just make sure you follow them back so you can see their tweets.

5. Be Several Places at Once. You can’t always afford tickets and travel expenses to the big race, but you can keep up with it through Twitter. NASCAR fans are always tweeting live updates from the tracks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit. Whether fans are meeting their favorite driver, watching practice or the race from the grandstand, or sitting in traffic on Interstate 71 near Kentucky Speedway, you can be there.

6. Fun NASCAR Giveaways. We learned last week that many NASCAR teams and drivers like to do fun trivia contests for a variety of goodies. Depending on the team, these goodies can include tickets to a race, driver gear or autographs. And yes, all of these are free. What NASCAR fan doesn’t like that fun four-letter word?

7. Tweetups. A Tweetup is a real-life meeting set up on Twitter. It is normally held on race day and it is a fun way to meet the fans and media members you’ve been talking to week in and week out. The holy grail of a Tweetup is when a NASCAR driver, who also is on Twitter, comes to the event.

8. Build Your Authority. If you’re using Twitter to discuss just NASCAR, you can build your authority by writing high quality tweets. Sending out links to resources, provide answers to questions other fans have, giving insight to a question that is asked, and just engaging in fellowship with other fans are ways to help build that reputation as a great fan.

9. Learn New Tips. You can learn new things about other NASCAR drivers. When I first signed up for Twitter, I wasn’t a fan of the Camping World Truck Series; now I find myself watching week in and week out. So many people I am following provided useful information based on their unique experiences. There is a wealth of NASCAR knowledge out there if you know who to follow.

10. It is Entertaining. Twitter is just fun. Come on, what isn’t about following updates from some of NASCAR’s biggest names, many of whom like to host impromptu Q&A sessions. Even members of the NASCAR media like to ask for fan help when it comes to asking a driver a question in the media center.

If you use the popular social network site already, what are some of your reasons for using Twitter? If you are still debating it, why? Just go ahead and sign up. You are already missing so much!