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Toby Bellbowen: The life of a sprint car content creator
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JW: Toby! You are no stranger to doing interviews, chats, and content pieces for DIRTRACKR. I have to start off our call by asking how 2023 has been going for you and Sprint Car Hub?
TB: That’s a good question, as I probably feel like a lot of other content creators, where I don’t do enough. Did I make the most of it? Is it good enough to share? I’m a perfectionist and always want our content to be the best it can be. I’ve got so many ideas and things that I want to do. We have travelled around so many places in Australia and through the United States. We end up with so many different types of footage, info, and meet all these people and you ask - was it enough? We are always striving for more.
JW: How was your trip over to the US? You were just over here in North America. Sprint Car Hub covered the Knoxville Nationals once again this year and your coverage was amazing. How did the entire event coverage go from your perspective.?
TB: It all started last year when we went to Pevely and then rushed over to Knoxville. The whole trip was extremely busy with the amount of races we covered in a short period of time. It gets overbearing. With the amount of editing and work behind the scenes that goes into making videos. A video is like art. It’s not actually done - ever. There is always so much more you can do. This year we decided to change things up a bit. We wanted to do a wrap-up to every night at the Nationals with a post-race rundown, similar to what you see with Will Buxton on the Formula 1 side of the media. It was a great way to share all the content pieces and interviews that we got throughout each night of action at Knoxville. When it came to putting together those content pieces, we wanted to offer something that you can’t see elsewhere. Something that was completely out of the ordinary. We always strive to be unique and give an insight that no one else can give. The response we got from the fans with our content at Knoxville this year was really amazing and we are super appreciative of the support.
JW: During your trip at Knoxville, you posted a video with James McFadden discussing the state of sprint car racing over in Australia. For those of us fans in North America and elsewhere abroad who don’t have an idea of what is going on, do you mind going into detail on what is happening with sprint car racing in Australia?
TB: It’s actually quite easy to explain. To sum it up, we don’t have a major series in Australia. That is like you guys not having the World of Outlaws; imagine that. Since Covid (post-2020), our governing body [Speedway Australia] has been having a lot of internal and political issues. This has caused a lot of the problems that James McFadden talked about in an interview with Sprint Car Hub that we posted during this year's Knoxville Nationals. The two major issues we are facing in Australia is that we don’t have a national series similar to the Outlaws and that we have major races competing against each other on the same date(s) or weekends. That’s not how you build up sprint car racing, it’s the complete opposite. There is a huge loss for not having a national series, and having events overlapping each other is silly. Political issues have been a major problem in growing the sport and the overall interest in sprint car racing within Australia. Our sport isn’t building forward the way it should be. I want it to be as successful as anyone here, as we have so much young talent from coast to coast. We should be able to have drivers and teams be able to make income in a national series similar to what it’s like over in North America with the Outlaws, High Limit, and All-Stars. We need everyone to work together here to bring this sport forward for the future health of sprint car racing in Australia.
JW: As a content creator, there are always hurdles that you have to deal with as you build your brand; especially, when you are trying to grow your audience and push into new avenues. What’s been the most challenging aspect over the past year with Sprint Car Hub when it comes to developing content?
TB: The biggest hurdle right now is time. At this point, I cannot focus on it full-time. It’s a balance right now of developing the content, running the store, and going to the races. We aren’t just focusing on one aspect of the brand, it’s multiple pieces that we have to run. It gets very time-consuming and overwhelming at times. Building the brand is where we are trying to focus. There is so much going on and they all need time and attention. I hope that we can grow it to a point where we can have a massive staff of people working for Sprint Car Hub all over the world and continue to grow the general awareness around sprint car racing.
JW: You are based in Australia and cover a lot of different sprint car racing throughout the country. That said, would you like to get to a point with Sprint Car Hub where you could come over to America and follow the Outlaws for two or three months straight? For example, you follow a portion of the schedule and put together a variety of different content pieces (i.e. post-race reports, driver interviews, follow select teams throughout the night, etc.) similar to what you are putting together right now?
TB: Yes and no… We would have to strategize and figure out a plan to where we could make it happen. That said, it’s a lot of work to put everything together; similar, to what we were doing this past year at Knoxville. At some point, I would love to be able to come out to the States for 6 months and follow the Outlaws, while going back to Australia and following the season over here for 6 months. It really comes down to how we continue to grow the brand of Sprint Car Hub, along with keeping in mind the investment we put into content and travel expenses during these trips. But, that’s ultimately a goal that me and Matt (behind the camera) would like to strive for at some point.
JW: Is there one driver this past year that sticks out to you that you either interviewed or followed around for an evening of racing that sticks out for you? Whether it was a great experience, learning something new about them that you didn’t already know, or something else completely off to what you expected while being around them?
TB: No, actually. I know that sounds surprising. If I had to really think about it, we have some drivers and teams that are super helpful and work really well with us. For example, Cody Maroske and his team are so open and helpful. I have known them long enough that I know if I had to go and ask them for help they would jump at it. In general, to have the respect from crew chiefs, drivers, and teams that are willing to message me randomly or assist me with something we are working on is so nice to have that respect. I just really appreciate the drivers that are willing to give us the time whenever we ask them for an interview or a content piece that we are thinking of working on.
JW: Switching gears a bit… From your perspective, when you look back at the Eldora Million, what did you think of the event as a whole? Pros? Cons? Do you think any improvements could have been made for the event?
TB: We were actually looking at going over to the Million, but it didn’t end up working out. But, that was an event we had marked on the calendar to possibly go to if it worked out. It didn’t go unnoticed here in Australia. I love that the event captured everybody’s attention from all over. My big thing is that I didn’t like the format. My thing is if my grandma is unable to follow the format to watch a race, then you need to change it to make it easier to follow. This is even more important when you have new fans tuning in for the first time. However, I’m so thankful to Eldora and the staff that put together the entire event.
JW: It’s clear that you have been following and keeping up to date with the World of Outlaws this year. What do you think of the competition level this year, along with how competitive the series continues to get year after year? At this moment, we are looking at a three-way battle for the championship between Sweet, Gravel, and Macedo over the halfway point of the season.
TB: We are witnessing an incredible period for sprint car racing. We will look back 10, 20, and 30 years from now and be amazed with what we are seeing right now. The racing is amazing and it’s extremely competitive on a night-by-night basis. It’s an incredible time for the sport. Just think about the level that these drivers are racing at; Sweet, Macedo, Gravel, Scelzi, Schuchart, Schatz. This list goes on with all the quality drivers racing right now. It’s all so incredible. I think it’s only going to continue to get better in the next few years as well. I’m so proud that sprint car racing is going through this phase. I’m also proud to see so many friends doing well. The Outlaws are in such a good position right now especially with the growth sprint car racing is going through right now.
JW: Before we finish up here, I have to ask, what is one goal that you have for Sprint Car Hub for the remainder of 2023?
TB: One thing I want to focus on is everything [Toby laughs]. We want to just keep growing in all the different areas of our brand. It’s been a blend of our time as we aren’t just focusing on content 100%, as half the time we are focusing on merchandise. We are looking at growing some of our content in a new direction to focus more on documentary type videos. I have ideas on doing different documentaries to share stories of drivers or team members and share the event in a unique perspective that isn’t documented when it comes to sprint car content.
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