My Thoughts on Adsense

While surfing the other night, I came upon this article, more of a question really:

"Pay Per Click (Google AdSense to be even more specific) is the greatest business model ever devised. Why? Check out Google’s financials and you’ll see why. PPC is the most efficient, most profitable business model ever created.

That’s just my $.02. What do you think?" For the full article and all comments, click here.

Here's my comment:

For $.02 worth, you must have a low eCPM!

I have had blogs up for 23 days and have made about $30.00 from Adsense. My best earning site is actually my Little League Blog and my Little League team Blog. My “main blog,” The Hot Dog Truck, gets more views but does not earn like the two “extreme niche” baseball sites. I am new to this, but here’s my thoughts on the subject. Google (and others) have increased the ability of the regular schmuck to publish on what interests them, or, as in the case of my baseball sites, what serves the needs of their small but targetted audience.

My Little League site has relevance to about 1200 families of kids who play LL baseball in our community and possibly a few other folks scattered around the country (grandparents, folks who’ve moved, etc). The team site has relevence to 14 families-and maybe some team alumnae in town. Both sites are/will be used for communicating, allowing people to do game write-ups, posting coaching tips and posting photos in a more open (and FREE) platform than the League’s main site (which I administer).

The sites are already getting hits due to the links from our main site and the fact that there is increased traffic from the League site due to registration form downloads for the upcoming 2007 season.

This is a win-win-win Google has created in this case. They get to sell their ads into an extremely targeted, geographically specific, niche audience. The advertiser benefits because there is less “clutter” than from a broader reaching “tips on youth baseball” site or on a site that’s pitching products to a broad reaching audience. The publisher (our League) benefits from a complimentary (in both senses of the word) internet presence and an opportunity to earn some money for the League. My modest goal for the League and Team blogs is to be able to cover the costs of administering our main League website and to pay for the software we just purchased to do our scheduling.

Google’s going to win in any scenario but what makes this a win-win-win is the niche aspect. Our niche is small enough to be able to provide value to the advertiser but large enough to create value to the publisher.

Now if I could only get more clicks for the Hot Dog Truck…….

The Big Schil

I am getting sick and tired of professional baseball players talking about "respect." We've heard the term used in free agent negotiations countless times, Pedro Martinez brought the term to new heights when he and his shoulder skipped town. Now another Red Sox ace is using the "R" word: Curt Schilling.

Curt we love you, but shut the bleep up. Curt will be earning a tad north of $13 million this year and is adored by fans for his heroics in 2004. And he complains about a lack of respect? I wish I had that kind of "no respect!" Whenever you negotiate and make ultimatums publicly you are going to create a charged atmosphere.

For those of you who don't know, Schilling let it be known on the Dennis and Callahan Show a few weeks ago that he didn't want to retire after all. When I first heard the words, I was excited-the guy is a gamer-unfortunately he also has a big mouth. He stated he wanted a deal done before Spring Training was done or else. In this case or else was filing for Free Agency after the season. When Theo conveyed ownership's desire to take a "wait and see" approach, Curt had a hissy fit and once again publicly painted the Red Sox into a corner, creating a maelstrom of commentary from Red Sox nation and many Boston scribes.

The media in this town in relation to the Red Sox is bad enough: the lot of them kowtow to the organization and feed Red Sox Nation with a load of "news" that makes some of these daytime soap operas look downright legitimate. The Boston Sports media, particularly when it comes to the Red Sox, has a self importance about them bordering on demagoguery. And Schilling fuels their flame. The media loves this guy because he likes to shoot his mouth off-which is precisely why the Red Sox want to take a wait and see approach.

Schilling came to camp fat and bitchy and lashing out at the Sox (and the media he has such a love/hate relationship with) about the lack of respect he was shown. If he wins 15-20 games on a team that contends for a World Series, the Big Schil will get his dough and his respect. He'll probably still be on the Red Sox too. As a fan, I'd like him to shut up and pitch and please stop whining about a lack of respect.

The February Blues

February has to be the worst month of the year. Its so bad they shortened it. In New England it is the absolute dead of winter. Even though this year we didn't really get winter started until February (very warm Dec & Jan.) it still seems oppressive. Thank God its almost over! March may come in like a lion and go out like a lamb and it too can be a rotten month-at least the first day of Spring is tucked in there.

As you may be able to tell, its one of those snowy days the world is deprived of the delicious doggie delights from the Hot Dog Truck. A snowy day equals no business so I've been playing with my 2 year old (she didn't go to daycare today) and surfing the net while she takes her early afternoon "night night." In a few minutes, I'll have to go shovel (AGAIN!)

Life as a Hot Dog Man in the winter in New England is a tenuous existence. The elements keep a large portion of the clientele away and make for uncomfortable working conditions, even with the heater on. The reason I stayed open this winter was to keep my spot. The place where my Hot Dog Truck is parked is considered an A PLUS location for such a venture. Once a week or so a would be Hot Dog Man inquires about the availability of the spot and my landlord has said I don't need to give him notice as he's got 4 or 5 guys who'd be happy to take over the spot. So I shiver and suffer the cold and the slow business days with visions of April (thank God only a month away) when the crowds will be out, the dogs will be flying and the almighty dollar will reacquaint itself with my pockets.

In the meantime, I'll be working on some other projects online.......

Bugs Bunny, greatest banned player ever

U.S.S. Mariner analyzes (in excruciating detail) Looney Tunes' "Baseball Bugs" (1946) -- Gas House Gorillas vs Tea Totallers. The post is almost a year old, but it was recently selected for the 2007 Best American Sportswriting annual. For all you Bugs Bunny fans, this is a great read!
READ IT HERE.

Harrassing Yankee Fans

A regular came by today I hadn't seen in a while and we were talking about how the Red Sox are out spending the Yankees this year. The evil empire has always outspent every other team and it appears they're scaling back. Who can blame them after Kevin Brown, Carl Pavano and A-Rod. What has it gotten them? Well, they haven't won a World Series this millennium; maybe the Yanks are revisiting how to build a team.

I really believe the Yankees are due for an implosion this year. The Yankees are going to fall victim to their own excesses in 2007. With a string of failed free agent signings and a pitching staff that can't measure up to the Red Sox, they will be lucky to come in second place in 2007. Mariano Rivera is griping about his contract and it isn't even spring training yet, Joe Torre is showing signs of being frustrated, A-Rod is on TV saying the love is gone between him and Jeter and Andy Petit won't live up to his legacy. While the Yankees will have a powerful batting line up, they won't be able to close the deal as in years past.

I predict A-Rod will be dealt by the trading deadline, Joe Torre will be fired and Petit will be on the DL. Red Sox take the AL East by 4 or 5 games.

Back to my customer: He has a son-in-law who is a Yankee fan living in Vermont. Poor deluded man. He apparently gets a lot of grief from just about everyone in his life. I intend to pile on here! We started chatting about how we treat Yankee fans. Personally, I grew up with the "old" Red Sox: break yer heart every time. Yankee fans were a constant source of pain and harassment-their arrogance and superior attitude were exceeded only by the success of their team. Thank God that era is over and my children won't have to grow up with the same inferiority complex that plagued me through my fortieth year.

So I was telling this customer how I treat Yankee fans these days. Customers wearing Yankee apparel must pay a two dollar surcharge for their meals and be subject to any abuse I hurl their way while serving up their delicious dogs. A boy at my daughter's middle school actually trashed his Yankee hat in favor of a Red Sox hat because he got tired of me calling him out when I was picking her up from school; his dad thanked me at a school concert for doing what he had been unable to do! Then there was the kid who wore a Yankee hat to his first practice as a member of my Little League team-after he finished the 5 laps around the field I made him run, he swore he'd never wear the hat to practice again (he didn't). And there's the bag boy at the local market who always wears a Yankee hat-I asked to speak to the manager and the manager said we could take him out back and rough him up a bit. When I see someone wearing a Yankee hat at our beach, I tell them they need to remove it-"club rules." My customer's son in law was told by his boss not to wear his Yankee hat to work if he wanted to keep his job!

The collective consciousness of Red Sox Nation is getting its revenge for years of abuse and we're not shy about letting our feelings be known. I don't intend to let up on Yankee fans-at least not in this millennium.

How Long Do We Have?

About the time our original thirteen states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh, had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years earlier: "A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury."

"From that moment on, the majority always vote for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years." During those 200 years, those nations always progressed through the following sequence:
1. spiritual faith;
2. from spiritual faith to great courage;
3. from courage to liberty;
4. from liberty to abundance;
5. from abundance to complacency;
6. from complacency to apathy;
7. from apathy to dependence;
8. From dependence back into spiritual faith

Professor Joseph Olson of Hemline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the 2000 Presidential election:

Number of States won by:
Gore: 19
Bush: 29

Square miles of land won by:
Gore: 580,000
Bush: 2,427,000

Population of counties won by:
Gore: 127 million
Bush: 143 million

Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:
Gore: 13.2
Bush: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory Bush won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of this country. Gore's territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off various forms of government welfare..."

Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase. If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegal's and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years.

Its time to realize just how much is at stake, knowing that apathy is the greatest danger to our freedom.

Coaching Little League: Setting Expectations for Players and Parents

I have coached Little League for 7 years (soon to be 8) and I am often asked why our team is always successful. Success to me means: the kids have fun, the kids get to try out different positions, the kids have a positive baseball experience, and the kids win more than they lose.

Obviously, as a coach, I can't play the game. My job is to put each kid in a position to succeed so the team will have success. The following is a handout I give to each kid and parent at the beginning of each season:

Little league is a competitive league. We have umpires, we keep stats, we keep score, publish scores and standings on the web and hand out trophies to the winner of the World Series. The goal of the Team is to win. The goal of each boy is to do his very best to help the Team win. Remember these three things:

Safety: Nobody swings a bat or throws a ball without checking to be sure that everyone around them will be safe;

Fun: We are here to have FUN. If anyone is not having fun, let the Coach know and he will work to remedy that;

Winning: "Winning" is an Attitude. If you are Safe, having Fun, and have a Winning Attitude, the Score will take care of itself!"

We will be putting an emphasis on pitching and would like to get as many kids on the mound as possible. You must demonstrate the ability to throw from the mound to the plate with consistency to get into a game. For the first few games kids will pitch one inning. Then they'll pitch one and "earn" the next inning. Over the course of the season, pitching ability will become evident and the kids who can really shut the other team down will get 3 or possibly more innings in an outing- it will depend on the game situation. We will throw in a few "pitching potpourri" nights where we'll revert to the one inning philosophy for all or part of the game. This becomes necessary when we have games that are bunched close together. We will use the walk rule: walk 3 in a row and you come out, walk 4 in an inning and you come out. This doesn't mean you won't get another chance-it just means you can't help the team that particular day with your pitching. Getting the boys to understand the importance of the team will be an underlying theme in everything we try to do.

We'd like to do as much scrimmaging at practice as possible and I am working on a pre- season scrimmage or two. We'll also devote time to all the skills through a variety of drills and exercises. Infield and outfield defense can only be improved upon by getting a lot of reps and we will get as many as humanly possible. The boys will have baseball homework: they must play catch for 10 to 15 minutes every day until the start of the season. Good arms come from thousands of hours of throwing, SO GET STARTED. On game days, at least one of us will be at the field an hour prior to game time. I do infield before every game. Come early for extra practice.

Base-running and Batting:

Base-running: Little League allows you to steal a base once the pitched ball crosses the plate. You can continue to steal bases as long as the ball is live. The ball remains live until the pitcher has the ball in his glove AND his feet are on the mound. Team base-runners will EXPLODE off the base as EACH pitch crosses the plate and will decide to continue to the next base or return to the starting base from about two strides out. The runner will SLIDE into any base where there is the possibility of a play. AAA rules state that if you do not slide into a base where there is a play, the umpire will call you OUT for creating an unsafe condition - (possibly colliding with the defensive baseman). The Team will become expert at sliding and stealing bases! Therefore, you must always wear long pants. Sliding pants (worn under your long pants) are a very good idea. Your outer long pants will get dirty and torn. Expect to get dirty at every practice and game.

Batting: We will emphasize Pitch Selection, Batting Discipline, Bunting, and drawing Walks. The purpose of an At-Bat is to get On-Base. You cannot score from the Dugout!

Pitch Selection and Batting Discipline: We will learn the difference between a Pitcher's Pitch and Batter's Pitch. A Pitcher's Pitch is outside of or along the edges of the Strike-Zone. A pitcher is trying to strike you out. A pitcher will try to get you to swing at a (lousy) pitch that is either too high (pop-up into an out), too low (ground out into an out), or too far inside or outside (foul off for a Strike). We will not swing at Pitcher's Pitches unless you already have two strikes. If you have two strikes, you will learn to Foul-off Pitcher's Pitches until a Batter's Pitch comes along. A Batter's Pitch is a pitch pretty much down the middle that you can readily put into play to get on base and/or advance a runner.

Bunting and drawing Walks: Hitting a Home-Run is glamorous and exciting. You may think that bunting or drawing a Walk is not so glamorous and exciting. However, the 2005 Giants got into the playoffs because the smallest kid on the team drew a walk to get on base, and then ended up stealing home to win the final regular season game with two outs at the bottom of the 6th inning. The Giants then went on to win the 2005 World Series.

You will often hear Coach say: "If you bunt or draw a Walk to First, you can Steal Home on the NEXT Pitch, and you better be Home on the Third Pitch!"

Team Rules and Expectations

1. All league rules will be followed, NO EXCEPTIONS. We will go over the League rules in person.

2. All kids will play each game, sometimes they'll play 3 innings, sometimes more. Kids who are at games and practices consistently, do their homework and work on their skills will have the best opportunity to play more.

3. If your kid can't be at a game or practice, please let the coaches know ahead of time. Please review the practice and game schedules and alert us of conflicts as far in advance as possible. If something comes up last minute, please call

4. Uniforms are for games only. Wear comfortable baseball clothes to practice. NO SHORTS! You will not be allowed to practice in your uniform, you will not be allowed to play in a game without one. Uniforms will require a $25 deposit this year. You can keep the hat and socks.

5. Players are expected to remain in the dugout during games unless enlisted to shag fly balls or coach a base. If a player must leave the dugout, they must ask the coach first.

6. Parents and siblings are not to be in the dugout. NO EXCEPTIONS.

7. All trash must be cleared from the dugout. You bring it in, you carry it out. Spectators please keep the field clean.

8. No batting or bats in hand unless you are at bat or on deck. Safety is important! a. We will not swing a bat near any other people; b. We will not throw the ball if there are any people behind either player in case of a missed catch.

9. ¾ walk rule in effect at all times-3 walks in a row or 4 walks in an inning and the pitcher will be replaced.

10. ALWAYS be respectful of teammates, opposing players, coaches and officials. Disrespectful behavior by players or parents will not be tolerated. Umpires are Human. If there is ever a disputed call: Players will talk to the Coach; Coach will talk to the Umpire.

11. Wear a cup!

12. Show up at the field ready to play ball!

13. PARENTS PLEASE keep the on field commentary to the "attaboy" variety. Conflicting instructions from a coach and parent in a game situation undermines the team. Say it with me "ATTABOY_______"

14. WE ARE A TEAM, I EXPECT EACH KID TO BE PERFECT. ("Perfect" means you always try your hardest-if you can look your teammates in the eye and know in your heart you did the best you could, then you're PERFECT)

That handout has evolved over the years and will most likely be revised for this year's team. I believe setting the expectations from day 1 of practice so everyone knows exactly how the season will progress. In the past, I have handed this out at the parent’s meeting before the first practice. This year I am posting it on a team Blog before the parent’s meeting and telling everyone that nobody plays or practices until I get a reply comment stating they read it with their kid!

When we practice, we have 6-8 stations that cover different skill areas. We have 2 kids at each station for about 5 minutes and we rotate until each pair of kids has run through each station. I always keep my kids moving so they don't have time to get bored. I like to have as many pitchers as possible so each kid feels he's contributing to the success of the team. Bunting is also huge on my teams and the kids who aren't the best hitters will bunt a lot. This gives them the opportunity to get on base and be involved in the games.

The Weather is Everything

The thermometer topped 50 today and the pent up demand for Harv's famous dogs was evident-twas a busy day.

Everybody's got some thing to say about Tom Brady-I must've told that joke about 20 times today. Its school vacation week so my daughter is coming to "help" at the truck tomorrow-I let the kids keep the donations to the Hot Dog Truck Operator's Relief Fund (my tip bucket) when they come to "help" me.

I had a bunch of the hardcore "old school" regulars stop by today. Old schoolers had to have eaten at the truck before the Red Sox won the World Series and need to maintain a minimun 10 hot dog per month average for the two and a half years since. It was nice to be busy yet serve people who are wise to how to order their dogs-or whose preferences I've committed to memory. Most customers are amazed at my ability to remeber their orders-I am the Rainman Hot Dog Man! I'll see customers out and about away from the truck and I'll say "hello;" my wife asks "who was that?" I'll say "Oh, that was two with onions and spicy mustard."

People who don't know what they want on their hot dogs sometimes face my verbal wrath-I've made people go to the back of the line for not knowing what to order too! See my response to a patron who wants "everything" on his dogs.

Best Tom Brady Joke

As the whole world probably knows, Tom Brady has been named by Bridget Moynahan as the father of her as yet unborn baby. Tom has been "dating" supermodel Gisele Bundchen since he broke up with Bridget. This guy has it rough, eh?

It doesn't matter if Brady wears a condom or not, HE ALWAYS COMES THROUGH!

How a Red Sox Fan Got Religion

I read the news of Keith Foulke's retirement the other day with a wistful feeling. He will forever be remembered by me as the guy who made "THE out." When I heard the news, I began thinking back to those magical, sleep deprived days at the tail end of October, 2004.

Since today is Sunday, I spent about an hour and a half at church this morning; 1 hour for Mass and a half hour munching bagels and sipping coffee in the church basement afterwards. Like many Catholics, I was at one point in my life reluctant to go to Church-I viewed it as a chore or obligation. That all changed on October 17, 2004. You see on October 16, 2004 the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox in game three of the American League Championship Series. Actually, they destroyed them 19 to 8 (and the game wasn't as close as the score indicates). There was no joy in Red Sox Nation on Sunday October 17, 2004. The general mood was one of despair and resignation to the fact that our Sox were breaking our hearts once again. My then 10 year old son kept asking me on the way to church that morning if it was at all possible for the Sox to come back and win it-my answer was yes, it's possible but not probable. I suggested we all pray extra hard for the Red Sox.

I don't know if I was especially reflective or morose, but the Gospel that morning was from Exodus 17 Water From The Rock:

Exodus 17: 8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, "Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands."
10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Father G. read the Gospel and proceded with his usual interpretations. He noted that in order for the Israelites to defeat the Amalekites, Moses needed to keep his arms raised to preserve victory. Persistence is what allowed Moses to keep his arms raised. He needed to be persistent in the face of his weariness and he required assistance to maintain his persistence. He likened this to being a faithful Catholic in modern times: we need to be persistent in our faith, even when things may appear hopeless around us. I leaned over to my son and whispered in his ear "that's a lot like being a Red Sox fan." We said our silent prayers and mine most definately included a prayer for the Red Sox. I even threw some extra money into the collection basket that morning.

We all know that God is a Red Sox Fan and what happened in the improbable week and a half after that: Dave Roberts' steal, Big Papi, Johnny (Jesus) Damon, The Bloody Sock, and "swing and a ground ball, stabbed by Foulke, he has it, he underhands to first and the Boston Red Sox are World Champions!" We'll miss you Keith-we couldn't have done it without you and you should have been MVP of the 2004 World Series. I don't care what you did after that night on October 27 of 2004. In your own way, you gave this Sox fan a shot of religion.

Lug Nuts anyone?

An example of a situation where the use of profanity is completely acceptable.

Try your own caption here.

Aaah Baseball season...

Yeah I know pitchers and catchers reported Friday. Baseball began for lots of youngsters today too as our Little League had sign-ups this afternoon. Seeing all the kids we'll be looking at in a month and a half at tryouts and giving them pointers is a sure sign SPRING is on the way.

The parents are funny too. Some think their kid will be a Little League All Star while others question whether their kid should even bother trying out. I say let the kid try out. Little League tryouts are a right of passage for 10-12 year olds.

There aren't many folks buying hot dogs at this time of year. My truck is embedded in a snow bank! Making money is not happening, but the die hard hot dog lovers still come out-I just hope they tell their friends so they'll come out in the warmer weather!

Free Stuff and Poker, What a Country!

If you like free stuff and you like playing poker, check out pokerprizes.com. The deal is you sign up with them, then complete "offers" which involve filling out surveys, taking free trial offers, using a new web product etc. Each completed offer is awarded a point value. Accumulate points and redeem them for prizes like DVDs, video games, ipods, even computers and plasma TVs! You can also use your points to buy into-you guessed it- poker tournaments. Players can win points in these tournaments which can ramp up their point totals thus allowing them to redeem more valuable free stuff. There is no cost to participate. Its a neat little site. I'm going to try to get enough points for a new Mac Laptop by next Christmas. pokerprizes.com

Youth Sport League Web Solutions

One thing your youth sport league league should consider is a league website. Having your league online helps you streamline the distribution of information to your league's participants. Schedules, standings, directions, forms, FAQs, sponsors and much more can be viewed on your league site. A monetized site can even pay for itself and be a revenue generator as well. You could even elect to make online registration an option for your league.

There are many free options for...READ MORE

Snow bank

Well all the plow guys are happy today. Yesterday and last night they all got their "white gold" and they've got money in their pockets. The guys who plowed my lot practically buried my truck, there was quite a bit of digging before the dogs could get cooking. Chalk that up to being a bit inconsiderate. The only thing that made me feel better about that was they buried one of their own cars! Chalk that up to being dumb.

Not much action today. Pitchers and catchers report tomorrow so the Red Sox will creep back into the collective consciousness next week.

So you wanna be a hot dog man?

Why be a Hot dog man (or woman)? If you're reading this, maybe you're looking for the answer. As someone once said: "Just when you think you have the answers, I change the questions!"

For me, I wanted a low key business that involved lots of interaction with people. I like most people and enjoy chatting about the news of the day, the Red Sox, football, the weather, kids, wives, families etc. I was a commissioned salesperson for 20 years before I started this venture, so I know about people. I just wanted to deal with people straight up, without an angle. I have something they want and I give it to them-SIMPLE. I wanted no more of the stress and high pressure of commissioned sales.

I also wanted to be involved with hot dogs because I like hot dogs and I feel the way I cook and serve my hot dogs is the best way; I have never found a hot dog anywhere that tastes quite like mine. The secret is in the way I cook them (not telling...yet) and serving them on freshly butter grilled buns (Its all about the buns, baby). I figured if I could serve up a consistently good hot dog, I'd do OK.

Which leads me to the final reason I got into the business- MONEY! Cash is KING and you can make a very nice income selling hot dogs. I know I'll never be a Rockefeller from this venture, but I can earn enough and be relaxed and happy and have plenty of time left over for my family, my little league team, my master's degree and now Helium.
The work itself is very uncomplicated. Serve good food and treat people nice. If you do that, the customers keep coming back.

One of the pitfalls of this business is crappy weather (I write this on a night in February and its about 5 degrees outside-it was a cold and lonely day at the hot dog truck). In the winter you'll be cold-like ice fishing without the fish or beer; in the summer you'll be hot-picture a 95 degree day and you're standing next to a grill all day. Every once in a while I also feel that the work is too repetitive-that feeling usually goes away once I get the first customer of the day. Overall, for me, the advantages and lifestyle this business brings outweigh the bad stuff.
What you need to ask yourself is why do YOU want to be in the hot dog biz? If you decide that you want to give it a go, keep reading about how to get going.

I run my business in the same location, Monday through Friday from 10:30-3PM. Other folks will travel to different locations, operate "after the bars close" in hopping nightlife areas while others work large events (fairs, festivals, parades etc.). I have a customer who sells sausages on Friday and Saturday nights in a downtown Worcester, MA area with lots of bars and he also works Downtown Worcester on the 4th of July-he sold 1200 pounds of sausages on 7/4/2006! For the purposes of this article, I'll deal with the "same location" model.

The first thing you need to do is find a good spot. Anywhere there are lots of people is good. If you are in an urban area where parking is limited or you can locate in a park, you may want to consider a hot dog cart. If you're in a suburban setting, look for areas where there is a lot of vehicle traffic and a ready supply of regular hungry customers. Good parking is a must for this type of setup. If you have the space in your spot (and the money) you may want to consider a truck or trailer for your biz. I like having a truck-mine is a "mobile kitchen"-because there is more room, shelter from the elements and a decent amount of food prep and storage space.
If you are going to be on public property, check with the local police department for any restrictions you may face regarding locations or any special site permits you may need. Most municipalities have websites these days and oftentimes that type of information is available there, if not the cops are a good place to start (cops like hot dogs-I have many as regulars).

Locating on private property eliminates the need for site permits, but you'll have to pay rent. You also need to check with the local building inspector to see if there are any site permits. This is the arrangement I have. The advantages of my location are plenty of parking, good visibility on a well traveled route, proximity to a large industrial/office park and lots of construction in the area (construction workers like hot dogs too). I also know my location will be plowed on snowy mornings and, since I am in the parking lot of an office building and gas station(with a car wash going in next spring) I know there will always be steady traffic in and out. One other plus is that there are few eating places nearby that don't involve going into a congested secondary highway-folks pop out of the back entrance of the office park to get to my spot. The rent is worth it. If you can find a site with these characteristics-you'd be well advised to snag the location. This will involve some networking and sleuthing on your part.

If you get into this business, you will need to get a permit from your local Board of Health.
Many local Boards require Servesafe certification before they will issue a permit. If they do, you'll need to take the Servesafe exam.

Dealing with the Board of Health really means dealing with the local Health Inspector-he or she is the person who you will deal with. Just like any other occupation, some are nice and some are jerks-I am lucky that my local Health Inspector is a fair and nice man-it doesn't hurt that he likes hot dogs too. Whether the person is nice or not, they are a resource. You can find the local Health Inspector's contact info on any municipalities' website. The best thing to do is call them up and politely engage them in a conversation. Tell them you want to open a hot dog stand, where you were thinking of locating (again if its on public land make sure you've checked out local restrictions and permits, if you're on private property let the inspector know where), let them know you'll be getting your Servesafe and ask them what you need to do. Most inspectors will be straightforward and let you know exactly what you need to do and what type of equipment will meet with local health codes.

Once you've figured out what the Health inspector requires, you can move on to acquiring a hot dog cart, truck or trailer. Make sure whatever you buy will comply with what the inspector told you. There are many varieties and manufacturers and prices range from a couple of thousand dollars to over $200,000 for a totally decked out mobile kitchen. You'll need to decide what will suit your site, your tolerance for the elements and your budget. If you're buying new, try to deal with a company geographically nearby-it makes no sense to order a hot dog cart or truck from a company in Sacremento if you live in Philadelphia! There are always good values to be found in used equipment too, try to find someone selling hot dog equipment used and you'll get more bang for your buck. There are many manufacturers of hot dog carts, trucks and trailers online. Do a Google search and you'll find hundreds of manufacturers of all different kinds of equipment. Do your research before you buy!

As with any business, one of your fixed costs will be insurance. Determining how much you'll pay for insurance each month will need to be factored into your pricing. Obviously, if you have a Hot Dog Truck, like me, you will need Vehicle Insurance. For a quick, easy and convenient quote online, you can go to the Insurance Portal Online to get an idea of what those costs will be. This is one of those companies that gets quotes from over 100 different companies depending on your needs so you can compare rates and coverages in an easy, "one stop shopping" format.

Depending on where you are located (public spot or private property) you may have to increase your liability insurance on your vehicle or, in some instances, purchase separate business liability insurance. I have all my liability insurance wrapped into one homeowners policy with different riders for different liability issues, some business related others personal.

People fear being sued so having the proper insurance is important in any business and is almost always required by landlords and municipalities. I always try to buy the cheapest insurance policy I can find and I am always very careful!

Here's an ebook I found helpful when I was starting out. I still refer to it now and again. It's worth spending the thirty bucks before you go too deep into the process. It's a bit over the top for running a simple hot dog truck, but there's no BS like some of the other "Start a Hot Dog Business" ebooks out there. Lots of information and worth the dough!

Starting a Catering Business Start-Up Guiude Kit

Click Here to check this ebook out.

'snow problem

Happy Valentines Day, I suppose. What a ridiculous "holiday," yet another day manufactured by Madison Avenue and Hallmark to stimulate retail commerce and generate guilt amongst husbands everywhere.

But I digress.

Today marks the first significant snowfall in these parts of the winter of 2006-07. It is also the first nonscheduled dogless day of the year at the Hot Dog Truck. People just don't buy hot dogs when they ought to be shoveling. I opened during a snow storm last year and sold six hot dogs all day-4 to the guys plowing the lot and two to a regular who stopped out of pity initially (he soon started telling me how foolish I was to be open on such a day). Selling six hot dogs doesn't even pay for the propane for the day, so now my rule is when the kids don't have school, the world doesn't have hot dogs. So instead of slinging dogs, I'll be shovelling, playing with my 2 year old, fiddling on the internet and cooking a nice pork tenderloin dinner for the troops.

The snow is a bit icy, so snowman duty is not an issue today. My 9 year old is having a friend over after lunch for some sledding in the woods behind the house. I see hot cocoa in the near future.

The TV weathermen are having a field day. This is the first chance for them to dominate the local TV news broadcasts and they're going all out; its their SuperBowl. There was 12 minutes of weather related coverage on the 11 o'clock news last night. I am often times insulted by the content of these newscasts: "be careful while driving, take extra time for your commute etc." NO KIDDING, do they think we're all morons?

We've been lucky with the snow this year so far- December and January were unseasonably warm with several days in the 50's and 60's and one day in January topping 75 degrees! The weather didn't get seasonably cold until February rolled around. When you think about it, this year's winter was shortened by 2 to 2 1/2 months. That means only about 6 weeks of winter-not bad.

Very soon the seasonal outdoor workers and picnic table crowd will be returning and business will really pick up. In the mean time the daily struggle with the winter elements will continue.

Hot Dogs $1.50-abuse is free

Sometimes I really want to slap people! Usually its a verbal slap. How complicated is it to order a hot dog anyway? I have brown mustard, yellow mustard, honey mustard, relish, chopped onion, kraut, chili, cheese, mayo, barbeque sauce and ketchup for the hot dogs. Some people act like they've never seen a list of these ingredients before!

If you take too long, I'll yell "step away from the truck!" Then I'll wait on the next person!

New Topping Combo

When I'm bored at the truck-like today (February is a crappy month for Hot Dog sales)-I like to try new topping combos for kicks. Today I put onions, mayonaise, bar-b-q sauce and honey mustard on a dog YUM.

Hamburger Day

Today's relatively warm weather brought the return of the Hamburger lover to the old Hot Dog Truck. My burgers are very tasty but they take about 7-8 minutes to cook. People don't want to wait that long when its 6 degrees out! I sold a dozen burgers today, which is a lot for even a sunny day. Hot Dogs and Sausages are the big items every day.

The Red Sox Equipment Truck left for spring training today. Thus begins the countdown to Opening Day-the day the picnic tables go out at the Hot Dog truck!

A Brush with Fame

In 1997 I was spending the Christmas vacation in Vero Beach, FLA at my inlaw's rather exclusive "gated community"-a place called "John's Island." All the buzz that week was that John F. Kennedy Jr. and his new bride Carolyn were going to be staying at a house in the community for the week following Christmas. READ MORE

Youth Sports, Academic Achievement and Self Esteem

In every school community there are students of all ages who participate in youth sports. Many kids begin playing organized sports beginning at age 5 or 6 and kids play sports throughout their entire school career. There are different reasons kids play sports. Initially parents usually introduce their children to a sport or sports and as the children get older, their interests dictate continuing in a given sport. Participation in youth sports at all levels has an effect on the participant's self esteem and the children who continue to be involved in sports through their middle and high school years are more likely to have higher academic acheivement, fewer discipline problems and a more positive view of their school and community. READ MORE

Hot Dog Toppings

The hot dog is quite possibly the most misunderstood food item on the face of the earth. Many people view them with disdain. They've probably never had a "well crafted" hot dog. When this tubular delicacy is properly prepared, it can be a scrumptious meal.

The foundation for a good hot dog is the hot dog itself. Those skinless, mass produced, chicken lip filled dogs most markets carry just won't do. I go for a natural casing "deli style" dog with all meat and no fillers. Kayhem and Deutchmacher are two of my favorites but there are many other good quality dogs out there. These dogs are best steamed, not boiled. I throw some onions and beer in the steaming pot for added flavor.

The bun should be lightly buttered and grilled, anything less just won't do.

Toppings make the dog and there are many ways to do it. "All around" means mustard, chopped onions and relish-that's a good tasting dog without getting too fancy. Another favorite is sauteed kraut with cheese and Guldens (spicy) mustard. A very yummy topping is onion relish-you can make it in a small batch- simply chop an onion, put them in a pot with enough vinegar to cover about a third of the onion in the pot, toss in 2 or 3 heaping tablespoons of brown sugar and a few squirts of barbecue sauce, sprinkle in some celery seed and simmer for 10-15 minutes; chill and serve on a dog with a little mayonnaise and honey mustard-this dog is out of this world! If you like peppers, you can make an easy pepper relish by chopping up a bunch of peppers (I always use one large green, red and yellow pepper, two chili peppers and 2 jalapeno peppers-you can use any kind you want though) and filling a jar with them, pour enough vinegar in the jar to cover the peppers, add some mustard seed and let it sit in the fridge for 24 hours; this relish is good with a spicy mustard. I sometimes have my specialty toppings available at the truck-when I do they go fast! Lots of people like ketchup and onions-I'm not much of a ketchup guy when it comes to hot dogs though; try barbecue sauce in place of the ketchup for a change.

Happy Eating!

Ice fishing-without the ice!

If you live in the northern part of the country, you've undoubtedly seen people ice fishing. The hardcore ice fisherman has a hut where they keep from the cold. I often feel like one of these guys in my hot dog truck on a cold day-except I don't have a hole in the floor to reel in fish. No beer either.

I wonder how many ice fishermen like hot dogs? Shanty towns of ice fishing huts spring up on lakes in the winter time. Maybe I should park out on one of these places during the winter.....

Pitchers and catchers in 6 days....

So ya wanna be a Hot Dog Man (or Woman?) Part 4: Cart/ Truck/Trailer?

OK so you've come this far, you know WHY you want this business, WHERE you want to locate and HOW to comply with the local Board of Health. Now WHAT kind of cart, truck or trailer are you going to aquire? There are many different manufacturers of hot dog carts, trucks and trailers out there-it can be daunting to research them all. Once you've figured out what the Health inspector requires, you can move on to acquiring a hot dog cart, truck or trailer. There are many varieties and manufacturers and prices range from a couple of thousand dollars to over $200,000 for a totally decked out mobile kitchen. You'll need to decide what will suit your site, your tolerance for the elements and your budget. If you're buying new, try to deal with a company geographically nearby-it makes no sense to order a hot dog cart or truck from a company in Sacremento if you live in Philadelphia! There are always good values to be found in used equipment too, try to find someone selling hot dog equipment used (there's a lot of good stuff out there) and you'll get more bang for your buck.

Make $18,000 per day while doing nothing- HA!

My goodness there are so many of these "earn thousands for doing a few minutes of work on your computer" ads all over the internet. Doesn't anyone work for a living anymore? 99.9% of these ads are to sell you a manuel or book that will give you the "secret" to earning millions online. The "secret" is usually some regurgitated crap that the current promoter bought from someone else.

Its no secret that you can earn money on the internet by providing advertising on your website, selling your own products or through affiliate marketing. You can even make money from your blog. Apparently you can also profit by selling worn out "how to get rich by sitting around in your underwear" materials to suckers. P.T. Barnum would have loved the internet.

Do yourself a favor-search around on a topic that may interst you before you send some slick promoter your money. I have found that you can learn just about anything for free on the internet if you look long and hard enough. As I crawl the web I'll try to expose some of the more humorous scams. In the meantime if you are suspicious about an offer you're considering online, check out scam.com before you buy.

The glass is half full

Seeing as winter has finally decided to come to the Metrowest area, it has been a tough week. Most people think I'm nuts to be out selling hot dogs in 15 degree weather. I may be nuts, but there are still customers, not as many as in the warmer months, but they're out there. Sometimes I think the cold weather regulars are as crazy as I am, after all I'm inside the truck where its (relatively) warm and they're outside in the cold and wind.

There's a lot less banter and chit chat on cold days-not much beyond "jeez its friggin cold out, eh?" I guess people are too busy shivering to talk much. I'm not one for chat on cold days because I need to stand too close to the open window. The most asked question on cold days is "are you busy?" I give the old "whaddayouthink?" answer to that one.

One guy was going on about how cold it was this morning and he says to me "well, at least you don't have to buy ice." He is obviously a glass half full type of guy.

9 days until pitchers and catchers report......

Another COLD one!

While this has been the shortest winter I can remember, it doesn't stop me from complaining about the cold. November, December and January were unseasonably warm-it was actually 75 degrees on January 6! Now that February is here, winter has finally shown its bitter face. Even so, today's business was steady-not a lot of reading or game time. I had a Diet Pepsi can explode over night which made an awful mess. My fault though, I didn't put it in the cooler.

My secret to keep the sodas from freezing is to put a gallon container of hot water in the cooler over night.

I got a few new customers today and the usual parade of regulars. God Bless the hardcore hot dog lovers out there-they come in all types of weather. The "picnic table crowd" won't be back until April. April is also when a lot of landscapers will be back in full swing. I LOVE landscapers-they eat a lot and buy a lot of gaterade!

Pitchers and catchers report next week......

BRRRR Chilly Dogs!

On a day like today, its tough to be a hot dog man. The temperature was 15 degrees at my truck but it felt like minus 10 with the wind. A few hearty souls braved the cold to get their fix of Hot Dog Harvey's famous dogs, but many more opted to stay inside and order delivery :o(

The wind was brutal too! My trash barrels blew over a half a dozen times and the over head awning kept getting blown closed. After gaining a high score on my cell phone Tetris game (not a good sign of a busy day) I shut down at 2PM, one hour earlier than normal and focussed my energies for the remainder of the afternoon on collecting items for our Little League Auction.

Only 5 weeks until spring......

So ya wanna be a Hot Dog Man (or Woman?) part 3: Board of Health

If you get into this business, you will need to get a permit from your local Board of Health.

Many local Boards require Servesafe certification before they will issue a permit. If they do, you'll need to take the Servesafe exam.

Dealing with the Board of Health really means dealing with the local Health Inspector-he or she is the person who you will deal with. Just like any other occupation, some are nice and some are jerks-I am lucky that my local Health Inspector is a fair and nice man-it doesn't hurt that he likes hot dogs too. Whether the person is nice or not, they are a resource. You can find the local Health Inspector's contact info on any municipalities' website. The best thing to do is call them up and politely engage them in a conversation. Tell them you want to open a hot dog stand, where you were thinking of locating (again if its on public land make sure you've checked out local restrictions and permits, if you're on private property let the inspector know where), let them know you'll be getting your Servesafe and ask them what you need to do. Most inspectors will be straightforward and let you know exactly what you need to do and what type of equipment will meet with local health codes..

Once you've figured out what the Health inspector requires, you can move on to acquiring a hot dog cart, truck or trailer.

Happy Hunting!

So ya wanna be a Hot Dog Man (or Woman?) part 1 Why?

So ya wanna be a Hot Dog Man (or Woman?) part 2 location, Location, LOCATION

I run my business in the same location, Monday through Friday from 10:30-3PM. Other folks will travel to different locations, operate "after the bars close" in hopping nightlife areas while others work large events (fairs, festivals, parades etc.). I have a customer who sells sausages on Friday and Saturday nights in a downtown Worcester, MA area with lots of bars and he also works Downtown Worcester on the 4th of July-he sold 1200 pounds of sausages on 7/4/2006! For the purposes of this post, I'll deal with the "same location" model.

The first thing you need to do is find a good spot. Anywhere there are lots of people is good. If you are in an urban area where parking is limited or you can locate in a park, you may want to consider a hot dog cart. If you're in a suburban setting, look for areas where there is a lot of vehicle traffic and a ready supply of regular hungry customers. Good parking is a must for this type of setup. If you have the space in your spot (and the money) you may want to consider a truck or trailer for your biz. I like having a truck-mine is a "mobile kitchen"-because there is more room, shelter from the elements and a decent amount of food prep and storage space.

If you are going to be on public property, check with the local police department for any restrictions you may face regarding locations or any special site permits you may need. Most municipalities have websites these days and oftentimes that type of information is available there, if not the cops are a good place to start (cops like hot dogs-I have many as regulars).

Locating on private property eliminates the need for site permits, but you'll have to pay rent. This is the arrangement I have. The advantages of my location are plenty of parking, good visibility on a well travelled route, proximity to a large industrial/office park and lots of construction in the area (construction workers like hot dogs too). I also know my location will be plowed on snowy mornings and, since I am in the parking lot of an office building and gas station(with a car wash going in next spring) I know there will always be steady traffic in and out. One other plus is that there are few eating places nearby that don't involve going into a congested secondary highway-folks pop out of the back entrance of the office park to get to my spot. The rent is worth it. If you can find a site with these characteristics-you'd be well advised to snag the location. This will involve some networking and sleuthing on your part.

Happy hunting!

Hot Dog Harvey's Hot Dog Truck: What's in a name?

Hello blogworld and welcome to the first post on The Hot Dog Truck Blog. The first thing most people want to know is how the heck did a guy named Rob come up with a name like "Hot Dog Harvey?" Harvey (Harv for short) is a nickname for me used by my brother since we were in grade school. We had a gym teacher and soccer coach named Mr. W___ who had a rather low tolerance for not following directions and a very loud voice. More than once when his students or players weren't moving as fast as he'd like us to, he was heard to say (insert a thick Boston accent here), "COME ON, YOU'RE MOVIN' AROUND LIKE A BUNCHA HAHVAHD LAWYAHS!" I guess Harvard Lawyers are a slow moving lot, at least Mr. W____ thought so.

As the season and school year wore on, he would usually call one or two of the slower moving kids not by their real name, but merely "Hahvahd." "HAHVAHD, MOVE TO THE BALL! HAHVAHD, GET THE LEAD OUT! HAHVAHD GET INTO THE GAME AND HUSTLE!" and so on, could be heard on the fields and in the gym throughout the school year. Never being a kid (or an adult for that matter) who was blessed with speed, I inevitably became one of Mr. W___'s "Hahvahd's."

Little brothers being the understanding, sensitive creatures they are will often latch on to something they find annoying to their older siblings and rail relentlessly in safe situations lest they get their standard beating. My little brother was no different. So to him I became "Hahvahd" which got shortened to "Hahv" and then morphed into "Hahvy" or, in the less than vernacular "Harvey."

As the years wore on, I continued to be known as "Harv" or "Harvey" around our home. Little brother, mom and dad still call me by that ancient nickname fairly frequently. I am glad the larger population never latched on to the nickname back in my school days, but the name has become a term of endearment within my family.

When I told my brother I was getting into the Hot Dog business, his first statement was "Ya gotta call it 'Hot Dog Harvey's.'"

Thus the name was born.

If you ask for Harvey at the truck, I'll simply say "he's not here."

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