The Hot Dog Truck

Hot Doggin' in Florida

2012-02-25T09:44:00.001-05:00

I will be in the greater Sarasota area from April 14-21, 2012. I would like to do 2-3 Hot Dog Stories while I am there and I am looking for suggestions.

If you know of a cool Hot Dog Joint in that area, or if you own one yourself, please let me know so I can stop by. You can leave your suggestions in the comment box or email me at hotdogman AT thehotdogtruck.com.

Thanks, and KEEP ON DOGGIN'!

New Websites and Broken Shark Tanks

2012-02-24T23:02:00.001-05:00

I announced my co-authorship of The Shark Tank blog yesterday. I have also been working on my own personal site, Rob Merlino dot Com. It is "open for business," but I am still fiddling with the layout and design. For now, I have populated it with articles from sites I have shut down, but I did write my first new post last night.

I should have called it "How to co-author a successful niche website and crash your webserver." Check it out.

Hotdogman on The Shark Tank

2012-02-24T06:20:00.003-05:00

No, I am NOT going to be on the show pitching the Shark Tank panel on my National Hot Dog Month 2012 Tour. I will be watching the show tonight, just like everyone else.

But a funny thing has happened to me the past few weeks. I am co-authoring a blog with my buddy Kirk Taylor called The Shark Tank. Kirk and I predict what will happen on the show and react afterwards. We also offer insights into why different shark pitches are successful or not. Both of us have been contacted by folks who have been on the show to do interviews and write guest posts. Panelists on the show, like Daymond Brown have noticed our site and we are getting thousands of hits per day.

Check out my prediction for Jared Joyce's fate on tonight's Shark Tank.

Hot Dog Vendor Radio Appearance

2012-02-22T08:42:00.000-05:00

In case you missed me on Hot Dog Vendor Radio last night, you can give a listen right here.

Listen to internet radio with BensCarts on Blog Talk Radio

Don't for get to support the National Hot Dog Month Tour HERE

National Hot Dog Month 2012 Preparations Continue

2012-02-22T06:38:00.001-05:00

The funding continues for National Hot Dog Month 2012. To date we have secured a sponsorship commitment from Onion Crunch, the new fried onion condiment that is sweeping the nation. We will be handing out samples of Onion Crunch at every stop on our tour

Negotiations with other sponsors continue, and my team and I are very close to making a major announcement in the coming weeks.

I have also submitted proposals to several production companies for distribution/production of the documentary that we will make. Team member Drew Bennett has secured a whole bunch of new camera equipment from some of the many companies he does his giveaways for. Drew will be riding shotgun, shooting a lot of the footage for this year's tour.

I also just received a $100 funding grant for the project on Indie Go Go from an anonymous source.

There are just 18 weeks and four days until the beginning of National Hot Dog Month, so jump on that bandwagon and get involved!

Contest on My Guest Hosting Gig on Hot Dog Vendor Radio

2012-02-20T06:46:00.001-05:00

Now that I am on the mend, it's time to get back to work. I have a lot of projects going on while I plan the National Hot Dog Month 2012 Tour. One of the first is my appearance as a Guest Host on Hot Dog Vendor Radio tomorrow night at 8:30 PM. You can listen to the podcast HERE. I encourage all listeners to call in and share their experiences.

The podcast is run by Ben Wilson of Ben's Carts. Ben is a long time advertiser on The Hot Dog Truck. He manufactures hot dog carts, publishes a book on getting started in the hot dog business, and even has blueprints to Build Your Own Hot Dog Cart.

During the show, there will be a contest. The winner will receive a Pro Pack from Ben's Carts. The Pro Pack includes the following:

Spring back tongs
Meat thermometer
Ladel
Napkin dispenser
Dog sled
Stainless condiment Dispenser
2 Commercial chip clips
3 Pocket apron

The Pro Pack sells for $119. In order to win the contest, here's what you need to do:

Post a picture of your best dog, your most beautiful creation, made on your cart or from your kitchen and WIN BIG!

Rules: Post your creation with details, ingredients, tips and how you did it and win a Pro Pak from BensCarts.com
Post should be made at www.facebook.com/benscarts. Video uploads will receive an extra 5 votes. So get going, start creating something superb. Remember, it can be done from your kitchen or your cart. Find recipes and ideas by searching www.google.com Search terms: Gourmet hot dog recipe / Mexican Hot dogs / Specialty hot dogs (you get my drift)

Where to post: www.Facebook.com/benscarts
The picture or video with the most “likes” wins!

So give a listen tomorrow night at 8:30 PM. We'll be giving out tips to hot dog vendors, talking about the National Hot Dog Month 2012 tour and having lots of fun. You can even call in and chat with Ben and I, the call in number is 424-258-9364. See you then.

Surgery, Narcotics, and the Shark Tank

2012-02-19T09:31:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday, I had surgery for a severe Inguinal Hernia. After arriving home, I have spent the past few days taking it very easy while under the stupefying effects of the pain killer Oxycondone. I have a new found respect for women who have had C-sections. The pain of a healing abdominal incision is indescribable. It makes the pain of my fractured tibial plateau from a couple of years ago seem like a skinned knee. The pain accompanies every movement, even the slightest, and it is searingly unbearable.

I usually never take any any prescribed pain killers, I just don't like the way they make me feel. With this particular operation, I am not only taking them, but I am taking the maximum recommended dose. I have never been woken from deep sleep by pain, until now. While the pills do take the edge off the pain, I am left feeling out of it. I feel drunk, high and I have a kind of constant flesh creeping feeling. I really can't see why people would want to take this stuff recreationally, it is rather unpleasant. For the short term, I will trade the unpleasant feelings to stay largely pain free.

Throughout my pre-operative stage, I have put a bunch of irons in the fire. I have begun planning for my National Hot Dog Month 2012 Tour, I have started writing a couple of ebooks, I am planning a new personally branded website and I have begun one of several new joint ventures. The first joint venture to come to fruition is my new status as a co-author on my buddy Kirk Taylor's Shark Tank Site. Read my first Shark Tank post on The Last Lid, enjoy.

The nearly month long post operative stage should allow me to complete my ebooks and get my other projects off the ground-it's really easy to stay focused when you aren't allowed to drive!

My Doctor's Opinion on National Hot Dog Month 2012

2012-02-15T13:58:00.001-05:00

I am having hernia surgery tomorrow. Tuesday, I visited my Doctor for a check up and asked him to weigh in on eating a hot dog a day to celebrate National Hot Dog Month 2012.

Last year, some folks had a lot to say about this being an unhealthy practice.

See what the Doctor has to say....

The Hotdogman on Geek Dad's Weekly

2012-02-15T08:20:00.000-05:00

Last week, I had the honor of being on the nationally podcast show, "Geek Dad's Weekly," with Daniel M. Clark and Andrew Bennet of the Benspark blog. Each week, a panel of dads gets together and talks about the issues of the day. Last week we talked about hot dogs, video cameras, New England life, business ethics, Affiliate Summit, Affiliate Improv, and camping with kids. You can listen to the podcast below.

Nominate Your Favorite Hot Dog Joint

2012-02-13T11:01:00.000-05:00

I am already planning the National Hot Dog month Tour for July 2012. My goal is to visit as many iconic joints as possible without repeating (too many) stops from last year's tour. I am looking for feedback as to where to visit. I can't guarantee I can make it to every suggested place, but please, add your suggestions.

Answer the Survey HERE.

You Can Build Your Own Hot Dog Cart

2012-02-13T07:00:00.001-05:00

People who start hot dog businesses tend to be entrepreneurial and independent. Owning your own hot dog business is truly symbolic of the American Dream- it's a heck of a lot of fun too! I know myself and other hot dog vendors I speak to, gain a lot of satisfaction from owning their own hot dog business.

Building something yourself can bring the same satisfaction. Now, you can build your own hot dog cart and save thousands of dollars over purchasing a new or even a used cart. Building your own cart also allows you to tweak the design to the exact specifications for your local health department.

If you have ever thought about Building Your Own Hot Dog Cart, Ben from Ben's Carts has a great set of plans to get you on your way. Click HERE to Build Your Own Hot Dog Cart.

The Hotdogman Jumps in the Shark Tank

2012-02-11T10:57:00.000-05:00

Eric Colti, the guy with the Wine Balloon on this week’s episode of Shark Tank, was an idiot. He let fear make him lose sight of the bottom line and why he was there in the first place. Everyone liked the invention-it was clearly far advanced over every other product purporting to do the same thing.

>>READ MORE ON THE SHARK TANK

Update on National Hot Dog Month 2012

2012-02-11T06:41:00.000-05:00

While the rush to fund the National Hot Dog Month 2012 tour has not resulted in an initial public groundswell, lots has been happening behind the scenes.

I have forged two traditional media partnerships (one newspaper and one TV station) with negotiations in process for additional partnerships. These partnerships guarantee mass exposure for the tour which results in many more eyeballs to the tour and the websites. This presents a unique marketing opportunity for companies that wish to be associated with the tour; for relatively short money (compared to traditional marketing channels) a company can sponsor the tour and get exposure for their brand for the entire month.

I am also very pleased to announce the addition of Drew Bennet to the team. Drew runs the Benspark blog and has a very dedicated following. He's also an accomplished photographer and videographer; Drew will be handling most of the video recording and photography for the tour. He's also working on getting General Motors to give us vehicles to travel around in. You may recall, he scored a Camaro convertible for our visit to Larry Joe's New England Fire Pit last summer.

I have also decided to focus primarily on the iconic hot dog establishments of New England- places that have a 50+ year history- for at least half of the visits. We will also attend more baseball venues, particularly if certain deals that are in the works fall into place. GM would like the "baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet" angle as would several local minor/collegiate baseball leagues in New England I have been in contact with. Of course we will have a few carts, trailers and trucks in line, just not as many. We are also going to limit "repeat visits" this summer- no offence to past participants, we just want to keep the content fresh.

Check back for further updates.

SAT Practice Test FAIL

2012-02-10T05:51:00.004-05:00

As frequent readers may know, I am a licensed teacher. I don't have a regular teaching gig, but I do some tutoring and I teach SAT Test Prep classes. The SAT has two parts: Math and Verbal. The verbal section allows 25 minutes to write a short essay which is then evaluated along with a series of multiple choice sections. Every three or four sessions of these SAT prep classes, we would administer a test as if it were the real SAT so the kids could practice under "real" conditions. The practice tests consist of tests from 4-7 years ago.

Last spring, while proctoring one of these practice tests, after the 25 minute writing session, we began the first of 4 multiple choice sections. One student raised his hand at the end of the first multiple choice section and asked to be excused to go to the bathroom. He never returned. Here are the answer sheets he left behind (I had to make copies- it was THAT bizarre):

This kid's parents paid a little over $700 for this course. Way to go, kid.

Rob's Hot Dog Tales

2012-02-09T16:17:00.002-05:00

Rob's Hot Dog Tales is LIVE. Bookmark it to get daily news about your favorite food, the hot dog. This online newspaper is dedicated to collecting news about hot dogs from all over the world on a daily basis.

Check out Rob's Hot Dog Tales

Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?

2012-02-08T09:57:00.001-05:00

I would like to do some statistical analysis on the age old question: "Do you put ketchup on your hot dogs?"

Please take a moment to answer the survey HERE.

Interviews at Affiliate Summit West 2012

2012-02-08T05:12:00.000-05:00

When I attended Affiliate Summit West 2012 in Las Vegas last month, I had the opportunity to interview John Chow, Shawn Collins, Nate Beal, Syed Balkhi, Wade Tonkin, Tricia Meyer, Bryan Knowlton, Missy Ward, Eric Thomas, and Eric Hom. This video is a compilation of those interviews.

Affiliate Summit West 2012 Parties

2012-02-07T19:27:00.000-05:00

On my recent trip to Affiliate Summit West in Las Vegas, I got the opportunity to hit a bunch of parties.

As always, the video cam was with me and here is a whirlwind look at the parties I attended.

Super Sunday is Here

2012-02-05T10:46:00.000-05:00

It is Super Bowl Sunday and my beloved Patriots are shooting for their fourth ring. My facebook page abounds with posts from Giants fans in ALL CAPS. Twitter is in a tizzy. TV is crammed with Super Bowl related news stories and ads.

Later today, during the game, folks will be posting statuses and whirling around online during the game, blogging, facebook updating or tweeting throughout the entire game.

But not me. Not today. There will be no updates from me accompanied by photos of the chicken wings and guacamole I am eating or my philosophical take on the last commercial.

Nope, it's gonna be a low tech, old school Super Bowl today. Snacks, beer, football game- the way God meant it to be.

National Hot Dog Month 2012

2012-02-04T11:51:00.000-05:00

Last summer, you may recall my adventures in July. That was when I ate a hot dog a day at a different venue to celebrate National Hot Dog Month. Each day I would go eat a hot dog and shoot a video about wherever I was eating it. You can see all the videos on Hot Dog Stories.

For 2012, the tour is going to be bigger and better. I have big plans and goals for this year's tour. The single most important thing I want to do is get better video and audio equipment, a better computer with more vibrant video editing software, a professional editor for a better quality finished product and money for travel and lodging expenses. The Hotdogman is going nationwide in 2012; more travel means more expenses.

In addition to the 31 videos and photo posts that will be produced for July's tour, I plan on producing a 60-90 minute documentary about the experience and publishing a book about it.

I am also actively seeking partners for this project, so if you (or someone you know) is in a position to sponsor the tour, please contact me or direct them to THIS LINK.

I am actively raising funds for this project as well, you can read all about it HERE.

There will be much more to follow; as always- stay tuned.

Top 100 Guitarists of All Time

2012-02-04T08:49:00.001-05:00

I just had to embed this in a post so I can find it quickly in the future. This mix is nothing short of AWESOME! It will take two days to listen to, but it is worth it.

100 Greatest Guitarists Ever from alex_Sc on 8tracks.

National Hot Dog Month 2012 Funding Update

2012-02-03T06:42:00.002-05:00

Wednesday I started planning National Hot Dog Month 2012. It is going to be BIGGER and BETTER than last year. My team and I will be making 31 videos of different hot dog venues as I eat a hot dog a day during the month of July. We will also be producing a documentary about the experience and writing a book.

You can get more info on how to help with the project HERE.

We have already had some sponsors sign on, get on the bandwagon and help make National Hot Dog Month 2012 a big success!

Thanks to Jim Kukral and The Dogfather for helping to fund this ambitious project.

The Social Media Overload

2012-02-02T08:40:00.000-05:00

Social Media is all the rage. It is an industry that didn't exist ten years ago, now it seems like every company has a person (or department) dedicated to social media.

Individuals and small businesses are into the whole social media thing too. The big three right now are Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you want a strong online presence, you "need" to have accounts with the big three.

But now there are a bunch of new comers out there. Google Plus, Foursquare, Pinterest, Instagram and so on. I hope I don't "need" to be on those sites too, because, quite frankly, it's hard enough to keep up with the big three! I never want to spend more time on social media than I do with my sites, but if they keep adding new ones that I "need" to be on, that's what will happen!

A few years ago, MySpace was all the rage. I never really got into MySpace-thank God! Imagine all the work people put in to those sites. A whole industry sprung up around it with people selling skins and templates and what not. Where are they now? Probably designing Facebook skins.

Facebook recently announced its IPO; Zuckerberg will finally get his billions, but what of Facebook, or any of these other social media entities? Will they continue to be relevent or will they go the way of MySpace?

Time will tell. I just hope there aren't any more social media platforms I "need" to be on!

The Punch Buggy Game dot Com

2012-01-30T14:55:00.000-05:00

I love old VW Beetles- or Bugs as some call them. I have always wanted one, just because they are so unique. Whether you like the old school bugs...

...or the newer variety...

...you have most likely played The Punch Buggy Game.

A few years ago, I slapped The Punch Buggy Game together to have a place where people could go look at the rules of the game. I mostly did it to keep my kids from arguing while playing the game in the car. I just gave the site a make over and "re-launched" it.

Check out The Punch Buggy Game and settle your disputes while playing this classic travel game.

What food would you most like to banish from school cafeterias?

2012-01-29T10:55:00.001-05:00

Every week, the Circle of Moms has a question they ask to folks in their group. Even though I am not a mom, I am married to one and I am big on the local 'mommy scene" as the "cool dad." This week, they asked the question "What food would you most like to banish from school cafeterias?"

To see my answer, Click here.