Gaming Meets Motorsports: The Battle Racing Entrepreneurial Journey

Tom Leonard 

I'm Tom Leonard. I'm the host at the Gamers Change Lives podcast where we talk about how e-sports can create jobs anywhere in the world. Play games, create jobs, change lives. Now in season one, we talked about jobs. In season two, we called follow the money. We talked about investment and sponsorship. In season three, we talked about business basics. And now in season four, we're gonna be talking about accelerators. We're gonna talk about incubators and other entrepreneurial stories that can be an inspiration to people who are out there building their own business or want to be building their own business. Today, I'm really, really happy to have Joshua Nelson (“Mr. Battle Racer”). It's like that's a term that obviously gets attention there. He's the founder and CEO at Emotional Ideas. Welcome Joshua.

Joshua Nelson 

Yeah.

Joshua Nelson 

How are you doing, Tom? Thanks for having me.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, great. So where are you speaking to us from today?

Joshua Nelson 

Memphis, Tennessee, my hometown city, born and raised.

Tom Leonard 

Great, great. So for our international audience, it's kind of in the, it's not really the Midwest. It's kind of, what part of the country do you describe it as?

Joshua Nelson

I would say it was the southeast region of the America.

Tom Leonard 

Okay, yeah, because we always kind of get to be a geography lesson for people around the world here. So outside of the battle racing project there, what kind of games do you play?

Joshua Nelson 

I like action and adventure games. I like Left Behind. I like games like spider-man new ones that came out. I love Madden sports games like Madden so I think but in my Ram is more like Spider-man and mad Like my range and then I go to like Mario Kart and Crash Team Racing type of games

Tom Leonard 

So did you play games as a kid?

Joshua Nelson 

Oh yeah, I did. I mean, I also played sports too, so I was outside a lot. Used my imagination a lot, so...But I always play video games.

Tom Leonard 

That's right, I thought I saw somewhere, you played football, didn't you?

Joshua Nelson 

I did play football, I did. I played a little league, high school, and then college.

Tom Leonard 

Yes, yes, which is it. Yeah, which is something completely different from soccer for most of our audience.

Joshua Nelson

Right, yeah, so American football would be the correct term.

Tom Leonard

Yeah, to make it a little more precise. Well, today, one of the reasons that I really am glad to have this conversation is that you have such a great entrepreneurial story because there's so many people that we talk to in our audience who are, either they have an idea that they want to turn into a business or they have a business that they want to grow bigger. And the stories that we can tell of people who have done it and to kind of chronicle their journey is something that can be inspirational to others. What are emotional ideas?

Joshua Nelson 

So Emotional Ideas is a patented sports and entertainment technology company. So we take amusement products, attractions, and games that most people grow up with, and we found a way to make it more relevant to the current generation. And so we have a lot of ideas in the think tank. And so first is us revolutionizing go-karting, which led to a bigger opportunity in revolutionizing motor sports as a whole.

Tom Leonard 

Where did the idea come from?

Joshua Nelson 

Well, to be honest with you, it just came from everyday activities. Back in 2014, we had a place here in Memphis called Putt Golf and Games, and they have recreational go-karts, gas go-karts. And I went driving around one day and in the go-kart, you have what you call overtake when you try to surpass the person in front of you, you try to look for an opportunity to pass them. And a guy in front of me, he was just too good. And I was just like, man, what if I could just take a page from Mario Kart and throw a title shell at him and slow him down and speed boost around him?

And when I got off go-kart and I was talking to my friends and family and they said, well, since you can't seem to stop talking about it, maybe you should be the one that makes it happen. And so I started thinking about, you know, uh, practically how can I combine the gaming technology with the real motor sports to create a whole new way to race? And for something that just kind of started off as a fun concept is now morphed into a potential billion dollar concept.

Tom Leonard

It's a story we hear so many times. It's like the ideas come from almost anywhere, but then the inspiration, and one of the things you were talking about, your friends and family, how important were they in getting you started in this?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes.

Joshua Nelson 

I think they were my first Idea wall I bounced my ideas off of them just to see if I was crazy or not A lot of them told me I was but it's a crazy idea that just may work So, you know, I'm thankful for their support Keeping it's a cuz I thank them for continually to push me even when I wanted to quit They see how much work I put in this, you know When I think about friends or family I specifically think about my mother my wife and my children. You know, they have really pushed me to keep going and motivate me to keep this thing going.

Tom Leonard

It's important that people have themselves, that they surround themselves with people like that. What about the team that you developed at Battle Racer? Well, let's go back to Battle Racer in particular. What is Battle Racer? When you're talking to people, it's like for the first time and you're like, wow, you're Mr. Battle Racer. What's that?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes.

Joshua Nelson 

So, battle!

Joshua Nelson 

Well, we call the sport battle racing, but that's that you know It's a combination of gaming technology in real motor vehicles. Essentially is bringing games like Mario Kart to life introducing the foundation of Combat motor sports so creating a motorsport is not all about who has the fastest vehicle But who can also strategize using virtual power items they give the vehicle and the driver a temporary Advantage during the race. So, you know you're able to use virtual power items such as speed boost or the ability to shoot vehicles ahead or behind you slowing them down, among other power items like EMP blades that may slow down all the vehicles on the track at the same time. So it's truly combining the virtual with the physical to introduce a whole new way to race. And that's what Battle Racing is.

Tom Leonard 

Do you have to be... Yeah, battle racing, not battle racer. That was my mistake, battle racing. So, oh, it's good. Yes, yes. So, do you have to be a Mario Kart expert to have fun with this?

Joshua Nelson 

You can be a bad racer though.

Joshua Nelson 

Not at all. Not at all, not at all. We see battle racing as a sport that is very inclusive whether you're a pro racer, pro gamer, amateur gamer or just someone that just likes to have fun on the weekends. So I think this is an opportunity for the general public to really just have fun. As we say, any sport was fun before it became competitive. So this new sport of battle racing is for all ages. Well, I really will say 13 and up. But it's really more focused for those that just love to have a good time, but like to compete while doing it.

Tom Leonard 

And you have specific venues where you offer it?

Joshua Nelson 

So our goal right now is to introduce our own entertainment franchise. You know, we wanna create these brick and mortar sensations that we can copy and paste across the globe to where you can be the best battle racer in your city, state, country, and essentially make this a league from general public to professional.

Tom Leonard 

Where are you at in creating a league? Is that something in the future?

Joshua Nelson 

Well, we just finished building the home. Yes, well, I think we can get to it sooner rather than later. As you know, a league really only needs a community of individuals that all enjoy coming together. And what I have in my advantage is that the gaming industry is all about that. You already have communities of individuals that love to come together and compete. So now we have an opportunity to take it from your living room to now a physical brick and mortar space and allow you to have that same type of environment. So we've just completed the prototypes last year in 2023. So now we're in the process of raising our next round of funding to be able to open up our first pilot location for people to come try our battle racer. And with that, with that stand, go with it. Go ahead. Well, it's probably going to be closer to Nashville. I've got to go where the money is at, Tom. So here in Tennessee, Nashville is a growing city. It's the capital of Tennessee. And we think that it may be the best location to kind of start off. But to answer your original question about a league.

Tom Leonard 

And will that be in Memphis? Will that be in Memphis?

Joshua Nelson 

So as you get a facility up, we kind of want to make it to where everyone that comes in and races is kind of part of this general public kind of lead.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, that makes sense. Makes sense to have, yeah, this is the other thing we keep hearing over and over again, is the sense of community with gamers. So it's like, and it's always been interesting talking to people because they're very competitive. I mean, people want to win, but at the same time, they're very willing to work with other people to help them out as well. So I wanna talk a little bit about the team that you put together at, they're at Emotional Ideas at Battle Racing.

Joshua Nelson

Yes.

Joshua Nelson 

Yes, they do. Okay.

Tom Leonard 

What kind of team do you have around you there now?

Joshua Nelson 

So we have a team that's kind of a mixture of wisdom and youth. I like to have a good spectrum of both sides. My co-founder, Bill McKill, and I’m thankful for him. He's been with me since 2015. He's the elder on the team. So while I may be the youngest, I'm the visionary. But I have surrounded myself with like-minded individuals that are older but have experience and wisdom to complement my youth. And so with that, we feel like we have a well-rounded team of individuals that are perfectly suited to bringing this task to life.

Tom Leonard

Where did you find these people? Because one of the things I think is really important is for people that are like, yeah, I need a good team around me, but where are they? How do I go out and find these people?

Joshua Nelson 

Right, I mean, you know, for me, it was more so a net, networking is very strong. Now I must admit, I have a lot of people contacting me wanting to join my team, but for me, it's more so relationships, those that I feel like that could compliment me as well as me potentially challenge me, but can help me go to a greater path. Sometimes you have people that just try to get around you, just to be around you, but then you have those that are around you with the goal of helping you. And so for me, that's kind of how I find my team. I look for certain skill sets. But I first look for a character. If I can see a character trading you that I like then I can see some form Of wisdom that you may have then I may find a spot for you So that's gonna have our found my team. We kind of blended together, you know.

Tom Leonard 

So where did you locate these people?

Joshua Nelson 

So I looked for my co-founder, found him here in Memphis at an event. Someone else, I found them working with them for over five years at another job. You know, I was able to pay attention to how they work. And I said, if I ever got my own business, I'm gonna call these people. And so that's how, where some individuals came from, just from working together in the past. And then some just kind of from reaching out on LinkedIn, we chatted for a couple of years. They liked and shared a couple of posts and we talked. From there, I've seen some synergy to bring them on. So it comes from all different areas.

Tom Leonard 

When you mentioned there that you're kind of balancing wisdom with youth, and not to make the assumption that there isn't wisdom in young people, too, but what's the value of bringing youth into your organization?

Joshua Nelson 

Hahaha

Joshua Nelson 

It's energy. You know, with startups, it's a lot of ups and downs. And a lot of people just, for whatever reason, may not have the energy they need to push the ball over the hill, especially when it comes to innovation. So doing something like this, we needed, it needed to be a balance of both sides. Cause one time when I first started this business and I had a team full of youth, not enough wisdom. So we had energy, but we didn't have enough wisdom to get us over the curve. And then sometimes you may have the wisdom, but you don't have the energy. So I wanted to balance that out with a project like this, because there's a lot of different milestones we plan to achieve over the coming years. This is a very big, ambitious goal. We've achieved so much, but we don't want this to just be one and done. So we needed the energy and the foresight and the vision to kind of keep this thing going. So that's what we look for in the youth side of it, is the energy and foresight.

Tom Leonard 

I think that's really an important point that you need that balance. You don't want to have everyone that looks just like you on the team. And you need some diverse voices in there to give you things. What do you think? Talking more about youth, what do you think that young people get out of playing video games? Not just battle racing, but just video games in general. You know, a lot of people say that, oh, video games are a waste of time. How do you spend all your time doing that? What do you say to people like that?

Joshua Nelson 

I think it depends on your perspective. Gaming can challenge the mind. I see a lot of educational courses now utilizing the term gamification, as in to make whatever that they're trying to get people to learn more attractive. And so gaming has just found a way to tap into people's inner competitiveness and desire to be better. So for those that desire or that love playing gaming there are special unique individuals. I'm starting to learn with what I'm stepping into that this opens up a lot of different ways for jobs. So I don't limit individuals that play games. Their minds operate in a different, I would say frequency if you will, which is very much needed in the world of innovation, in the world of activity. You need those individuals that kind of love a challenge and love community. Gamers are a community. You know, community is very important when it comes to those individuals. So I would say, you know, you can't really judge them because where the world is going, I think gamification can be used in a lot of different applications.

Tom Leonard 

When you're building your team, as you're building your team, what's the hardest part?

Joshua Nelson 

Finding individuals that are motivated beyond getting paid.

Tom Leonard 

Can you repeat that? That's really important. Ha ha ha.

Joshua Nelson

Motivating individuals beyond getting paid if your only motivation is income then at some point you're just gonna jump shift and go somewhere else where the startup is very important to Stay focused and a lot of people are only focused when they're getting paid and I look for individuals that are focused beyond getting paid. Because once you get paid in what we still have more things to achieve So you're just gonna stop, you know focus on something else. So I look for individuals like that and I kind of combine it under the term passion. I look for people that are passionate about what I'm trying to do as well.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, yeah, passion is, I always heard the saying, persistence trumps ability. It's like, someone that's persistent and is out there figuring out how to make things work is more likely to be a success than someone that's the smartest person in the room. So battle racing itself, where did the name come from?

Joshua Nelson 

Yep, I agree. I agree. So right now I kind of look at that as a genre, you know a class of motorsport racing, battle racing now We may come out with a term an alpha term in front of battle racing at some point but we look at battle racing is again just a Genre of racing some people say combat motorsports somebody say some people say combat carding But battle racing is a name to me to just kind of rolls off the tongue. It's simple to say you understand it we're racing but we're also battling. It implies other efforts beyond just going fast. So that's kind of what it turned the battle racing game from. I'm trying to keep it simple.

Tom Leonard 

Now, I think it's something also important for people to consider and to support some thought into how you name things, because especially when you're doing something like you are, that's, you know, your big ambition, big goals there. It's like, okay, you know, it makes a difference. Um, what, what people are, um, are calling it. So when you talk about jobs, how many jobs do you think battle racing is created?

Joshua Nelson 

Well, we'll create I think it will create a lot of jobs from the standpoint of Our product is so multifaceted from the software side of things Which is the coding the graphics the UI? Api's APKs all of that then you have the hardware side of things where you're talking about tires You know suspensions steering wheels rear view cameras So you have and that's just the vehicles now. We're talking about service. You're talking about individuals to manage the vehicles, to deal with the employees, I mean deal with individuals that come in, customers. So I mean I see this as a, I see this as a console that will introduce a new industry. And a new industry comes with a whole bunch of different jobs from top to bottom. So from those that clean the track at the end of the races, to those that put the tires on the vehicles, to those that code the vehicles, to those that run the teams of each team. So I see this as an opportunity to kind of take what we have seen, the revenue structure within like NASCAR, Formula One, even in eSports and then take all of those jobs and combine them and create a whole new sport. So I see it again as creating a whole new different way for people to appreciate gaming versus looking at it as something just for fun on the side.

Tom Leonard 

That was going to be my next question. So to name some of the jobs and you did a really good job there, you're describing all these different things that don't necessarily pertain to gaming, but businesses, you know, industries can create all kinds of different jobs. I always remember I always go back to Eniola Edun in Nigeria creating Gamer X. And we're talking to her about all the jobs that were created during the event. And one of them was a drone operator. And I thought, wow, if you're creating a job for a drone operator, it just talks about all the different things that you're involved in. So what's the overall goal? And I don't mean to keep repeating myself here, but I think one of the things is because you are creating something new, it's like, people need to understand more about what it is. And so, forgive me if I keep repeating my questions because it kind of makes me think of different things. So what's your goal for battle racing in particular?

Joshua Nelson 

No, I love it. So again, something that kind of just started off as a fun, can I do it, has now turned into a, yes, we can do it. How can we scale it? And so when we think about scaling this, we see battle racing as a new motor sport, but split into two realms. The first round being recreational. Even on a recreational side, we want to add a competitive component to it that can be like top golf or for battle racing where people can just have fun and compete with no stress. But then you have the other side of it where we want to mimic the likes of NASCAR Formula One, but to create a new combat racing league that's professionally streamed and advertised as you see in professional racing now. So simply put, I want to see battle racing as a new genre of professional racing.

Tom Leonard 

I like the idea that you keep bringing up NASCAR because it's something completely outside of esports, but you have to give them credit for building an industry that is just phenomenal. 

Joshua Nelson 

Right. I mean if I be honest with you Tom I pay attention to so based off my research it looks like the eSports industry has an incomplete monetization structure that's trying to figure out how to really make revenue as consistently as traditional sports has and when you look at NASCAR they have figured it out from the logos to the streaming rights so you know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. So why do we just take our spectacle and mimic the revenue structure of something that's already existing, we essentially have our work cut out for us. So taking something that's been structured as NASCAR and giving it to a fan base that would truly appreciate it, that's a recipe for success to me.

Tom Leonard 

Yes, and also something, something I also keep hearing from people around the world. It's like it's something that people identify with. I mean, Formula 1, I mean, people around the world understand that sport and it's important. So it's not like because a lot of times when I think of NASCAR, I think of, oh, the US. And I think it's only something in the South, for example, where it's, you know, very, very strong. But racing itself is really universal, isn't it?

Joshua Nelson 

Right, it is, it is. I mean, you think people are racing a lot of different things from motorcycles to go-karts. People are racing buses. So racing is in a lot of people's blood. So, you know, being able to add a new component to how we see racing, the ability to utilize power items while you race, I think this is gonna be a new sport that's gonna excite this next generation.

Tom Leonard 

That's great. That's great. Nobody's racing a bus. I'm going to have to go look that up because it's like that. That just brings to mind all kinds of interesting things. I remember seeing a picture recently of a guy jumping cars like at an exhibition or something. You jump cars with a trailer attached to his car. And I just thought the visual was just so entertaining.

Joshua Nelson 

Hehehe. Yes.  Oh, wow.

Tom Leonard 

One of the things I keep seeing you show up on where you're talking on LinkedIn are some particular phrases that I thought would be interesting for people to get a little bit more background on. And one of them is that you have three granted US patents on tech. So what are those and why is that important?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes, sir.

Joshua Nelson 

So a patent really just gives you the right to sue, to protect your idea. For me, it's an accomplishment to me because a lot of people get patents and don't get a chance to build their prototypes and we've been able to do both, especially without really having funding to do so. So that was an accomplishment in itself. The patent surrounds a lot of different technology for how the vehicles communicate. You know, when people hear about patents, what's really important is the claims. And we have over 10 claims on our patents and each claim represents something different. So one of the claims is the ability to live stream on a vehicle, put a selfie camera in the vehicle and live stream over social media while you race with the interaction back and forth from the spectator audience and the drivers. How the vehicles communicate using gaming technology. So it's really the introduction of gaming tech between two vehicles and how they communicate while they drive is really the different claims around the patents. And to me it's very important. I mean, I have exclusivity until the year 2040 to really make this thing a reality. So, you know, I'm thankful to the government for giving it to me. Let's execute.

Tom Leonard 

Was that hard to get?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes and no. The reason why I say no is because this lane is really wide open. Typically it takes around two three years plus to be granted a patent. Our patent was filed in February of 2021 and it was granted in September. No it was granted, yep it was notified in September. It was officially granted in January. So an examiner said that they didn't see anything that was like this. So to have that opportunity to have that runaway to really make this happen was really exciting.

Tom Leonard 

Does that patent extend outside the US?

Joshua Nelson 

We do have the ability to patent internationally, but you know with patent laws, patent laws operate different in each country You know you have to either be selling a product in the country or already building it So we have that potential to do so we was granted some exclusivity under WIPO, but we're still going through the process

Tom Leonard 

Yes, I can only imagine that could be a time and financial black hole there if you let it be. So, another thing you talk about is working prototype vehicles. What are those and how does that fit into the scheme of things?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes. Mm-hmm. So the prototype vehicles, people say it's cool that you're talking about it, but can you build it? Can you make it? Can you make these vehicles communicate with each other while you drive? And that's exactly what we did. So we added a mini microcomputer, some HDMI cords, display screens, created a custom gaming steering wheel, and sensor tech, and we strapped it onto an existing go-kart, and we colored it and made sure it worked. So now I have at least two vehicles that I can drive around, shoot each other, slow each other down. Speed boost, rear view camera. And it really showcases the foundation we have for this new sport. So proof of concept is now built.

Tom Leonard 

Was it hard to create that functionality?

Joshua Nelson 

You know for me the biggest thing is I'm a visionary you know you're a visionary you're creative a lot of times when you first have an idea people say that's crazy but the key the trick is for you to get them to see what you see and so that was the challenge getting them to see exactly how I see cuz I work down to everything from how the UI the display screens are designed I even hand drew the power items by hand and hit them converted to graphics. So I really took my time going through, because I didn't really have the funding to make the project more affordable, I had to teach myself things in order to learn certain things to be able to help the process of developing them more affordable, if that makes sense. So I couldn't just pay somebody to go do it. I had to get my hands dirty and kind of be a part-time engineer, be a part-time gaming designer  to learn those little things to be able to help those guys that helped me build the prototypes to make it come exactly the way that I envisioned.

Tom Leonard 

That's one of the things that I think to be a signal of success, a potential. Because you say you're a visionary, and you come up with big ideas, but you're also looking at the details on how it works. Not like, oh, let's do this, and then you want to find someone, hand it off to go make this work exactly how I'm thinking it's supposed to work. It's like, good luck with that.

Joshua Nelson 

Yeah, I mean, it's frustrating because I've had investors that wanted to invest in me only if I move to the side And I was like no I have all our deals here. I want to be a part of this, you know It's just you got to believe in yourself a lot of people they just see dollar signs and even though they see dollar signs There are dollar signs that they see can be short-sighted as well You know, I had people to see my ideas and be in but then talking to me for 10 minutes They have like these grandiose ideas of where about a race it can go. But then when they talk to me for an hour, they are like, oh, I never even thought about the additional things you were considering. Well, I've had a lot of time to think about the different revenue streams we can make of this, how we can scale it from here to there, how about a race that can be a household name over the next 10 to 20 years.

Tom Leonard 

One of the things I always liked talking to people that have really big ideas, and someone once told me that, I thought it was really smart. They said, if you have an idea, if you have a big idea and you know how to get there, you're not thinking big enough. It's like you want to have something that doesn't have a set path. You want to do more than that. Another thing you talked about is being a resilient founder. What's the importance? Because we're talking about entrepreneurship here. 

Joshua Nelson 

Hmm. Alright. Agreed.

Tom Leonard 

Why are you resilient and why do you think that's important?

Joshua Nelson 

Well, if you don't have resilience you're gonna quit Just simply said, you know, I forgot the statistics But the statistics are not favorable for founders A lot of businesses closed within the first one or two years a lot of businesses don't make it past the fifth or seven years So to you know to be completely honest with you I've kind of gave up on this idea twice since I've been working on this in 2014 because it seemed like it was too many obstacles. But I can stand to you stand today saying that every obstacle that I've seen at that time we have been able to overcome so It's just a matter of not saying If I can but how can I and I think that phrase of saying how can I has really helped me overcome a lot of obstacles That to the outside world seemed Impossible, I mean today wouldn't spend between 300 to 500 thousand dollars to get to where we're at and I don't have any of that money I wasn't born into a wealthy family. So for us to achieve the things that we have achieved, it just took resilience and not giving up and believing in the project. I don't even wanna say believing in myself, but believing in the project, the project has merits that it can be done. It's just a matter of who's the person that's gonna do it. And my co-founder tells me all the time that people don't invest in ideas, they invest in the ability for you to execute. As in, they don't invest in the horse, they invest in the jockey. So I've been trying to prepare myself to showcase to investors that I'm the ideal choice to bring this idea to pass. And I feel like I have shown that by my resilience over the years in the milestones that we have achieved, even with our hands tied behind our back.

Tom Leonard 

One of the things I've also noticed is that you appear in a lot of your videos. Why do you think it's important that you show up there? Is there thinking about that or is it just because there's no one else?

Joshua Nelson 

Well, I mean, you know, I'm pretty sure there's a lot of people that would love to come to battle race, but no one can tell the story like I can tell the story. And I recognize that if the investors are gonna give me funding, they're gonna be funding me. So I wanted them to see who I was, how much I believe in this, and how much passion and time is taken to really build this up. I wanted them to see that I'm not just trying to get behind the check and then bail. I am here to really stick it out and make something happen.

Tom Leonard 

The other thing that you mentioned is that it's a billion dollar global market. How do you come up with those numbers?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes. So I look at the existing market of racing and I look at the market of gaming. The fact that I can combine those two and have the communities from both sports merged into a whole new industry, that's where the numbers come from.

Tom Leonard 

No, it's easy to be a believer in talking to you. I also noticed on LinkedIn, there was a recent post, you were at an expo in Orlando, the IAAPA, which I have to admit, I have no idea what that is. Could you explain a little bit more about what that is and why was it important for you to be there? Why should founders be looking for these kinds of opportunities?

Joshua Nelson 

That's, yeah, that's IAAPA.

Joshua Nelson 

So networking is something that's very important to me. I will admit over the past few years, I kind of been building this project under a rock and no one really knew who I was or what I was doing. So 2023 and 2024, I call those my years of exposure. I plan to expose to the world my battle racing project. And IAAPA stands for International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. So that's where all the big leagues go, Disney, Universal, that's where everyone comes to look for the next biggest attractions to put in their places. And so I figured if I wanna test the theory, if the market is receptive to what I'm doing, why not go to this event and show people what I'm building and film their responses? And that's exactly what I did. I went around showing people the concept video, asking for feedback and being candid with the audience and letting people see what people thought.

Tom Leonard 

And what do they think?

Joshua Nelson 

They told me not to give up. They see that this is needed. So they wanted me to keep working on it. And so that's the biggest takeaway that I've received is people were like, you're really opening my mind up to a new genre. Please don't stop working on this.

Tom Leonard 

That's got to feel good. Yeah.

Joshua Nelson 

It does feel good. That does. Especially when people told you was crazy and when you started working on it at first.

Tom Leonard 

Well, especially, yeah, just thinking about that particular event. I mean, you're talking about people who have incredible careers. I mean, they're doing exactly the kinds of things that, you know, some of that huge scale out there. So to get their validation is even better than getting your kids validation, maybe. So nothing bad about your kids there.

Joshua Nelson 

Yes. Right.

Joshua Nelson 

Agreed you know people paying $400 yeah people paying $400 to go to this event so I was meeting people from theme park majors to ride managers to amusement owners so it was it was a good opportunity to cast a wide net to see what do people think about something so well known as go-kart they needed a change

Tom Leonard 

Yes. Yeah. How about, have you had any help from the government?

Joshua Nelson 

I have not no help at all. Well, they gave me the patent. So that's the help that I got.

Tom Leonard 

Oh, well, that's yes, that which you were not given for free. So a lot of the people we talk to around the world are interested to see the role the government plays. And one of the things you're validating here is that the government doesn't play much of a role in things like this in the US, say, compared to maybe, you know, Morocco. We were talking to some people in Morocco, and it was just amazing what the government was doing to create youth centers.

Joshua Nelson 

Right, they were now free.

Tom Leonard 

Around the country for esports and just we're playing a big role. What about colleges or universities? Have you worked with any of them?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes, I'm actually very excited about that. I know a lot of colleges are starting to adopt e-sports programs into their colleges and universities. Some colleges actually have racing programs. So I would love to kind of get in there and I've been talking to counselors, administrators, teachers within the e-sports programs at some of these colleges and they're eager to introduce battle racing to their network of students to see if maybe we can start a fan base at some of these colleges.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, I think that's one area that I think people anywhere in the world should not rule out. I mean, it's like there's so many colleges out there and they're trying to do. They're trying to do the same thing. They're talking about the same things that we're talking about here is how to create jobs. And how to get people ready. And when we're talking to Gerald Solomon at NACEF, and one of the things that they learned early on and the reason they're doing the program that they're doing is

They went, where are the kids? Don't try to go out there and try to attract kids if they're not, go where the kids are. And it's like, that just makes a whole lot of sense.

Joshua Nelson 

Well, I've noticed this, you don't have to force kids to have fun. If they like it, they'll come to you.

Tom Leonard 

It's really that simple. I mean, it's like people don't need to overthink this sometimes. One of the things I want to ask you is, and we're kind of wrapping up here a little bit, but what advice would you give to someone? Now, you're looking back. You said you started this in 2014. So it's like 10 years, 10 years of your life. 

Joshua Nelson 

It is, look at this. That's great.

Tom Leonard 

I'm not going to ask how old you are, but it's got to be a pretty good chunk of your life. Oh, wow. So a huge chunk of your life. So so what about someone that might be listening? It's like they've got an idea and they just don't know, you know, and they're a believer. What are the kinds of things that you would say to them?

Joshua Nelson 

I'm 31. Well, I would say time could be your biggest friend or enemy. Start working on your idea today. Keyboard, I didn't say start your business today. I said start working on your idea today. As you start working, you will know whether or not it's meant to turn into a business. When I first started working on this, I didn't really have a business. I had an idea, so I just started writing. One page turned to two pages, two pages turned to a few pages, and a few pages turned to a binder. By the time I got through the binder, I realized I wrote the whole business plan. Then I started to execute. So start today. Do you have an idea? Start working it out today.

Tom Leonard 

You never know where it's gonna go and I'll try.

Joshua Nelson 

Nope, what they say, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

Tom Leonard 

Yes, yes, exactly. Hey, is there anything that I missed talking about that you wanted to bring up?

Joshua Nelson 

Uh, well, my biggest thing now is support. So if anyone is hearing this and they love the thought process of. Mario Kart came to life in the form of a pro sport support, go to battle racing.com and we have something called a pit crew member. You can sign up for free. All it takes is your email address to be a part of our newsletter. And the more people we get to sign up, the more we can showcase to investors that people want to see battle racing become a sport. And if you're just so generous, purchase some merchandise and you can support us that way. So, BattleRacing.com.

Tom Leonard 

Yes, yes, yeah, to get the validation that other people think it's a good idea too. So where can people find out more about you? I think you just said it, but I'm gonna let you say it again.

Joshua Nelson 

So you can go to our website, battleracing.com. We're also on TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter. Well, we're on Twitter, but I would say TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Type in ‘Battle Racing Live’, at Battle Racing Live. You can keep track of all of our progress. We got a lot of videos we're releasing. We're gonna let some people battle race in the demo units, and we're gonna keep interviewing people and get validation. And then you'll be notified when our facility is ready.

Tom Leonard 

Who creates your videos?

Joshua Nelson 

A combination of myself and other people just those that step in to help so i kind of go around on my phone and we just make it happen

Tom Leonard 

Because I think one of the things that needs to happen with you, and I'm not telling you something you don't know, but video is your friend. I mean, you know, you can describe it over and over again, but if people see it in action, it's like, oh, yeah, there it is. And it really works. So.

Joshua Nelson 

Right, right. Here soon. I mean, it has gotten cold here in Tennessee, but here soon. I want to strap on a couple of GoPros and let people race each other. So I'm looking forward to showcasing that footage.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, no, it's just the video stuff that just creates itself. I mean, it's just

Joshua Nelson 

Do you like what you've seen so far?

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, yeah. Here's what I do because I'm not a Mario Brothers fan. I mean, I just never played the game a lot. But your whole concept of being able to influence other drivers as you are as you're driving around, it's like, wow, that could be a lot of fun because and also with the understanding they can influence you. I mean, so, you know, it's not like it's not like I've got the upper hand on everything. So you got to think of both ways.

Joshua Nelson 

Right, exactly. Yeah, it's definitely a balanced game from the power items to the landmines that you drive over. The basis of battle racing is that your vehicle has health and as you take damage whether from other vehicles or from driving over the wrong color landmine, your vehicle will gradually go slower and slower. So it's a game of you strategizing how to keep your vehicle at optimal speed. So we have something called purple landmines that restore 10% of your health every time you drive over them. So you wanna keep a balance and to keep an eye on your health bar at the same time of trying to stay in first place. So it's definitely a game of skill and strategy and I'm excited to see how people compete.

Tom Leonard 

Is there also a let's go in a minute, but another question is, do you have different ways to tune the car? One of the things I was always amazed with Gran Turismo, it's like, you know, if you wanted to, you could spend pretty much the rest of your life, you know, fine tuning these cars that you're out there and it would make a difference. Can you fine tune your cards? As a player.

Joshua Nelson 

You know, I have a concept in the back of my mind of how to do that, but one thing I love about gaming is that unlike pay to play racing now, you know, you have the most money you can pay to fine tune your vehicle. What I love about a lot of video games is when you put that controller in your hand, you are now on the same exact playing field and it's up to your individual skill to say that you're better than me. What we wanna introduce with battle racing, instead of allowing individuals or teams to modify their vehicle, what if everyone has the same vehicle? Therefore it's up to your individual driving skills and how you utilize the power items for you to come in first place. So I think we kind of want to change the game on how racing teams balance out or compete with each other by keeping a playing field. You know, that's one thing that used to bother me about the go-kart tracks. You always had one of those go-karts that were slower than the rest and you didn't want that one. So, but you know, right, so right. So I think we want to kind of introduce that even to where we may least.

Tom Leonard 

And that's the one you always got.

Joshua Nelson 

The vehicles are out to different teams so they can make sure that they have the same type of vehicles.

Tom Leonard 

Are there manufacturers that you've been talking to?

Joshua Nelson 

Yes sir, yes sir. We have a big manufacturer that we work with that is our partner right now for the go-cars as well as the bigger vehicles.

Tom Leonard 

Yeah, yeah, because they've got to have a big interest in expanding that.

Joshua Nelson 

Yes they do. They're very excited. I mean right now with the go-karts, you know, we're just putting our product on off-shelf vehicles, but for the Pro League vehicles, we want to build our own custom gamified electric vehicle from the ground up. That would be bigger than a go-kart, but smaller than a full-size car.

Tom Leonard 

All kinds of great things. Hey, Joshua, I really appreciate you taking a little bit of time here. I encourage everyone to go out and check out, um, battle racing out there because you're going to be able to find some, some great videos and be able to understand more, even more about what it is. And I also really appreciate you telling the story about your entrepreneurial journey, because that's the one thing we want to keep telling over and over again, because no two journeys are the same, but, but you can learn from anyone.

Joshua Nelson 

Yeah. Yep, and your journey is meant to inspire someone else's journey.

Tom Leonard 

That's the idea. So hey, thanks again for taking your time here.

Joshua Nelson 

Thank you so much, Tom. Thanks for having me. You guys check out BattleRacing.com.

Tom Leonard 

Great. Hey, this is the Gamers Change Lives podcast. Really appreciate it. Go out there and subscribe to our podcast. Go out there and follow our social media and most importantly, engage with us. That's where we learn about what it is that other people, you know, if you're interested in us talking about a certain thing, let us know. Go out there and engage with our guests because we've got a pretty good roster of guests out there so far and it just keeps growing. So let's engage with it. Gamers Change Lives podcast: Play games, Create jobs, Change lives. See you next time.

Joshua Nelson 

Thank you.