The Fastpitch Softball TV Show has been selected as a national finalist in the sports category for this years Podcast Awards . Just being nominated is quite an honor in the podcast world according to the shows host Gary Leland. This year 321,000 listeners, and podcasters nominated over 3,500 shows. This is The Fastpitch TV Shows second year in a row to be nominated for this award, and they are up against some tough competition, including three shows form sports giant ESPN.

Voting starts November 13th, and will run until November 30th. You are allowed to vote once a day, per IP address, or per person. So, if you like the show, please go to podcastawards.com and vote daily for The Fastpitch TV Show.

We recently created a You Tune Video Player for the videos from the Fastpitch TV Show. This player allows you to embed the following video player to your website, or blog.

All you need to do is copy the following embed code, and add it to your website, or blog.

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Our sister website FastpitchTVshow.com was recently nominated for a podcasts award. Out of the thousands of shows nominated, The Fastpitch TV Show is one of 10 finalist in the sports category.

Voting starts tomorrow at www.PodcastAwards.com. The voting last for 2 weeks. People can vote once per day. We are asking our fans, and users to take a second each day, and go to the website find The Fastpitch TV Show in the sports category, and vote for us. Lets make a statement to the world, and have a softball show win best sports podcast of the year.

Thank you to everyone who nominated us, and thanks in advance to everyone that takes the time to help us win it all.

SportJunk.com has created another great website for fastpitch softball fans. Fastpitch.TV is our newest, and maybe our best website yet.

We scan You Tube daily, and find the best Fastpitch Softball videos for your viewing pleasure.

What does this mean to you? It means you no longer have to search through 1000’s of videos to find the best fastpitch softball videos. You won’t have to see another video of a 4 year old hitting a softball. You will never have to worry about clicking on a softball video, only to find out is is porn mislabeled as a softball video. Every video on Fastpitch.TV is G rated.

Take a look at Fastpitch.TV, and I think you will agree. It is the best free fastpitch video site on the Internet. Just go to www.fastpitch.tv and start enjoying our newest website.

On this episode we give you a tour of the Fastpitch Illustrated website.

We are joined by the Worth Rep, and she shows us Worths new mask for batting helmets.

Check out our blog at Fastpitch.US, and our ever growing fastpitch softball video website Fastpitch.TV

Don’t forget to check out our homepage FastpitchIllustrated.com

The Fastpitch Softball TV Show is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

The Xelerator. In this episode my daughter Lauren joins me to show you the Xelerator. The Xelerator is great for fastpitch pitch training.

You can find the Xelerator at PitchingAids.com

Sponsored by www.SoftballJunk.com

The Accubat. In this episode my daughter Lauren joins me to show you the Accubat. The Accubat is a replacement for the fungo stick.

You can find the Accubat at www.SoftballJunk.com

Sponsored by www.SoftballJunk.com

The Hit N Stick. In this episode my daughter Lauren joins me to show you the Hit N Stik. It is a great warm up tool for batters.

You can find the Hit N Stick at www.HitnStick.com

Sponsored by www.SoftballJunk.com

]]> http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-24-the-hit-n-stick/feed/ 0 http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-23-the-power-fins/ http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-23-the-power-fins/#comments Sun, 23 Mar 2008 02:53:05 +0000 Fastpitch.US http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-23-the-power-fins/

The Power Fin. In this episode my daughter Lauren joins me to show you the Power Fin. It is a great training aid for batters.

You can find the Power Fin at www.CrackedBat.com

Sponsored by www.SoftballJunk.com

]]> http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-23-the-power-fins/feed/ 0 http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-20-the-cannonball/ http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-20-the-cannonball/#comments Sun, 02 Mar 2008 16:24:24 +0000 Fastpitch.US http://www.fastpitch.us/fastpitchtv-episode-20-the-cannonball/

In Episode 20 I talk about the cannonball. The cannonball is available at PitchingAids.com

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

In Episode 19 I talk about another great training aid, the 14 Inch Softball. The 14 Inch Softball is great for pitchers.

The 14 Inch Softball is available at PitchingAids.com

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

In Episode 17 I talk about a great protection device, the Gameface. The Gameface is great for pitchers, and any player that may get hit in the face with a ball.

The Gameface is available at PitchingAids.com

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

Six months from today the first pitch will be thrown at the fourth Olympic Softball competition. The game schedule is expected to be released this month, and International Softball Federation (ISF) President Don Porter notes that numerous other preparations are ongoing for the August 12-21 tournament that will consist of Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, the Netherlands, Japan, USA, and Venezuela playing at Fengtai Softball Field.

Dutch outfielder/third base player Marloes Fellinger said, “After ten years of being denied, this team is not content to just be there. We are determined to have a good showing for the European region. As this marks the six month mark ‘til the games, we are working very hard and it is a great group of players to be around. We want to compete in every game. We are so honored to represent our country and proud to take the Dutch National Team to the Olympics. What a great life experience for all of us.”

Cat Osterman, a pitcher on the defending Olympic gold medalist U.S. team said, “This year is one of the most important for softball. This is a good chance leading up to our biggest stage to showcase everything our sport has to offer. The media coverage leading up to and at the Olympics is huge because it can show so many people what our sport truly is about, and the different stories behind it. As athletes we see this opportunity as a chance to not only prepare ourselves, but share our lives with other people. We want to let them into the world of softball and learn about the many aspects that makes this game our passion.”

Off the field, the ISF President took part in a Q&A on the occasion of the first pitch being six months away.

Question) What are some of your hopes and expectations for this Olympiad?

Don Porter) “I hope we are going to be well prepared at that time for what we are going to be doing in China in August and prior to the start of the Games. Consequently, we are focusing to also make sure that we have everything ready from our operational side with the technical people and with the venue operating properly all during the Games. Of course all of this will be done well in advance of that deadline to make sure that everything is totally ready to start with the first game on August 12th.

“Hopefully everything will be in place also to build on the promotional aspect in Beijing and in China proper. We want to build up the attendance and look forward to working closely with the Chinese Softball Association doing promotions there from now to August to generate interest in softball.

“We want to be sure that we are touching all bases and getting ready to be operational. The other important part is to be sure that we have everything in place to attract media attention and to work with the media to generate stories. This is another vital phase apart from hosting numerous International Olympic Committee (IOC) Members at our games. They will all be there for the IOC Session and we will make preparations to have as many as possible if not all of them out at the competition.

“There are a number of IOC members that have not attended softball and we want to be sure to have them out to the Fengtai Softball Field and get them more familiar with our sport.”

Q) How do you feel about having two countries (Venezuela and the Netherlands) that were recipients of the Development Program in early stages competing at these Games?

DP) “Not only were these two countries that are participating in the Olympics given a lot of support but many others have received aid. We try to do this with all our members as some need more support than others. But trying to make sure that they get what they need to be competitive is very important. In my opinion we want to be sure that all eight teams are going to be competitive. Not only with them, but through many of our other federations, this has shown that there have been improvements in the number of participants and the number of countries playing the sport. This also applies for what regards the playing level by us developing coaches and umpires. And I think that this lends to what is happening with our federations in developing their teams and athletes. They have the support that is needed to get out and organize and promote the sport to compete at certain events.

“We are limited up to a certain point with what we can do, but we try to combine as much as we have in the way of the resources that the ISF has. This has to do with equipment. I have seen recently that the numbers are up from what we have done in the past two or three years and even prior to that. The number of countries that we have provided softball equipment to plus the technical side of sending coaches and umpire instructors has risen and this goes on constantly all the time.

“It is important that this goes on all the time and we remain consistent with our aid. Hopefully at some point we can try to find more support from the standpoint of sponsors. That has not been easy and we are not the only ones from the Olympic sports looking for help from sponsors. But we need to keep working so that we can find some help for offering the services that we are providing to our members.”

Q) What are some of your concerns?

DP) “There are concerns only for things that we can’t control. One of these is the competitive side of our game. That is up to the athletes and coaches and we are hopeful that they are going to be playing at the highest level and we don’t have any runaway games with one team beating the other by a considerable margin. We can’t control that but we’ll be focusing on the things we can control. Certainly we will be talking to our National Federations that have teams entered about their plans for the competition.

“In the meantime we will do what we have to do to prepare the venue, both the technical and the operational sides in readiness for the teams to be competing.

“The staff at the ISF Secretariat has various functions and responsibilities and all this will go together as we move towards the next two or three months as we go to Beijing. A number of us from time to time will make sure all is going as it should. It is a work in progress.”

Q) How are things going with the Back Softball campaign?

DP) “The campaign is moving well. We have a lot of events and activities that a number of us will be present at between now and August and an even more pronounced presence in Beijing.

“We’re going to take advantage of every opportunity that we come across to make it known that softball is out there working hard to get the support of the IOC Members when they gather in October of 2009. But more important the sport is growing and we are broadening the awareness about our activities and we seek to keep the members informed.

“The Back Softball campaign with the number of people on the Strategic Task Force has received various ideas and insight. This has been helpful to us as this group has a number of IOC Members, National Olympic Committee representatives, corporate advisors, athletes, and media.

“There is a good balance of people and we are planning our next meeting. We have had two meetings as of late August of last year.

“The Task Force is also fortunate to have former IOC President and Honorary IOC President for Life Juan Antonio Samaranch as the Honorary Chairman. He has been very supportive and extremely helpful providing insight and precious input.

“In general the Strategic Task Force serves a good purpose. The idea of the Back Softball initiative is something that I believe is starting to catch on. We just have to keep it going strong from now to Beijing, throughout the Games, and continuing through October of next year.”

For more information, please contact ISF

On this episode my Daughter Amanda help me show you the Running Chute. This is a great training aid for building your running speed and strength.

Your can find the Running Chute at SoftballJunk.com

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

The Arm Strong is a great condition tool for fastpitch softball, but it is also great for developing the proper mechanics. The softball player will get instant feedback when using this training aid.

You can find the Arm Strong at www.PitchingAids.com

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

In this episode gary shows a video about the Wheeler Dealer Soft Toss Machine. This is another great training aid for fastpitch softball.

You can find the wheeler dealer at www.CrackedBat.com.

Fastpitch.TV is sponsored by SoftballJunk.com

On this episode of Fastpitch.TV we show you the Tight Spin Trainer. The Tight Spin Trainer is a great training aid for softball pitchers. This tool will help you strengthen your hands, grip, and wrists. You can find the Tight Spin Trainer at www.PitchingAids.com

In this episode Gary plays a video that wil explain the principle behind Turboslot batting gloves. You can find Turboslot batting gloves at www.IfTheGloveHits.com

Video provided by www.Fastpitch.TV