From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Oak Grove, Mn

A few of you have been given hints of where I have been spending my time. I thought I would fill everyone else in on what has been happening. I have a dream of a national tomato weighoff to be held the first Saturday in September in 2019 and hopefully in future years. I have had tentative approval from various members of the GPC committee that they would approve a tomato only event. The biggest challenge is to raise the funds to make this event happen. After much thinking..I think that I would like the ability to interest national sponsors. I decided a website was needed. Not to think small...I discovered my first choice for domain name might be available, GiantTomato.com. Time to enter the world of premium Domain Names. With research, i found that this domain name was originally registered in 2001 and the current registrar was based in Shanghai. With a bit of negotiations, GiantTomato.com is now under my control.

4/26/2018 5:11:08 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

This plan for development of this site is to provide information to the public on techniques used to grow the giants, history of the giant tomatoes, and hopefully some entertainment. The growth of this website will be probably be slow...balancing 50 hour work weeks of paying employment, a bit of growing, and what is left for website development. I also have picked up..5 other premium sites that I will need to try to develop to recover some of my investment. I hope that the giant growers will help support this endeavor. I jumped in deep end but I see a chance for success. National Tomato Weighoff is within reach.

4/26/2018 5:17:35 PM

Newcastle, CA

yeah, you have been quiet lately!

Nice choice on the website name! That will get the most attention.

4/26/2018 7:16:19 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

:) Glad to see you Austin....hint hint hint Weird Wint...next fall, I think I will be still be really busy with this project. Watching the winter grow is going to be difficult. Need someone to step up and watch over the winters activities...any volunteers?

4/26/2018 7:41:44 PM

Eastern Shore of VA

Sounds good Bob.
I will definitely check it out !

4/26/2018 8:27:35 PM

Wixom MI.

Interesting bnot. Not sure were you want to go with this but it would be nice to have some kind of weigh off for everyone to enter !!!not sure if we could find a central location for this or do we work with the early entry set up we have ? But it would be nice to have an over all contest with prizes at the end of the season ?

4/26/2018 8:32:33 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

The site is going to be in Minnesota...it is my home..and we have lots of big tomato growers here. We are the center of the north american continent....Dan MacCoy is my closest confident in this project. Thank you Dan...without your support..it would have never gotten this far. I also have the domain website GiantTomato.org . Both GiantTomato.com and GiantTomato.org are prepaid registered for the next five years I will be inviting a few friends to join GiantTomato.org to give advice on how to make GiantTomato.com grow. This is not a short term project. I am probably involved in this for the rest of my life. I can't give it up..too much invested...either success of divorce.

4/26/2018 8:44:58 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

of=or

4/26/2018 8:45:43 PM

Lebanon, Oregon

That is quite a project and really nice to see you dream this up. Can I bring a 10 pound tomato on a plane? I hope to be there in 2019. Timing the largest tomato for September will be quite the challenge!

4/27/2018 12:35:29 AM

Bloomington, IN USA

Bnot I congratulate you.
It takes someone who is forward-thinking & willing to take some risk to move things forward.
If there is anything I can do to advance or promote this vision, please let me know.

4/29/2018 12:15:36 AM

Johnston, Iowa

Good luck Bob, this sounds awesome!

4/29/2018 12:25:48 AM

Arizona

Sounds Awesome. Time for the ultimate tomato transportation crate. Patent and design pending...

4/29/2018 12:42:51 AM

Grittyville, WA

There has to be a way to preserve them for a month or so while awaiting the weigh off. (This is me being blindly optimistic) “National Tomato Weigh Off brought to you by.... Campbell’s soup”.

You’ve got to get the presentation/format right... and video it. It would be fun to watch. On hulu? Amazon? Netflix? If people can watch a show about building treehouses or gold prospecting then who wouldn’t want to watch a giant vegetable competition?

Folks love growing tomatoes so you could ask for gardening type sponsors... where does the average person buy their gardening supplies? Home Depot or Walmart? And there’s got to be hundreds of smaller online retailers/seed companies, too.

Let us know if you run out of ideas... lol

4/29/2018 4:26:05 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

I have to confess...i have been a little over exuberant on gaining giant( ).com's . In my account or in process of transfer right are:

GiantVegetable.com
GiantTomato.com
GiantWatermelon.com
GiantOnion.com
GiantCarrot.com
GiantBellPepper.com
GiantCucumber.com

I think I will be busy for a very long time......

4/29/2018 12:55:18 PM

Tenino, WA.

Awesome, Now getting the tomatoes to Minnesota will be a challenge. Will TSA allow carry on tomatoes. We all know what happens to check bags.

5/1/2018 12:09:28 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

In the next few months I will be checking on airline regulations. In fact Delta Airlines is one of the companies I would like to approach for future sponsorship. First I need to get the website up so have something to show them. Just getting webhost to registrar connection setup now. Shouldnt be too long and will have a blank homepage ready to be filled with all the growers knowledge.

5/1/2018 3:09:52 PM

On top of Brush Mountain, Pa.

Isn't there a saying about putting more in your mouth than you can chew? Just asking. lol

5/2/2018 11:00:55 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Potentially, rest of life could be a long time to chew. I actually picked up some of these websites because I could get them at low cost and I knew that giant growers were trying these vegetables. I figure it those websites stay undeveloped for a few years at least a speculator wont grab the domain and ask over $10,000 for it if the growers want to develop it. Some asking prices are crazy bnot.com=owner wants over $10,000 for a site that has never been developed fo 15 years. Current asking price for GiantVegetables.com = $19,000 . I am glad with what I have acquired and hopefuly the will stay in the giant grower world for many,many years.

5/2/2018 12:39:26 PM

On top of Brush Mountain, Pa.

I now recall that the saying had to do with biting off more than you could chew. Sorry.

5/2/2018 8:09:29 PM

Central NY

I'll sell ya slammer.com for 500.00.....

5/2/2018 8:23:59 PM

Mn

Lol

5/2/2018 9:46:57 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

if you owned slammer.com I would gladly buy it from you for $500. The site redirects to political.live which is also for sale. The owner of slammer.com lives in Oregon. Go Daddy lists the value of the domain name of Slammer.com at $7346 . I could pay you $500, and then flip it in auction and make thousands. Domain name trading is big business.

5/3/2018 3:51:18 AM

On top of Brush Mountain, Pa.

There is a big difference between owning domains and actually developing them. Buying up domains for resale is speculative. It is sort of like trading in futures. Developing a domain takes time and effort. Lots of time. A site also requires lots of love and maintenance and oversight or it can go downhill even though it once it was on top. I was for a long time on one tomato site which was really good. The owner of the site became too involved personally and many people got upset and left. The site died. The owner of BigPumpkins.com has done a great job of keeping people happy. People leave the site only when they get upset at other users. This cannot be avoided with so many personalities involved. If a site like GiantTomato.com is already owned can someone else buy GiantTomatoes.com. or MyGiantTomato.com Just curious.

5/3/2018 8:19:03 AM

Central NY

Yea...I spelled that wrong...it’s SLaAmMer.com...300.00

5/3/2018 8:30:22 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Marv, GiantTomatoes.com is listed for sale at $2850 , MyGiantTomato.com would cost you only registration fees, less than $10. The shorter the name the more value a site has with the exception that the plural sometimes has more value than a singular. GiantMelons.com has much more value than GiantMelon.com ...I think I know why...

5/3/2018 9:01:19 AM

central Nc

lol bnot. I hear that joke from my wife everytime I mention this site. 'better not visit bigmelons!!'

5/3/2018 9:13:36 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Wolfpack...Big is more valuable than Giant. BigTomatoes.com is listed by it now $25,000 on GoDaddy. BigTomato.com is listed as make offer over $10,000. I am not sure what BigMelons.com is worth..but i would expect 6 digits.

Marv, I keep chomping off more. So far I don't have indigestion. Less than $300 per year to keep all my acquisitions alive.

My list now:

GiantVegetable.com

GiantBeet.com
GiantBellPepper.com
GiantBroccoli.com
GiantBushelGourd.com
GiantCabbage.com
GiantCantaloupe.com
GiantCarrot.com
GiantCauliflower.com
GiantCelery.com
GiantCucumber.com
GiantEggplant.com
GiantFieldPumpkin.com
GiantKohlrabi.com
GiantOnion.com
GiantParsnip.com
GiantRadish.com
GiantRutabaga.com
GiantTurnip.com
GiantWatermelon.com

5/3/2018 6:18:43 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

Paying the registrar fees for all these per year is not too excessive. I am working on setting up my Webhost account to allow for outside developers. It will involve ftp access. I am also working with Google Adsense. This list is going to be too much for me to develop in the near future. I am going to concentrate on tomato and carrot. If any of you have ever thought about developing a website..we might be able to make a deal. You develop it, I pay registrar and hosting...depending how well you develop..and how many page views the site gets..will determine google adsense income. We split the income..I use my 1/2 to cover my expenses. If there is a category you are interested in, please email me at bnot1962@gmail.com

5/3/2018 6:23:37 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

oops, I forgot GiantTomato.com on that list

5/3/2018 6:27:28 PM

Central NY

How bout BigREDbastards.com?...I’ll give ya a deal ...

5/3/2018 8:53:02 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

get serious porkchop. I am running close to $25,000 worth of domain names. My registrar and hosting fees are going to run about $800 per year. I have gone into this project for the idea that this will benefit the giant growers. If I have to do this project by myself..I will. There are probably about 100,000,000 million amateur tomato growers in the country. If 1 out 1000 might try to grow a giant....that is 100,000 growers. I am going to try to put out into the public 10,000 seeds/seedlings. The gentleman that sold me GiantOnion.com is becoming a very close friend...lives in Anza, Ca. The gentleman that is selling me GiantCarrot.com is also becoming a friend....He is a specialist in SEO...search engine optimization. He lives in San Francisco, Ca. I am not playing low stakes games here. Giant growing could become one of the top hobbies in the nation.

5/3/2018 9:04:44 PM

Torrance, Ca.

Q-Tip rules!!!!!!!!!!!!

5/3/2018 11:39:46 PM

On top of Brush Mountain, Pa.

The name of this site is BigPumpkins.com with the s at the end. Is BigPumpkin (no s at the end) available for sale? All of those domains that you have invested in are "out there" with an s on the end. Are those all taken at this point? Like BigTomatoes.com and so on? Truly capturing the "market" looks like it might be complicated. The value of an "undeveloped" site is unclear to me. Has Ken ever thought of selling BigPumpkins.com? If someone else owned it they could lay waste to all of the information thus far compiled or could chose not to maintain the site, which I am sure takes some time and skill. All of this does allow for some new thinking.

5/4/2018 8:39:38 AM

On top of Brush Mountain, Pa.

WOW! I just saw that BigTomatoes.com domain is for sale for $24,888. I never realized how many domain names are owned by someone and for sale. They were originally purchased in the hope that later they would be resold to someone who really wanted to use them and for BigBucks. Hmmm. Wonder how much BigBucks.com site might cost?

5/4/2018 9:08:43 AM

central Nc

Just curious bnot, but do you have experience in web development/back-end programming or are you learning as you go? I spent a short time doing network admin in the Army, but didn't enjoy it. I'm actually right now debating on teaching myself some modern web skills if it can hold my interest.

5/4/2018 9:10:44 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Marv, I just got off the phone with afternic who is broker in the selling of BigPumpkin.com . This is the broker I worked with in the purchase of GiantTomato.com. The asking price for BigPumpkin.com is $4999 He told me that they would consider other offers. It doesn't fit into my group of Giant().com's but I told him I would put it out there, just in case someone might be interested. Looking at Domain Value Estimators , in the case of bigpumpkin(s) the plural is worth more than the singular. This is just for domain name value. There is another evaluator to estimate value of a complete site. This one take into account search engine rankings which is dependent on many things including content and age of site. Average site traffic etc. BigPumpkins.com would be worth a very high number...I hope Ken D never decides to sell.

5/4/2018 5:13:02 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

Wolfpack83, I haven't tried setting up a website since the early 1990's. I believe I was running Windows 3.1 at the time and setting up a website was line by line coding. Since I have started this project, I am finding it is much easier now. I set up my hosting site to use WordPress. I believe about 25% of the sites out there are using this web builder tool. I have picked up a couple of books..and done a little reading to get a rough idea what I am facing. Hopefully this weekend will get a deeper into it and have a basic homepage set up. If you want to give it a go Wolfpack...I have lots of sites that you could learn on..and they wouldn't cost you anything.

5/4/2018 5:18:04 PM

central Nc

Haha. Same here. Ahhh geocities and Netscape navigator. I remember all that html coding too. I might take you up on it, but I have to get all my various projects sorted (not to mention it's my rookie year)!

5/4/2018 6:37:26 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

Also Marv, Godaddy domain name evaluator list value of BigBucks.com at $7940. It is an undeveloped site, but I think the domain name evaluator is low. Multiple meanings for the words "bucks". I think maybe at about $15,000 + you might get some interest. It might be higher. Internet Domain names is the retail real estate of our age. Think about what the land sells for at a brick and mortar store at a prime location. There is only one at the address. The best locations..sell really high.

5/4/2018 7:03:08 PM

Central NY

How much is bigREDbastard.com?..

5/4/2018 9:19:50 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

bigredbastard.com was first registered on 2-11-017, registrant is listed as Anthony Goldman, monreal quebec canada. GoDaddy estimated domain name value $277. Site undeveloped. You have to quit trying to selling my sites you don't own porkchop...you might be prosecuted for fraud.

5/4/2018 9:47:34 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

my typing sucks....bigredbastard.com first registered 2-11-2017 ...so far has cost maybe $20 in registrar fees....at a value of 277...if it is not developed or sold in the next 20 years..it was a losing investment. There are 425,000 + four letter domainname.com's available. Every single one is taken. Many have been purchased in china. It is an asset class. I had to get one. I have NALR.com. I figure it could be short for North America L? R?. what is the LR....literacy resource, law review,lake reclamation.....many, many possiblities. After seeing the price for bnot.com...i decided I wanted a 4 letter domain...if it eventually sells for something..i will see how close it is to the asking price for bnot.com.

5/4/2018 10:11:13 PM