I Follow: Nicole Briscoe

NASCAR Countdown host Nicole Briscoe (Allen Kee/ESPN Images)
NASCAR Countdown host Nicole Briscoe (Allen Kee/ESPN Images)

Editor’s note: I Follow is all about ESPN employees on Twitter: what they tweet, whom they follow and how you can interact socially with anyone and everyone.

Today, we focus on Nicole Briscoe, host of ESPN’s NASCAR Countdown that airs before all NASCAR race telecasts and a host/reporter for ESPN2’s daily NASCAR news and information program, NASCAR Now.

Twitter handle: @RB_Mrs
Followers: 14,162 (as of 8/05/13)
Following: 406

When did you join Twitter and why?
I think my husband [IndyCar driver Ryan Briscoe] put me up to joining. We were both looking for a way to be a bit more involved on the social media front, and Twitter seemed like fun. I tend to use it more for the personal side of my life. It’s definitely less work, more play. If you check my timeline, there are about 1,000 pictures of my kids, and by kids, I mean two dogs and two cats. But, it’s been nice because I think it helps people get a glimpse of the real me, not just the me they see on TV from the racetrack every weekend.

Who is your favorite person to follow on Twitter?
I have to narrow this down to one? This is going to sound cheesy, but my husband @Ryan_Briscoe cracks me up on Twitter. He’s definitely my favorite nerd. I also follow a lot of people who work in and around NASCAR. When something happens, it’s hard to miss because the “news” fills the timeline. And I love those crazy facts handles. The ones that tell you weird things like “July 30th is celebrated as National Cheesecake Day.” Who doesn’t need an excuse to have a little cheesecake?

What’s your favorite Tweet you’ve received or your favorite Twitter moment?
I find it amazing how people reach out to you. You do find the occasional rude person, but for the most part, Twitter is crazy supportive. Some of my best experiences on Twitter were around the worst times. My grandfather’s death, or when a friend of mine [IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon] was killed in a racing accident.

On NASCAR Countdown we did an obituary/tribute, and it was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my job. However, the outpouring of love on Twitter was beyond anything I could have imagined. It was humbling that so many people reached out. Lately, it’s been fun to hear from people now that they know I’m pregnant. Baby Briscoe gets a lot of Twitter love.

What’s been your strangest exchange on Twitter?
My maiden name is Manske, and for the majority of my career I was Nicole Manske. When I got married, I kind of bucked the trend and went uber traditional and took my husband’s name both personally and professionally. The strangest Twitter exchanges are the ones where people ask me if Ryan and I are related, if he’s my brother, or if I know him because “how crazy is it that there’s this guy who races IndyCar with the same last name as you?” I actually got that exact message [recently].

Note: Briscoe will host NASCAR Countdown on Sunday, Aug. 11, at noon ET on ESPN before the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Back to top button