StumblingEnd

@TorrentCorpRL Crossfire Vs Wyffers in @ATS_RL action! Winner moves onto the Quarterfinals of the Phoenix Cup! Game takes place at 9pm EST! twitch.tv/stumblingend

@BrittonShink "Casters were using iPads as their mics." You not wrong about that. Those were some days back then. Great to see how far you've gone since the HC times. Hopefully things continue to go well in the broadcasting world you're in.

Not that it's that special, but I'm proud of my story. This is going to be a damn novel, but I feel like for anyone getting their feet wet in the industry may relate to this. In 2016, my navy friends convinced me to play Rocket League with them, and I was hooked. We had started a tradition of gaming together every Friday night since we had all moved away from each other. Essentially we'd hop on RL, throw back some beers, and jump in an Xbox party and have a blast every week. I had no idea what Discord was, what esports was, or any of that. Eventually a good friend of mine told me all about that world, and I created a Discord profile and joined a small community called "HC Esports". I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Tons of gamers that hung out, competed, and did their own broadcasts on Twitch. They weren't huge, maybe about 20-30 viewers. Quality was horrid, casters were using iPads as thier mics, no facecams, but I didn't care. It was so cool to me. Eventually I volunteered to be a caster for our matches, since they needed help. I wasn't great at it, but I loved being part of the show. Eventually the person streaming the whole deal dropped out, so I picked that up as well. Had no idea how any of it worked, so I bought my first PC and learned how to use StreamLabs. I did a few shows broadcasting and casting at the same time, and I was totally hooked. After a few months, I was so invested that I began helping run the community, and eventually was invited to be a co-owner (I didn't own anything, but that was the title) of the community Discord. After another few months of doing this, I developed a lot of ideas for expansion and growth, but was shot down. So, I started my own thing with some friends, we called it Reveille Esports. The purpose was to have a legitimate esports org that ran high quality tournaments in the bubble scene. However, the others in HC weren't too please- a few of their staff came to help me out, and they viewed it as competition. In a matter of weeks I was removed from the HC Esports and all the drama involved in what I can only call a stab in the back. I worked my butt off for almost a year, but it was what it was. I moved on. Running Reveille, I got a taste of what professional esports and gaming was. We started to be interested in RLCS, and loved hosting bubble tournaments for the up-and-coming competitors. I noticed a big gap in broadcast production level between community events and RLCS- the pros. It was drastic. I wanted to get to that level, so we rebranded the Reveille name to something more familiar, Shine Media. Shine was meant to bridge the gap between cheap community streams and professional streams that were produced at a high level on a lower budget. We had a lot of success. Not too long after, Catjeans reached out about broadcasting for the RLCS team she managed with Kronovi, Wondamike, and one other. I was blown away at the time- I got to broadcast for two legends in the Rocket League scene, it was so cool. That was the launchpad for the rest of my path. After that, the RLCS Team streams kept coming. I got involved in WCBC (later WCB), side events with real sponsors, and actually got paid for my work. Only took like 2.5 years to see any money, but I didn't care. I continued to branch out in every direction I could. I gained a reputation for being reliable and easy to work with, and the friends and colleagues I met along the way helped me with recommendations, learning, and encouragement. However, doing all that without pay has its fair share of woes. My wife at the time thought I was using broadcasting as an excuse to spend time playing video games, and did not believe in my efforts. To her credit, I was spending a lot of time outside of work focusing on broadcasting, but I had to. I won't share all the details of my personal relationship, but it wasn't pretty. Things were bad from the jump. MOVING ON. I started branching out in every possible way that I could. I worked with SteelSeries doing their Apex Legends Prime Cup, doing team streams with XSET, the Pioneers, Shopify, Team DVS, Luminosity, M80, and many more. I said "yes" to everything because I needed the experience. I needed to get better. I wasn't okay with being average, and so I took on more than I could chew. Threw myself into the fire, and made some mistakes along the way. It paid off, I think. Fast forward to 2022, and I am working at a company called General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), while still doing as much broadcasting as I can on the side. I spent my weeks doing my 9-5, and spent nights and weekends broadcasting. I worked as the Lead Producer for Women's Car Ball - Season 5. That was the most fun I had ever had in this space. The players, staff, and community were so invested, and the job was so fulfilling. That is what made the collapse so much more painful. It was the first time I had been burned by an ownership company, and wouldn't be the last. WCB was destroyed by greed, poor management, and no communication. I felt awful for all my friends, they deserved so much better. In the time I worked with GDIT and WCB, I was invited to come work on shows at places like DreamHack, TwitchCon, other LAN events, eventually the RLCS in Boston. Talk about the coolest thing ever. Starting out as a random dude playing Rocket League with his friends to eventually working at an RLCS Major as a studio manager. I thought I had finally made it. With all the live events, I had used up most of my time off with my company, GDIT. At the time, there were plans for another full season of WCB, having me back at RLCS with ESL FACEIT, and more conventions. COVID was at the tail end, and I had a choice to make. Continue working my 9-5, and start saying "no" to what I loved, or take the leap and quit my job to work in broadcast full time. After a week of thinking about it- I quit my 9-5. My boss, Barry, at GDIT was the best. He told me "This job isn't your life, it's merely a requirement. Do what you love, give it 100%. If it doesn't work out, you'll have a job here if you decide to come back" and I am so thankful I had a boss like that. Barry, you are a rare breed. WELP. As soon as I quit, everything came crashing down. Fast. WCB imploded. RLCS broadcasts were lost to BLAST (they do a great job, by the way) and I had lost my connections. The show I was slated to broadcast for Amazon on their Crown channel- funding cut. In a matter of two months, every major opportunity I had dissapeared. So, here I was, jobless, defeated, and feeling stupid for putting all my eggs in that basket. My family called me a failure, this was all my fault, and I was wasting my and thier time. 2023/24: I had contacted my old boss and told him I may need to get my old job back, and he was true to his word. But, as things happen, I get recommended for a show called NFL Tuesday Night Gaming. A studio show up in Los Angeles that needed a technical director for season 3. WE WERE BACK! I am a huge NFL fan. It's one of my biggest hobbies, so being able to work on a gaming show and meet NFL players was a dream come true. The work was amazing, the crew was great, and the pay was great. NOW I had made it. Right? NOPE. Another financial mess near the back half of the season. At the wrap of the season in January of 2025, I was left, again, with more promises of things to come. I didn't trust them. And as if I needed another sign, Los Angeles has one of the most devastating fires in recent history just days after NFL TNG was done. My family was ill from the smoke and debris, our things were covered in ashes, and they were scared. I made the decision to pack up and move out to Michigan and find some stability. I got a good job in the "normal" world fairly quickly, and decided it was more responsible to treat this industry as a hobby and not a career- but I didn't close my doors. I am so thankful I continued to listen to offers. Here's the final wrap to all this nonsense, as I'm sure no one is reading this far: Over the summer I was reached out to by a recruiter from MrBeast. My initial thought was "it's not real, probably a scammer". Well, turns out it wasn't. About a month after first contact, I flew down to North Carolina and visited their studio, and my god was it impressive. While I won't share the details or nature of the visit until things are concrete (likely in January), I was shell-shocked. While going through this I experienced a divorce, fought through alcoholism, severe depression and weight gain, lost all confidence, and nearly gave up on life. I kept going. I've had control of my alcohol addiction for over two years, lost 60 pounds of the weight, maintained a great relationship with my daughter, and got a lot of my confidence and happiness back. All this isn't to say "hey look at me and how great I did" but just don't give up on yourself. Rock bottom is where you choose it to be, and there's always an opportunity to make your life better, every day.

@TorrentCorpRL has got some action happening tonight! First Round of Torrent Corp Championship Series start here! Torrent Tundra Vs No Beans to kickoff the league! twitch.tv/stumblingend

Got more @ProjectVRL Playoff Action! RPB Vs @RoyalMadridPV in Semifinal action. Winner gets to face off against @BastardMunchenV in the Grand Finals! Happens right here twitch.tv/stumblingend

Playoffs continue and another team will be sent home packing. Winner gets to play Bastard Munchen. Should be an interesting night. Kickoff starts soon

Playoff Action Begins and over the next couple of weeks a champion will be crowned. Let’s see who makes the final dance and it all begins here.

@TorrentCorpRL @KrlsOfficial

Quick shoutout to our bois in Torrent tempest for winning @KrlsOfficial Division C! A bit of a late post SOMEONE has been slacking...maybe the person making this post.... Capt: Astren Players: Rube Somber Chi StumblingEnd #BringTheTorrent #RocketLeague #RLCS #KRLS #CRL

@bubble_jit @TheBopPops

@TheBopPops pepegashake surely

If Complexity or Shopify Rebellion don’t win the NA RLCS LCQ this weekend, who do yall think could win it all?

@KrlsOfficial Div C Champion! Got to shoutout @astrnrl and chi playing their hardest in the finals. Big moment getting @TorrentCorpRL's First Championship as an org. Crazy that I unretired 5 months ago and can still perform. #BringTheTorrent

Joined @TorrentCorpRL Tempest roster as a backup sub. Been with the team for almost a month just never announced it. Looking to preform even better than before with this team. #BringTheTorrent

S2 offseason has officially begun! But first, the S1 awards!

Was going to appear in the Grand Finals one way or another. Two of the best teams face off once again, this time to crown themselves as champion.

First of Two Semifinals matchups and this should be a banger! FC Barcha looking to continue on an undefeated season, whilst two members of Royal Madrid look to make it into the grand finals once again. All this happens on twitch.tv/projectvrl

I'm still on good terms with the org and the guys and I hope to see them on field in the future. Whether we're against each other or together again.

Left @LeJitEsports Rose. Appreciate the guys Shark, Bulldog and Vell over the past few months. Trusting me, who hadn't played seriously in over a year and giving me a shot. The journey was incredible, from winning a tourney and top 4 in ATS. The ride has been fun.

First Round of @ProjectVRL Playoff action starts now! Bastard Munchen Vs Manshine City to begin playoffs. All takes place here twitch.tv/stumblingend

These Universal Team Decals and Goal Explosions will look nice in your Garage 😉 Now in the Shop – tell all your friends!

Well that league is no more. Second RLCS Formatted league that I've played in collapsed and honestly it was ran terribly.

DeepWaters Elite Division Qualifier 1 Champs! Proud of the team and how we played overall throughout the entire event. Couldn't ask for a better start after unretiring again.