Here we are in 2012, and are already several days into February. Where has the time gone? With the warmer temperatures across most of the Country, spring is in the air. That means, come one month from now, millions of people across the U.S. will be “celebrating” March Madness.

Recently I learned that Free Money Finance (FMF) hosts an annual March Finance Madness bracket from 64 other bloggers. It is pure blogging genius! The bracket is formatted with entries from other finance bloggers going head-to-head with their favorite article from 2011. Readers than vote on their favorite articles, with the winners advancing to the next round. I fell in love with the idea, and FMF has graciously given InACents access to host a similar competition with travel bloggers.

For the InACents March Travel Madness competition, we will follow a similar format to the FMF system, since it is a proven winner. Any lessons learned may be incorporated into future competitions. If you are a travel blogger, search through your 2011 archives and find your favorite article. The articles must be travel related of some sort, and we reserve the final say on whether the article qualifies. Sixty-four (64) blogger entries will go up against each other with their favorite post. Competitors will be randomly assigned against each other in the initial bracket.

How To Enter

Email me justin (at) inacents (dot) com the following:

1) The name of the post you are submitting from 2011.

2) The URL of the article.

3) A brief paragraph summarizing the article and why it is the most valuable article not only to you, but your readers.

There is a limit of 64 entries to fill the bracket, and they will be awarded on a first come, first served policy. I will limit each blog owner to one entry. Please feel free to contact other travel bloggers about the contest so we can try and fill up the entire bracket. Here is your chance to really promote your writing and put your post up against other bloggers in a friendly competition. I am unsure how long it will take to reach the 64 entries, but I will set a deadline of 2/24/12 just in case I need to make any modifications to the program.

How to Vote

Readers will comment on each competition in the bracket with which blog entry they think is their favorite. The most votes win and advances. Ties will be broken by one member of the InACents family.

There will be a limit of one vote per person. Please feel free to promote your article via social media, email, etc. Blog owners are allowed to vote for themselves. Anyone caught cheating may be disqualified at our discretion.

The competition is meant to be fun and broadcast to other readers your travel potential. Let’s have a great time and see where if this bracket will take us to the big game. Who knows, you may win more than your typical March Madness brackets.

If you have any questions or suggestions, I am always open to hearing them to help things flow smoother.

Last, please head over to FMF and vote on the March Finance Madness entries, and maybe you will learn something in the process. There are some great entries this year that may change your view on financial independence.