Your Chance to Hit the Big Time

I have to admit I had never heard of Strands.com before receiving this press release from them. Evidently Strands is a social networking site catering to athletes, with an online training log and other goodies free to those who register. It’s worth checking out for that reason alone, but even better is that Team Strands is looking for another runner to sponsor:

Team Strands accepting proposals for athlete sponsorship

Corvallis, OR, November 9, 2009— Team Strands is accepting applications for athlete sponsorship for the 2010 calendar year. Interested athletes should submit a running resume with a one-page sponsorship proposal.   The resume should include, but is not limited to:

o      Running Background

o      Personal Bests

o      Race Highlights

o      Tentative 2010 Race Schedule

The proposal should highlight why you believe you would be a good brand advocate for Strands.com. It would be helpful to include information about your level of involvement in the running community, and your “reach” online with social networking sites and blogs. Preference will be given to athletes willing to relocate to Corvallis. Please indicate whether you would be willing to move in your sponsorship proposal.

You must be willing to share your training and interact with the Strands.com online community, so familiarity with Strands.com is a must. If you would like to apply for sponsorship and haven’t set up a free Strands profile at http://www.strands.com, please do so before applying.

When you have completed your running resume and one-page proposal, please send an email with both documents attached to teamstrands@strands.com by December 15, 2009. We will begin notifying athletes starting January 1, 2010.

So, they’re looking for am athlete who is involved in the running community and has a following online. I would really like to see Viper with a corporate sponsorship, or Xenia, or Nitmos, or Chic Runner, or Vanilla, or Joy.

I’m serious. We have too many teams of Greek gods and goddesses who train with dedication and are about as interesting to interview as a loaf of white bread. We need to sponsor more misfits, head cases, and people who have made an art of attracting attention to themselves. Who better to represent an Internet site for runners?