I have been very remiss in writing this blog entry – apologies to Saucony.
Earlier in the summer I posted a tweet looking for some sponsorship. It was very much a tongue in cheek tweet not expecting a reply of any sort really. The tweet posted at 1350hrs on 13th August was as follows:
"...Work getting in the way of training again! Am I to old to go pro? Surely someone would sponsor me? North Face, Skins, Nike where are you!!??..."
I then followed this up at 1441hrs on the same day with:
"...Or maybe @saucony?? I wear the shoes already and would be a sponsorship dream :) representing every plodder out there, what an opportunity..."
Within a day I had a reply from Saucony with confirmation that they have a scheme for sponsoring amateur athletes called the Hurricane Program and was I interested in being put in touch with them. There is only one answer to that question which is a resounding yes!
I then received an email from Jessica at Saucony explaining the Hurricane Program – it was at this point that I felt my dreams of being a “sponsored athlete” (therefore professional right!!??) disappear as the blurb talked about top age groupers etc…it was time to come clean. I replied with details of who I am and my athletic prowess (if ever the wrong word was used!!), I thanked them for their time and considered that the end of it.
I then received a further email saying that I would be ideal for consideration for their Hurricane Program but that it was a USA based team and I am in the UK. They did however say that they wanted to supply me with a pair of trainers!
I gave them the details of the shoe I use and the sizing and within a couple of weeks a brand spanking new pair arrived!
This was actually very exciting and it has to be said totally unexpected! The tweet I sent was, like I said before, tongue in cheek and I had no expectations of it leading to anywhere or anything.
I was genuinely a fan of Saucony running shoes (I use the Guide 2’s) before I tweeted having worn them for the past couple of years. What impressed me most was not the fact that I got a pair of shoes but the response from Saucony. Considering how big and how corporate they must be and what they must be managing on a day to day basis the fact that they have had time to engage with me on a personal level and provide service and response that you would expect from a local running shop was very welcome and quite surprising.
I probably would have worn Saucony for years to come, now I definitely will….
