Verzbicas signs deal with NB

Knife wrote:

http://running.competitor.com/2014/02/news/verzbicas-signs-deal-with-new-balance_95514

This one is definitely a little puzzling to me, since NB is basically investing in an athlete who will probably never be able to live up to his full potential.

I was a fan of Verzbicas while he was in high school, and there's definitely no doubt that he was a spectacular athlete. In fact, I didn't even care that he left Oregon in the middle of the season to pursue the triathlon instead.

Realistically though, I don't think he'll ever make a full recovery from the Spinal Cord Injury. Yes, he's able to run again, and that's miraculous, but it's one thing to be able to run, and another to be able to run at 100%. Injuries like that aren't just going to go away, and I recall that even during the Carlsbad 5k a year or so ago, Verzbicas still hadn't regained full functionality of his lower body.

From the perspective of NB, Verzbicas is probably just more marketable than a lot of other athletes, regardless of whether or not he ever returns to top form. Anyways, I do still hope for the best for Verzbicas, and would like nothing more than for him to disprove everything I said.

Agreed 100% on the above.

Hard to say New Balance is paying him too much without knowing what they're paying him. That said, he's got name recognition, one hell of a back story, and the potential to be very good.

clearly shoe contracts are not based on economics, is all I can say.

agip wrote:

clearly shoe contracts are not based on economics, is all I can say.

Oh yah, how so? What evidence did you base that conclusion on? Do you know a lot about economics of endorsement deals for professional athletes?

Seyta wrote:

I was a fan of Verzbicas while he was in high school, and there's definitely no doubt that he was a spectacular athlete.

I still can't figure out how that age-cheat had any "fans."

Citizen Runner wrote:

Hard to say New Balance is paying him too much without knowing what they're paying him. That said, he's got name recognition, one hell of a back story, and the potential to be very good.

And typically what value an athlete like him might add...

Over payment = Cost - Value

In the case not only do you have no idea what the cost is (i.e what NB paid), but you also have no idea how companies determine the value of endorsement deals.

Koneko wrote:

Seyta wrote:

I was a fan of Verzbicas while he was in high school, and there's definitely no doubt that he was a spectacular athlete.

I still can't figure out how that age-cheat had any "fans."

What's the difference between a fans and "fans?"

Koneko wrote:

Seyta wrote:

I was a fan of Verzbicas while he was in high school, and there's definitely no doubt that he was a spectacular athlete.

I still can't figure out how that age-cheat had any "fans."

Someone fill me in if I'm missing something:

-The Illinois Cutoff date is September 1st, meaning that all high school freshmen should turn 15 sometime between September 1st and August 31st of the academic year that they enter high school. This also means that all high school seniors should turn 18 sometime between September 1st and August 31st of the academic year that they graduate from high school.

-Verzbicas was born Jan 6, 1993, provided that Lithuania has birth certificates (which it does as far as I'm aware).

-Because Verzbicas graduated in 2011 but only had 3 years of schooling, he was old for his grade during his Freshman and Sophomore years, but by graduating 1 year early, he was the correct age for a high school senior in Illinois. This point is not arguable. I know other states are different, but in Illinois, the cutoff date is SEPTEMBER 1st, meaning that statistically, 1/3rd of all the Illinois high school seniors were older than him during his senior year.

I mean I understand that people might be peeved that he was old as a freshman and sophomore, but he had no control over that. He immigrated from Lithuania, and their school system and the ages associated with each grade were different. Moreover, at the very least, he actively corrected the fact that he was old by graduating early.

What I don't understand is how people are so insistent that he is faking his age. Lithuania is not like many African countries. They do keep medical records and issue birth certificates based on the western calendar. Moreover, if he wanted to fake his age to have an advantage then...

1) Why would he choose a fake age that already makes himself too old for his grade? The last I checked, age-cheats typically try to avoid drawing attention to themselves this way.

2) Why would he graduate early? It makes no sense to try and age-cheat and then nullify your own advantage.

LV continues to be a compelling story. Oregon was not a good fit for him and this NB signing must really grate the minds of those bitter Duck fans.

His mom was doped to the gills while she was carrying LV to term. Roids, HGH, EPO, IGF-1, synthroid, RU487.... you name it, she was pounding it. The result: 3:59, 8:29.

Epigenetics, the REAL DEAL!

what you're missing is that calling LV an age cheat is one way to call everyone who says the africans age cheat a racist.

agip wrote:

what you're missing is that calling LV an age cheat is one way to call everyone who says the africans age cheat a racist.

No, it's just one way to be an f'tard.

The fact that there is a thread and that we have opinions indicates that LV is marketable. It isn't about how fast he runs. It is about the fact that he was a sub 4 min high school runner who survived a near fatal spine injury. That is an extremely marketable story. Every time he does something there it will make the Letsrun homepage and message board. Hell, New Balance has a built in human interest story. Selling shoes isn't only about fast runners. Great signing for NB.

Incidentally, Kara Goucher is also highly marketable if she never runs another pr. She bridges the gap between elite, girl next door and fitness mom. She will sell a lot more shoes and clothes than Galen.

I've been bummed on a lot of what NB has been up to with their shoes--and when I say "a lot of what" I mean "everything that"--and when I say "their shoes" I mean "everything"--over the last year.

NB isn't investing in a cut of his winnings. Theyrre investing in the recognition he'll bring.

I agree he's probably never going to be the runner he could have been. It's not a matter of fitness; he literally has lesser function of his lower body.

*stipe wrote:

The fact that there is a thread and that we have opinions indicates that LV is marketable. It isn't about how fast he runs. It is about the fact that he was a sub 4 min high school runner who survived a near fatal spine injury. That is an extremely marketable story. Every time he does something there it will make the Letsrun homepage and message board. Hell, New Balance has a built in human interest story. Selling shoes isn't only about fast runners. Great signing for NB.

Incidentally, Kara Goucher is also highly marketable if she never runs another pr. She bridges the gap between elite, girl next door and fitness mom. She will sell a lot more shoes and clothes than Galen.

I guess. Charlie Manson is marketable too, because people talk about him.

The thing is, oregon was a really good fit for him. He's not very bright, as shown by being held back all those years and being a 17 year old sophomore. Plus his high school gpa was well under 4.0. Having a high attendance rate and not stabbing the teacher rates at least a 3.5. So oregon, also known as eugene clown college, was the one place that he wouldn't flunk out.

It is a good fit also because of the oregon cheating culture. He proved that he didn't have any qualms about cheating when he was a 17 year old sophomore competing against 13 and 14 year old sophomores. So he would fully be able to morally take any of those good NOPe enhancers and oregon juice.

Professor Longhair wrote

I guess. Charlie Manson is marketable too, because people talk about him.

Good analogy. Don't think Verzbicas is a cult leader or a killer.