SuperPro or SuperBro?

Facebook is a fascinating thing. If you ride a lot, you almost certainly have "friends" who are pro racers, and via the wonder that is Facebook you hear all about their #trainingrides and their #maxheartrate on their #insertframesponsorhere and their sick #whatevertirestheyrun tires. Not that we don't want to hear about your recent ride, but that photo of you smiling at the scenic vista near the top of the climb was enough. We didn't need to hear about #every #single #sponsor #you #have #and #you #throwing #mad #props #out #to #your #dog #too every time you ride your lunch loop. You know who you are.

And then there's this:

*****SIDE NOTE: I'VE DISGUISED THE NAMES OF THE REAL RIDERS TO PROTECT THEIR IDENTITY*****

Wyle Karner:

Wristian Chright:

Levin Kittlefield:

To all the pros on Facebook: I understand. Getting free shit from companies is sweet. It's definitely not the best part of the game, but it's a nice perk. And you want to show your support for these companies. I get it, I really do.

But are pictures of you and your bike with their logos everywhere not enough? What about just showing you building your bike up? Or maybe a little product placement in an otherwise normal picture? Or, better yet, instead of showing us piles of unused new product in shrink wrap, why don't you post a picture of the product after using it and tell us why you like it and what differentiates it from competitors?

I'm not an expert, but I'm just guessing there's probably a better way to do this. Like, I don't know, a way that doesn't rub everyone else's nose in the fact that you just got a pile of free shit from UPSland and we didn't*.

Social media presence ≠ brag about how cool you are

As a consumer, the only thing I learn when I see this:

Is that you got Slime to send you free shit**.




I get free shit, too, so I thought I'd post some sweet product photos to show the great support I'm getting:

Shout out to #amicamutualinsurance for all the free pens I took with me when I quit. #madsupport #amica4life #insurancebadboys

Big thanks for the @LewisandClarkMathematicalSciences department after I forgot to return this $160 textbook that I borrowed over the summer. It's March now, and still no fine. Thanks bros! #textbooksareexpensive #shoulnthavepassedthatclass #itsnotstealingifyoureturniteventually

Thanks to @myfriendlauren who worked at Yankee Candle after she graduated college because she couldn't find a real job at the time and so she unknowingly gave me a candle that smells like my deodorant as my Christmas present. Way to hook it up! #oceanbreezedeodorant #iusecandlesallthetime #candlesmorelikeMANdles


Thanks for inspiring me Facebook pros. I can do it too!


*I also get free shit from #diamondbackbikes #gravitycomponents #chrisking #envecomposites #shimano #foxracingshox #oakley #troyleedesigns #fattirefarm #mymom #theothermembersofteamrobot #selectfriendsonmybirthdayorchristmas #rafflesiwin #peoplewhobuymelunch #mostplacesthatservecoffeeinthelobby #restaurantswithmintsonthewayout

**Okay, I also learned that Slime makes tubeless sealant. And that they have sunglasses. Ooh, and beer coozies. I didn't know that, either.

***BTW it looks like Christian got more gogs from Smith than Kyle did, so +1 for Christian.