First in Thirst

How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat Into a Cultural Phenomenon

Author: Darren Rovell
Pub Date: 2007
Your Price: $24.95
ISBN: 0814472990
Format: Hardcover

• Overview
• Praise for this book
• Introduction
• Press Release
• The Gatorade Rules
• History of Gatorade
• Table of Contents
• Request an Evaluation Copy, INSTRUCTOR ONLY!

The First Complete Behind-the-Headlines History of the World’s Leading Sports Drink—and One of Today’s Most Successful Brands

Published to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Gatorade’s Invention

“Given its prominence and brand equity, it’s amazing we’ve had to wait until now to read the story about the domination of Gatorade. Darren Rovell will quench your thirst by deftly weaving the tale from its humble beginnings to its extraordinary market share and iconic brand status.”
—David Stern, NBA Commissioner

“The story of Gatorade’s wild success was just waiting to be told. FIRST IN THIRST is a business book and a marketing book and a zeitgeist book, but most of all it’s just a terrific book to read.”
— Stephen J. Dubner, co-author of Freakonomics

It made The New York Times’ list of the 100 best brands of the 20th century. But few brands — not even Coke, or Nike — come close to its 80 percent market share. It’s guaranteed to be the official drink of every NFL team throughout the 2011 season. It’s also sure to remain a presence in amateur sports, whether for giving Olympic medalists a winning edge (swimmer Michael Phelps thanked his mom for buying it) or for sponsoring awards for high school athletes (counting Marion Jones and Derek Jeter among past recipients). Its faithful guzzlers also include NASCAR drivers, bull riders, and rock stars. In the United States alone, 88 bottles of the stuff are sold every second of every day, with gross retail revenues now surpassing $3 billion a year.

Of course, it’s Gatorade, the best thirst-quenching product in the world — with an arsenal of scientific evidence to back its marketing claim to fame. Published to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Gatorade’s invention, FIRST IN THIRST: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat into a Cultural Phenomenon (AMACOM) tells the true, full, fascinating tale of how a salty concoction born in a humble university laboratory rose to become the super-selling drink of superstar athletes like Michael Jordan. According to the
author, Darren Rovell, who covers the business side of sports for ESPN.com, it’s “a classic business story.”

FIRST IN THIRST begins in 1965 in a basement lab at the University of Florida, where Dr. Robert Cade, a 37-year-old associate professor of medicine specializing in kidney disease, and three research fellows — one of whom had recently come from Cuba with only $5 in his pocket — were working to solve the problem of dehydration and heat exhaustion. That brutal August, the problem had become serious for the university’s football team, the Gators. After a month of experimenting, the doctors finally seized on a formula — water enhanced with sodium and potassium — that would quickly move through the body and replace fluids lost through sweat. With the approval of the head coach, Ray Graves, the doctors put their drink to the test, using the “Baby Gators” — the freshman squad — as guinea pigs. In a four-game series against bigger veteran players, the Baby Gators prevailed, without losing stamina or body weight. The very next day, the salty brew came through for the entire varsity team against the heavily favored LSU Tigers. The lemonade-like formula that the Gators drank was given a name and a home on the sidelines.

To trace Gatorade’s incredible journey from the college circuit to the Superbowl, from supermarket shelves to the international spotlight, Rovell spoke to virtually all the key players — from its inventors to innovative business executives, marketing mavericks, team trainers, famous coaches, and celebrated athletes — as well as delved through stacks of archival materials. The result is a gripping, entertaining saga filled with instructive insights for competitive brand-builders and managers. Driven by a cast of remarkable and colorful characters, FIRST IN THIRST unfolds a tale of ingenuity, determination, and teamwork, influenced by nutrition and fitness fads, timing, luck, and greed. Chapters include:

• The birth of the Gatorade mystique, spurred by a championship season for the Florida Gators, a glaring loss, and a mysterious case of Gatorade “snatching.”

• Why Stokely Van-Camp, a company known for its Pork & Beans, welcomed a sports drink into their product line-up and how they vastly improved its flavor.

• How Gatorade teamed up with the NFL and how an act of revenge against New York Giants Coach Bill Parcells launched the tradition of the “Gatorade bath.”

• How Gatorade wound up under the helm of Quaker Oats and inspired the creation of its very own research laboratory, the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI).

• The royalty battles between Gatorade’s inventors and the University of Florida.

• The behind-the-scenes story of the “Thirst Aid” campaign and how Disney’s animated classic The Jungle Book inspired the “Be Like Mike” jingle.

• How Gatorade stood up to attacks from Coke’s POWERade and Pepsi’s All Sport and held onto its commanding market lead without resorting to price wars.

• How Gatorade rebounded from the disasters of cyclamate and Gatorade Light and defends its edge on water.

Packed with insider anecdotes to thrill sports fans and marketing pros alike, FIRST IN THIRST also reveals the smart business principles behind the sports drink’s phenomenal and enduring success. After drinking it all up, readers just might be motivated to work to be like Gatorade. /p>

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
DARREN ROVELL is the sports business reporter for ESPN.com and regularly appears on ESPN radio and television programs. In 2004, he was among the young journalists on NewsBios’ rising star list of “30 Under 30.” The coauthor of On the Ball, Rovell also blogs about Gatorade at www.firstinthirst.typepad.com. He lives in Bristol, Connecticut, and can be reached at TheGatoradeGuy@aol.com.

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