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Sports Biz
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When New England Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss takes the field against the San Diego Chargers this weekend, he will be stepping into shoes that I wore first.
No need to check your eyes there. I didn't think I'd ever write that sentence either.
Here's what happened. Before the season started, we did a show at Gillette Stadium and interviewed both Tom Brady and Randy Moss.
Knowing that I'd be doing so ahead of time, Pony, which sponsors Moss, sent me a pair of the exact shoes that Moss will wear. They are size 14 1/2, were custom made for the wide receiver and have no branding on it -- a rule that the NFL imposes for non-league partners.
I brought them to the show, asked Randy a question about his Pony sponsorship and put the shoes in the trunk. They stayed in my truck for about a month until I had to pack a whole bunch of bags into my car when I was visiting my parents. I tried on the shoes, but had no idea what I'd ever do with them. So I put them in my parents' garage.
That was until earlier this week when I got a note from Colin Brickley at Pony.
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Source: Pony Rovell wore this shoe before Moss. |
"Darren, any chance I could get those Moss shoes back," Brickley wrote. "He needs them for the Chargers game this weekend."
Something told me this wasn't a joke. So I e-mailed Colin back saying I'd FedEx them to him. The problem was that I didn't even remember where I had put them and thought there was a possibility that I threw them out.
The next call was to my father. "Hey Dad, it's me. Are there any boxes in the garage that have Pony on it?" I asked. "Yeah," he said, as I sighed with relief. "I didn't throw them out." I told my dad the story and he put it for first overnight delivery.
Colin said that they had 15 pairs of custom made shoes made for Moss, including the pair that I was holding, but that he had given some away and was down to his last pair. Pony had expected to have more, but a shipment of cleats were held up on some loading dock in China.
So if you get a chance to catch the Pats-Chargers game this weekend, realize that I had a role in anything Moss does. And if he breaks some single-game receiving record, I want some first dibs on those cleats before the Hall of Fame. Or do you think I need to give them to my dad?
Questions? Comments?
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