I'm obviously visiting my own blog here plenty of times each day just to make sure everything looks good. So I was caught off-guard when I saw an ad for FRS energy drink that didn't feature the usual endorser, Lance Armstrong.
Instead, the ad featured a gorgeous, ripped woman named Nora Tobin. As you can see here, it says that Nora is a "pro beach volleyball player."
So why had I never heard of this amazing athlete? Well, it seems like she doesn't practice her trade enough.
We first went to the Beach Volleyball Database and found that Nora, 21, played in two AVP Tour events last year. Her 37th and 53rd place finish meant she didn't earn a dime and finished the season ranked 200th.
After not seeing Tobin listed as a player on this year's Tour, I contacted a photographer who seems to have taken some of the only action photos of her.
Ian McKaig, a photographer in Santa Barbara, Calif., confirmed that she wasn't just some computer generated image. He told me he took the shots of Tobin at a California Beach Volleyball Association tournament in Santa Barbara.
So our next call was to the amateur California Beach Volleyball Association. An official there told us that Tobin is a AA player (AAA is the highest) and that she first played with the CBVA in 2005. She had paid her dues this year, but had yet to play in a tournament.
So that's all we've got for now. We're putting out an All Points Bulletin for Nora to contact us and tell us her story, why we don't see more of her on tour and how she got hooked up with FRS. Our e-mail is sportsbiz@cnbc.com.
Check Out These Special Slideshows on CNBC.com:
- Slideshow: Best Premium Liquor Brands
- Slideshow: A Dozen Fine Cigars
- Slideshow: America's Top 15 Golf Communities
- Slideshow: 2009 NY Auto Show