• November 28, 2007

Nike is telling teen athletes that bad weather is good--or at least not terrible. The company is pitching its Nike Pro line with a print, outdoor and interactive push telling teen athletes to suck it up in bad weather. The campaign, which uses the theme line, "I am forged by the elements," shows athletes training in rain, snow and sleet, with the message that such elements are good.

The effort comprises print ads in Sports Illustrated and ESPN Magazine. Outdoor ads are in nine markets, and an online push is on AOL, Yahoo, MSN, ESPNU and high school sports sites.

The advertising, via Cole & Weber United, has disparate athletes slogging through the muck: Kyle Harrison of the U.S. Men's National Lacrosse Team; cross-country runner Kara Goucher; Shawne Merriman of the San Diego Chargers; and soccer player Oguchi Onyewu.

The ad text is Homeric: "I am a force of nature; nothing stands in my way; when you try and push me, I push back even harder ... until I wear you down for good."

--Karl Greenberg