Customer Reviews

First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat Into a Cultural Phenomenon

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Amazing how Rovell was able to piece together such a detailed history of a product which was developed in a basement over 40 years ago. The relatively unknown early history of Gatorade at the University of Florida was fascinating. And the behind-the-scenes account of the part of Gatorade that we all know about, the commercials, was equally interesting and entertaining. I found myself singing 'Be Like Mike' and reminscing about the great Jordan commercials. I definitely would have paid a premium for an accompanying dvd of all the great Gatorade commercials. If you have any interest in Gatorade at all, this is an absolute must read. If you are interested in sports, business, or just want a good story, then First in Thirst is also for you.

I read through this book one night recently and it's a great read. The insight into the history and buisness dealings of Gatorade kept me glued to the book; I had to read it in one sitting. Many of my Gatorade questions were answered; I recall watching the Mia Hamm 'Thank You' Gatorade commercial with my wife and wondering why Michael Jordan was in it. First in Thirst explained their 'competititon' commercial and helped explain the backstory of how that ended up on the air, which led me to understand why MJ was in Mia's 'thank you'. I thought each chapter was well organized and thorough. I liked the treats at the end of the book, such as the list of Gatorade US flavor releases (what a trip down memory lane of my years running cross country) and the Bill Parcells memos. That's some great history archived there.
All in all, well done. I thoroughly enjoyed this read, and I'm sure in a number of years I'll pick it up off my bookshelf and go through it again.

Rovell quenched my need for the first riveting Gatorade sports marketing book ever written. He didn't miss a beat in his passionate chronicle of Gatorade's inventors, memorable moments in sports history and Gatorade's rise to become an iconic brand. Rovell's journalistic integrity and skillful writing was quite evident and made me not want to put the book down. Rovell has given me the gift of a perfect, light hearted, easy read that anyone will enjoy.

Darren Rovell has done it again! His research , quick wit and excellent interviews with the stars of sports makes this book a must have and a delightful read. You will learn more about Gatorade, the business of sports and sponsorship in this book than you ever imagined. I give it two thumbs up!

A highly-informative book written with love by a dogged sports business researcher. It is incredible to me that the University of Florida was so unsupportive of their faculty during the nascent days of the product, yet had its hand out when the money started rolling in.

You don't have to be interested in industry to enjoy this book!

As a marketing professional who has probably read too many books on the topic, I've found these books to be functional only to either educate or entertain, but rarely both. In "First in Thirst," Rovell brings a storytelling ease to a wonderful and insightful look at the rise of one of America's greatest brands. This wonderful "beach book" quality is not diminished by the lessons explicitly outlined as the culmination of the Gatorade story.

Rovell brings his unique talents from espn.com to the hardcover. At first I wondered if I needed to be interested in gatorade or sports business to enjoy this book. I quickly found out I was wrong. The tale of gatorade is a human interest story that can be enjoyed by any reader regardless of his sports or business knowledge. Rovell's storytelling gives life to a bottle of funny colored liquid.

I hate being the lone non-5star review for this, but it fell just short for me. There are moments in the book where the names and years are too convoluted to follow perfectly. The book isn't ordered chronologically per se, but more by a topic by topic basis, so at times it is tough to follow just how far along Gatorade was (did they sign Jordan yet? was Powerade on the scene? etc etc). Also, I could have used some re-introductions at times of the myriad "characters" of the book since it is not necessarily chronological and people disappear for a few sections at a time.

Also, on kindle there were a few minor formatting issues. Numbers have odd spacing (sometimes a fraction will look 1/2 or 1 / 2 or mini like how MS Word shrinks them after you type them; not sure how else to describe that!) and some words seem to have random spaces. I came across maybe 7 or 8 oddities like this, so it's nothing that takes away from the reading, just something I thought I'd mention.

All in all, a very good book with TONS of interesting information and tidbits for marketing minds and sports fanatics.

Many products boast of unique stories about their respective "Genesis moment" when they came into existence, but few can rival the storied history behind Gatorade®, which was created more than 40 years ago in the labs of Florida State University. As unlikely as it seems, an FSU assistant football coach went to college researchers and physicians to try and understand why some of his Florida Gators players suffered from heat exhaustion and fatigue. The research team identified extreme loss of electrolytes and dehydration as the primary cause, and they subsequently formulated a drink to meet those needs that they then dubbed "Gator-ade." In the book - First in Thirst - business journalist Darren Rovell writes a rollicking insider's saga of lawsuits, negotiations, product strategies and failures that have somehow worked together to continue to keep Gatorade number one in the sports drink arena for more than four decades. Soundview recommends this book because of its compelling story and the added texture that Rovell weaves into the mix about Gatorade being an iconic part of the American culture and its enduring success. If you're thirsty for an entertaining look at the sports drink industry - this book will certainly quench your curiosity.

Hands down, this book was one of the best business success story books I have ever read. It was not as dull and boring as one may think, since the author incorporated a great deal of sports trivia into the plot. The history of the Gatorade start-up could not even be told if it was not for the sports behind it. I found the sections on the Sports Science Institute particularly interesting, which is where Gatorade tests the efficacy of their products on actual athletes. Also extremely interesting was the history behind the origination of the traditional "Gatorade dunk" witnessed at the end of every Super Bowl. If you want to know who and when this started, buy this book and read it. You will not be disappointed! It was extremely interesting!