Are you familiar with the Madden curse? Generations of star NFL players have pulled up injured or saw their playing time severely diminished after the honor of gracing the popular video game’s cover. Well, if our goal with The Victory Lap has been to support athletes, then our Friday morning premium newsletter has become a good luck omen.

Folks, allow me to introduce you to the Victory Lap Anti-Curse. (I’m still workshopping the name.) This week Puma announced the signing of marathoners Sara Vaughn, Dakota Lindwurm and Annie Frisbie, as they continue to reintroduce themselves into the world of distance running after a decade or two focused primarily on the sprints. As the brand has invested more in product innovation, it’s necessary to have the soldiers on the frontlines showing that this stuff actually works.

What’s The Victory Lap?

The Victory Lap is a second email for premium subscribers that features an additional athlete interview. The plans cost $5/month or $40/year and that money goes to the participating athletes in exchange for help marketing The Lap Count to their fans. It’s completely optional, but a great way to show them your support.

And in what was a classic retaliatory move during the ongoing Dassler family sibling rivalry, Adidas went ahead and signed Nell Rojas to their roster. You may remember her from the front of this year’s Boston Marathon or more notably – the Victory Lap. Oops, we did it again!