The “Fashion-Forward Your Fabulous Fool” Contest

Yes, it’s April Fool’s Day. No, this contest is not a joke. It’s the “Fashion-Forward Your Fabulous Fool” Contest.

Outside PR, the company that gives me sweet products to give away now and then, has an ABUNDANCE of gear for guys right now. So this contest is just for the guys.

Well, sort of.

Women of the internet, this is your chance to get new gear for your man! And by “your man,” I mean your lover, boyfriend, spouse, father, son, uncle, co-worker, etc, etc. This is not just for married guys. It’s for a guy with any woman in his life. Or for a woman who knows a guy who needs a little help.

Maybe he needs help because he's been stuck in the same jersey or bike shorts for 20 years. Maybe it's funny because he's soooo fashion-challenged (or just not concerned with fashion when working out). Maybe his shorts tore in an "awkward" spot during a ride or a race. Maybe it's inspiring because he's lost a lot of weight and can't fit into his old gear any more. Or anything in between.

Let's talk prizes. The top 3 men (as decided by a public poll) will win some GREAT gear from Ryders Eyewear and Sugoi.

First place will win:
• Ryders Drill Sunglasses ($40)
• Ryders Hijack Sunglasses ($40)
• Sugoi Piccadilly Arm Warmers ($40)
• Sugoi Piccadilly Jersey ($130)
• Sugoi Piccadilly Bib Short ($140)
• Sugoi Velocity Tri Suit ($225)

Second place will win:
• Ryders Drill Sunglasses ($40)
• Sugoi Piccadilly Jersey ($130)
• Sugoi Velocity Tri Suit ($225)

Third place will win:
• Ryders Drill Sunglasses ($40)
• Sugoi Velocity Tri Suit ($225)

So do the math: that's over $600 in gear for the winner, nearly $400 in gear for second place, and over $250 in gear for third!! That's nearly $1,300 in high-end gear!! I'll have more on the prizes next week, so check back Monday to learn more.


Here’s what you do:

• Step one: Women, find (or take) an awkward photo of your lover, spouse, son, uncle, dad, or whoever IN HIS WORKOUT GEAR. This should be an image (or 2 at the most) that shows us why we need to “fashion-FORWARD your fabulous fool.”

(Note that I’ll be resizing your image(s) to about 490 pixels wide. You can do this ahead of time, or you can just send it to me and I’ll deal with it for you.)

• Step two: Write a short story about this man and his crappy gear. (You can note how you know this man, or you can choose to just tell the story without giving away your relationship.) Keep the story short: 100 words or less. I WILL be enforcing this rule. After all, you want people to actually read your story and not skip over it because it’s too wordy, right? So be funny / clever / witty / inspiring in the story, and do it with as few words as possible.

• Step three: What would you like as the title of your story? And if you’d like, write a short caption (or captions) for the image(s) that you are using.

• Step four: Send an e-mail to me at stevestenzelphotography [at] yahoo [dot] com. Attach the photo (or 2). Put something about “Fashion-Forward Your Fabulous Fool Contest” in the subject line so I don’t delete your e-mail. Send your story (100 words or less) in the body of the e-mail, along with the title of your story and any captions.

• Step five: Wait for a confirmation e-mail from me letting you know that everything came through OK.

So, if I wanted to enter the contest, my wife could enter me by sending this:

“As Fashionable As Death. Literally.”

My husband NEEDS better racing gear! Two years ago, he was getting ready to do a local half-iron event. The ONLY thing he could find to race in was a Grim Reaper costume. Yeah. No joke. Here are some official photos from the race. So PLEASE help him out!

Starting the 13.1 mile run


Heading to the finish

(BTW, that story in the example is exactly 50 words. Remember to keep yours under 100. Thanks!)

Pseudo-legal stuff:
- Contest only open to US and Canadian residents. (Or maybe you know someone in the US or Canada who could accept your winnings and then ship them the rest of the way to you. Be sneaky. Stick it to the man. I don’t care.)
- You may enter now through Friday, April 9, at noon (Central time).
- The top entries will be announced the Monday after that: April 12.
- The public will vote on the top entries from Monday, April 12 through Saturday, April 17.
- The 3 winners will be announced on Monday, April 19!

A big THANKS to the people at Outside PR, Ryders Eyewear, and Sugoi for being so generous! Thanks guys!

So enter NOW! You only have a week! (More on the sweet prizes on Monday...)