I came across this in Advertising Age. This is a totally random post but I though it was interesting that such a mainstream product is utilizing ‘cross to help identify their brand. The article, found here in its entirety, talks of various beverage brands launching in the recession and bucking the trend by succeeding. I carved out the one using cyclocross interestingly in their advertising below...

OWATER

BACKGROUND: Tom First is no beverage novice: He co-founded and sold Nantucket Nectars. But when he decided to jump back into beverages in 2004, it was with a different type of product. Owater is billed as a "healthy sports drink," with all the components of a traditional sports drink but fewer calories and no artificial flavors or colors. The brand had nearly $4 million in sales last year and expects growth of about 65% this year. It's available at Whole Foods, Stop & Shop, Duane Reade and Au Bon Pain.

MARKETING STRATEGY: Mr. First is relying primarily on radio ads, which feature him chatting with a colorful cast of Owater friends. Those friends, including star center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox, yoginis Ashley Phoenix and Ann Zilvitis, the Boston triathlon team and Devon Haskell, a "cyclo-cross" racer, are also tapped to appear on product labels. Virtually all of those partnerships are gratis; Mr. Ellsbury is one of the only Owater friends to receive a small amount of money from the brand.

SECRET TO STANDING OUT: Sampling. "Market to people's taste buds first," Mr. First said. A bit of chutzpah also doesn't hurt. Mr. First forged the partnership with Mr. Ellsbury after cold-calling him. "That's how I do things. ... I'll call the guy until he figures maybe if he says yes, I'll stop."

Update!

Ah the powers of the interwebs. I made contact with Devon and she explained how rad things are with Owater and this process. She even pointed to me to their 'featured' labels...labels that describe real people...and with that, I think one of the PUREST examples of modern advertising waves we're experiencing. That being the tighter connection between:

consumers<-->the real people who manufacture the product<-->other real people who could/should use the product.

No more anonymity.

Here's the label (click on it to nav to Devon's profile and a larger view of the label...as well as other REAL people Owater are profiling).