Their FITnoke.com Web site gives users everything from fitness articles to
training logs.
By Amy Matzke
381-1674
Lee Bradshaw and Wade Hammes created FITnoke.com, a networking
site for local athletes.
RADFORD -- Two college students' love of sports and fitness has led to a new
Web site directed at the Roanoke and the New River valleys.
FITnoke.com is the creation of Radford University
senior Lee Bradshaw and Virginia Tech junior Wade Hammes, both of Roanoke.
Bradshaw and Hammes call the site "the Facebook of fitness," a
networking site for local athletes, whether they are just starting to work out
or seasoned athletes looking to step up their routine. It features fitness
articles, discussion forums, fitness center searches, a training log that
enables users to keep track of their training data and FITmatch, where users
can post and search for a training buddy.
They originally wanted to create a site that focused exclusively on local
running trails with pictures and interactive running maps but realized a
similar site already existed.
"We said, there has to be more to [it] than this," Bradshaw said.
"So we said, why focus on just running? Let's do it all."
Both attended Cave Spring High School
in Roanoke and
were involved in athletics, including football, wrestling, soccer and running.
Both were interested in owning their own business -- Hammes is a business
marketing major and Bradshaw is a marketing major -- so the site lets them
pursue their athletic interests while giving them real-world business
experience.
So, with an investment of $116 from family donations, FITnoke.com launched June 15.
"We didn't even have the money to start up," Bradshaw said.
"But now, the growth of the site is out of control -- I think we're at
a million hits," Hammes added.
Hammes did most of the site design, although he wasn't familiar with site
design.
"I knew nothing about site design, but I've learned a lot," Hammes
said. "We're getting a lot of feedback, too."
The most popular feature is the site's training log, he said.
Because the training log is online, it automatically calculates times and
provides a clear record, said Anthony Moreno of Christiansburg, an endurance
athlete who logs on to FITnoke.com nearly
every day.
"Online training log allows me to bypass the pen and paper," Moreno said. "I'm on
there every day, and I stay logged on, which is one of the advantages, that I
don't have to log on and off all the time. ... I basically do some kind of
physical activity so everything on the site has helped me."
It also allows users to view other people's training logs, which motivates
him, Moreno
said. He also uses the online fitness articles, he said.
Bradshaw and Hammes hope to expand the site in the next few months, possibly
starting a membership plan that would give members access to special product
offers and deals. The rest of the site would remain free.
They would also like to expand the product and gym reviews, Bradshaw said.
The site has a gym search feature, but they haven't found an effective and fair
way to post reviews yet, Hammes said.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/wb/178642
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