Founder's Story

The story of the Hammer Nutrition brand, in the words of its founder, Brian Frank.

The question I'm asked most often when I first meet someone is, "How did you get started in this business?" If you've ever wondered the same thing, this is my answer. It's a story about a unique point in time in 1987, my unique background, and the variety of influences that led me to start this business and grow it steadily since then.

BACK IN THE DAY

When we introduced our first product in August 1987, the sport of triathlon was the latest fitness craze. Time-crunched "yuppies" and fitness-focused "baby boomers" were jumping in wholeheartedly, training three times as much as single sport athletes were training.

High-volume endurance training left many of these athletes tired and struggling to recover. I had been taking nutritional supplements for years alongside my own training, so I knew very well what these athletes were dealing with. At the time, there were no nutritional supplements formulated specifically for people training that much.

In addition, most athletes were adhering to misguided diets that featured massive amounts of carbs, minimal protein, and close to zero fat. Fueling options during exercise were limited and primitive, with many athletes favoring bananas and water to the brightly colored, sugar/salt/citric acid drink mixes of the day.

The prevailing wisdom on fueling for endurance was the most problematic of all. Experts of the day recommended the flawed theory of "replace what you lose" for fluids, calories and electrolytes. Athletes were trying to stuff 500-800 calories per hour down their throats while consuming massive amounts of water. Of course, following those practices did not (and still does not) end well for most athletes.

These truly were the dark ages of endurance sports from a fueling perspective. Taking part in an event of 3-4 hours (let alone 6, 12, 24, or more hours!) often meant stomach upset and cramping along the way.

The growth of the sport of triathlon in the '80s was followed by masters cycling in the early '90s and then mountain bike racing in the late '90s. During this time, the "ultra" effect also kicked in, with ultra distance events of every imaginable kind, and the trend continues to grow today. As the world of endurance sports has grown and evolved, so have we.

This unique combination of events gave me the opportunity to create some of the very first supplements designed specifically for endurance athletes, and through the years I have continued to develop fuels, supplements, and more to meet their needs.

MY BACKGROUND

Another facet of this story is how I came to start a business selling nutritional supplements in 1987, at the age of 20 in my apartment in San Francisco. In 1967 I was born at home in the Hollywood Hills, before the midwife could arrive. My parents were real southern California "hippies." My father was a chiropractor and an advocate of supplementation. My mom was a holistic practitioner and midwife. At our house, we didn't eat much sugar, wheat, or processed dairy products. We ate mostly whole foods and no "junk food", as my mom was prone to calling just about anything that came in a package or can. I guess you could say we were granola before it was cool. I can remember taking vitamins since I was 4 years old.

I took to sports at an early age, specifically anything with wheels, learning to ride a bicycle just after my second birthday and a skateboard shortly thereafter. By my fifth birthday, I was riding motorcycles and began racing BMX and motocross in short order. Since classes were optional at the "free" school I attended, I spent most days riding bikes, skateboarding, or riding my motorcycle.

In 1976, I moved to central Africa with my two sisters, Mom, and her new husband, who had just taken the position of associate director of the Peace Corps for Chad. We lived in the capital of N'Djamena. The next 3 1/2 years were some of the most amazing and formative in my life. I was able to ride my bike and motorcycle as much as I wanted and play soccer every day at school, all in 100+°F heat. Hydration and nutrition were a matter of life and death, if not for me, then at least for most of the people around me.

Our second tour in Chad was cut short by the civil war that engulfed the country in late 1979. We were evacuated to neighboring Cameroon, then returned to southern California, settling in Long Beach for my middle school and high school years. I immediately resumed my life on wheels, riding bikes, skateboards, and motorcycles whenever I was not in school or working to support my racing.

In high school, I joined the water polo and swim team at Wilson High School in Long Beach. This meant 4-5 hours a day in the pool, and that was just cross training for my true passion, motocross. I raced one or two nights per week and usually both weekend days if I didn't have a game or meet, while keeping up in accelerated programs at school and working any job I could get to pay for my racing.

Motorcycle racing also led to two knee surgeries and to my discovery of road cycling. I graduated high school in 1985 and moved to San Francisco to attend San Francisco State University, majoring in international business. I valet parked cars at night and worked at a produce stand on weekend days, which left me 4-6 hours a day to ride my bike all over the Marin Headlands and Bay Area backroads.

I was quickly frustrated, however, by the lack of nutritional supplements on the market designed for high-mileage cyclists and endurance athletes. With those unmet needs in mind, I now had product ideas, perfect for an entrepreneur needing a job.

In 1986, I decided to drop out of college to become an entrepreneur. In 1987, with the support and encouragement of my late father, Gerry S. Frank, DC, I launched E-Caps, a line of nutritional supplements designed for endurance athletes.

Our first product was a single-ingredient CoQ10 supplement. That was followed a few months later by Race Caps and Enduro Caps, now combined and updated as the product known as Race Caps Supreme. Those first three products were quickly followed by Boron, Chromemate (now Chromium GTF), Xobaline, and Energy Surge. To this day, these are among my favorite products.

Sadly, Gerry died suddenly in 1991, before he could wind up his practice and join me in day to day operations.

THE EARLY YEARS

In those first years, it became quite apparent that there was a gap in the fuels available to endurance athletes. Many clients told me how their on-course nutrition had left them feeling unwell and unable to perform to their potential. This led to Sustained Energy (co-developed by Dr. Bill Misner and me), the first product of its kind to combine three different sources of complex carbohydrates with protein. We originally called it 'Wild Bill's Triple X Mega Fuel' during development, and then 'Energy Surge,' before we settled on 'Sustained Energy' as its name. With no flavor or sugars added, Sustained Energy was described as tasting like "soggy Cheerios" or wallpaper paste. But it changed fueling for exercise lasting longer than 3 hours.

Shortly after the launch of Sustained Energy, I began developing Hammer Gel, having been one of the first sources in the U.S. for Leppin Squeezy, the first energy gel ever created. I knew I could improve upon the original. As with Sustained Energy, I left refined sugars out of the Hammer Gel formula, opting instead for complex carbohydrates in the form of maltodextrin and real fruit concentrates for the fruit flavors.

1995 was another big year for me. I began to introduce Hammer Nutrition Endurance Fuels to the existing line of endurance supplements, then known as E-CAPS. I also moved my family and the business to Whitefish, Montana. At that time, the business consisted of just me and one full-time employee. Today, the Hammer team includes a staff at our Whitefish, Montana headquarters and distributors in over 20 countries, including Hammer Nutrition Philippines.

THE STORY CONTINUES

As the popularity of my products spread, bike shops and specialty retailers began asking to carry them. I had never set out to pursue business through retail stores, but was happy to help them get my products into the hands of their customers. My challenge was ensuring that the same level of education and customer service we provided directly to customers would be achieved in stores. This is why we prefer to work with retailers who emphasize customer service, support and education instead of price competition.

Brian Frank
Owner