Will Pro-formance be a pop star?

• Position: Pro-formance Sports Drink

Will Pro-formance be a pop star?

Remember what your mother told you about sweet, syrupy drinks -- that they'll rot your teeth and make your face pop out in zits?

Since then, scientists have found that carbohydrate loading stretches athletes' endurance. Based on that idea, Joey Caldwell, state karate champion in 1976 and '77, concocted a drink in his kitchen to help sports types "carb up" for training and competition.

The result is Pro-formance Sports Drink. Eight ounces of the non-carbonated beverage packs a whopping 165 calories -- 70 percent more than the same amount of Coca-Cola Classic and the equivalent of nine teaspoons of sugar.

"Sure, it's higher in calories, but it's all good calories," insists David Coffey, vice president of Charlotte-based Pro-formance.

Unlike Gatorade, the dominant sports drink, Pro-formance contains no sodium, which can elevate blood pressure. It's made from mountain water and "all-natural" fruit flavors.

But its real plus, says Caldwell (a Gastonia tool-and-die...