Happy St. Kovas Day

A lot of people don't know this, but March 18th is also known as St. Kovas Day.

St. Kovas is the patron saint of sporting goods.  As early as 1902, the Rawlings Manufacturing Company was inscribing "BBSK" (or "Blessed By St. Kovas") on most of the equipment the company manufactured.  This equipment is still highly sought after - In a recent report, Mann, Lee & Korn Ltd., a leading broker of sports collectibles, stated that "early and mid 20th century sporting goods marked with "BBSK" are currently fetching an auction price of at least 46.2% more than identical equipment without the mark."

Over the years, many star athletes including Wayne Gretsky, Phil and Steve Mahre, Mario Andretti and Tonya Harding have inscribed St. Kovas' prayer on their equipment:

"Oh Saint Kovas, please bless and protect this sporting equipment so that I may humbly perform epic feats of sporting prowess.  I pray that this equipment keeps me well throughout my sporting career, or at least until the next shipment of free gear arrives as a result of my endorsement deals." 

Though St. Kovas Day is not widely recognized in the United States, March 18th is a national holiday in many countries including Liechtenstein, Burma and Malawi.  However, the connection between the holiday and sporting goods is usually very minimal.  In Gabon for example, March 18th is also known as the "Day Of The Soon To Be Changing Weather", which is roughly analogous to Ground Hog Day.

HAPPY ST. KOVAS DAY!!!