After edging ever-younger in an attempt to bring new fans to its graying reader base, Sports Illustrated may now be trying to reach those young readers through a new fitness title: SI Edge.

Rumors have been circulating for months about the magazine, which Time Inc. is calling a test so far. An SI spokesperson confirms that Time Inc. has sent out two direct mail campaigns soliciting readers to send in for a free issue but claims there's as yet no launch date, no cover price, no distribution plan, no rate base and no actual magazine to speak of.

That hasn't stopped the buzz machine, which clicked into gear this morning after the New York Post obtained one of the mailings, which reportedly includes a cover layout featuring no less an athlete than New England quarterback Tom Brady pitching his own workout regimen.

The SI spokesperson says the tentative launch will differ from SI in its health and fitness emphasis. That would put the title squarely against Rodale's Men's Health, with its emphasis on fitness and grooming, but also competing with other titles in the men's category, such as GQ.

But what's novel about the Edge concept is that it could double as a fitness magazine and a fan sports title. According to the Post's report, many of the training regimens Edge will detail will come from star athletes like Lance Armstrong and LeBron James, while women's advice will draw on the wisdom of celebrities like tennis's Anna Kournikova.

Media buyers say that could be a smart play, even though such a title might not draw the massive circulation figures SI is used to.

"Based on what I've seen and read, the magazine is going to more rival Men's Health than ESPN, and more and more people are working out and interested in fitness. I think there's room for another fitness title, whether it will be based on new subscribers to fitness magazines or duplication," says Richard Klein, SLG Advertising's media director and executive vice president.

"The question is: Is this truly going to be a fitness magazine or something a bit different?"

Regardless, branching out could be a smart move at a difficult time for fan sports titles, which are suffering from soft spending out of Detroit more than most, magazine consultant Martin Walker says.

Sports Illustrated is holding its own in ad pages this year, but its two rivals, ESPN The Magazine and Sporting News, were each down 10 percent through May versus the year-earlier period, according to the Publishers Information Bureau.

As Walker notes, SI has the advantage of being packaged with other Time Inc. titles.

"You can never tell what goes through corporate buys," says Walker, who is president of Walker Communications. "That gives Time Inc. a lot of clout that ESPN doesn't have, and Sporting News has been in trouble for years."

The men's lifestyle and fitness category has been a bit better but by no means consistent this year, with laddie titles like Maxim and FHM facing painful declines in advertising. Men's Health is down in ad pages this year as well, but American Media's Men's Fitness is posting gains over last year.

While SI is saying nothing about SI Edge pricing or frequency, the title will offer a low come-on subscription price, according to the mailing: An initial free issue and nine more issues for $14.95.

The SI spokesperson confirms that a letter from Sports Illustrated managing editor Terry McDonnell was enclosed. But more than that is hush-hush.

"I couldn't find anybody who knows anything about the title," one New York media buyer tells Media Life. "They must have done a good job keeping it under wraps."