Scam Goddess: "The Steroid Olympics"

Host: Laci Mosley
Guests: Nicole Byer & Sasheer Zamata
Date: August 19, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode dives into a truly wild scam: the rising "Enhanced Games," pitched as the Olympics for athletes on steroids, and the bonkers cast of characters behind it. Laci Mosley, Nicole Byer, and Sasheer Zamata break down the scammy roots of this "performance-enhanced" sporting event, riff on the latest frauds and schemes in their own lives, and get real about what drives people to pursue—and sometimes profit from—questionable ambitions.

From personal scam confessions and the seductive power of "free" boomboxes to an exploration of billionaire egos and fake enhancement supplements, the trio delivers comedy, shade, and sharp insight. The episode's central con: Can you create a new Olympics where all the athletes are juiced to the gills? And who stands to actually benefit from that?

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Scam Stories: Personal Fails and Mini-Schemes

• The best friends banter about growing up in (sometimes scammy) churches and their own vulnerability to scams.
• Nicole’s Timeshare Experience (07:25): She recalls almost falling for a timeshare scam while on vacation, charmed by the offers of swag ("boomboxes, towels, water bottles") until Sasheer intervened.
• Art Purchase Gone Wrong: Nicole paid $500 for a "pretty poorly painted" pig painting in New Orleans. Even the artist was shocked she didn’t haggle.
• Self-Checkout “Light Crime” (20:40): The guests debate self-checkout theft as “wages” for doing the store’s work. Nicole claims:
  • "I proudly hold what I've stolen. And I dare you to say something..." —Nicole Byer (21:22)
    While Sasheer, more risk-averse, says:
  • "No, I follow the rules. That scares me. You do love rules." —Sasheer Zamata (21:37)

The Delta Lounge Caper

• Nicole shares her "refundable plane ticket" scam to enjoy the Delta One Lounge for free—a classic "true con" move.
  • "I bought us a refundable ticket. We went through security... We were dressed in flames... Not only was it refunded, they gave me my money back." —Nicole Byer (17:26)

Cruises as a Family Trap

• Laci rails against forced family cruises—"You’re trapped in the ocean with a bunch of Trump supporters eating the saltiest food until your ankles swell. It is torture." (18:48)

[31:24] Main Event: The Enhanced Games—Olympics On Steroids

What Are the Enhanced Games?

• Conceived by Aaron D’Souza, fueled by billionaire Peter Thiel, and (in spirit) praised by the likes of Joe Rogan and Donald Trump Jr., the Enhanced Games are pitched as "the Olympics, but for athletes who take as many performance-enhancing drugs as possible."
• Instead of anti-doping tests, they test for enough drugs:
  • "It's an all steroids, all the time version of the Olympics...they test you for [steroids] and they're like, 'not enough.'” —Laci Mosley (31:52)
• The question posed: If you remove all barriers, how superhuman could humans get?
  • "I'm intrigued. Like, what can you do? Will we see a superhero be born?" —Sasheer Zamata (32:16)

The Scammy Roots:

• Origins: Conceived by D’Souza and Thiel as an almost satirical response to anti-doping rules. Modeled on a Wired magazine article from 2004 suggesting a "Steroids Olympics" (47:24).
• Investors: Trump Jr.’s capital fund, biotech billionaires, and controversial celebrities (e.g., passing overtures to known doper Lance Armstrong—who declined to join).
• Venue: Resorts World Las Vegas, notorious for scammy events like the failed Mr. Beast Experience (35:58).

The All-Drug Olympics: Ethical, Medical, and Social Fallout

• Medical professionals warn it’s terrible for health—risk of death, permanent damage, and normalizing steroid abuse (46:31).
• Athletes like James Magnuson are already bulking up—sometimes to comical extremes:
  • "He put on 30 pounds of muscle, which actually was not helpful for a swimmer. It turns out he sank to the bottom." —Laci Mosley (01:11:50)
• "His muscles have muscles. ... He looks like he has titties on his back." —Nicole Byer (01:12:43)

Social & Philosophical Take

• The irony of billionaire outsiders (who don’t like sports) bankrolling spectacle to "test human potential."
  • "We're three gay guys interested in making money." —Aaron D’Souza, cited by Laci Mosley (01:05:27)
  • Nicole points out: "What rich people will do... feed people, build homes. ... And then do entertainment later." (01:21:13)
• The group discusses how this is less about sports than about manipulating anxieties, selling supplements (placebo or not), and giving the ultra-wealthy a new playground.

Supplements and the “Inspired By” Con

• Enhanced Games will launch "enhancement supplements"... inspired by those used by athletes.
  • "I don't know if I want a drug inspired by Botox." —Sasheer Zamata (01:20:08)
  • "When you do improve, it's like, see? It was the power of you." —Nicole Byer (01:20:48)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Nicole on Church Scams:
  • "I thought churches took money, and then the people of the church spent that money and then some...The pastor and his family keeps 25 cents..." (05:12)
• On Cruises:
  • "You're trapped in the ocean with a bunch of Trump supporters eating the saltiest food until your ankles swell. It is torture." —Laci Mosley (18:48)
• Bodybuilding Absurdity:
  • "He looks like a thumb...like he has titties on his back." —Nicole Byer (01:12:43)
• Enhanced Games Tagline:
  • "Stay enhanced." —Sasheer Zamata (01:25:28)
• On Friendship and Mortality:
  • "Where do you want to be found?... Next to you. ... I do hope we die at similar times." —Nicole Byer & Sasheer Zamata (01:27:24)
  • (An unexpectedly touching and genuine moment that elicits mock tears.)

Important Timestamps

• Scam Confessions & Childhood Scams: 05:20–23:05
• Delta Lounge/Refundable Ticket Scam: 17:00–18:20
• Cruise Rants: 18:35–20:15
• Self-Checkout & Wage Theft: 20:32–23:50
• Intro to Enhanced Games/History: 31:24–37:00
• Peter Thiel, Gawker Drama: 38:42–44:10
• Enhanced Games—Investor Absurdity & More Details: 47:24–01:07:00
• Athlete Transformations: 01:11:00–01:14:00
• Enhanced Supplements Segment: 01:18:35–01:21:00
• Closing Thoughts & Friendship: 01:25:00–end

Tone & Language

The episode is irreverent, playful, sharply observant, and unafraid to shade billionaires, mock the ridiculousness of the Enhanced Games, and lovingly roast each other. It balances comedic riffing (on bodybuilders, con artists, and “juiced up” swimmers) with real insight about scams in everyday life.

Summary

In “The Steroid Olympics,” Laci, Nicole, and Sasheer unravel the grift-laden heart of the Enhanced Games—a spectacle built on billionaire ambition, scammer logic, and the American impulse to turn even clear red flags into glitzy, dangerous opportunities. The episode is packed with riotous personal anecdotes, sharp scam analysis, and friendship you can feel through the mic. Ultimately, it exposes the Enhanced Games as perhaps the wildest scheme yet: where even “inspiration” pills are for sale, morality is fuzzy, and spectacle always wins.

Notable Quip:
"If your thighs don't explode, if your bones stay in your body, you can make money." —Laci Mosley (01:10:32)

Moral:
Stay enhanced... but maybe don’t try this at home.

Listen to Nicole & Sasheer's "Best Friends" (Wednesdays), and follow Scam Goddess at @scamgoddesspod!

Stay schemin’!