Bob Dopolina 

In the last few weeks some of the local guys I train with have been talking up the formation of a new team. Since I'm the guy who has gone out and found sponsors and created teams from spit and dirt the last decade or so, they thought I might fit the bill.

Ok, that's a reasonable assumption. So what's the first step? Money. Cold hard cash.

How do you attract the ever elusive money? Success. No-one wants to throw money at the under dog. They may cheer him on but they won't back him. If you have something successful people will be lining up for a piece of the action. This has been proven to me time and time again.

So...if we want to make a new team we need money. The only way to attract money is to already be successful. Right. This is that catch 22 thing. How can you be successful without money. Really. Racing is expensive (if we are talking about an Elite team) and you need to be able to pay the bills so the riders can focus on riding and not packing groceries.

Here's the thing. I am just starting to see some fitness. I mean, for brief moments, the slightest glimmer of strength on the horizon. We have a circuit race coming up in 3 weeks. I've won this race before but that was before. I should start to see some strength by then but it won't be enough - not even close. It won't be enough to put me on the podium in the Elite (P/1/2/M) group. Even if I race Elite Masters (we race together) it would take some luck and a wee bit of divine intervention for me to be ready by then.

But...if I race my age category I am pretty sure of a top 3. If I race against other guys who have a wife, kids, job and are the same age as me I will probably finish top 3. This is good. This is what my local team mates want me to do. It would be a fresh podium shot to dangle in front of potential sponsors. It may lack context for them but it will be a guy they are talking to standing on a podium. This has it's allure.

If it were just me I'd ride Elite Master, take my chances and hope for the best. It's the race I really want to do but aren't ready for.

But those sponsors...

So what's my job? What's my role here?

I keep thinking, if I thought hard enough, if I closed my eyes and worked my way back through the years, I wonder if I could find the moment where racing became something other than just going fast.

outspoking

huh?

cat4ever

To all the above - Not necessarily. I wouldn't throw my sponsorship money to an organization of inflated head egomaniacs regardless of success. Note - that doesn't mean that I think your team is like that, just providing my input. The team my company sponsors has winning goals, but it's deeper than that. They are trying to develop young racers, involve the community & families and promote cycling & fitness.

Of course, I want my business name out there getting some recognition as well, but that wasn't my main point of being a sponsor.

cmh

What about providing potential sponsors race resumes of all the team members? Isn't that as good or better than a single podium placing in a recent race?

It all boils down to what you are in this for. I personally would rather ride as best I can for a lightly sponsored amatuer team than spend my time chasing down bigger sponsers.

jrennie

I'd rather attack and fail in a field I know could work me over than take the sure thing. We don't race for money or because its easy. We race cause its hard and we like to push ourself further.

Also, I agree with the inclusion of both of the ideas above. Youth development and community impact is going to be a better selling point than a podium. Race resumes should provide sufficient backing as to the caliber of your team.

Bob Dopolina 

I completely agree with the points about youth development and community impact in an ideal world. The truth of the matter is that ,here, in the market I want to build a new team, community impact doesn't even enter the picture. When speaking to a Taiwanese or Chinese business owner about what their money is getting them, this is a pretty low priority. Sad, but, in my experience, true.

Rider resumes are a basic part of any proposal along with projected budgets and a racing/training schedule. I also include a media section that shows some of the things we have done i the past and some ideas about future promotions.

The strength of a RECENT podium finish by the person making the pitch can't be underestimated.

Youth development has always been part of any team I have put together. This is a given. Again, it is something that is part of the nuts and bolts of the team (how to develop future riders for the team vs how to develop the sport) and a sponsor may give it a passing consideration but it is not something that has real impact with potential sponsors.

There are some companies who are more community minded and these things will be a much higher priority for them. This is why you need to know a little bit about the company you are talking to. The focus of the proposal will change based on this information (for instance, the Tong E corporation owns grocery stores in Asia and SA, they own thousands of 7-11s and a pro baseball team. I would add a zero to the end of any number I showed them).

I guess my original post was really more about how racing can become more about the things I mention and not just about riding your bike. I'd just come from an initial meeting with the principal players (and a few beers) and was just wondering out loud about how things can change.

And to the egotistical comment; I'm not sure I understand how finishing on the podium automatically makes you an 'inflated head egomaniac'. My point was that for sponsors who don't understand the subtlety of the sport, a podium finish is simple and clear. To them, it means you are a successful team. This implies some degree of professionalism and credibility. These companies are very careful with their money.

Thanks for the input, all. I don't really know what I was looking for when I posted but I appreciate the perspective.

acorn_user

If I ever have a company, I'm going to support the underdogs Sadly, the OP will be racing the elite pensioner class by then

Bob Dopolina 

That will be much sooner than you think.

So can I count on your support for my next project: Team Depends?

BarryJo

This is an interesting topic, I always wondered how some of the top local teams in my area supported themselves. I'm sure most of them are probably pretty much self supported with some money infused from companies willing to pay to have their name on the team jersey.

But then I know of teams who actually supply bikes to their riders, which can obviously get expensive.

I've read sponship of a pro team can run upwards of several million.

I was just wondering how much money, roughly, it would cost to sponsor a team like "your's"?

Maybe we can take up a collection

chipcom 

So why do you gotta be the guy with the podium finish...what about the other members of the team?
IMO, if you're the guy going after the sponsors, the rest of the team should be supplying the credentials in the form of placing in races.

Bob Dopolina 

That good thing about doing a team here is that it is a small island so transportation costs are much llower than they would be elsewhere. We are also lucky in that you can get a decent room, with 2 double beds, for about 75USD/night.

A basic operating budget for races, for a team of 6 guys, would run about 25-30,000 US/yr. This is if the team only raced locally. Once you start flying guys to races the costs go up exponentially.

What is NOT included in this money are things like: a team car, bike racks, bikes, spare wheels, trainers, all the consumables like tires, tubes, chains, cassettes, lubes, cleaners, brakes pads, cables, housing and on and on. The costs here can really vary depending on what products you can get from sponsors and what you need to pay for. As you can well imagine, the real money is here. Luckily, I have contacts or former sponsors for many of these products so this is much easier for me to find. It's the cash that is the tough part.

Chipcom, the other riders want to do the same thing (race age cat) for the same reasons. This was part of the discussions we had last night over 1 too many beers.

skinny

Sponsors need to be sold on the peripheral benefits THEY can promote, not winning as a promotional objective. Having riders win races is great, but how many spectators really go to races in anything other than cycling mad countries or for big events like say the Tour of Georgia.

So the appeal to sponsors should involve how they can exploit cycling to enhance their image by using it in their promotions, eg. parades, tv ads, whatever, without focusing on winning. This provides a broader base of opportunities for sponsors such as supporting juniors, woman, and associating themselves with the burgeoning masters, read baby boom, market. Think outside the box. Who is supplying products to baby boomers? What kinds of products are they?

If you focus on winning you inevitably force the sponsor to focus on losing, and this sport is a lot like baseball; you strike out way more often than you get a hit.

Bob Dopolina 

I agree 100%.

I have always talked about how many hours riders train in their uniforms (think rolling billboards) and how racing is only a small part of the overall promotional package. We are lucky in that I have good relationships with the Chinese language cycling mags so I can always get decent exposure there.

We have, in the past done cross promotions with sponsors. We did some work with a soft drink maker that is like the Taiwan (China) Coca-cola. We have a decent grasp on the local demographics and market and structure our proposals accordingly. This is all part of the process.

We have no problems identifying companies that we think would be a good fit but that isn't the issue. If you don't have a contact, or a relationship already, it is tough to get in the door. That's the biggest hurdle.

Enthalpic

Above all, look sexy.

MrCrassic 

I disagree with this, at least in the realm of collegiate cycling. Our team (Stevens Cycling Team, i.e. the "Polka Dots") received very little funding (more or less just barely enough needed to cover team kit fees, and maybe one race registration), had no real cohesive form of transportation (if we had a car race weekend, we were racing. If not, it was pretty much a rest weekend), and lacked some of the essentials (like a coach).

However, we had family support and knew just enough people to help us get by (non-monetarily) for some of our races. We came out first in our division (Intro to Men's Racing), and one of our team members was the division points leader. On top of that, several coaches had interacted with us, and now we have a couple of options available to us that we didn't have previously (like a budget, for starters).

I think that the single thing that matters most in finding support is motivation. A team can be fast and winning, but what good is any of those qualities if they really don't care about being a team? It's only a matter of time before large and irreparable complications arise. Teams that have a true desire to fight the tough fight and stick it out will find light at the end of the tunnel...somehow. I believe the same concept applies everywhere.

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Bob Dopolina 

What you describe I would call a club team. In this situation I pretty much agree with most of what you are saying.

If, however, you consider what I am talking about, then fighting the good fight and only going to races that don't require transportation means we wouldn't need a sponsor at all. We could all just stay home. These guys have a club team already. They want to take it to the next level.

What we are talking about is an Elite Masters team that races the full National Calendar. This requires transportation, hotels, team equipment, pant loads of non-durable goods and CASH.

I am a little confused by some of the assumptions so far in this thread. Perhaps I am reading too much into it but it almost seems as if there is this feeling that a group of sponsored riders would automatically become egomaniacs and infighting is inevitable and that the only noble pursuit is to go it alone.

It reminds me of the mindset of "You can't be an artist if you aren't poverty stricken and suffer a great deal?" Does this apply to bike racers as well? If you could find a way to have someone else support your cycling habit for you and your riding partners wouldn't you take it?

It doesn't. This is a Christian concept. I live in a non-Christian nation. Believe me, this idea doesn't go over big here.

I appreciate your input. I find it interesting to see how teams operate in different parts of the world and under different local conditions. I wonder how other teams in your area operate. Are there many teams like yours or the kind I am trying to create?

EventServices

Elite Masters?

Are they unemployed old guys who can't afford their hobby?

And were you invited on the team because of your riding? Or your ability to garner sponsorship for the other leeches?

Bob Dopolina 

Yeah. They do things a bit differently here. It is all age groups accept for Elite. The problem was the same guys kept winning the age cat races so now, if you do well in your age cat they automatically move you into Elite. If you are between 35-45 you go into Elite Masters. The two cats race together.

Ok, that's just funny.

There is no team yet. I was asked to form a team based (I hope) on how I have ridden in the past and because I know how to do it.

I rode with all of these guys over the last 2 years. I was on a different team and they had a club team. Now they want to form something more akin to what I was doing in the past.

If you know all the details it does make sense. They just want me to help them do what I've already done before. For the most part they're a pretty good bunch of guys. The question for me is if I want to jump neck deep back into something I walked away from 6 months ago.

botto 

+1

only a few weeks ago you were coming out of retirement, which iirc you went into because you had other obligations (family/work/etc).

you know yourself, and syour chedule better than i'll ever do, but if i were you, i'd keep it simple and avoid any immediate goals.

at least for now.

Bob Dopolina 

Who'd have ever thought botto would be the voice of reason?

The things that pushed me to hang them up have smoothed over now. My son is on a regular schedule and I 'managed' some things at work. I have about 12-16 hours a week to train, now. Maybe 18-20 if I squeeze it.

It is possible. But your point is a very good one.

Botto, you've given me pause. Perhaps this could be a long term goal with the objective of launching a new team at the beginning of next season.

This would allow me to focus on getting my sorry old arse back into race shape. It would also give me a chance to gauge how serious the other players are as well.

Thanks for the reality check.

BarryJo

Yes, this would attract many more spectators to your races.
In all seriousness, sex sells and attracts spectators, spectators attract sponsors. Look at women's sports, tennis, golf, soccer. Anna Kornikova, Natalie Goblis, Mia Hamm all brought a lot of interest to their sport. Some are great athletes, others (sorry Anna), not so great.
So what you need to do is come up with several thousand $$$ to get Liz Hatch over there, bring her to your meetings with prospective sponsors, and the rest will take care of itself

botto 

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Bob Dopolina 

^^^^^ If there's beer in that waterbottle we have the trifecta!

ridethecliche

Bike, beer, boobies?

Bob Dopolina