Putting a team together - riders wanted
Shavedlegs
Posts: 310
I've opened a cycle shop and now (running before I can walk) I'd like to put a team together. Ideally to race in Premier calendar events.
I expect to need at least 10 riders. Each member will get a discount from the shop, plus race fees paid, and team kit. There is a possibility of a team bike but that's work in progress.
Anyone interested?
I expect to need at least 10 riders. Each member will get a discount from the shop, plus race fees paid, and team kit. There is a possibility of a team bike but that's work in progress.
Anyone interested?
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Comments
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If i wasn't slow at racing, not yet broken 30 for 10TT i would stick my hand up lol and oh, i don't know where you are anyway lol
Ah plenty of TTs this year to do though
EDIT - just been looking at your site, looks pretty good cost for the groupsets0 -
What about over 45's with a preference for track racing?
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what are the pre requisits for becoming a member? Ie age, ability, experience, commitment etc.
Probably the most important thing is what colour is the kit!?
COuld do a rock racing style thing...
sweeet
Gats0 -
to attract riders who will do ok in prem you need to offer a bit more than that
we have young riders doing prems & e/1/2 races ...
why not start a bit more local ?? maybe a decent junior squad ..
are you trying to use team to advertise your business
have you run teams before ??
you need a good budget to run a road team ..
www.mjsracing.net0 -
Have you thought about using the money to promote a Premier Calendar event or else putting it into a number of smaller road races or sponsoring a road race league ? I don't know how that would do for publicity vs running a small cycling team but it would do a lot more for the sport. There is no real need for teams that only provide a few expenses and a jersey - they don't really contribute anything unless they organise events - I know some do - but very often all they are doing is sucking the best riders out of clubs and if those clubs hadn't existed they'd probably not have got into the sport in the first place.
it's a hard life if you don't weaken.0 -
Tom Butcher wrote:Have you thought about using the money to promote a Premier Calendar event or else putting it into a number of smaller road races or sponsoring a road race league ? I don't know how that would do for publicity vs running a small cycling team but it would do a lot more for the sport. There is no real need for teams that only provide a few expenses and a jersey - they don't really contribute anything unless they organise events - I know some do - but very often all they are doing is sucking the best riders out of clubs and if those clubs hadn't existed they'd probably not have got into the sport in the first place.
but from a different view of a lot of these riders who are young & ambitious couldnt ride at e/1/2 level without support of the small teams...often in F/t education or maybe just got a mortgage etc...clubs are great when you dont need anything in return finacially..the money & equipt they get mean difference between competiting & being competitive..
we have 18yo riders entering prem calenders & also riding jun nationla series ..ieach race can be a big expense so teams money often softens blow on parents etc..
before you make throwaway comments like "dont really contribute anything" think about what you are saying .. 0 -
I have thought about it and stick by it - most teams are not primarily about juniors - looking at your website yours isn't. Some teams - like the old Merlin Dev Squad - did organise events but others don't and I don't think they are contributing to the sport. There is a lack of decent events for E12s and rather than put money into another free jersey team it'd be better spent on providing races.
it's a hard life if you don't weaken.0 -
Tom Butcher wrote:I have thought about it and stick by it - most teams are not primarily about juniors - looking at your website yours isn't. Some teams - like the old Merlin Dev Squad - did organise events but others don't and I don't think they are contributing to the sport. There is a lack of decent events for E12s and rather than put money into another free jersey team it'd be better spent on providing races.
last year i ran & funded 3 juniors for national series RR & nationla track champs...one is still a junior & all 3 still with us ...if i had any decent juniors apply to us for 2008 i would have taken them on ...
its attitudes like this that keep sponsors away from the sport & keep it as a minortity sport
riders move for money ....get over it !0 -
There will be no sport without events for people to race. If people want to play at being a DS that's fine - it's not contributing anything though. If ShavedLegs can get better return on their pounds by doing that it's understandable - but if they do I'd like to think they'd look at ways to put something into the sport as a whole not just the pockets of a few riders - the OP may already do that I don't know.
it's a hard life if you don't weaken.0 -
mate ..you have no idea what i "put into" the sport ..
i have promoted enough events & stood on plenty of islands etc with my flag..& still do
i dont play at being a DS & i dont drive around at events !..its not my role ..
teams are a necessary evil for progress of our sport ..
some of our riders get nothing from the team & still choose to ride with us..0 -
If you want riders for Premier Calendars, you'll need a team car, then add on hotel budgets and travel costs. You'll have to give the riders team bikes, spare wheels and plenty of free kit, plus a manager and a mechanic. Ideally take time to recruit the right riders, who can win but also get you good publicity, those willing to approach journalists and to get themselves onto websites etc.
As you see, it's not something to launch into, the pitfalls are big. I'd think of building up slowly to start with and take stock later and see if you can do it. For what it's worth, I think the money is in cyclosportive events now, you could back a team of riders who do these rides and always place near the front but don't attack and help fellow riders, they have flash bikes and smart kit: the sort of riders others want to emulate. Cyclosportive riders are often newcomers and have open wallets and are receptive to the "spend money = performance gain". You'll see similar teams in Italy and France.0 -
SDP - I don't agree that teams are necessary - not at that level when we are talking about a free kit and a few expenses which the OP was.
If you organise events or take on similar work then great - I'm not judging you I'm judging the relative worth of small time cycling teams vs putting money and effort into promoting events.
it's a hard life if you don't weaken.0 -
Kléber wrote:If you want riders for Premier Calendars, you'll need a team car, then add on hotel budgets and travel costs. You'll have to give the riders team bikes, spare wheels and plenty of free kit, plus a manager and a mechanic. Ideally take time to recruit the right riders, who can win but also get you good publicity, those willing to approach journalists and to get themselves onto websites etc.
As you see, it's not something to launch into, the pitfalls are big. I'd think of building up slowly to start with and take stock later and see if you can do it. For what it's worth, I think the money is in cyclosportive events now, you could back a team of riders who do these rides and always place near the front but don't attack and help fellow riders, they have flash bikes and smart kit: the sort of riders others want to emulate. Cyclosportive riders are often newcomers and have open wallets and are receptive to the "spend money = performance gain". You'll see similar teams in Italy and France.
Good post kleber.
shavedlegs, I like your style coming on here with that post, and I am happy to discuss contractual terms and conditions one evening in richmond park.0 -
I'd agree with Kléber - start a cyclosportive team as that's where the money is now. Most people I see riding these days are middle aged and middle class with a decent disposable income. They don't follow the UK racing scene in my experience.0
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andyp wrote:I'd agree with Kléber - start a cyclosportive team as that's where the money is now. Most people I see riding these days are middle aged and middle class with a decent disposable income. They don't follow the UK racing scene in my experience.
andyp, you need to stop turbotraining in front of the mirror 0 -
Lol! :oops:wildmoustache wrote:andyp, you need to stop turbotraining in front of the mirror 0 -
Hi there.
Go easy on him!
If shaved legs wants to put a team together, then all power to him. Either you're interested or you're not. He didn't ask for your permission and he's not asking for your advice either.
Kleber - what you say is true if you look at the first 20 riders or so that you see on tv. The other 150 or so at the back of the field are just club riders like you and me. Anyone can enter a PC race if you've got enough points on your licence. It's not the Tour de France.
Cheers, Andy
ps ShavedLegs, of course what you really want to do is sponsor a triathlete ;-)0 -
I agree with Andrew, you don't necessarily need mechanincs, free bikes, team cars etc.
You have to start somewhere and you do not have to make a huge splash initially but build up to it gradually, its the same in all sports.
Funny how some one asks for team members then we get arguments on what he should or should not involve himself with.
It is his money, his choice, no one thing ir right and no one thing i sprobably wrong either.
personally if I had this chance and money I would try to invest inlocal juniiors with a couple of old hands to guide them.
Younger people show more loyalty especially if helped with free kit, race entries and the odd bits of bike thrown in.0 -
Asking whether he's considered an alternative form of sponsorship is just a suggestion hardly trying to deny him permission to use his money how he wants - if it's OK to suggest alternatives such as he sponsor a sportive team why is it not OK to suggest he sponsor a race instead ?
If a discussion on the merits of teams vs clubs develops from that well that's what happens on public forums isn't it - the OP doesn't seem to have taken offence so why should others on his behalf ?
it's a hard life if you don't weaken.0 -
I wasn't trying to be unhelpful by suggesting alternatives :oops:
Just saying that if you want 10 guys to do Premier Calendars, they have to travel and this costs money, they'll need somewhere to stay the night before etc. If you just want a team where one or two guys have a go in a Premier Calendar race a few times a year, that's something very different of course.
But like I say, cyclosportives are where the money is at. If you want to publicise your bike shop, there are a lot more clever and cost-effective ways to do it. Surely there's no point trying to compete for publicity against Plowmans Sandwich or Rapha?0 -
The idea came from a converstation I had. If people want to express an opinion on how better I can serve the sport then fine, it is a forum after all. But I'd rather help on how best to find riders and run a team.
In my experience clubs tend to have a lot of 3/4 Cats but fewer 2nd/1st Cats who lose out on the benefits of riding within a team. It was those riders I'm aiming at. And I'd like to help them get to Premier Calendar events, it has to be good experience.
I've just started a new business, and I need to promote it. However if you do the maths of stocking a bike shop you'll know it's not cheap, so the marketing budget is very small. I'd rather organise an event and sponsor some people than put a few ads in CW or CP.
I am planning a town centre circuit race, in the South West by the way. It is work in progress.
I did already. Plus the prices are so low anyway!! Also I'm happy to go a lot further, if any one would like their club to get a discount PM me.tsk tsk the length people will go too just to get some traffic on their website, it would be more helpfull if you gave us all a discount shavedlegs, rather than wasting everyones time bs people.
I've removed my signature.
Alex0 -
Hi Alex,
I was googling some products ones that i know are on your site at a good price, i.e. some groupsets, and noticed that they are not coming up in google product search...
Might be worth getting yourself listed on places like that, as im sure you would get some traffic that way.... Google at the bottom of the produts pages does say it doesn't charge... but i don't know how you get on there...
Thanks
Will0 -
Hi Wilbevan,
I'm working on it. I'm on there for some products, but it takes time to write the file containing all the product's details and then to uploading it.
Then there is the mystery of how to get near the top, I'm number 1 for 'campagnolo shamal ultra wheelset' but drop well down the list for 'campagnolo shamal ultra wheels'.
If anyone can help let me know.
Alex0 -
Shavedlegs wrote:I'm working on it. I'm on there for some products, but it takes time to write the file containing all the product's details and then to uploading it.
hope the files arn't to bad to right, maybe a nice editor or is it like a text file putting all the tags in like HTML or XML etc 0 -
Shavedlegs wrote:Hi Wilbevan,
I'm working on it. I'm on there for some products, but it takes time to write the file containing all the product's details and then to uploading it.
Then there is the mystery of how to get near the top, I'm number 1 for 'campagnolo shamal ultra wheelset' but drop well down the list for 'campagnolo shamal ultra wheels'.
If anyone can help let me know.
Alex
I have a friend who is into this, and regularly tries to get sites high up onto google.
I'll check with him later, but i know one of the things which help is for the site to have disabled access and to follow some standard of coding. W3? Not sure, like i said, i'll have to check with him later as i haven't touched anything to do with websites for ages.0 -
It's in xml.
I think I've mastered the file creation, although some 'attributes' seem to get missed for some reason, on some products.
It's just time consuming and it takes google 24hrs to process. So I can upload a file, wait a day and then discover I'm only on page 3.
What products were you looking for?
Alex0 -
willbevan wrote:Shavedlegs wrote:I'm working on it. I'm on there for some products, but it takes time to write the file containing all the product's details and then to uploading it. hope the files arn't to bad to right, maybe a nice editor or is it like a text file putting all the tags in like HTML or XML etc
It's the metatags in the HTML file which tells Google what it's looking for. But there are a couple of other factors which ranks how high up it should be.
Edit// Things have changed since i was making a site! Oops ignore my post.0
