getting sponsorship

smush

Im looking to do time trials next year in the ( U ) region which is bristol ,bath Taunton sort of area ,
Trouble is a new time trial bike is not cheap so im going to try get some local buisness sponsors ,
Question is how many people turn up for these events to spectate and compete at a amatuer level , basically can i tell them its worth there while putting some money in to get good advertisement ,

Pseudonym

the short answer is 'no' - nobody will be watching you - apart from any friends/family/race officials who may be on the circuit. Few others are likely to be there at 6.30am when you set off. At the risk of upsetting the TTers on here, time trials are very intense for the riders involved, but not really that interesting for passers-by..

If you haven't done TTs before, you don't need a TT bike - just stick a set of tri bars on your road bike and go from there.

Keith1983

If you're looking for sponsorship you need to get yourself a presence on the web, i.e. a facebook page, a twitter account etc. You then need as many people as possible to be liking your facebook page or following you on twitter. You could also do a blog on here.You then need to do something different to get yourself in the local press etc. This could be almost anything to generate interest.

Matt the Tester

have you ever TTed before??

your speaking as if you have never done one. Pointless tbh. there is ALOT of good TTers! and not all of them get this chance.

smush

thanks for the replys ,
im not looking to get a 300 grand a year deal with 2 spare bikes and manager , im looking more at 1000-1500 quid poss 2nd hand bike ,
this would be my first season so hoping to train hard and give it everything and if i do well try and generate more interest ,get a better bike etc etc .
Just wasnt sure if anyone else on here had tried to generate funds and how they went about it .
im a strong belive in having a go and givin your all ,im sure there are a million people sat at home thinking they could have a chance but never bothering ,and others who are happy to go round near the back and enjoy them selfs ,
i just cant do that im a highly competative person and find racing against myself brings the best out of me so im gonna give tt a bloody good bash

Bronzie

Unless you are riding at national level, I doubt anyone is going to give you 1500 quid to spunk on a new bike. Get racing, see how you get on and then go from there.

hammerite

Get some good results first, then go around asking local businesses once you get a bit of success.

Even then I think it would be tough for you to get any sponsorship, but if you're good at selling yourself and promoting your sponsors, it's possible.

Pseudonym

realistically - nobody is going to give you anything just to ride TTs - especially if you have no history in the sport. Ride some, and if you start doing well you might find a place on a supported team. Either way, it is very unlikely that you will get any form of personal sponsorship.

Your best bet to start with is to get involved with a good, large club - it's possible you might even get the loan of a TT bike there for the first few events...

Thelittlesthobo

Talk about running before you can walk.

I am also highly competetive. I bet i am more competetive than you :-) TBH most cyclists are pretty competetive and those that TT are probably even more competetive than you.

So even though you are competetive it really isnt scratching the surface of wether you are going to be successfull at time trialling, is it? My 8yr old son is competetive, doesnt mean he would be good at it.

I'll tell you where i am. I wont be investing today, I'm out!!

Zoomer37

I know a guy with a kebab shop who would probably give you a fiver if you advertise his new lamb doners somewhere on your jersey.

smush

hopefully this isnt going to turn into a " im better than you " thread ,
Have others not been in the same boat and needed help to get out racing ?
As for the competative answer , obviously being competative doesnt mean your good ,i was just saying i need to be out racing to satisfy my competative side ,

Thelittlesthobo

The question is Smush, What Boat are you actually in atm? No one has claimed to be better or worse than you because no one knows.

Beg and borrow a bike off someone and enter a time trial. If you get a good result then come back and ask the same question again.

I know i am gonna be slow in a TT. But then i wouldnt dream of asking for sponsorship, i would save and buy a bike

redddraggon

I'll sponsor you £1 if you can go under 20mins for a 10

ju5t1n

If you don’t ask you don’t get. There’s no harm in asking local businesses for sponsorship. You never know. Years ago a local junior approached the company I was working for and we gave him some money to help fund some races in Europe. His name was Roger Hammond ... he did okay I think!

freehub

I'm in the same boat, I can't afford a TT bike and want to TT.

So I use my road bike with clip ons.

Also you have my word, I will give you £200 if you do a 17min 10.

Matt the Tester

have you even TTed before??

celbianchi

ju5t1n wrote:

If you don’t ask you don’t get. There’s no harm in asking local businesses for sponsorship. You never know. Years ago a local junior approached the company I was working for and we gave him some money to help fund some races in Europe. His name was Roger Hammond ... he did okay I think!

True there is no harm in asking, but Roger was a world champion at 17/18 and thus had something to demonstrate to potential sponsors he had a bit of talent.

We don't know anything about the OP - if you are still at school/education then you need to find a part time job and save your pennies, if you are in your late teens or older you need to save some of your disposable income, or get a job and get saving.

As per the other comments, unless you demonstrate some potential, then why should a local business sponsor you? If you haven't even ridden an event how do you know you'll even stick at it?

explosifpete

A couple I met on a ski season one year went to the daily mail ski show and went to every stand and said they were doing a ski season and would they like to give them free stuff......
and they got is so if you have the front, ask.
If not just race on what ever you have or can afford, my first TT was on a mtb, the second on a 1955 fixed gear. doesn't matter as your just trying to better yourself and if you start on a slow bike it quite the moral boost when you get a go on a better one

smush

sorry i think i explained myself wrong , im going to enter a tt on my road bike see where i stand see if i show potential and see if with alot of effort i could finish somewhere decent with some better gear ,
i started the thred without thinking of the obvious questions ,but it was more of a general feeler to see how others have gone about funding there racing .

redddraggon

smush wrote:

how others have gone about funding there racing .

Jobs

ju5t1n

Yes, jobs it is I’m afraid. I would guess that fewer than 100 riders make a living from racing in the UK. Most of the Elite guys I know supplement their income with normal jobs. I don’t know of any TT riders who make a living from it. Even Hutch has a job now.

Bronzie

Pure comedy gold..............you couldn't make this up

smush

bronzie , being someone who rides with a club that has 3 sponsors, i would of thought you could offer some good advice on how to get them ,
do you know people with spare cash that enjoy cycling or have you got very high level riders in the club that help attract sponsors ?

hammerite

It's not so much the sponsorship money you need for kit, it's time to give you the ability to be flexible to always get in the training you need to do.

Being self employed or having a sympathetic employer/wife/girlfriend/partner helps there.

smush

im quite lucky there my fiance supports me and i start work early so can always get a cycle in later in the day ,
i think for now il get some clip ons and better wheels for the road bike , train hard ,try prove myself on a road bike ,then spend the winter begging for sponsorship and trying to get a full tt bike for next year ,
what bike would i be looking at for best quality vs value for money , i looked at a planet x bike also like the cube tt bike as seems to have some good bits for the price ,
or am i better off getting a bike in stages ,save and buy a frame then wheels etc etc .

Bronzie

smush wrote:

being someone who rides with a club that has 3 sponsors, i would have thought you could offer some good advice on how to get them

Simple. Our sponsors are all involved in the club in one way or another. This is probably true for the vast majority of locally-based sponsored clubs.

I suspect they don't really expect any advertising revenue in return (the club is doing fairly well at Regional level, but not on a national level anymore), but sponsor the club because they like to have their company name on our kit. The level of sponsorship for the whole club per annum is less than the figure you mentioned earlier.

smush wrote:

do you know people with spare cash that enjoy cycling or have you got very high level riders in the club that help attract sponsors ?

Wish I did.........I'd be tapping them up for a new bike myself

Even when we had a national Elite rider on our books, none of the local organisations we approached were interested in sponsoring us. There simply isn't the level of press coverage to warrant a substantial outlay.

You're more than welcome to try of course, but don't expect to get anywhere much unless you have some decent wins under you're belt.

From reading some of your other posts, you seem to be under the belief that you need the best kit to do well..........of course, it helps, but if you have the natural ability to start with, and are prepared to put in the hours and hours of training, you can still do well even on basic kit. As the Yank said "It's not about the bike".

ThatBikeGuy

Are you in a local club? My local does weekly 10s around a set course, i am thinking of doing some racing next season.
I think it's about the people you know as much as anything, there are a fair few people in my club that do competitive TTs and racing, they have a coach that helps them get their fitness up to what it should be and organises the races.

Bronzie

smush wrote:

what bike would i be looking at for best quality vs value for money , or am i better off getting a bike in stages ,save and buy a frame then wheels etc etc .

You haven''t even ridden a club 10 yet.............try some events on what you've got (with clip-on bars) and see if it's for you before dreaming of some high-end kit

smush

bronzie , thanks for the reply its good to hear the vioce of experience and knowledge ,
i just think a tt bike will give me more of a chance than a standard road bike ,but i guess if i gauge myself against others on road bikes i should still get a idea of if i challenge on a tt bike ,
i am very prepared to put the work in ive been doing alot of interval training , im trying to build my core strength and eating to lose weight and trying to get myself as aero dynamic as i can .
im not under the illusion that the best kit is the be all and end all im just looking for a good base setup ,
but like alot of you have said get out let the results do the talking and take it from there so thats what im gonna do and hopefully with alot of hard work it will all work out good ,
many thanks for all comments

Chip \'oyler

smush wrote:

bronzie , thanks for the reply its good to hear the vioce of experience and knowledge ,
i just think a tt bike will give me more of a chance than a standard road bike ,but i guess if i gauge myself against others on road bikes i should still get a idea of if i challenge on a tt bike ,
i am very prepared to put the work in ive been doing alot of interval training , im trying to build my core strength and eating to lose weight and trying to get myself as aero dynamic as i can .
im not under the illusion that the best kit is the be all and end all im just looking for a good base setup ,
but like alot of you have said get out let the results do the talking and take it from there so thats what im gonna do and hopefully with alot of hard work it will all work out good ,
many thanks for all comments

TBH any cash you do have would be be better spent on a coach. The key to going faster is having a good engine. If you have the drive then a coach will get the best out of you. IMO it's the best money you can spend on competative cycling

jgsi

Do the events and get your face known and then if you want a bit of help with kit etc try what I did....,blag it off your employer if you work in an industry that uses advertising to promote itself widely... agreed, a bit stuffed if you work for the local council as a cemetery attendant tho'...