Sponsor me! by Jorge Cuartas

It's the cry heard in the pits, at the races, and on the voice mail messages of the team managers of the ATV Industry. Sponsorship is the holy grail of ATV racing, or racing in general for that matter. The question is do you have what it takes to be a sponsored rider?
What many racers don't necessarily realize is that it takes a ton of dedication and commitments to not only make it in this sport, but to be a good representative for your sponsors. Sponsorship isn't necessarily for everyone, and hopefully by the time you're done reading this you'll have a better grasp as to how the game works, and not only whether or not you've got what it takes, but whether it's in your best interest to play the game at all.

First off, let's figure out whether or not being a sponsored rider is for you.

1. Do you attend all of the races in whatever series you're contesting?

2. Do you want to?

If you've answered, "Yes" to both of these, than pat yourself on the back, you're already ahead of the majority of racers. Attendance is huge, if you're not going to all of the races, and you really don't want to, than sponsorship is not for you.

Most sponsorship contracts include some sort of attendance clause, once you sign the contract you're obligated to uphold your end of the contract. If you're not ready and willing to fulfill your end of the deal, you're probably better off not seeking sponsorship.

Is it economically feasible for you to be a sponsored rider? If you pull the ego out of the equation, and keep it mathematical it gets much clearer. Figure that it costs you roughly $800 to attend a race, now figure you're committing to contest a ten race series for your sponsors, that's $8000 you're now contractually obligated to spending throughout the course of one season. There are not too many sponsors that are willing to throw you $8000 worth of parts, but $500 may not be out of the question if you're a high profile amateur or Pro. With that in mind, you need to land at least 16 sponsors to keep yourself afloat and in the black. The problem is, besides suspension & chassis components, motor work, and possibly tires there's not much that costs you $500 from a single sponsor. So how do you race without it costing you money? The bottom line is you don’t. ATV Racing is an expensive sport and unless you’re a top Pro, you’re going to have to spend something. Offsetting those costs and minimizing your investment are more realistic goals. If a sponsor is only offering you a discount on parts, it's obviously not much of a deal. On the other hand, if you were planning on attending all of the races anyway, then you might as well take the help, after all some help is better than none.

 
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--Jorge Cuartas
Jorge Cuartes is a staple in the motocross world and has years of racing experience. His background starts at the roots of the local motocross series in Georgia all the way to running the GNC series. In the past few years Jorge became the mastermind behind many great racing teams including the FMF Media All-Stars Team that was the backbone of support to Angela Moore the Woman's National Champion. Jorge is also the face behind the souvenir programs that you received at the GNC & GNCC events over the last few years.



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