Young Gun Program, Rider Wanted

[Dr_Phil]

Well said Dave, Thanks.. Any who I thought this was supposed to be a fun Forum where friends can communicate when we can't see each other, I kind of thought that what Mr. Stone said was uncalled for and out of line.. Age wise I fit into the catagory that Lonewolf said he was interested in, And for Stone to say that:
 
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Obviously Stone isn't aware that there are some younger people in this country that work there a$$ of every year so that we can have every opportunity possible to try and catch someones eye(such as Lonewolf) in hopes of gainning support. I work about 60 hours a week so I can go to the shop and spend 10-20 hours a week working on the bike and go home and train. I spend every dime I make on racing(other than the truck payment and etc). It just sucks that there are people that can only think about themselves.... Rant off..............

Ahhh...focused and drive! The main ingrediant to becoming successful in any give situation. Good for you! But unfortunately you are one of the few in your age group. Your missing my point...

Do me one favor....Walk out your door and look down the street. Who owns the most houses, who has the most money to spend and who's has the extra money to spend on our sport? Thats right...30 to 40 year olds.

Now ask yourself... If ya had a business and you had only one "door hanger" to advertise your business. Would ya put that door hanger on the bedroom door of young man that most likely doesnt have but a few dollars a week left over after the kegger the weekend before...or...would ya put it on the front door of the guy that owns the house that fits your target market?

Dont get me wrong...the young need to be developed. But ignoring the 30 to 40's in this area in my opinion is ignorance.

[grasshopper]

I've turned at least a half of a dozen 30-plus year olds on to the track in the last 3 months and I can damned well gurantee that they didnt go cheap on anything. New bikes, new clip-ons, new rims, pipes...only the best.

Yet you guys want to only throw your money at young kids. Amazing...

To me age doesnt matter...only ability.  

Do you think that spending all that money on new bikes and pretty looking parts makes someone fast? The most expensive extremely light parts WILL MAKE YOU FLY MAN!!!!! Rider ability means nothing!!! ;) LOL!!!

Age does matter, it's like the old saying you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Don't get me wrong CCS/WERA/AHRMA is filled with fast (VERY FAST) over 30 + riders.

But a young kid is like a rubber ball, he bounces back up, takes a licking and keeps on ticking! Money well spent for a team, and takes advice easier.

An older gentleman breaks easier, bones and muscles are not as flexable. Work calls, kids, family, a house, more responsability.

Less variables when recruiting a kid, more likely the kid will give it his all with way less distractions,

[cb186]

Ahhh...focused and drive! The main ingrediant to becoming successful in any give situation. Good for you! But unfortunately you are one of the few in your age group. Your missing my point...

Do me one favor....Walk out your door and look down the street. Who owns the most houses, who has the most money to spend and who's has the extra money to spend on our sport? Thats right...30 to 40 year olds.

Now ask yourself... If ya had a business and you had only one "door hanger" to advertise your business. Would ya put that door hanger on the bedroom door of young man that most likely doesnt have but a few dollars a week left over after the kegger the weekend before...or...would ya put it on the front door of the guy that owns the house that fits your target market?

Dont get me wrong...the young need to be developed. But ignoring the 30 to 40's in this area in my opinion is ignorance.

the point of looking for a young up and coming racer, is that the money that gets invested in them will hopefully pay off with recognition for the sponsor, and the satisfaction of helping someone develope. a 19 year old has lots of years to get faster, a 41 year old doesn't.
   if the guys you brought to the track can afford to go buy the new bikes and all the bits that go with it, then they don't need the kind of support that is being offered.
  jesse janish is a shining example of a very fast, young racer who didn't have the means to continue racing without some support, but had more potential than me, you and half of this board combined.

[Jeff]

If you stop and look though, Pops has a good point here.

Neglecting the market with the disposable income is a bad idea...

I see both sides of the coin.  If you take the emotion out of it and look at it from a marketing perspective, you will see it as well...

[grasshopper]

If you stop and look though, Pops has a good point here.

Neglecting the market with the disposable income is a bad idea...

I see both sides of the coin.  If you take the emotion out of it and look at it from a marketing perspective, you will see it as well...

But why would the person with the disposable income need a sponsor then?

[Stone]

If you stop and look though, Pops has a good point here.

Neglecting the market with the disposable income is a bad idea...

I see both sides of the coin.  If you take the emotion out of it and look at it from a marketing perspective, you will see it as well...

Jez!! Thats the first time I've been called that! I am getting old!

[Stone]

But why would the person with the disposable income need a sponsor then?

Your missing the point. Reread my post from a perspective of a business that wants to maximize their advertising dollar.

Sponsors? We all need them and can use their products. I'm building a new 1K gixxer for next year and if I can save 5k doing it...its 5k that I can use to go to other regions and select AMA events later in the year.

[Jeff]

But why would the person with the disposable income need a sponsor then?

What's the purpose of a sponsor?  

Offset costs.

What's the purpose of sponsorship?

To increase revenue through exposure.

The revenue increasing part is key.  Stone's point here is that he can influence a number of people who have a good deal of money to spend.

To a sponsor, which is worth more:
1) A person who wins races but does nothing else
2) A person who does not win races, but can bring in hundreds or thousands of people who will spend money.

Obviously #2 is the greater value and bigger benefit as it increases the bottom line.  Now, if you can nail both 1&2, a sponsor is REALLY doing good.

I understand the business point though of promoting a "young gun".  Looking at it, Stone, you're not going to be picked up by a factory or satellite team.  It's that simple.  However, if positioned correctly, many "young guns" can!  And at that point, the exposure to the business increases which theoretically will bring in more customers.

In 2005, I started steering away from the term "sponsorship" and started calling my clients "advertisers" because that is what they are.  They are my clients, I am advertising for them.  It's a business relationship.

[Super Dave]

Here in the SW 90% of the riders are 30 and older.

The club road racing market is primarily made up of a mid thirties market.  Very different from the market I started racing in some time ago.  

The trick becomes the investment.

Get a 23 year old to get going fast, and you could have a ten year career ahead.  Try that with a 33 year old and things can change.  Not that aren't motivated 33 year olds, but what are you going to teach a 33 year old?  The body deteriorates with age too, so...

[Super Dave]

They are my clients, I am advertising for them.  It's a business relationship.

Bingo!

You can go racing, or you can have a program.  Where do you fit?

[ecumike]

The club road racing market is primarily made up of a mid thirties market.  Very different from the market I started racing in some time ago.  

The trick becomes the investment.

Get a 23 year old to get going fast, and you could have a ten year career ahead.  ....

haha, if you're sponsoring a 23 yr old and after 6 years, you're still in club racing.. time for a new rider. (if you're trying to advance them into the pros asap.)

What's the Pro racing market age?... shouldn't you work backwards from there? Invest a couple years in a kid in club racing them move to AMAs, work your way up so you're pro as young as possible so you have the most amount of time being pro/factory/etc.?

[Super Dave]

haha, if you're sponsoring a 23 yr old and after 6 years, you're still in club racing.. time for a new rider. (if you're trying to advance them into the pros asap.)

We can expand it all you want.

Yeah, really, you'd want to develop them and send them to some place "better", they quit, or they keep working with you.

AMA Pro racing has a cost.  There are many "kids" out there dropping $60k to $100k to ride decent machines in the AMA.  How long can a Daddy provide?  Some come right back and race for contingency.  Would you like to relate someone to your program or someone elses?

So, to justify what Lone Wolf is doing, if they provide a level of support that is a platform for a rider to get to someplace else...that's good.  There are many examples of riders that need some reassurances of what they are doing is right and what they need to do to further themselves.  Being at a particular venue may also allow them to make contacts that would further what they are doing.  Certainly, I'd bet that Lone Wolf is working to make their program better.  They might move on to another series.

Regardless, they should have a right to make reasonable decisions on who fits some kind of profile that they feel is useful and marketable to their sponsors and their competition program.