Going Pro with Adventure Sports - Sponsorship

Free Travel and Gear for Those Who Qualify

Feb 16, 2009 David Black

Sponsorship is the ultimate compliment in adventure sports. To find sponsorship, it's essential to understand why and how a company might sponsor someone.

Business is the key word. Sponsorship is advertising. A company might sponsor someone if he/she

gets a lot of attention. Successful writers and easily recognized names and faces that appear frequently in magazines and film are examples.
is a winner that will associate the product with success and machismo. Competition champions and individuals who accomplish impressive "firsts" fit in this category.
is not just good, but exceptional and superior at the sport. In climbing, for example, someone who can't lead on site at the 5.13 trad level or in kayaking casually drop Class 6 on a regular basis, he/she is not considered exceptional.
has the type of personality that can make him or her an effective representative of the company. Grouchy egotists can often get on sponsored teams but will soon be removed if they hurt business.
has connections in the company. He/she knows the boss.
has a unique project with advertising value to the company. These are usually sponsorships of expeditions to exotic places to do something that hasn't been done yet. This kind of sponsorship is getting harder and harder to find.
has a sweet face and a gorgeous body. Male or female,sex sells.

Finding Sponsorship

The list above makes it clear that there are four keys to getting sponsorship:

1. excellence in the sport

2. connections in the business

3. visibility (fame)

4. a gimmick (a hot body, the extreme project or an exotic location, etc.)

What to Expect from Sponsorship

The best of the best essentially get full time jobs with perks. At the next level (partial sponsorship and event sponsorship) come gifts of equipment. Those who are exceptional them without asking for them. Those who are not have to ask for them, and thats where connections and gimics come to play. Many times the gifts come with conditions, the most common of which is that the sponsoree supply the company with promotional photographs prominently displaying the equipment and company logos.

Another less glamorous form of getting partially sponsored is through gear testing. Sportspersons with good reputations or just lots of experience can often get deals with designers and manufacturers to test equipment prior to mass marketing. The tester fills out a log and sends along some suggestions when the gear is returned to the company for examination.

Pro and Cons of Sponsorship

The pros of sponsorship are fairly obvious: free stuff. The cons are more subtle, probably the worst being a commitment to endorse a product that the sponsored person wouldn't normally use. In general, though, it's guilt-free and fun to be sponsored.

For additional information on going pro in adventure sports, readers can refer to Going Pro.

The copyright of the article Going Pro with Adventure Sports - Sponsorship in Rock Climbing is owned by David Black. Permission to republish Going Pro with Adventure Sports - Sponsorship in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Getting a Sponsor Often Requires Fame or a Gimic