Sponsors

Looking at the podiums over the past few seasons I started to question what drives riders to stick with board sponsors and why there isn't more flip flop. It seems most of the top 10 get a sponsor and then stick with them though out their careers. Do better deals just not come along? Do board cos not poach other athletes?

Seems the same goes for boat sponsors, which i'm sure are harder to come by. But none-the-less, what is stopping MC for poaching Nautique riders?

Contracts and cash

Originally Posted by doublemwa

Looking at the podiums over the past few seasons I started to question what drives riders to stick with board sponsors and why there isn't more flip flop. It seems most of the top 10 get a sponsor and then stick with them though out their careers. Do better deals just not come along? Do board cos not poach other athletes?

Seems the same goes for boat sponsors, which i'm sure are harder to come by. But none-the-less, what is stopping MC for poaching Nautique riders?

There really just aren't enough companies to go around to warrant switches all the time you know? For a top 10 guy there is only a handful of board companies and even fewer boat companies that can afford to pay these guys. Most of the company budgets are maxed out for riders, so it usually always takes dropping somebody else to make room. Just kind a slow process, people do poach though, or at least try. Just takes a pretty big leap of faith to leave a sponsor who has been paying you good. Especially in a time like now where it is hard to come by money in the industry.

with cwb, hyperlite, byerly, liquid force, and obrien being owned by the same parent company, that limits a lot of the team switching.

Ever notice how often the non top ten switch? Especially to independent brands? That's because all the cash flow goes into the top 10 while the rest get nothing at all.

Boat companies are public now and that means they need to get lean, wakeboarders don't fit the corporate MC image anymore just to name one example.

Originally Posted by wakemitch

with cwb, hyperlite, byerly, liquid force, and obrien being owned by the same parent company, that limits a lot of the team switching.

Yeah, agreed. After writing this yesterday I thought the same. From an outsider, it seems LF does the best job of farming new talent, and then retaining them.