ESSX wrote:The application was filed properly with Houston TX association online. The girl there said they had a sponsor for track that was a competitor of mine and that she needed to send my application and fee back. I am not sure she knew what she was talking about. The amount of time it took them was 2 months and the meet was over.
It was when Adam Kiel had gotten his poles and uniform from me and he wanted to show his appreciation at the USATF Meet.
I am not sure what they can and cannot do at the Association level, but when I applied to be Brian's sponsor I found the info through the USATF website and applied through the National office.
Note that the requirements for Olympic Trials are way stricter than normal USAs, I don't think Brian will be able to compete for me there, but whatever.
Of course pole companies are not doing the volume of the shoe companies.
There is not a lot of money in the pole business. Even a company that carries a full track line will have to struggle.
There is a big gap between shoe companies and track companies and many other companies that could sponsor at a different level that could and are bigger than track companies but smaller than shoe companies. (Shoe companies do 30 to 60 million in sales) Track companies do $1 million to 5 million or more).
I am certainly not suggesting that the pole companies are not doing all they can to help athletes.
Neither is a company like Jared jewelry, In & out Hamburger chain, deodorant companies, hair product companies, Pei Wei Asian Diners, Salt grass Steak house. Logan steak house, Grocery stores, 7-11, But as long as you have a rule that stifle the ability to bring these type of businesses in the loop you will only get top athletes sponsorship and the emerging athlete must foot the bill until they hit the big time.
I still say there is a problem here it is not just my problem it is everyone’s problem and I am not going to let it go. We can say all you want it is the way things are and dismiss it or you can stand and fight for what is right.
It's not USATF rules that are stopping these companies from sponsoring athletes, it has a lot more to do with the decline of track and field in general.
I do not want to hear from those that feel it is a waste of time to fight, I want to hear from those who feel it is a worth while effort and needed to keep Track alive.
We let far too many people talk us down and we need to stand up to negative things that harm Track & field. There will always be a bad apple in the basket we need to throw the apple out and stand for up for things to help us grow.
But I think we need to lobby to have the rule changed in order to save Track & field, I need more people to stand with me. I assure you this is not a benefit just for me; it is a benefit for everyone who believes track & field should grow! We all cannot take the burden of responsibility of actions other people do to harm Track & Field. We must stand to be the exception and to show that we all are not taking drugs, not cheating and are adult enough to manage our own organization.
I believe, having more sponsors of different levels is the key to building track and field.
Bruce Caldwell
I don't disagree, just trying to point out where the root of the problem is so you can apply things in the right direction. It's not something USATF can directly change.
Getting involved with the PAA may be helpful. More companies sponsoring athletes on a small scale and showing that there is interest may help. USATF making the process more clear on their website may help.
