Teams in BMX Racing

You see matching jerseys at the track. You hear factory team, this team, that team. What are teams in BMX? BMX is an individual sport so why teams? Maybe this article will help you. We'll sum up teams with two words: marketing and identity.

Let's start in the 70's and 80's. There wasn't online marketing, but multiple magazines covered BMX. What better way to advertise your products in those magazines than to market them with the best riders? Add to the aura with large checks and cool stuff. Sell the dream of every rider a pro and count your sales revenue. Want more people to buy your bike straight from your factory? Put the best pros and amateurs on it. Own a bike shop? Put the most visible riders on bikes from your store and draw in business. That's factory and bike shop teams in a nutshell. What about the other teams that aren't tied to a bike business? Maybe a bunch of kids wanted to make their own gang and rumble with another gang of riders. They both create their teams and race it out. Maybe a couple of dads are standing around a styrofoam cooler full of beer talking about their boys riding bikes; let's make a team. A rider, dad, or coach wants to make chosen riders better, so they form a team. Maybe these teams become known and get a lot of visibility, and they go ask the BMX companies to sponsor them (which is in the form of discounts usually). A big team that people know sporting company logos on their jerseys? Yeah man, Marketing 101.

Identity. All teams have a sense of belonging and camaraderie. You spend time together at races in the team tent. You may fundraise together. You hang out outside the track. You go to the pool together, have sleep overs, and cheer for each other. You train together. You belong to a herd, a flock, a group, an identity. Our people versus your people. It adds to the competition. Humans by design seek out identity and belonging even the self-proclaimed 'lone wolf' types. There is also panache that comes with being a rider on a team, especially a factory team.

In the present not much has changed. It's still marketing and friendship. The official USA BMX team competition is made up of factory and bike shop teams. The factory is higher in the hierarchy followed by the bike shop. Competition is factory vs. factory and bike shop vs. bike shop. There is a small pool of money to be won, a trophy, some shout outs, but mostly bragging rights and greater visibility in the BMX scene. The third level is all the other teams. They would be called 'trophy teams' or local teams. Some states/scenes/clubs may do their own team against team competition. Case in point is Washington at one time had a team vs. team competition at state qualifier races. One of the bike shops oversaw it and it was run similar to the USA BMX team competition.

Another advantage to look for is rider development. Rather you own a bike factory with top talent riders or you trying to coach the equivalent of The Bad News Bears, your riders need to keep improving and stay hungry for those wins. Training is important. A team should have training and development of some kind. Personalized coaching, rider teaching rider, and being prepared for races leads to better and more engaged riders. The depth of training can vary amongst teams. On a few you may need to find your own trainer. That's not a bad thing as some riders do better with coaches they select. It really depends on the rider and their skill level. Training isn't just bike skills; it's also mental prep, eating right, maintaining discipline, and staying focused. Your teammates can help you with that.

How do I get on a team? You're recruited or you ask. Before you decide to be on a team ask yourself what are you looking for from the team? What does the team offer? Do you want discounts? Do you want to be with like-minded others? Do you want to have a shared identity with a group? Do you really want to represent something? Do you want rider improvement? Do you want the coolest looking jersey? Do you want the panache of riding for a brand or business? What do you want? What don't you want? Your honest answers are important. We've seen expectations exceed offerings and the end result is both sides lose. In general riders should be committed to racing before considering teams. One expectation to not expect is that a team magically gets you free racing.

Time to burst a bubble; being on a team will cost money and/or time. There is not an all expenses paid team that we know of. That $1500 check a pro gets for winning the #1 pro title has cost them tens of thousands of dollars and their big-name brand sponsors may only pay a few thousand of that. Just like a pro rider, that kid riding for Factory Brand X has spent thousands of dollars buying the brand's equipment and thousands more on the mandatory race attendance requirements. Your team wants to have a special clinic? That's hundreds of bucks for track rental and paying the clinic's coach; parents/riders have to come up with that cash. Team dues from riders, local business sponsors, and fundraising are very common. If you ride for a factory team you will have to race at the National level, and guess who pays for hotels, food, brand marked equipment, and sells the brand's merch at races? You. If you ride for a bike shop or local team there are rules too. We have a bike shop team. There are requirements, there are rules, and there are benefits and advantages. And yes, the team also markets for us. Riders are representatives.

If you think teams sound sucky after reading the previous paragraph keep in mind something we said in another article: The cost is the cost; worth is defined by you.