As a former college and (VERY SHORT) time professional football player I was given equipement to train in and compete in. 1 helmet, 1 pair shoulder pads, 5 pairs of shoes at the start of the season, 3 sets of sweatsuits, Shorts, t shirts etc etc.
My question if you are a pro triathlete / pro cyclist. Pro meaning that you make enough money through racing and with sponsorship alone to put a roof over your head, feed a family if you have one, own a car, and perhaps contribute to a retirement plan of some sort.
How many bikes are you “Issued” by your sponsor, and what type of bikes? In the movie What it take we saw Peter Ried on 3 Specialized bikes. A tt/ tri bike, a road bike, and a Mtn Bike. I would think he would have a couple of more issued per year.
Pro meaning that you make enough money through racing and with sponsorship alone to put a roof over your head, feed a family if you have one, own a car, and perhaps contribute to a retirement plan of some sort.
It totally depends on the team. a top US domestic team might give the guys 1 bike to keep and have 1 spare bike for training. two teams i know of provide each rider with 3 bikes (TT, Training, Racing) but technically THEY own the bikes and can ask for them back at the end of the year.
Typically if a domestic pro gets to keep his bike at the end of the year he’s doing well and will probably sell it in the off season as soon as he gets a new training bike for the next year. It ain’t all free gear and carbon wheels.
For Pro Tour level guys - they usually keep at least 1 bike per year, but again it totally depends on the team.
Not neccessarily a Lance or Norman, but not the guy working two jobs shitty jobs so he can race (I have nothing against that guy or gal), but I am talking about a guy making a living in sport.
NBA or NFL shitty pro = gets cut in pre season or mid season to make room for a real pro. I was a shitty pro 3 preseason games, and then go get a job.
