How to Get Sponsored (part 1)
(Going Pro)

Part 1|2|3|4

    You want to go pro? Spend most every day riding and living the easy life, no worries about paying bills or working a regular job. We are talking about the life where everyone knows your name and watch your part over and over again in the newest videos…

    Along with the good stuff is the harsh reality of the professional snowboarder life. Living in airports and out of a backpack for months on end, sleeping on floors and eating ramen noodles way too much. The misuse and abuse your body must go through to stay on top and the stress of having to do well so not to lose your spot to someone younger adds up quickly. For most of the pro riders out there the pay is horrible too and only a handful live comfortably.

    Although the sponsored life sounds good there is also a very hard part to it, it is still a ton of work and is not all play by any means.

    If this doesn’t dissuade you, and nothing does, then give it a shot. Go for your dreams and have the time of your life trying.

    Everyone has a different idea on how to go pro but most people agree there are some similar characteristics that will make you stand out and get noticed and start you on your path to fame. Here are a few, but not necessarily all, the different things that will help you on your way to becoming a super star.

Requirements to go Pro
   First off you have to have the skills. You may rule your local hill and that makes you a ripper but if you are not honestly push the limit then you are just an average ripper. You have to go out and travel at least a little bit and push your limits there too, places where you are not in your comfortable norm, or the best rider. This also allows you to be seen by more and more people and if you are good they will talk.

    Although it may be taken for granted, you also have to go snowboarding, a lot. Like as many days as you possibly can. Only on weekends really doesn’t allow you to progress as fast as you need to. This makes it very hard to go pro while still in high school. But don’t let that little detail stop you, it didn’t stop Shaun White.

    You also need to develop some sort of style and perfect it, something that you can brand yourself with and stick out. Having a smooth style is desirable but anything to really pull you out of the crowd is necessary.

    Since a lot of people have a lot of incredible skills on snow you also have to set yourself apart with your personality. It takes a certain personality to be a pro snowboarder. You have to truly love and be committed to the sport and its participants. This means being cool to the wanna bes, the posers and the totally new kids. This leads to the next thing, actions speak louder then words.

    No one likes a cocky bastard, but everyone loves a nice guy (or gal). Let your riding talk about how well you ride. Don’t tell everyone how sick you are, especially if you can’t back it up 100% of the time. This is especially true after you have gotten your first little hook up. If you go and tell the world how cool you are now that you are sponsored you might not ever get another sponsor.

    This was my personal mistake, I got some gear and was so excited I had to tell everyone. Needless to say I never really got much more gear. However, there was also this guy at my local hill that was awesome. Way better then I was and he had the desire to go pro but he was just a dick to people. He was cocky and even though he could ride very well no one would give him a chance so I ended up getting the spot he was trying so hard for because I was nice to everyone.

    Now in order to really be seen by more then the people who happen to be watching you from the chair lift you need to get some media. Best way to do this is to become buddies with someone who has a passion for photography or cinematography or a couple people that do. It is a symbiotic relationship. They need someone who doesn’t suck to take pictures and video of and you need the video and pictures to put together a portfolio. However, remember you will not always be their single star so make sure you volunteer to take pictures of them or help them shoot video sometimes too.

    Contests are also an important aspect of getting sponsored because they quantify how well you ride by comparing you against the other local rippers. Going to as many contests as possible is a good thing. If you can build up a resume of results that is concrete you can show your potential sponsors that you are legit. Going to contests is also a great way to meet people including other sponsored riders or even reps from companies.

    Spend a season shooting as much video or as many pictures as you possibly can, you are going to need this to build a portfolio. However you actually build a portfolio is your call, just make sure you do it. Whether it is a DVD or a website or a scrapbook it is your portfolio and will represent your riding (not you talking about yourself) for others to see. The iLife programs that come on a Mac are awesome for this sort of thing.

    Building a social network of people is another huge aspect in the road to getting sponsored. The more people you know and that like you, can vouch for you or have seen your portfolio and resume the better. This includes shop owners, local team managers, other sponsored riders and company reps. Even if they personally can’t sponsor you don’t be an ass and don’t use them for who they know. Truly be a good, nice person and not a power hungry renob that will backstab for a chance to get on top, that will get you in the end, it always does.

    I had the privilege of working in a snowboarding shop so that opened a lot of doors for me. Factory reps would stop by from time to time to check on their accounts and this gave me an opportunity to meet them and build up a relationship. I would always offer to take them out for the evening or offer them my couch to crash on. But just because you offer them a crash pad and get them drunk doesn’t mean they will sponsor you but it will help when they remember how nice of a person you were.

-> Part 2 How to go pro ->
Part 1|2|3|4

Did we miss something? Do you have any suggestions for others?