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Post by daisymomma on Apr 16, 2008 9:18:58 GMT -5
I will be there in spirit as well but I wish I could have those shirts.I am going to Dallas in October for the MOPs convention so that is where my money is going.I think the Baver's Bad***es are brilliant and I think even Allison herself would have a laugh over that one.
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Post by wags on Apr 16, 2008 19:53:19 GMT -5
OK guys - who's going where? I need to start requesting vacation days. St Louis? SLC? Vancouver? Where else?
Mtnme, GND, Wildfire, Maricorgi, Skaterswaltz, Lily....let me hear from you.
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Post by mtnme on Apr 16, 2008 20:32:55 GMT -5
We thought you would all be interested in some of the expenses associated with anyone who participates in short track speed skating. We keep saying "it's expensive", but that doesn't really tell you much, now does it? The following is a breakdown of some of the costs. These are averages, but it does let you know what a skater has to come up with to compete, and more importantly, what your donations are helping with.
(items in parenthesis are added explanations from me, not a quote from our sources)
BOOTS:$1000-2200
BLADES: $325-520
SKINS: $150-300
CUT PROOF SKINS: $150-250
TIPS(for gloves): $10-40
GLOVES: $15-40
HELMETS: $70-100
SHARPENING STONES: $40-140
BURR STONES: $4-40
BLADE GUARDS: $15-25
KEVLAR CALF/ANKLE PROTECTORS: $20-50
SHARPENING JIGS: $155-500
TURN CABLE $150-180
RADIUS/BEND GAUGE: $200
Other costs include:
1) Ice time can vary from rink to rink. But here's an average. For an adult skater (19 and over) it costs $20 each time they skate. If a skater is on the ice 5 times a week, then they spend $100 a week on ice alone.
(....And that's not a Disneyland - 'All Day Ticket'. That could be an hour of ice time or a session.) Update: a session at S. Cal is one hour and 15 minutes
2) travel to competitions. A skater like Lezleigh will typically travel to 4 American Cups and to the US Championships. If each trip costs $500 (airfare, hotel and food) that is a $2,500 budget for travel to competitions.
(I personally, think those figures for travel are a little light. As some of you know who flew in from the opposite coast for WC6, airfare alone could cost you $500rt)
3) gym membership and strength and condition coaching can run a lot. Some skaters find this type of support for about $100 a month or some $1,200 a year.
(An elite level skater I'll bet would be spending even more on personal trainers)
4) some skaters see nutritionists and or sports psychologists. You can imagine those costs!
5) Some skaters have private coaching sessions from the top coaches in the country.
(Cha-ching.) Update: Approximately around $40 for a half hour on average. Group coaching will cost less per skater.
(I've also heard that the costs of those non-cut skinsuits can reach into the 1000's at the elite level)
(Many, many, thanks to JL for gathering this information, Anthony Barthell, who has been unbelievably generous with all the time and information he has given us, I don't know when he's found time to skate!, and Sue Perles from SCSSA who has really gone above and beyond in helping us with the best solutions for setting up our fund-raising efforts and really having the best interests of the skaters at heart)
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Post by mtnme on Apr 16, 2008 20:48:38 GMT -5
OK guys - who's going where? I need to start requesting vacation days. St Louis? SLC? Vancouver? Where else? Mtnme, GND, Wildfire, Maricorgi, Skaterswaltz, Lily....let me hear from you. Wags, Count me in for St Louis and SLC for sure. Vancouver if I find reasonable airfare - and Oh yeah- if the boss-man lets me! (Last time I looked, it was just as expensive to fly there as the cheapie flight I found to Austria!  ) I haven't completely ruled out Austria. (I've got a year to save up- right?)  |
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Post by apolostarr on Apr 16, 2008 21:03:29 GMT -5
I'm going to try for St. Louis then SLC as I'll be home from college during that time...SLC is really pushing it esp. for my parents as it's in such close proximity to my family summer vacation that I don't think I can save up for it that fast, so December would be best!
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Post by number1fan on Apr 16, 2008 21:28:16 GMT -5
mtnme...thanks for the expense breakdown of the st'ers...
a real eye opener  !
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Post by aaosmts19 on Apr 17, 2008 5:57:36 GMT -5
Mtnme, that was a great summary of the skater costs. Thanks for putting it together.
So, for someone like Lezleigh, does she get any financial support from her ss club, or us speedskating? or some other related organization?
Thanks again.
Linda
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Post by mtnme on Apr 17, 2008 14:00:20 GMT -5
Mtnme, that was a great summary of the skater costs. Thanks for putting it together. So, for someone like Lezleigh, does she get any financial support from her ss club, or us speedskating? or some other related organization? Thanks again. Linda The skating clubs do fundraisers and raise money for their clubs as a whole. At the level Lezleigh is at the moment, she and her family shoulder most of the costs. Once a skater makes the National team, USS contributes more of the funding for skaters. The better they place in competitions- the more they are awarded, but it depends on USS budget too. (However, once you're at the National level, your expenses go up too. Elite level athletes have a lot of elite level trainers so they can stay on top of thier game. Look at the group of people Apolo has surrounding him on his 'team' to keep him performing well) If you want to know what the skaters get compensated, go to the first post on this thread and there is a link to the athletes agreement. Many of the skaters that were on the World and World team we originally heard before worlds that some of them were having some funding issues. After Worlds, they placed so well at those two competitions, their funding increased with their performance. I mean seriously, Mens' team- #1 in the world. If USS isn't taking care of them now, they never will! LOL ...at least that's our information to date. Hopefully those skaters will let us know if that doesn't happen to be the case.   They will be included on the website we are building for the Athletes (Thanks, Apolostarr) so fans can support whoever they would like. They are being handled differently than skaters like Lezleigh who get very little help with coaching and funding until she is on the National team. And I'm not claiming to be the authority on how this works, this is just the information we have gotten to date on how this works. What the athletes also get once they make the National team, (and I've heard this is huge) is they are invited to skate at the Oval with the rest of the National team, and now have greater access to elite level athlete amenities to help them improve their abilities and the impressive National coaching staff. |
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Post by linmiste on Apr 17, 2008 18:31:18 GMT -5
Hey, just wanted to drop a note and say thanks for all your hard work on this, and for the information. It's hard to believe boots alone are over $1000! Crazy! And it's still too bad the OC doesn't help develop younger skaters more. So, you guys are awesome. Keep up the good work! Can't wait to see the official website. From what I've seen of Apolostarr's work, it will be both creative and informative.
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Post by daisymomma on Apr 17, 2008 18:49:40 GMT -5
all this is really interesting thank you for all your hard work on putting it together.
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Post by debbief on Apr 17, 2008 23:04:02 GMT -5
Thanks for the all the info. I knew the boots cost at least $1000, but I wasn't aware of all the other expenses. They sure add up. I am anxious to check out the website once it is done. At this time, I am planning on going to Vancouver, St. Louis and possibly, Austria too. Time to use some of those frequent flyer miles! Just hope there are not too many more airlines that go bankrupt!  |
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Post by aaosmts19 on Apr 18, 2008 5:54:08 GMT -5
. Time to use some of those frequent flyer miles! Just hope there are not too many more airlines that go bankrupt! I hear ya! Yesterday I booked a first class, round trip ticket to Las Vegas for $5. It used up the rest of some frequent flier miles I had incurred in 2004 when I made 35 trips to Tallahassee on business. I decided to use them before I lost them with the Detla/Northwest merge. My plan is to make a 'pilgrimage' up to SLC to check out the Oval. |
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Post by Lori on Apr 18, 2008 14:12:35 GMT -5
Hey, y'all!
Our 'little project' is off and running, and we'll soon be branching out and promoting it in other places - so in anticipation of an influx of new visitors, Mtnme thought a summary of how all of everyone's ideas and questions have evolved into TheRockerFund was in order. We didn't want to take up space to start a new thread - and we don't want people to have to slog through 10 pages of our brainstorming, so we'll just link potential 'newbies' to this page and they can be up to speed quickly!
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Welcome to TheRockerFund! - Supporting America's Short Track Speedskaters[/b]
"True dedication is representing a country, most of which only seriously acknowledges you every four years. Being your best even when networks won't give you airtime. Giving your all even when your victories are printed under 'other sports'. For them it has to be for the love of the game, and THAT is what creates champions." ~ a fan
What is TheRockerFund?
TheRockerFund is a grass-roots fan project aimed at generating funding for US Olympic hopefuls in the sport of short track speedskating. Unlike many countries that compete internationally, our athletes do not receive money from government funding. Athletes who compete at the elite level must rely largely on their own resources. Families make great sacrifices for their kids to compete, and the further they go in competition, the bigger the expenses become. We've created an environment that encourages people to support and follow the careers of specific skaters, with the opportunity to include encouragement and well-wishes with their donations. Our hope is that this will promote a greater connection between skaters and fans - inspiring more people to attend short track events, which will benefit the sport as a whole.
Most of us began following the sport primarily because of the Olympic success of Apolo Anton Ohno and got acquainted with each other online at his various fan web sites. Many of us eventually met at short track competitions and brought back stories of Apolo and his teammates' dedication, inspiration, talent and graciousness toward their fans. Those encounters will hopefully motivate more and more Americans to get acquainted with the sport known as 'NASCAR On Ice'. It's an experience you will never forget!
How did TheRockerFund begin?
Well, sour grapes, actually. Or, a little more accurately, sucking on lemons and deciding to make lemonade with them instead. After enjoying the 'perks' of VIP seats at the 2007-08 National Championships, we found that VIP tickets were not available to us for the World Cup event 2 months later in Salt Lake City. We decided that rather than whining about it, it would be a nice idea to take the cost difference and donate the money to a struggling ST athlete. We planned to collect the funds, choose a skater, and give the money to him/her at the event. That sounds easy enough, right? It wasn't. We discovered that far too many of the skaters we had been cheering for were having funding difficulties and it was too heartbreaking to choose one over another, so we walked away from Salt Lake City with our money still in our pockets, a lot of work to do, and a commitment to help as many of these athletes as we could for as long as we could... and TheRockerFund was born!
What is the basic 'gameplan'?
A website (TheRockerFund.org) will be launched with bios of the skaters who are on our 'list' and include information on how people can donate to them - preferably through the clubs that they are or have been associated with. We are also trying to provide opportunities for donors to give encouragement and well-wishes, as well as links to the skaters' websites or blogs and ways for the athletes to give feedback and updates on their training and accomplishments if they choose to.
Is my donation tax deductible?
Yes, for the athletes affiliated with a Sec. 501c3 club. You would make your check out to the club with a note stating your preference that the funds go to a particular athlete, then the club would get the money into the skater's hands. The club cannot legally guarantee that the money will go to a particular skater, but the policy of the clubs we're dealing with is to 'distribute the funds in accordance with the wishes of the donor'. There will eventually be skaters who cannot be reached through clubs, and in those cases your gifts would not be tax deductible.
How will you deal with the athletes' physical privacy?
We don't want their personal addresses, e-mails, phone numbers, etc., to be made public, and any means to facilitate sponsor/skater interaction will protect that information unless the athletes choose to reveal it.
What will the athletes' responsibility be toward the donors?
We want to keep donors' expectations realistic. You are encouraged to 'give with an open hand', expecting nothing in return - any communication by the athletes either privately or through the website would certainly help to strengthen the connection with the fans, but would be entirely optional on the part of the skater.
How does a skater get on the 'List'?
We want to avoid having to 'play God' - therefore the current plan is to rely on and trust the recommendations of third parties (coaches, clubs, skating associations, and even other skaters and parents) as to who we should consider for our program. We realize that fortunes can change quickly based on the skaters' rankings (and even the consequences of injury), so we'd rather err on the side of having too many on the list than too few. We want to keep the potential 'pool' of skaters manageable, but also make it as inclusive as possible. At this time we are 'loosely' limiting it to skaters who have competed or who are eligible to compete at Senior Nationals. Once they've been recommended, the skaters would be invited to participate and submit a biography and a few pictures so that fans can get to know them better.
How will the skaters feel about being portrayed as 'needing financial help'?
We are very concerned about the fine line between communicating need yet not embarrassing the skaters within their peer group. Our idea is to make people understand that these athletes are participating in a very expensive sport that gets relatively little in large sponsorships, and that the group on our list as a whole has been identified as 'having funding difficulties that could potentially interfere with their ability to train'. Any additional information about need or financial hardship that is published will be provided by and up to the individual skater.
Will TheRockerFund organizers control any funds?
Because the setup of the website will be 'information only', and contributions will be made privately to the athlete either directly or through a club, no money will pass through the hands of the organizers. For example, Donor 'A' will see that to donate to Skater 'B', he/she must write a check (or perhaps click a Paypal link) to Club 'C', and the address/link will be provided. There may be instances where we would be selling t-shirts or doing general fundraisers where donor confidence will need to be addressed, but we'll cross those bridges when we come to them. The drawback to this system is that it will be difficult to determine the success of the program, but hopefully we'll get enough voluntary feedback from the skaters, donors and clubs that we can make some assessments about our effectiveness.
Will this turn into a 'popularity contest'?
Because all contributions will be made privately and outside the website, the skaters will not know who is getting how much from whom, unless they choose to talk about it among themselves. If we do get feedback about donations, it will be reported as 'total donations' and not broken down by skater. Obviously, some of the lesser-known skaters might not feel as much 'love', so we will be 'featuring' skaters on a rotating basis so that people can learn more about all of them.
Does the skater need to be concerned in that accepting donations may void some sort of contract or association with the USS, IOC, etc?
No. As long as they adhere to the guidelines in their athlete agreement with the USS, any money that is donated to them is acceptable. Skaters seek and accept donations/sponsorships all the time - they couldn't afford to compete if they didn't.
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We'd like to add that this effort could not have gotten off the ground without the cooperation and support of a multitude of people. There was the original core group who formulated this plan in January, then nurtured it throughout our weekend in Salt Lake City, beginning the networking process that helped us get rolling. You have been quietly working with us behind the scenes since Day 1, making contacts, giving suggestions and information, and encouraging us when we were 'having a bad day'. And you were the first ones to step up and donate when we finally started posting skater bios. I would list you all, but I'm sure I'd forget someone. You know who you are, and we know who you are - thank you for having the patience to wait until we 'got it right'.
There are also those who contributed on this thread tirelessly and enthusiastically as we 'brainstormed' our way from Point A to Point B and beyond - and special kudos to Lindsey, Noelle and Theresa, webmistresses extraordinaire who have lent us your 'babies' and given us a platform from which to fly!
Last but certainly not least, there are the many skaters, parents, coaches and club officials who have done everything in their power to make this happen, giving input and encouragement from your own unique perspective that was indispensable in getting us to this point. And of course, the skaters who have partnered with us - thank you for taking this 'leap of faith' with us, and for putting your trust in us.
In closing, we have no idea if this thing will 'take off', but we'll never know unless we try. All we can say is that scores of people who one year ago only wanted to watch Apolo skate (or dance) are now staying up until the wee hours watching live data feeds of races, just as excited to hear about Jordan and Katherine's split times as they are about Apolo's - so who knows what a bunch of determined fans can do?
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Post by apolostarr on Apr 18, 2008 15:25:51 GMT -5
Lori, is it alright if I take everything you posted it and put it on the website in our FAQ section?
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breidy
Junior Member
Posts: 96 
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Post by breidy on Apr 18, 2008 15:33:35 GMT -5
Lori, thank you for the information on TheRockerFund. Here is some information on a new program available to skaters aspiring to elite-level performance. This information was posted at Ohnozone.net but I'll repost it here.
The Virginia Speedskating Elite Team is a new, free, year-round training program for skaters aspiring to elite-level performance. It's hoped that this team will be a combination of National Team as well as Development skaters of a wide range of ages. This program is based in Richmond, VA and is being announced at this weekend's US Speedskating spring board meeting in Bethlehem, PA.
This team offers:
World class coaches
Individual program devleopment dedicated to the improvement of all team skaters
Training five days each week from June thru March
Each training day includes two-hour ice session, one-hour dry land technical instruction session, and one-hour cardio, resistance, or strength session.
Mini-clinics with National Team skaters
Spring Cross Training Program
Housing available on first interest basis
College and High School enrollment available
Team Membership is free and includes:
Free coaching
Free ice sessions
Free dryland training
All equipment and skates paid by Team
All competition expenses paid by Team
US Speedskating Membership paid by Team
Skaters wanting to be accepted into this program should contact Steve Burton at sburton@virginiaspeedskating.org.
Hopefully "free" means "free." Hope once this is announced at the USS Spring Board meeting they will get the word out.
Another resource for those skaters TheRockerFund are trying to reach. Maybe with help from several fronts these young men and women can dedicate theirselves to their sport with a lot less burden to shoulder.
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~Lori