# How much money does a professional dh/fr mtber make???



## FreerideMonkey7 (Oct 12, 2007)

I'm just curious, do you guys know whow much someone like Sam Hill or Darren Berrecloth make?

I know FR/DH isn't too popular and I wanna see how different sports' athletes' salaries stack up.


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## Freerydejunky (Sep 21, 2006)

next to nothing
just like alot of extreme sports their salaries arn't that much, but they get almost everything comped.


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## tacubaya (Jan 27, 2006)

Cedric Gracia had/has a very sweet salarie... 6 figure per year and he got 150,000 Euros when he signed for Cannondale.


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## Nut! (Nov 2, 2007)

Jared Graves gets something like, 900,000 a year from Yeti? I know I heard that somewhere. Probably a lot of that is travel and race expenses though.


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## Calidownhiller (May 24, 2008)

Nut! said:


> Jared Graves gets something like, 900,000 a year from Yeti? I know I heard that somewhere. Probably a lot of that is travel and race expenses though.


I find that extremely hard to believe, but u never know. I think the freerider/djers make a lot more money then the racers at this point


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## kipdrunner (Aug 9, 2007)

Nut! said:


> Jared Graves gets something like, 900,000 a year from Yeti? I know I heard that somewhere. Probably a lot of that is travel and race expenses though.


I highly doubt that (maybe 90,000 including travel and bikes etc. ?), and also CG is doing so well because he deals in Real Estate too, I doubt most pros could afford such a nice house and car.


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## tacubaya (Jan 27, 2006)

The 6 figure salarie I said is just from bike stuff (Commencal, Marzocchi, Oakley, Bell etc)


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## tacubaya (Jan 27, 2006)

I also read somewhere that Santa Cruz paid Steve Peat 1.3 million for a 3 year contract.


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## carbuncle (Dec 9, 2005)

Matt hunter is driving the same clapped-out pickup in Seasons that he was shown driving in the Collective, that should tell you something.


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## chooofoojoo (Feb 22, 2007)

The average Pro racer makes next to nothing. literally. The pro pay out for winning the last MSC race was the lump sum of $100. pathetic. 

However most of your "big name" pros get paid more comfortable salaries due to the fact that they are much more 'public'.


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## davep (Mar 11, 2005)

Sorry guys, but no one makes that kind of $$ from _mtb companies_.

All but the *very top *handful of world cup racers work regular jobs to pay the bills...and take time off to race/train (especially here in the USA where cycling in general is not a widely supported sport by the masses). No one is making millions(these days), NO one. (and IF anyone is actually bringing in six figures, it is NOT from mtb.....it is because they are a 'lifestyle personality'.

Guys like Cedric do well because of sponsors like Oakley, same for guys like Kyle Stait...corporate 'lifestyle sponsors' far outclass and pay much more $$ than any mtb company. This is not exclusive to mtb at all, people like Tiger make more $$ from Nike and Oakley than anything related ot actual golf.

Now, if you go back about 20 years, when MTB had lots of corporate sponsors, and was on TV, there was some real $$ around (six figure sallaries for big names) due to combined corporate support for teams/athletes...but with no TV coverage, and almost no big sponsors (the big mtb companies dont even participate in sponsorship/put $$ into the FR/DH side of the sport) corporate/lifestyle/automobiles etc.

Unfortunately, I dont see this changing much in the US, due to the fact that the general public thinks of all bikes/cycling as a toy for kids, not a truely demanding athletic sport(no sponsor is going to pay large $ to a 'kid' to ride a 'toy'). One needs to look no farther than the road cycling world (where million dollar sallaries are normal) to see the difference in the world vs US view on cycling. Any and all promising road cyclist moves to europe if the ever want to get somewhere with it. It is much like soccer...

Until/unless the US perception of cycling (every type) changes fundmentally....FR/Dh salaries are WAY to FAR down on the 'athlete' ranking for anyone here to make any money.


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## kidwoo (Aug 11, 2004)

I get paid 50k a year to talk shlt to a bunch of little kids on the internet with dh bikes who don't know what the fvck they're talking about.


It's a living.


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## Alloy (Feb 11, 2004)

Most US pros racing the full circuit make around -$20,000:thumbsup:


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## Iceman2058 (Mar 1, 2007)

davep said:


> ...This is not exclusive to mtb at all, people like Tiger make more $$ from Nike and Oakley than anything related ot actual golf....


Nike actually makes all of Tiger's clubs, clothes, shoes, and golfballs. Just about the only thing they don't supply him with is a putter (because he won't stop using his old magic one...).

And through this deal, Nike has gone from being a nobody in golf equipment (except clothes), to one of the top brands in the world. Probably worth the 150m US over 3 years or whatever they paid him...

Tiger makes about 100m US per year all told. about 10% of that in prize money, the rest is sponsorship. Nike, Buick, Accenture, previously AMEX....not sure about Oakley though. But, he doesn't get to ride full suspension MTBs down rock strewn mountainsides at blinding speed with no body armor, so there's always a trade-off.


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## prophet413 (May 17, 2007)

go to college


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## be350ka (Dec 17, 2004)

prophet413 said:


> go to college


......and stay out of aviation!!


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## darkzeon (Jun 15, 2006)

Wow, and I thought I'm just so unlucky not to afford the bike that I want, I feel so envious to people asking about how the new frames/forks perform because their current one is "6 months" outdated, or because they probably don't like the current decals for these year's model! The "SHOW OFF" threads makes me even more sick! It should be show off your DH/FR funded by parents thread.


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## njhcx4xlife (Jan 9, 2006)

darkzeon said:


> Wow, and I thought I'm just so unlucky not to afford the bike that I want, I feel so envious to people asking about how the new frames/forks perform because their current one is "6 months" outdated, or because they probably don't like the current decals for these year's model! The "SHOW OFF" threads makes me even more sick! It should be show off your DH/FR funded by parents thread.


HUH? How is this related to this thread?

2nd point: I'm pretty sure a lot of guys posting "show off" threads have jobs and pay for their stuff. It is a crazy concept... you work hard to buy nice stuff. I worked in a shop to afford all of my bikes before I graduated college and now buy stuff with money I work hard for as do a lot of people. You should complain less and work more.


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## unclekittykiller (Mar 1, 2006)

be350ka said:


> ......and stay out of aviation!!


I'm guessing you haven't found work yet?


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## Mudd (Apr 22, 2002)

Not nearly enough! 
That's why they still live at home with their mom and dad.


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## hozzerr1 (Feb 26, 2005)

Alloy said:


> Most US pros racing the full circuit make around -$20,000:thumbsup:


Don't worry guys, I am currently working on a recipe that will change the sport forever and bring in the loot.:thumbsup:


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## dwnhlldav (Feb 2, 2006)

darkzeon said:


> Wow, and I thought I'm just so unlucky not to afford the bike that I want, I feel so envious to people asking about how the new frames/forks perform because their current one is "6 months" outdated, or because they probably don't like the current decals for these year's model! The "SHOW OFF" threads makes me even more sick! It should be show off your DH/FR funded by parents thread.


My parents bought me a huffy when I was twelve. That was the last bike they bought me.

Like njhcx4xlife said, "Complain less, work more."


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## hab1b (Jan 15, 2007)

Iceman2058 said:


> Nike actually makes all of Tiger's clubs, clothes, shoes, and golfballs. Just about the only thing they don't supply him with is a putter (because he won't stop using his old magic one...)


acutally... Tigers Nike clubs are Titleist clubs with the nike logo stamped on them. His balls are also Titleist Pro-V1's with the nike logo stamped on them.


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## brillantesdv (Oct 24, 2007)

njhcx4xlife said:


> HUH? How is this related to this thread?
> 
> 2nd point: I'm pretty sure a lot of guys posting "show off" threads have jobs and pay for their stuff. It is a crazy concept... you work hard to buy nice stuff. I worked in a shop to afford all of my bikes before I graduated college and now buy stuff with money I work hard for as do a lot of people. You should complain less and work more.


agreed. most of my paycheck since Febuary, including my tax refund and stimulus check, have gone towards my DH build. 
work hard, then you can afford the nice things.


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## DirtGash (Mar 1, 2008)

darkzeon said:


> Wow, and I thought I'm just so unlucky not to afford the bike that I want, I feel so envious to people asking about how the new frames/forks perform because their current one is "6 months" outdated, or because they probably don't like the current decals for these year's model! The "SHOW OFF" threads makes me even more sick! It should be show off your DH/FR funded by parents thread.


Maybe the groms with the nice bikes have some parenting funding going on...but for the 18+ riders.... It is usually a mix of saving their hard earned dollars and a thing we Americans love called....'credit!'

Back to the thread topic.... As a whole FR/DH should make more $$$...I think it is wrong that the skaters like Bam make gazillions and drive around in Lambos for doing little gay tricks on a plank of wood.

So dunno....maybe all the top pro freeriders should make a Jackass sort of series based around FRiding, sell it to MTV and put FR in the same spotlight as skateboarding....

Wait...nah...bad idea... at least FR has never sold out and became gay!

Bring on the next Red Bull Rampage!!!!


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## boogenman (Sep 22, 2006)

CG makes good money because he is one of the old pros from back in the day when the top 20 guys all made $100k+, I'm sure Lopes makes a good amount still and I am sure he has invested the loads of cash he made in the 90's. 

I am sure the top WC guys today are also making good money, not sure if they are making $100k but probably pretty close to that. That is why you don't see small companies backing the top guys, they just don't have the money to pay for them. 

I miss the 90's and going to the nationals and seeing all the big name trailers pull in. It all went downhill after about 99-00 but before that it was a show going to the big races, free demo bikes to ride all day, free parts and swag getting thrown off of 53ft team trailers in the evening, thousands showing up for the naked crit at mt. snow:thumbsup:


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## tacubaya (Jan 27, 2006)

hab1b said:


> acutally... Tigers Nike clubs are Titleist clubs with the nike logo stamped on them. His balls are also Titleist Pro-V1's with the nike logo stamped on them.


Have you seen Tiger's balls? You should be ashamed of yourself.


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## William42 (Oct 29, 2006)

the message is: don't go into mtb to make money - go into it because you love the sport and are really good at it. If you want all the nicest bikes and gear, its almost certainly more worth it to apply your attention elsewhere to make money, and then buy at resale


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## norbar (Jun 5, 2007)

Top pros make 6 digits per year. From what I remember it was the same with Lopes. It's because they are not sponsored by 1 company. Garcia was Maxxis, Okley, Commencal, Marz dont remember what else. It was similar with Lopes and many others.

Also from what I remember the idea was that some time ago there was a lot of ppl making some money from the sport and they shifted to no money for most riders and much more for the top ones. But I may have mixed it


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## Uncle Cliffy (Jul 7, 2006)

DirtGash said:


> So dunno....maybe all the top pro freeriders should make a Jackass sort of series based around FRiding,


Have you seen any of the Chain Reaction videos? Thumbsup. :thumbsup:


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## Iceman2058 (Mar 1, 2007)

hab1b said:


> acutally... Tigers Nike clubs are Titleist clubs with the nike logo stamped on them. His balls are also Titleist Pro-V1's with the nike logo stamped on them.


No they are not.


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## twouareks (May 13, 2004)

I read an interview with Brian Lopes in MBA a while back and it listed a bunch of facts about him and it said he drives an Audi RS4, which is at least a $70,000 car. And that doesn't include his pimped out van.


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## his dudeness (May 9, 2007)

motormonkeyr6 said:


> next to nothing
> just like alot of extreme sports their salaries arn't that much, but they get almost everything comped.


Just depends who you are. Steve Peat makes about $400,000 a year from Santa Cruz, about $25,000 a year from Lizard Skins to run their grips... thats just two of his many sponsors.

People like Lopes, Cedric, Peaty, Hill, etc are doing pretty well. Top name freeriders like Wade and Darren Berrecloth are probably doing pretty alright too. But a lot of the money is dependant upon what they're going to bring to the sponsor...


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## [email protected] (Dec 29, 2003)

The top World Cup guys do well, but not nearly as well as most other athletes of their level in other sports. For that matter any 3rd string NFL lineman does better than any World Cup DHer.

If you look at the average US DH pro they don't make anything. In the end it costs them $ to go to races. A lot of them even have to pay for their bikes, albeit at a much less than retail price.


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## man w/ one hand (Dec 29, 2003)

http://www.sicklines.com/2008/04/30/tracey-hannah-takes-a-step-back/
Not a top rider but veerry skilled never-the-less. Tracey Hannah was one of the 1st gals to do a back flip in competition and has been giving the tours a real go but *had to bow out because braggin' rights don't pay bills.*

From the article:

I arrived home from the 2007 racing season in September, with a large credit card bill and with perhaps the false expectation that after doing as well as I did I would be getting a better deal from sponsors. A deal that might cover my living expenses whilst I train 100% and also I would be able to service the debt I have accumulated over the past years. This didn't happen.

Reality czech.


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## boogenman (Sep 22, 2006)

How the hell could Santa Cruz pay that much coin to Peat? Between him, Rennie and Minnar how many frames do they need to sell per year?


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## Ithnu (Feb 16, 2007)

There was an interesting article in Outside magazine a few months back about what certain pros in each field make. The lowest I remember was pro kayaking, 20k a year. Snowboarders were roughly 200k. Those were salaries, they included prize money seperately.

I forget some of the other ones, but I'd imagine very few mtb pros get over 100k, there just isn't the money in it compared to snowboarding, so I can't imagine too many make even 1/2 what they make.


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## his dudeness (May 9, 2007)

darkzeon said:


> Wow, and I thought I'm just so unlucky not to afford the bike that I want, I feel so envious to people asking about how the new frames/forks perform because their current one is "6 months" outdated, or because they probably don't like the current decals for these year's model! The "SHOW OFF" threads makes me even more sick! It should be show off your DH/FR funded by parents thread.


Hey man, when I was 17 I had a $5,000 dh bike. Not because my parents bought it, but because I worked my a$$ off and saved my cash for a long time. Matter of fact I bought my $2,500 freeride bike two years prior, a $1500 hardtail a couple years before that... see the point? Save your money, buy a bike, and start saving for the next one cause you know you're going to want something new someday. This is all from working at a Togos as a low grade sandwich mokey by the way.

And there are also people that like to stay current with the new technology... and others that need to stay current with the new technology because its related to their jobs.


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## FoxRider77 (Jul 28, 2005)

It's sad that the top mountain bikers are not paid more. The US race scene is also horrible; they should follow MX racing and start using pro payout and come up with an exciting national series. Look at Carmichael and Stewart. They are def. making at least 100 grand a year for MX. I think with the right race series that mountain biking could be just as successful.


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## Calidownhiller (May 24, 2008)

boogenman said:


> How the hell could Santa Cruz pay that much coin to Peat? Between him, Rennie and Minnar how many frames do they need to sell per year?


Roughly 1700-2000 v10 frames a year.


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## ChromedToast (Sep 19, 2006)

brillantesdv said:


> agreed. most of my paycheck since Febuary, including my tax refund and stimulus check, have gone towards my DH build.
> work hard, then you can afford the nice things.


Or be poor and still have nice things.

DISCLAIMER: "nice things" doesn't include clothes, housing, food as well as any and all non sport related items.


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## Orange-Goblin (Jan 27, 2008)

hear hear! I worked my ass off to afford my new SS. I think that comments pretty ignorant, or at least a bit narrow minded. I don't doubt that a lot of rich kids get bikes from their folks, but a lot of us work hard for our rides!!!


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## -C- (Oct 26, 2006)

There was a recent article in a UK paper about the Athertons, and it was suggested they earn a 6 figure £UK salary, as do most of the top 10 DH riders.

So, roughly $200k in your money.


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## swaussie (Jul 23, 2007)

Its becoming more and more popular as a sport, just take a look at all the bike parks opening up across the Alps here in Europe. As the winters become more sketchy a lot of ski areas are turning to mountain biking to pick up some cash through the summer to compensate. As it grows as a sport more money will become involved and riders like Gee, Sam, Peaty, Darren, etc are great ambassadors for the sport and kids will want to start emulating them.

A few years ago only a select few riders chose downhill due to limited areas to ride, now you see lots of teenagers and older people getting into downhilling moving the sport from the fringes to mainstream, and why not, its a lot of fun and a difficult skill to master.


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## Wizard4620383 (May 12, 2007)

that's a good question but a lot of people here are missinformated on this, most of the wC riders doesnt get pay a lot, but a lot of you would be impress to see how much, Hill, Peat, Barel, Gracia have from their team/sponsors, especialy guy like Peat and Barel...


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## vwolf (Jun 9, 2004)

The MX guys make way more than 100k...I know for some races first place prize money is 150k just for that race...on top of that sponsors fork over big bucks...RC came out on MTV cribs a while back and in his trophy room he had the check from winning the SX championship and it was 1.3 million or something like that.
Between prize money and sponsorship deals RC and Bubba make bank..Bubba had a yellow Lambo a few years ago...I'm sure he has more than just that one now.


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## kapital (Dec 5, 2007)

who needs money when your a pro dh'er?


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## CA_Descender (Aug 20, 2004)

[email protected] said:


> The top World Cup guys do well, but not nearly as well as most other athletes of their level in other sports. For that matter any 3rd string NFL lineman does better than any World Cup DHer.
> 
> If you look at the average US DH pro they don't make anything. In the end it costs them $ to go to races. A lot of them even have to pay for their bikes, albeit at a much less than retail price.


Dont even have to be 3rd string. If you sign an NFL contract the minimum is 400K even if you do not get to play.

I have no idea what they make these days but in the late '80s and early '90s the top pro riders were making 6 figure saleries and not just Overend, Tomac or Juarez. Also, the races were packed with spectators throughout the weeked.

DBD


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## Jettj45 (Jul 25, 2004)

be350ka said:


> ......and stay out of aviation!!


Haha that is amazing advice...I am a flight instructor :madman: Although its not all bad just stay away from Major and Regional airlines...


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## Jettj45 (Jul 25, 2004)

[email protected] said:


> The top World Cup guys do well, but not nearly as well as most other athletes of their level in other sports. For that matter any 3rd string NFL lineman does better than any World Cup DHer.
> 
> If you look at the average US DH pro they don't make anything. In the end it costs them $ to go to races. A lot of them even have to pay for their bikes, albeit at a much less than retail price.


There is no way they pay for any of there bike I only race expert and I pay less than cost for my stuff...


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## .WestCoastHucker. (Jan 14, 2004)

i make a million a year...


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## 006_007 (Jan 12, 2004)

.WestCoastHucker. said:


> i make a million a year...


Dont count the XXX websites that you pull income from.


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

FoxRider77 said:


> It's sad that the top mountain bikers are not paid more. The US race scene is also horrible; they should follow MX racing and start using pro payout and come up with an exciting national series. Look at Carmichael and Stewart. They are def. making at least 100 grand a year for MX. I think with the right race series that mountain biking could be just as successful.


It is sad that people can't get paid to do what I spend all money my to do. Poor poor pro racers, only barely squeaking by while they get to ride their bikes at sweet places all day all over the globe :'(. While I barely squeak by and only occasionally get to ride my bike while doing rather challenging work all day


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## Sombrio69 (Apr 21, 2005)

also alot of times the riders are employed by the companies they ride for. Watson owns Sombrio, Peaty if i remembur right has his hand in Royal Racing somehow. Housman works for Sponsorhouse, Metzger works for Transition, etc.


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## [email protected] (Dec 29, 2003)

Jettj45 said:


> There is no way they pay for any of there bike I only race expert and I pay less than cost for my stuff...


This is one of the big reasons why the sport is failing financially. If experts aren't paying close to retail for their bikes, then who is? But trust me I know a number of better than average pros that have paid "pro deal" for their race equipment.


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## davep (Mar 11, 2005)

[email protected] said:


> This is one of the big reasons why the sport is failing financially. If experts aren't paying close to retail for their bikes, then who is? But trust me I know a number of better than average pros that have paid "pro deal" for their race equipment.


This is a completely seperate issue, but you are right on the mark Scott. I used to work in a similar industry (snowboards..we did some bike repair as well so I am very familar with bike biz margins) and there was a time when literaly half of the participants were getting some kind of deal or another....luckily the industry saw the MAJOR flaw in this 'advertising' tactic, but it took a while. This was due in part to the massive influx of new companies trying to get a toe-hold in the biz....that also came to a halt, and the industry as a whole is much healthier..

Now the bike biz has no excuse (no fledgling companies 'giving' away product as their only marketing (Maybe Moorwood..) to anyone with a heartbeat and a parent to take them to fontana...no 'fastest growing sport' title...just a mature business that is *absolutely F ing *their own heart, soul and intire distribution network in favor of selling wholesale to the general public through total BS like sponsorhouse....

It amazes me how many young bike riders (almost entirely FR and DH it seems) that act as if they are entitled to a deal because they race for fun, against all their buddies at the weekly local races.

How in the world does a mid pack local rider with no connection to a local shop provide ANY sales incentive for any brand, let alone the bike biz in general.....


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## [email protected] (Dec 29, 2003)

That does seem to be the state of the DH market these days.


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## vwolf (Jun 9, 2004)

do riders get paid by film companies like NWD and the Collective for being in their films?

or do they just get free trips out of filming?


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## swan3609 (Oct 28, 2006)

carbuncle said:


> Matt hunter is driving the same clapped-out pickup in Seasons that he was shown driving in the Collective, that should tell you something.


That doesnt mean anything,:madman: 
My family has 4 million in property and rental houses.yet I drive a '66 ford f-100 that Is a total beater...that I bought with my own hard earned money. My dad drove a 89 camery with 300,000 miles on it for 15 years.... and he just now bought a used expedition with70,000 milles on it as a car for our family.
Point is that no matter how much money you make, your vehicle isnt always a reprensation of it. 
Here in Idaho your Image is every thing in societys eyes, I see people driving around in Hummers and lifted v12 hemi powerstroke pickups and they pull into a mobile home that is in foreclosure... Point is that some people choose to be smart about the vehicle that they drive and choose to spend money on something that isnt going to depreciate $10,000the second you drive it off the lot... Like why would Matt Hunter need anything other than that pickup if all he is going to do is go shuttle to the top of the hill and get it dirty? Matt Hunter might be able to afford a different truck,,, maybe he cant. but you shouldnt judge someone on the vechicle that they drive. 
Why do half the people today need a lifted powerstroke truck when all it ever will do is drive to the grocery store? This is a downfall of our society, everyone has to impress the world with their "image" and for 15 year olds that are smart like me we see that this will be one of the downfalls of our society inthe years to come.... along with obesity but dont get me started on that. 

/ 15 year olds rant. :eekster:


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## davep (Mar 11, 2005)

vwolf said:


> do riders get paid by film companies like NWD and the Collective for being in their films?
> 
> or do they just get free trips out of filming?


Typical situation is fimer pays for trip....

Rider gets paid by sponsors for exposure. Most rider contracts (even at moderate levels) will have a pay-per-exposure clause. Full page in certain mags with a full view logo = X$, half page = Y$. Video from recognized filmer = Z$ per second....

etc....etc


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## unclekittykiller (Mar 1, 2006)

swan3609 said:


> That doesnt mean anything,:madman:
> My family has 4 million in property and rental houses.yet I drive a '66 ford f-100 that Is a total beater...that I bought with my own hard earned money. My dad drove a 89 camery with 300,000 miles on it for 15 years.... and he just now bought a used expedition with70,000 milles on it as a car for our family.
> Point is that no matter how much money you make, your vehicle isnt always a reprensation of it.
> Here in Idaho your Image is every thing in societys eyes, I see people driving around in Hummers and lifted v12 hemi powerstroke pickups and they pull into a mobile home that is in foreclosure... Point is that some people choose to be smart about the vehicle that they drive and choose to spend money on something that isnt going to depreciate $10,000the second you drive it off the lot... Like why would Matt Hunter need anything other than that pickup if all he is going to do is go shuttle to the top of the hill and get it dirty? Matt Hunter might be able to afford a different truck,,, maybe he cant. but you shouldnt judge someone on the vechicle that they drive.
> ...


and how is it that you're driving at all when you're only 15? don't get me started on that...


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## FreerideMonkey7 (Oct 12, 2007)

^^^ I'm guessing its different in every state. We get ouur license at 17 in NJ, but Alaska gets it at 14.


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## scorpionsf (Nov 16, 2006)

not only age but certain circumstances, farmwork etc


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## swan3609 (Oct 28, 2006)

unclekittykiller said:


> and how is it that you're driving at all when you're only 15? don't get me started on that...


I am almost 16... In Idaho you can get your day license at 15 and a half. 
and what is wrong with me driving at 15? I worked for my truck, I put the gas in it and I pay half of my insurance. 
I am a good driver.... are you strerotyping 15 year olds as bad drivers? Just beacause some kids cant accept the responsibility that comes with driving doesnt mean that I cant. And I am sure I am a hell of alot safer on the road than some of the people that try to multi task while driving, using cell phones in particular is what comes to my mind first.. :nono:


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## manhattanprjkt83 (May 31, 2005)

kidwoo said:


> I get paid 50k a year to talk shlt to a bunch of little kids on the internet with dh bikes who don't know what the fvck they're talking about.
> 
> It's a living.


you have a good job hahah

i get paid a bit over that to deal with guys making 1 million a year who know about as much as those kids.


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## kitsapfreerider (Nov 26, 2007)

tacubaya said:


> Have you seen Tiger's balls? You should be ashamed of yourself.


haha


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## thegromit (Jan 17, 2007)

I want to know how much the welders and machinist are making on average.


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## Sombrio69 (Apr 21, 2005)

swan3609 said:


> I am almost 16... In Idaho you can get your day license at 15 and a half.
> and what is wrong with me driving at 15? I worked for my truck, I put the gas in it and I pay half of my insurance.
> I am a good driver.... are you strerotyping 15 year olds as bad drivers? Just beacause some kids cant accept the responsibility that comes with driving doesnt mean that I cant. And I am sure I am a hell of alot safer on the road than some of the people that try to multi task while driving, using cell phones in particular is what comes to my mind first.. :nono:


yo kid, take that tampon out your kooter. no one said there was a problem w/ u driving at 15. he had every right to assume that you couldnt drive at 15 because the average min driving age in the US is 16. he wasnt stereotyping you because of your age. although i is a fact that new and younger drivers are not as responsible as older more experienced drivers. you honestly cannot tell me you have never looked out the side window to see something totally unrelated to the road and your immediate surroundings or that you check your rear view and side mirrors EVERY single 15sec. like you are suppose to.

P.S. i AM the best mother****ing driver on the road, biotch.


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## Guest (Jun 28, 2008)

thegromit said:


> I want to know how much the welders and machinist are making on average.


Probably more than most pro riders.


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## boogenman (Sep 22, 2006)

I wish I was a wealthy pornographer


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## =ChrisB= (Aug 8, 2006)

kidwoo said:


> I get paid 50k a year to talk shlt to a bunch of little kids on the internet with dh bikes who don't know what the fvck they're talking about.
> 
> It's a living.


Dude! When i get old like you, I wanna do that!


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## maejsh (Nov 3, 2007)

Seriously, I think that the low salaries for pro MTB'ers is a + for the sport!.
if you look at how friendly most DH/FR's are with eachother, and compare it to many other sports like football, soccer and shizzle like that, the "top sports" (crap sports).
point being that it seems like because the salary is so low, ppl do it because they like to do it, and not to get rich, and that makes them all more happy, and more friendly and fun competitions, instead of "just a job" and hating your colleagues.
but thereby not saying there should be more more money coming their way. especially comparing to how david beckham has the chance of being very clumsy and getting chopped down by a player on the oppesite team and by that maybe breaking a leg at the worst.
where as berrecloth or hill et.c is very unlucky they die..
But im prolly wrong, usually am.


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## essenmeinstuff (Sep 4, 2007)

davep said:


> It amazes me how many young bike riders (almost entirely FR and DH it seems) that act as if they are entitled to a deal because they race for fun, against all their buddies at the weekly local races.
> 
> How in the world does a mid pack local rider with no connection to a local shop provide ANY sales incentive for any brand, let alone the bike biz in general.....


The funny thing is, its the mid pack rider racing against is buddies that is the probably the bread and butter for the companies selling bikes/frames...


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## 317000 (Mar 2, 2007)

swan3609 said:


> I am almost 16... In Idaho you can get your day license at 15 and a half.
> and what is wrong with me driving at 15? I worked for my truck, I put the gas in it and I pay half of my insurance.
> I am a good driver.... are you strerotyping 15 year olds as bad drivers? Just beacause some kids cant accept the responsibility that comes with driving doesnt mean that I cant. And I am sure I am a hell of alot safer on the road than some of the people that try to multi task while driving, using cell phones in particular is what comes to my mind first.. :nono:


Shut up dude, just shut up. No one was "stereotyping" you, and no one really cares about whether or not you pay your own insurance. Tell daddy I say congrats about the real estate and rental houses. :thumbsup:


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## fastmxer9 (Jun 19, 2008)

vwolf said:


> The MX guys make way more than 100k...I know for some races first place prize money is 150k just for that race...on top of that sponsors fork over big bucks...RC came out on MTV cribs a while back and in his trophy room he had the check from winning the SX championship and it was 1.3 million or something like that.
> Between prize money and sponsorship deals RC and Bubba make bank..Bubba had a yellow Lambo a few years ago...I'm sure he has more than just that one now.


please don't think the motocross scene is just full of free flowing money. When you turn on the tv and see the supercross main with 20 guys or the motocross series with a 40 riders the top 7 are making a good living, a few others are making a living and then behind them theres another 100-150 riders (the privateers) that go from race to race and try to qualify for the supercross night show or the final two motocross motos. Those guys make absolutely nothing. I am one of those guys. We're the fastest guys at our local tracks on saturday night, and amaze people, then we lineup with all the others in our boat and we are nothing. I've got a pretty solid deal with a team out of florida and some good sponsors and have a pretty cushy lifestyle as a privateer. MY bikes are given to me and my expenses are paid for. I break even with what I'm doing. I travel with 2 other guys on my team, we split driving. we have a mechanic who isn't paid either. He's actually one of my teammates retired fathers. we clean and reuse our airfilters, we cant afford to just throw a new one in there every ride. IF you want to know how I did this season well I qualified for two supercross heat races and crashed during practice at rd 1 glen helen and am now out until september. back to my point it might look like the world thinks motocross is superior to freeriders and dh but trust me its not. It's just as hard and a little more expensive to make it in the motocross world and a lot of us our just out there cause we love it. 99.99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% of pro mxers will never make back the money they put into it.

edit -- you're facts are exaggerated. the most payout for any race win is 100k and that is the U.S. open in october in las vegas. all the other super cross races the winner gets less then 20,000. also you don't get paid for winning the championship. Most of the money motocross riders make comes from sponsorship contracts and factory contingency. They might get bonuses for winning the championship. for example I ride suzuki which has the best contingency program, most privateers ride suzuki for that reason. If I were to get 2nd in a supercross Id get the winning pay like 15000 plus the suzuki contingency pay of 12500. I also get contingency from my gear sponsor alloy mx which would pay me $2000. reed and them get signing pay of a few million dollars from there factory ride and the same again from there gear sponsors or other sponsors. Plus usually a pretty hefty contingency from there sponsors and probably from the factory and what they pocket from prize money is chump change. Only about 15 riders in the world are making that kind of money. the rest of us are poor.


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## Gemini2k05 (Apr 19, 2005)

fastmxer9 said:


> Only about 15 riders in the world are making that kind of money. the rest of us are poor.


Maybe thats because nobody cares what anyone but the top 5-10 riders are riding? Boohoo :'(. That's life. Regular (football baseball, etc.) make big money, because lots of people watch their sport. Very few people watching motocross or DH means NO MONEY. Jesus christ people stop whining. I'll shed a tear for you not being able to get paid for your hobby after I finish watching some porn or something.


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## RC_Compton (Mar 15, 2008)

If I were Pro I wouldn't mind if i didn't all kinds of crazy money, just enough to get by comfortably and get your races, hotels, and bikes comped. I mean seriously who could complain about riding a MTB for a living, even if it is for sub $100k...


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## Gruntled (Jul 7, 2008)

Even the people who make the better bikes out there don't make much money. So how can they sponsor people and compete with the big-hype-marketing brands?


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## fastmxer9 (Jun 19, 2008)

Gemini2k05 said:


> Maybe thats because nobody cares what anyone but the top 5-10 riders are riding? Boohoo :'(. That's life. Regular (football baseball, etc.) make big money, because lots of people watch their sport. Very few people watching motocross or DH means NO MONEY. Jesus christ people stop whining. I'll shed a tear for you not being able to get paid for your hobby after I finish watching some porn or something.


You're right for the most part and DH or motocross will never become a big mainstream or close to mainstream sport. For a sport to become mainstream it has to be cheap enough for anyone to get involved. i.e. it costs $20 to buy a foot ball and go play a backyard game. DH costs a few grand for the bike, then you usually got to take it somewhere to ride it. It's just to expensive. There is one mx team out there called butler bros mx and they do pretty well. They are not great riders and I don't think they even qualified for any of the supercross heat races this season but they got a good flow of money. All 3 of the brothers have marketing degrees and they have managed to get some sponsors outside of the motocross industry. They got a huge nice rig that parks up by the factory boys and seemingly deep pockets. At first glance you might think they were top 10 riders. If they could share some of there secrets and connections with the rest of the privateer world we'd all be in good hands.


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## Marzocchi Tech Department (Mar 31, 2008)

kidwoo said:


> I get paid 50k a year to talk shlt to a bunch of little kids on the internet with dh bikes who don't know what the fvck they're talking about.
> 
> It's a living.


LOL, that is funny as hell!! Nicely done.

You guys are way off. I know what a lot of these guys have been making for years, and you are nowhere in the ballpark. The highest salary I have ever hear of and have actual facts on was Shawn Palmer when he rode for Specialized back in 98'. 250K. Johnny T was another highly paid rider and he was somewhere up there with ALL his deals. He maybe doubled it win a intentive program too...good incentives will make a man pin it!! johnny ruled in this department. Most riders, including Mr. Lopes are lucky to clear six figures, maybe a little more.

That's why I got a real job years ago. I made roughly 50k back in 90-92' and added about 15k in incentives every year. Now I drink beer and ride however and whenever I want to and make much more than that . Those numbers were back in the hay day for a top 10 all around guy. Not now, no way.

Peatie and Hill most likely make good 6 figure deals but not 1.3 for 3 years. I have serious doubts. More power to them if they are.


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## Grizzly Boy (Dec 13, 2006)

big names like graves hill peat make a LOT but your unheard peeps live out of their cars


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