Slipstream Sports, that currently owns and manages the pro road team Cannondale-Drapac, has turned to Indiegogo as means of raising money in order to fund the team for 2018.
Slipstream’s Jonathan Vaughters told team members last week that the team was in danger of shutting down after a sponsor, who he hasn’t named publicly, decided to end its support. Vaughters said Slipstream needs to raise an additional $7 million to race next year.
The Texas-based consulting firm, The Fairly Group, has pledged to match public donations up to $2 million.
Slipstream has already raised $800,000 since the campaign went live over the weekend.
“The crowdfunding campaign serves a dual purpose,” Vaughters said in an email to supporters Wednesday. “We’re not only looking to bring in the funds necessary to keep this team alive but also to demonstrate to another sponsor that we have the most engaged and invested fans in the business.”
Vaughters asked that supporters promote the #SaveArgyle campaign on social media, and he asked people with leads for corporate financial support to contact him at j.vaughters@slipstreamsports.com.
More information: the Indigogo pledge page.
more from Slipstream Sports …
Join the #SaveArgyle campaign to keep Slipstream Sports alive in 2018. When we shared the news of our uncertain future, our fans responded with an incredible show of support. Inspired by your feedback, we have turned to crowdfunding as one of our revenue options. Donate to officially join the Slipstream Sports family and #SaveArgyle. All donations up to $2 million will be matched by Fairly Group and other generous supporters. Donations will be refunded if the team does not continue in 2018.
Recently Slipstream Sports management received some discouraging news about a new partner we anticipated joining us in 2018. Without this partner’s support, we cannot guarantee our financial security and subsequently our UCI WorldTour license for 2018. We want to be clear: All of our current sponsors and partners (Cannondale, Drapac, Oath, POC) have remained committed to supporting our team in 2018. These sponsors have lived up to their promises; however, without additional financial backing, the numbers simply don’t add up.
We need your help to #SaveArgyle and ride in the WorldTour in 2018.
When news of our uncertain future broke within the cycling world, #GreenArgyle fans rallied around this team. We have been humbled and inspired by your support. The most common response we heard was “crowdfund” — and so here we are. We are proud to see our fans band together and become part of a movement to #SaveArgyle. This may be a different way of doing things, but it’s fair to say we’ve never been conventional.
When our friends at Fairly Group caught wind of the calls to crowdfund, they rose to the challenge. Fairly Group and other generous supporters have committed $2 million to the team for 2018 as part of a “match challenge” to our fans and other businesses in an effort to #SaveArgyle and preserve America’s pro cycling legacy and future. Every dollar you donate, up to $2 million, will be matched by Fairly Group and other key supporters.
“American pro cycling has a rich history of competitive excellence and Slipstream has carried the torch for many years, having developed many of America’s best cycling talents and taken them to the Tour de France,” stated Alex Fairly, President of the Fairly Group. “Our ethos is built on our willingness to step into our client’s most difficult challenges, and our goal in making this commitment is to provide a spark that continues to ignite the flame of support for America’s best pro cyclists competing on cycling’s WorldTour stage.”
Cannondale-Drapac is an American-registered WorldTour cycling team competing at the highest level of the sport. In the 2017 season, we’ve competed with the youngest roster, lowest budget and one of the most diverse squads in the WorldTour.
The team is managed by Slipstream Sports, the brainchild of Jonathan Vaughters and Doug Ellis, who founded the company in 2005 on the belief there was a better way to run a cycling team. First and foremost, the team has always been unwavering in its commitment to anti-doping, and was the first professional cycling team to institute its own internal testing protocols.
The team’s notable achievements include: stage wins at every Grand Tour, Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico, the overall classifications at the Giro d’Italia, Criterium du Dauphiné, Tour of Missouri, Tour of Utah, the USA Pro Challenge, Tour of Alberta and at three monuments: Paris-Roubaix, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Il Lombardia. This year we finished second overall at the Tour de France with Colombian star Rigoberto Uran.
Long time supporter of the Argyle Armada? New convert thanks to Rigoberto Uran’s Tour de France performance or Taylor Phinney’s daily diaries on NBC? Become an official part of the Slipstream Sports family in 2018. Our Indiegogo campaign is one of the revenue options that we are counting on to keep this team alive in 2018. Every donation to #SaveArgyle helps and rewards start at $25 USD. Donations will only be processed if the team continues in 2018.
All $25+ donors will receive:
Able to make a bigger contribution? We offer the following perks from $50-$50,000
Check out our reward structure (right) for additional details on perks.
Beyond monetary donations, here’s other ways you can help #SaveArgyle in 2018
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