CrowdRiders aims to establish the world's first professional cycling team owned and managed by an international crowd of cycling fans. Members of the crowd will pay an annual fee of 55 euros to become co-owners and have voting power over major team decisions. The goal is to launch in 2010 with a budget of 4 million euros from 40,000 paying members, allowing the crowd to control over half the budget. Registering as an "aspiring CrowdRider" now shows support for the idea and interest in potentially becoming a full member if the project launches.

1. CrowdRiders translation text
CrowdRiders
The world's first professional cycling team owned and managed by an international crowd of cycling
fans!
About CrowdRiders
What is CrowdRiders?
Crowdriders is an initiative to start a professional cycling team with an international crowd of 40.000
cycling enthusiasts. By paying an annual fee CrowdRiders’ members become owners and managers of
this professional cycling team having a vote in all the major decisions affecting the cycling team. A
team that will participate in some of the biggest and most famous races all over the world!
Among other things CrowdRiders will have a vote in which riders to attract, which races to ride, riders
selection, who should be the sports director of the team and what should be the team’s (internal) anti-
doping policy. Even the team’s jersey design will be democratically elected.
This approach will make it a truly crowd managed cycling team. YOUR professional cycling team!!
The goal
Crowdriders’ aims at starting in the 2010 season with an annual budget of 4 million euro which is higher
than the very competitive and 2008 Tour de France participating teams of Barloworld and Agritubel.
Just above half of this annual budget will be gathered by means of 40.000 members from all over the
world paying an annual 55 eur membership fee. This fee will make them co-owners and managers of
the team having direct voting power in all the major decisions affecting the team. Bringing in 51% of
the budget means the crowd is the majority stake holder and at all times will have control over the
team’s management.
The other half of the budget will be financed by external shirt, material and website sponsors. They will
get no decision power of any sort.
Show your support and register now
In the current initial phase CrowdRiders is looking for 40.000 cycling enthusiasts showing interest in
owning and managing this pro cycling team.
As a cycling enthusiast you can become an aspiring CrowdRider, free of charge and of any further
obligations, by registering your personal details here. Only when 40.000+ people have registered,
showing a strong support for this idea, we will start setting up a CrowdRiders pro cycling team and
collecting membership fees!
But first we need 40.000 registered people! So come and be part of cycling history by registering here.
The special features of CrowdRiders
The features of this unique pro cycling team are among others:
1. Be one of the owners and managers of a pro cycling team; voting power for every member over
a wide range of team decisions from rider’s signing and team selection, jersey design up to the
team’s internal doping policy.
2. Your name on the official team’s jersey and tour bus (for more on this see the F.A.Q.)
3. Get an insiders view in the team through members only news feeds, video footage, riders
interviews and more
4. See YOUR pro-cycling team on tv riding the biggest races around the world
5. Get access to the ‘team members only’ season opening and closing events
6. Possibility to ride with the pro riders of the CrowdRiders team during specially organized global

2. member events
7. See your CrowdRiders team in races close to your living area as it is you who decides upon the
team’s race calendar
8. and much much more…….(submit suggestions through our contact form)
Summarized
To become part of the world’s first pro cycling team owned and managed by an international crowd of
cycling fans you can now register yourself free of charge as an ‘aspriring CrowdRider’ here. By
registering you are just telling us at CrowdRiders.com that you love this idea and consider eventually
becoming a full paying member, when 40.000+ CrowdRiders have registered themselves.
If you become an aspiring CrowdRider now you are in no way obliged to becoma a full member the
moment CrowdRiders starts accepting payments.
In the meantime we will keep you updated through our blog and targeted emails.
Share with the world
Become an aspiring CrowdRider
Here you can register yourself as an ‘aspiring CrowdRider’. By registering you are not committing
yourself to anything. You are just telling us you love the idea and potentially would like to become a
member whenever we find 40.000 other ‘aspiring CrowdRiders’. Whenever we reach this number of
40.000 we will email you and the CrowdRiders project will really take off by simultaneously
commencing team structuring, starting the voting process by CrowdRiders’ members and accepting
CrowdRider’s membership fee payments.
So don’t hesitate and join us on this amazing ride!
1. Register your data
2. First name(required)
3. Last name(required)
4. Email(valid email required)
5. Date of Birth(required)
6. Gender
7. Male Female
8. Nationality(required)
9. Comments additional remarks
10.Type the Characters you see in the box
Submit the form
F.A.Q.
Check out our F.A.Q. list below to find answers to your most pressing questions and concerns. If your
question isn’t listed here please don’t hesitate to contact us through our contact form.
Why a crowd-sourced cycling team?
In a time period where more and more crowd sourced and open source initiatives are employed (e.g.
the linux operating system, openprosthetics.org and myfootballclub.co.uk) a crowd sourced cycling
team seems very fitting. With its enormous global fan base, international racing calendar and easy and
free spectator access it seems like an ideal setting for a crowd managed initiative.
The main characteristic that makes cycling a good crowd managed setting is the fact that a cycling
team is not based in one limited geographical area. During the season the team races and trains all
over the world which means in effect that the team will come to you instead of you having to travel far

3. and wide to catch a glimpse of YOUR team.
Has this or something similar been done before?
A cycling team like this has never been done before. However, there is a football team that has been
managed and owned by a crowd in England. This team, Ebbsfleet United was bought last year by a
group of 30.000 people that organised themselves through www.myfootballclub.co.uk. Ever since then
the have successfully been making decisions about player buying and selling, team selections, sponsor
agreements and much more.
This example proves that it is definitely possible!
Some years ago an Australian crowd funded team called iteamnova rode around in the peloton. Being a
relatively small Category III team focused on Autralian riders they had problems finding enough paying
members for their second season. Abandoning the initial idea they unexpectedly merged with Belgian
Division II team Flanders to become Flanders-iteamNova for the 2003 season and left the peloton
forever at the end of that same year.
Susan Stewart, the driving force behind the iteamnova idea mentioned it already in 2003 the moment
the team withdrew from the peloton quot;.....The membership idea has to evolve into something better than
it is at the moment [to succeed]quot;. CrowdRiders believes it has found this 'evolved concept'. A concept
that has the following new characteristics, not present within the iteamnova concept:
First of all CrowdRiders aims to be completely centered on its members giving them control and
influence through voting power something which did not exist in iteamnova. Voting power for every
member over a wide range of team decisions from rider’s signing and team selection, race calendar
design, rider’s selection for races, jersey design up to the team’s internal doping policy.
Secondly CrowdRiders' membership fee of 55EUR is considerably lower that the 220dollar membership
fee that iteamnova was asking for. So for a lower fee CrowdRiders offers more influence and
participation than iteamnova ever did.
Thirdly, CrowdRiders will have a unique jersey and team bus with every member's name embroidered in
the team's jersey (this has been done before by Alaves, a Spanish football team) and written on the
team bus. This will visualize the team's unique structure and be a source of pride for the CrowdRiders
members.
Fourthly, iteamnova focused on australian riders which only has appeal for a limited part of the world.
CrowdRiders will hire riders from all over the world, decided by the crowd. This makes crowdriders
interesting for cycling fans from all over the world meaning CrowdRiders has a much bigger potential
member pool to fish from making finding paying members easier.
Fiftly, CrowdRiders will effectively fish from this bigger pool of potential members by offering its website
in many different languages e.g. English, Spanish, French, Italian, Chinese. We at CrowdRiders believe
that the lack of language diversification by other crowd sourced initiatives like iteamnova and
myfootballclub.co.uk really is a missed chance. Focusing on as many people as possible in many
languages will definitely enhance the chance of success.
Sixtly, iteamnova was a relatively small team participating mainly in smaller races not covered by (live)
tv broadcasts. CrowdRiders on the contrary aims from the start to be a Tour de France participating
worthy team that will race in major races covered by global media.
We believe these new and unique CrowdRiders' characteristics will enable CrowdRiders to attract
enough members from all over the world turning it in the most successful crowd owned initiative ever.
Why should I register myself as an ‘Aspring CrowdRider’ now?
CrowdRiders is momentary trying to find out if there is enough support from cycling enthusiasts around
the world to start a crowd managed pro cycling team. By starting an ‘aspiring CrowdRider’ registration
process we will know if there is at least 40.000 people out there who would be willing to participate in
this project. It will let us know if a sound base is available to start accepting payments and kick this
project off the ground.

4. It is mainly aimed at reducing the risk of failure for all you potential CrowdRiders. Because as the name
indicates we need a crowd. A big crowd to make this project happen.
Why is the targeted budget 4 million EUR?
Based on the budget of other pro continental cycling teams a budget of 4 million EUR appears to be
necessary to operate competitively in the peloton.
For example the 2008 Tour de France participating teams of Barloworld and Agritubel had respective
budgets of 3.5 and 3.7 million EUR.
So by aiming at a 4 million annual budget CrowdRiders will have the possibility of riding the biggest
races around the world. The kind of races where you can follow YOUR CrowdRiders team on tv.
If I become a member what will my decision power be?
Every member will have a vote in all the key decisions regarding the cycling team. This ranges from
firing/hiring riders, determining the race calendar and rider selection to the internal team’s doping
policy. Even the team’s jersey design and final team name will be decided by the crowd.
At any time the crowd can contribute issues and topics for voting.
What are the benefits I will have when I become a member?
Among other things the benefits for CrowdRiders members will be:
1. Be one of the owners and managers of the team; voting power for every member over a wide
range of team decisions from rider’s signing and team selection, race calendar design, rider’s
selection for races, jersey design up to the team’s internal doping policy.
2. Get an insiders view in the team through members only news feeds, video footage, riders
interviews and more
3. See YOUR pro-cycling team on tv riding the biggest races around the world
4. Members only access to the team’s season opening and closing events
5. Possibility to ride with the pro riders of the CrowdRiders team during specially organised member
events
6. Your name on the official team’s jersey and tour bus (see below for more on this)
7. The advantage of a global cycling team: As the race calendar will be determined by you you can
vote to see your team participate in races close to your living area
8. and more………….(let us know what you would like to vote upon)
What is the story with ‘become a member and get your name on the team’s jersey and tour
bus’?
Traditionally founded cycling teams are generally set up and run by a big sponsor who’s name is
represented in the team’s name, on the jerseys and on the team bus.
At CrowdRiders, a team being funded by both external sponsors and 40.000 members, every member
can be considered a small sponsor as well. And we at CrowdRiders think that each sponsor deserves
equal treatment. Therefore every member’s name will be put on the team’s jersery and team bus. This
also visually emphasizes the unique crowd sourced and managed approach thatis applied in the
CrowdRiders’ pro-cycling team.
It is one of the unique and cool characteristics that will put CrowdRiders in the spotlight of the peloton!
But how do 40.000 names fit on a jersey?
Basically it means that everyone’s name will be printed fairly small. Similarly, Football club Alaves from
Spain wore a specially designed bright pink-coloured shirt with the names of all the club’s season-ticket
holders, about 13.500, embroidered into the fabric during their 2001 UEFA Cup campaign. And it
brought them all the way to the final! Seems like a good idea then, doesn’t it?!
What is the 55 EUR membership fee used for?
The fee consists of two parts: a 50EUR part that directly goes to the team and a 5 EUR part that will be
used to run the website portal and related communication costs needed to link the Crowd with the
cycling team.

5. The first part (50 eur) will go directly to setting up a pro cycling team. Among other things it will be
used to pay riders’, team managers’, soigneurs’ and the team doctor’s salaries, pay licenses and set-up
fees to the UCI, buy car’s and a tour bus and many many other things.
The second part of the fee (5 eur) is required to finance and run the website and related communication
costs. For a crowd managed team the website and communication is very important as it is the tool
linking the crowd, and its decision making process, to the cycling team. It needs to be custom build and
fine tuned for this task.
Cost examples are: membership registration, database and website set-up costs (the website will
become a very unique and interactive tool) and web server and maintenance costs.
How can I ride together with one of the CrowdRiders’ team pro riders?
All through the season, around races and training camps, ‘members only’ events will be organized
where you as a member will have the chance to ride with the pro’s.
What are the UCI’s constituation and regulations?
For an overview of the UCI’s rules and regulations click here.
Who are you, CrowdRiders no. 1?
For information about me and why I am trying to set up a crowd owned and managed pro cycling team
you can take a look here.
Tell a Friend
CrowdRiders as the name suggests is a project for and by a crowd. So help us spread the word by
telling your friends about this and give them a chance to become part of the crowd.
1. Your Name(required)
2. Your Email(valid email required)
3. Your Friend's Name(required)
4. Your Friend's Email(valid email required)
5. Optional Comment
Contact
Please first read our extensive F.A.Q.
If you then still have questions of any kind please do not hesitate to contact us through the contact
form or e-mail directly to marc@crowdriders.com
Contact Us
1. Your Name(required)
2. Email(valid email required)
3. Nationality(required)
4. Message(required)
5. Type the characters you see in the box
Time phased plan
A more detailed plan describing every step in chronological and time phased order follows below. Be
aware that some details have been omitted to keep the plan readable.

6. Registration opens for aspiring members (5th of Feb 2009). The goal is to get 40.000 people
•
registered.
People who like CrowdRiders and consider becoming a paying owner/manager of
•
CrowdRiders register their data (Name, e-mail, gender, date of birth, nationality) NO
PAYMENTS ACCEPTED
• They can contribute suggestions and/or comments
Publicise CrowdRiders through media and focus on spreading the word
•
When 40.000 people have registered it shows their is a broad enough support base to get
•
CrowdRiders started. At this moment start setting up back accounts and a legal structure
(foundation, society,….?) for the CrowdRiders monetary fund (needed for accepting payments)
Start accepting payments (55 eur, WITH A REFUND GUARANTEE would CrowdRiders not
•
materialize).
At the same time the voting begins. Among other things members decide:
Who should be the team’s general manager
•
• Who should be the sports director(s)
• Start accepting jersey designs by the crowd
• What should be the country of operation/home base of the team
• ……..
Start looking for external sponsors (shirt sponsor, material sponsors[bike, clothing, spares,
•
cars,....) DECISIONS WILL BE MADE THROUGH VOTING BY THE CROWD
Make a start with the entire pro cycling team organisation (set up shop[home base, bike storage
•
facilities,......] find mechanics, accountants, legal consultants and other
experts needed…)
Soon afterwards when the organization has been established the voting becomes more extensive
•
and operational:
Which riders to sign?
•
• Which races should be ridden by the CrowdRiders
• Team doping policy
• ……..
Set up the physical organisation structure of the team by signing riders, creating doping policy
•
framework,…….
By 1st September the team that applies for professional continental team status must submit the
•
following to UCI headquarters (article 2.16.011 of UCI regulations)
• Riders’ contract
• Bank guarantee draft version
• The payment of the registration fee into the UCI account
On 30 September at the latest the team must submit to the UCI a written demand requesting
•
the official registration documents. (article 2.16.010 of UCI regulations)
By 31 October prior must submit the following to UCI (article 2.16.012 of UCI regulations):
•
The original of a first-demand bank guarantee
•
• The exact name of the professional continental team
• The team’s communication address
• The name and address of the principal partners, the paying agent, the manager, the team
manager, the assistant team manager and the team doctor
• Riders data
• A list of the division of tasks
• Apply for the “wild card” label
Organise a CrowdRiders release event, accessible for all CrowdRiders (Dec 2009/Jan 2010)
•
Get the team up and running for the start of the new season (Jan 2010)
•
About me
So who am I, CrowdRider no. 1?

7. I am a Dutchie named Marc born in 1981 in Weert in the South-East of Holland. Like most of us
Dutchies, I was put on a bike for the first time at a very young age. Ever since that first magical
moment I have been hooked to the bike.
The moment I graduated as an industrial engineer I started exploring the globe combining work and
travel.
My current location is Kunming (China) where I study Chinese. It’s over there that I do my cycling
these days. As this city lies on 1900m above sea level its quite some good high-altitude training.
A disadvantage in China is the fact that, apart from the Tour de France, none of the famous pro cycling
races are broadcast on tv here. Therefore I find myself often watching streaming internet coverage or
checking cycling websites to stay updated with all the latest action.
I have long thought about starting CrowdRiders having been inspired by the many crowd sourced
initiatives around these days. And I am more than sure that together we can do it and write cycling
history!
If you want to know more about me or have any questions just drop me a line at
marc@crowdriders.com
Blog
Slowly underway
Slowly CrowdRiders is taking off after a week of promoting the idea in a variety of countries with a
variety of media. At the moment 65 people registered their data which is nice.
A couple of cycling magazines and newspapers promised to write an article about CrowdRiders which is
what is really needed to get CrowdRiders kick started seriously.
Also at the moment I am working on getting the site up in a couple of other lanaguages. That should be
good for reaching potential members in big cycling countries like Spain, Italy and France. Also Chinese
and Russian are on the to-do list.
Stay tuned! And in the meantime spread the word!
The first milestone
It has been a bit quiet here for about 3 weeks. Just after I made CrowdRiders operational my parents
came to visit me here in China (where I study Chinese). During that time I did a bit of traveling and
had to guide them around over here.Not so much time left to promote CrowdRiders.
But since they have left last monday I have been all into the CrowdRiders again. And with a little bit of
success! I firstly can announce that their are already 5 people who signed up. Its all about progress,
isn’t it?!
But more importantly a big Belgium linking page added CrowdRiders to their cycling team links.
CrowdRiders is amidst the likes of Rabobank, Liquigas and Quickstep!! Check out
http://wielrennen.2link.be/ and see if you can find it!

8. A reply to some criticism
Yesterday I entered the cyclechat.co.uk forum and made a post about CrowdRiders. Someone
replied saying:
“Looked around the site and it is empty. No comment, no riders, no real plan. Just give me 55 Euro
and it will be good. Perhaps the cynic in me has seen too many Nigerian letters, that I just distrust this
sort of thing. ”
Indeed it looks a bit empty at the moment but thats because we CrowdRiders can not have riders, a
plan or many comments when it all just started 1 day ago!
The idea is that people sign up (just registering their email; and NOT pay 55 Eur now). The moment we
reach 40.000 people their will be a base big enought to get this going (same approach as Ebbsfleet
United/myfootballclub.co.uk). From then on, the members will decide upon Riders, plan, race
calendar….everything! Only then will we start accepting payments (with the guarantee that money will
be paid back if for some reason the team would not take off).
Someone else remarked that he did not think 2+ million would be enough to start a good competitive
pro cycling team. 2.2 million EUR indeed is not enough as this person correctly remarked.
Therefore CrowdRiders’ aim is 4 million (a top budget for a pro continental team, it is more than
Barloworld (3.5million) and Agritubel (3.7million) two top pro continental teams who rode the 2008
Tour de France).
By acquiring at least 51% of those 4million through the crowd, this same crowd keeps the majority vote
(and therefore through voting can always decide what will happen).
I am sure with 40.000 people behind this team it will be easy to find a shirt sponsor that is willing to
pitch in the remaining 2million (which is a bargain, compared to what they would have to pay would
they wanna set up a team by themselves). Ebbsfleet United for example, after they were taken over by
the 30.000+ members of myfootballclub.co.uk, got sponsored by Nike and EA sports purely because
those sponsors loved the idea of a crowd managed team! This is what I see happening to CrowdRiders
as well!
And than I haven’t even talked about the possibility of finding 80.000 people to make this team
completely crowd funded!
Seems like a fair and risk-less approach for the crowd to me!
I will try to make it more clear on the site by adding a step wise approach soon!
In the meantime I’d love to reply to more doubts, concerns or questions if you have any.
Welcome to the blog
Finally managed to get the website up and running and full with content for the first time.
It still needs some minor adjustments but all in all it is not too bad.
In this blog from now on I will be posting about developments and progress regarding the CrowdRiders
project.
So come back regularly to make sure you won’t miss any of the action.