DSP sophomore finds business in cycling

Kenny Eagle is already finding a way to put his knowledge from his Intermediate Financial and Accounting class into action.

And he’s only a sophomore.

The Kelley School of Business direct-admit is training for his second Little 500 for his
business fraternity, Delta Sigma Pi, while also training for his first Chicago Marathon. But he’s using finance to combine the two.

DSP is looking to qualify for its 13th straight race. Like most independent teams, the finances of a cycling team are difficult to overcome.

Eagle said the team gets a total of $450 from the chapter. From that, $200 goes to a bike deposit and $200 goes to the race entry. That leaves the team with $50 for upgrades and bike fixes.

Kits alone cost $150.

Although each team must have a sponsor, DSP can’t solely rely on its sponsor for the rest of its needs.

That’s where Eagle’s double major in finance and accounting comes in, along with his raising money for his Chicago Marathon team, Lance Armstrong’s “LiveStrong.”
Eagle set up a fundraising plan with different levels of sponsorship, offering people a tax-deductible incentive.

“If people want to be sponsors for our Little 500 team, 15 percent of that sponsorship will go to LiveStrong,” Eagle said. “The cost gets cut on our Little Five team, but it’s beneficial for our sponsors. We have to look at it as, would we be getting those sponsorships if not?”

Eagle said he created this plan because he wants his team to be financially stable, since they are a business fraternity. After all, it is the only Little 500 business fraternity team.

“The fact that we have a Little 500 team, I think, really helps members decide to join our business fraternity,” Eagle said.

The cycling team helped Eagle, who pledged in fall 2009, make his decision to join a business fraternity rather than a social fraternity.

Each year the fraternity does an internal audit of its almost 100 members to see if there is any new interest of riding, Eagle said. They consistently find DSP riders to continue the tradition of being the only Little 500 team that is a professional fraternity to race during the “greatest college weekend” for at least the last decade.

“We’re not just professional speakers,” Eagle said. “We’re a bit more social, with a more wholesome feel.”