[echelon_john]

Biggest consideration for me would be who's on the team? If you want to do it so your crew of friends have kit to wear and a little focus, that's cool, and realistic. You get your name out a bit, you build some goodwill. Maybe give each rider $100 entry fee subsidy, or pick up their season pass to a training series.

If you're talking about a REAL team, then you're talking about recruiting riders who will represent your brand, not be d-bags in traffic wearing your jersey, etc. Much more of an effort (and time suck) than the informal scenario that was your first thought.

Personally, if it were me I'd either do #1 (informal), or if I was really determined to formalize a team, it would be either juniors or women. Two groups that can generally benefit from sponsorship/support more than your typical Cat 2-3-4/Masters dude. I think you'd get more appreciation for the effort you put in, and it would be cool to be part of from a rider development POV.

And don't forget the maxim about needing to spend $2 in marketing for every $1 in sponsorship. Probably less true now with the power & pervasiveness of social media, but the point is that to realize any 'return' (used loosely) you need to promote the team through images, stories, etc. Sachs is a good example of a team manager who milks every ounce of potential from social media. Might not cost a lot of $, but definitely an investment in time & effort.