Ray
I can understand this totally.
I was lucky enough (or rather i worked my butt off for it) to receive a car in a sponsorship deal some years back. I got abrand new car, all fuel/servicing/ins etc as well as some other benefits.
At the time I was doing pretty well, although there were others that were possibly doing better. The difference was how much I was willing to give back to the sponsors and the effort i put into that side of things.
A few other girls picked up on this and did similar. I know of one girl that has never quite been the best (although she is very good), but her constant media work to get herself noticed means she has had one of the best sponsorship deals in the sport.