Author Topic: Fundraising bike ride  (Read 6970 times)

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Offline cycling4ACause

Fundraising bike ride
« on: December 13, 2010, 08:05:25 pm »
I  am currently planning on a doing a bike ride out from Dallas, TX to San Diego the end of Sept. If anyone has taken this or any other bike routes like that I would greatly appreciate any input. This will actually be for a fundraiser I am doing on my own. Proceeds will go to a non-profit organization Soupmobile and Breast Cancer Foundation. If anyone would like to join me while I am passing through certain states you are more than welcome to join. This will be my first time doing something like this too. So please anyone and everyone give advice. Thanks!!!

cycling4ACause  ;D

Offline popeyespal

Re: Fundraising bike ride
« Reply #1 on: December 16, 2010, 08:27:13 am »
I'm already well into the planning/buying/training stages of a 2011 extended tour. Has anyone ever used a tour to fund raise for a cause? Any experience with this out there?

A family friend has Downs Syndrome and I was just thinking........

Offline tonythomson

Re: Fundraising bike ride
« Reply #2 on: December 17, 2010, 07:13:09 am »
Hi yes I rode the ST last year initially for my own pleasure and was subsequently asked by a friend if they could raise money for their son - who is very severally disabled - on the back of my trip.  To which I agreed and we had to raise $10,000 for a specially adapted electric assisted two person bike.  Now I am not very good at asking people for money and the total raised was $4000 - a big shortfall for which I felt responsible.  No idea why I felt like this except they had made a big thing in the media etc and basically I felt  had failed.  So in the end i made up the shortfall - fortunately I can afford it so no big deal.

The point of this is just a little warning that unless you are good at getting people to sponsor you I would advise that you go for a more generic cause rather than the sole participant raising money for a specific piece of equipment.

However, I wish you well and taking my own advice will ride Perth to Sydney later this year for the Barretts Oesophagus Campaign as much to make people aware as to raise money for the local clinic. 
Just starting to record my trips  www.tonystravels.com

indyfabz

  • Guest
Re: Fundraising bike ride
« Reply #3 on: December 17, 2010, 01:27:57 pm »
Don't know how you are planning on financing your trip, but you need to ber vey careful if you plan to use some of the funds to pay for your expenses.  If Joe Smith gives you $100 thinking that it is going solely to the non-profit but really you use some or all of it to fund the cost of the trip, Joe could, in theory, be in trouble with the IRS if he claims that $100 as a charitable contribution.  He might also just be pissed.  Full disclosure is important.

If I am not mistaken, there was an older forum thread on this topic.

Offline John Nelson

Re: Fundraising bike ride
« Reply #4 on: December 17, 2010, 04:22:31 pm »
If I am not mistaken, there was an older forum thread on this topic.

Dozens of them.

Offline cycling4ACause

Re: Fundraising bike ride
« Reply #5 on: December 17, 2010, 04:31:41 pm »
Thank you for the advise.
I don't plan on using any of the funds to finance this trip; I might have a primary sponsor to donate the money. There is no amount set,  a few friends and I have decided to do this some time in Sept. When I reach CA, a benefit show will be performed by a band that I know. I will try and find the other forums on fundraising, I need all the advise I can get. Thank you and continue to leave me advise.