Overseas charity rides



V

Vivian

Guest
First of all, happy new year everyone!

Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like this
one for example:
<http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>

The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And worst,
if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the ride, I
don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.

How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to donate
b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless that the money
goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?

Thanks.


Vivian
-------
"We learned more from a three minute record than we ever learned in school".
No Surrender
 
Vivian was thinking very hard :
> First of all, happy new year everyone!
>
> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like this
> one for example:
> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>
> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And worst,
> if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the ride, I don't
> get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.
>
> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to donate
> b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless that the money
> goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?
>


I'm one of the "refusers", I'm afraid. Why do you think you pay £250 if
you raise below £2,600 and nothing if you raise above this figure?
Clearly, it's because a figure - which might be close to 10% - *does*
go to pay the expenses of your holiday.

If you want to raise mony for charity, you don't need to go abroad. If
you want to see the world, don't expect me to subsidise you. Sorry.

--
Simon
 
Vivian wrote on 06/01/2007 13:01 +0100:
> First of all, happy new year everyone!
>
> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride?
> Like this one for example:
> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>
>
> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And
> worst, if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before
> the ride, I don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.
>
> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to
> donate b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless
> that the money goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?
>


Yes, ask them exactly how much the trip really costs; write them a
cheque so the costs are all covered. Now go and raise sponsorship with
the clear conscience that none of it is being used to pay for your
cycling holiday in a foreign country. Anything less and you are asking
your sponsors to pay for your holiday when they probably think their
money is all going to the charity.



--
Tony

"...has many omissions and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least
wildly inaccurate..."
Douglas Adams; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
 
"Vivian" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like
> this one for example:
> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>
> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And
> worst, if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the
> ride, I don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.
>
> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to
> donate b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless that
> the money goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?


If you pay the the holiday costs, ie 1315 + 250 quid (see the brochure),
then all the money you raise will go to the charity, which means people
won't be paying for your holiday. If you only pay the registration costs,
and only manage 2600 quid sponsorship, 50% of everything people give is
paying for your holiday.

Thus there are two ways to go about this : pay it yourself, or raise money
off people who don't care.

cheers,
clive
 
Vivian wrote:

> First of all, happy new year everyone!


Happy New Year to you too.

> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like this
> one for example:
> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>
> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And worst,
> if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the ride, I
> don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.


What? The pressure that *you* may have to pay something?
(sorry if this sounds hard, but these trips do grate a little).

> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to donate
> b/c they think they are paying for your holiday,


That's because in many cases they are.

> regardless that the money
> goes to a charity.


All 100%?
Not according to the brochure.
£1315 goes towards the cost of the tour which is "paid by the charity from the
sponsorship funds you raise".
So it would seem if I donate £100, £50 will go to the charity and £50 will go towards
your holiday.
Count me out thanks.

> Any tips/ideas/experiences?


Arrange a 'challenge' yourself, and make sure everything people donate goes to the
charity. That way you may be able to raise even more money and the contributors will
know that they won't be paying towards a holiday trip.
Or you could pay the £1315.

John B
 
> First of all, happy new year everyone!

Hullo.

> Lots of people refuse to donate b/c they think


They don't think, they know!

As well as the £1315+£250, you have to pay for a host of other things as
well, so this could end up costing you, as well as your sponsors, lots and
lots! All seems rather bad value for money to me, but then the holiday
makers aren't paying for it :(

Most (all?) of these sponsored holidays have a similar way of working, so
the only honest thing to do is, as others have suggested, find a sponsored
holiday you like the look of and pay for it out of your own pocket.

(from <www.actionforcharity.co.uk/PDFs/Regain Cycle Nile%
20brochure.pdf>:

The registration fee for taking part in the event is £250 per person. This
is solely to cover non-travel costs and is not refundable under any
circumstances.

The tour costs for the ride are £1,315 approx. for each person. These will
be paid by the charity from the sponsorship funds you raise, unless you
choose to pay them yourself. This will cover return flights from London;
accommodation; meals and refreshments; transport and transfer of luggage
throughout; technical and medical support; local and Englishspeaking guides
and bikes. In addition to paying your registration fee you will need to
budget for airport and departure taxes, personal travel insurance, a
tourist visa, gratuities, optional tours and personal
expenses including travel to and from the departure airport.
 
"Vivian" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> First of all, happy new year everyone!
>
> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like
> this one for example:
> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>
> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And
> worst, if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the
> ride, I don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.
>
> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to
> donate b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless that
> the money goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?
>

I think that you'll find a lot of folk will baulk at forking out for what
is, quite rightly, seen as a subsidised holiday. After all, where is the
challenge/hardship in a fully supported sightseeing tour in foreign climes?
If you aren't confident that you can con/persuade folk to part with their
money then you shouldn't consider registering for the event. If, however
you are certain that you can get the money you should get your sponsors to
pay in advance else you'll spend many times the amount of time getting folk
to sign up to cought up with the dosh.

I have twice turned down the opportunity to raise money for charity when
well intentioned friends wanted to sponsor my LEJOG and JOGLE rides. Past
experience of collecting the money pledged in moments of enthusiasm and
parted with under duress makes it very unlikely that I will ever accept
sponsorship unless the money is handed over on the spot that is, of course,
if I ever participate in a sponsored event again.
 
"John B" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
>
> Vivian wrote:
>
>> First of all, happy new year everyone!

>
> Happy New Year to you too.
>
>> Now the question: has anybody here done an overseas charity ride? Like
>> this
>> one for example:
>> <http://www.actionforcharity.co.uk/eventdetails.asp/urlsearch/Regain-Cycle-the-Nile>
>>
>> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And
>> worst,
>> if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the ride, I
>> don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.

>


There was a thread a while ago about some guy who was cycling from London to
Paris and wanted sponsorship. He wasn't received terribly well, not least
because he was, if not lying, then very economical about the truth regarding
how much money went to charity.

http://groups.google.co.uk/group/uk...5cead1e0b4b/353de66c292d1b35#353de66c292d1b35

My thoughts are that if you want a cycling holiday, then pay to go on one.
If you want to raise money for charity, then raise money for charity. I do
know of a couple of people who used their cycling holidays to raise
sponsorship for a charity - but they paid completely for their holiday, and
all additional donated monies went to the charity.

There are lots of good companies if you want to go on an organised tour.

Peter
 
Vivian wrote:

> The minimum sponsorship is £2,600!!! Now that's a lot of money. And worst,
> if I pay the £250 fee and I don't collect the £2,600 before the ride,I
> don't get my fee back which puts a lot of pressure.
>
> How do you get round getting all that money? Lots of people refuse to donate
> b/c they think they are paying for your holiday, regardless that the money
> goes to a charity. Any tips/ideas/experiences?
>

I agree with the other comments about asking to pay for people to pay
for your holiday, but also see the other side in that the charity gets
you to collect money you wouldn't collect anyway. I decided not to do
one of these myself. However, when I was considering it, I know
MacMillan Cancer do a future schem where you register with them and
they keep a note of how much you raise and you are not commited to any
particular trip, and so no deadlines. After you have raised the £2,600
or whatever, you sign up for a trip. You can then get everyone to
sponsor you for that too and raise lots more.
This is better than not raising any money for charity, but not as good
as paying for our own holiday and still doing the same fund-raising.
Anyway, £2,600 is not hard if you organise some events, rather than
just asking for sponsorship
PhilO
 
"PhilO" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

I agree with the other comments about asking to pay for people to pay
for your holiday, but also see the other side in that the charity gets
you to collect money you wouldn't collect anyway. I decided not to do
one of these myself. However, when I was considering it, I know
MacMillan Cancer do a future schem where you register with them and
they keep a note of how much you raise and you are not commited to any
particular trip, and so no deadlines. After you have raised the £2,600
or whatever, you sign up for a trip. You can then get everyone to
sponsor you for that too and raise lots more.
This is better than not raising any money for charity, but not as good
as paying for our own holiday and still doing the same fund-raising.
Anyway, £2,600 is not hard if you organise some events, rather than
just asking for sponsorship
PhilO


Thanks for all the responses (except Simon D!). It was never my intention
to ask you lot for any money. I just thought that someone here might have
done one of these trips and could share the experience/tips on how to raise
money.

That's all.

V
 
Vivian wrote:
> Thanks for all the responses (except Simon D!).


Funny, Simon D, was perfectly civil, although disagreeing strongly with your
point of view.

Never mind.

A
 
Vivian wrote:

> Thanks for all the responses (except Simon D!).


Your response was rude and unnecessary.

> It was never my intention
> to ask you lot for any money. I just thought that someone here might have
> done one of these trips and could share the experience/tips on how to raise
> money.


Although not one of the charity holidays my daughter (then aged 13) had to
raise £2800 to attend the World Scout Jamboree in Thailand a few years back.
The sum was to cover her own attendance and subsidise that of scouts from less
well-off parts of the world.
Rather than going around holding the hand out she set about raising the funds
by organising and carrying out a wide range of worthwhile activities - all of
which helped her own personal development too.

These included:
Litter clearing after a major charity music festival;
Running BBQ stalls at charity fund-raising events at local pubs;
Running games at local fetes;
Organising a Jumble Sales;
Organising Car Boot Sales:
Assisting at car-parking stewarding at charity events...
There was one self-arranged charity ride she did - round the IOW, where she
did all the route planning, costings, transport bookings etc for a group of
other scouts.

By carrying out these activities she showed commitment and responsibility.
This attracted further support by some local youth trusts who then pledged
help, which was tied to her completing a self-supported LEJOG ride.

Eventually after nearly two years hard work she had raised enough to go to
Thailand and Malaysia.

You get the drift? Run activities yourself to raise the money.

It may also help *your* own personal development as the response to Simon D
clearly shows some is needed.

John B
 
"John B" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
><snip><snip>
>
> Although not one of the charity holidays my daughter (then aged 13) had to
> raise £2800 to attend the World Scout Jamboree in Thailand a few years
> back.
> The sum was to cover her own attendance and subsidise that of scouts from
> less
> well-off parts of the world.
> Rather than going around holding the hand out she set about raising the
> funds
> by organising and carrying out a wide range of worthwhile activities - all
> of
> which helped her own personal development too.
>
> These included:
> Litter clearing after a major charity music festival;
> Running BBQ stalls at charity fund-raising events at local pubs;
> Running games at local fetes;
> Organising a Jumble Sales;
> Organising Car Boot Sales:
> Assisting at car-parking stewarding at charity events...
> There was one self-arranged charity ride she did - round the IOW, where
> she
> did all the route planning, costings, transport bookings etc for a group
> of
> other scouts.
>
> By carrying out these activities she showed commitment and responsibility.
> This attracted further support by some local youth trusts who then
> pledged
> help, which was tied to her completing a self-supported LEJOG ride.
>
> Eventually after nearly two years hard work she had raised enough to go to
> Thailand and Malaysia.
>
> You get the drift? Run activities yourself to raise the money.
>
> It may also help *your* own personal development as the response to Simon
> D
> clearly shows some is needed.
>
> John B


I must say that I very much agree with John B's post and find it a
refreshing attitude taken by his daughter.

I am personally not in favour of this sort of Charity sponsorship. If a
person really wants to give help to a charity in real terms then they should
offer their help in a more direct and physical way rather than tootling off
on some holiday and expecting people to cough up money while you enjoy
yourself. Far better to actually just donate money direct to the charity
concerned. But getting out there in person and working for the charity in
real time is better, both for the charity and for the person doing it.

When I undertook to do a cycling pilgrimage from my home all the way to
Santiago de Compostela in April 2004 I was frequently asked why I was not
seeking sponsorship. Most seemed incapable of understanding that it was very
much a personal challenge, both physical and mental, for me. I wanted no
distractions and found the actual journey hugely invigorating and life /
mind changing. I also enjoyed it immensely ( even the 4 days with snow in
the Spanish mountains were, retrospectively, "fun")

I believe that to have looked for financial support would have watered down
that achievement. At 66 years old I bought a bike, spent some 5 months
training on an unfailing daily basis and then cycled camped my way through
England, France and Spain -- never having done such a trip ever before!
Every day, as I travelled was a totally new experience. I had no idea
whether I would achieve my aim and I shall never forget sitting with my back
to a wall of the cathedral on a cool but sunny afternoon on 11 May 2004 and
having a bit of a weep -- I couldn't believe that I had done it

The "spin-offs" were huge for me personally because I am still cycling
daily, covering about 5000 miles a year and am on velo no.3 and I'm still
alive!

Trevor A Panther
In South Yorkshire,
England, United Kingdom.
www.tapan.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk
 

>
> I must say that I very much agree with John B's post and find it a
> refreshing attitude taken by his daughter.
>


When my son did Operation Wallacea in Egypt (two weeks conservation work),
he paid for most of it himself. His Dad & I paid very little. The rest he
paid for using his education maintenance allowance, winnings from cycling
and fund-raising events. Doing that way does indeed show commitment &
responsibility on the part of the youngster involved and I think it's the
best way to do it. The kids doing it that way really do seem to 'grow' as
people.
 
"Vivian" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "PhilO" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>


>
>
> Thanks for all the responses (except Simon D!). It was never my intention
> to ask you lot for any money. I just thought that someone here might have
> done one of these trips and could share the experience/tips on how to
> raise money.
>
> That's all.


lol
you've been to your anger management class today, then.
peter