Advice for organising a 3-day charity ride??
Discussion
To alleviate the boredom imbued by the daily grind of advising clients how to develop their oilfields, myself and some colleagues are thinking about organising a cycle ride.
At a high-level, this would involve a team of 5-10 riders leaving each of three offices (London, Edinburgh and Holyhead) cycling approx 70 miles per day for 3 days and meeting at a mid-point, nominally York. We would ask the company to cover costs and ask friends, family, colleagues and clients to donate money which would go to the chosen charity(s).
Now, I’ve never organised anything like this before, so I wonder if the body of knowledge that is PH PP would care to offer me any words of advice.
I’m quite interested in experiences, good and bad, that you may have gained from organising or participating on previous rides. For example, how much route instruction do you need?
Thanks in advance!
At a high-level, this would involve a team of 5-10 riders leaving each of three offices (London, Edinburgh and Holyhead) cycling approx 70 miles per day for 3 days and meeting at a mid-point, nominally York. We would ask the company to cover costs and ask friends, family, colleagues and clients to donate money which would go to the chosen charity(s).
Now, I’ve never organised anything like this before, so I wonder if the body of knowledge that is PH PP would care to offer me any words of advice.
I’m quite interested in experiences, good and bad, that you may have gained from organising or participating on previous rides. For example, how much route instruction do you need?
Thanks in advance!
thepawbroon said:
To alleviate the boredom imbued by the daily grind of advising clients how to develop their oilfields, myself and some colleagues are thinking about organising a cycle ride.
At a high-level, this would involve a team of 5-10 riders leaving each of three offices (London, Edinburgh and Holyhead) cycling approx 70 miles per day for 3 days and meeting at a mid-point, nominally York. We would ask the company to cover costs and ask friends, family, colleagues and clients to donate money which would go to the chosen charity(s).
Now, I’ve never organised anything like this before, so I wonder if the body of knowledge that is PH PP would care to offer me any words of advice.
I’m quite interested in experiences, good and bad, that you may have gained from organising or participating on previous rides. For example, how much route instruction do you need?
Thanks in advance!
go back a few pages and have a look at the london to paris thread, a few of us are trying to organise something epic for next year....At a high-level, this would involve a team of 5-10 riders leaving each of three offices (London, Edinburgh and Holyhead) cycling approx 70 miles per day for 3 days and meeting at a mid-point, nominally York. We would ask the company to cover costs and ask friends, family, colleagues and clients to donate money which would go to the chosen charity(s).
Now, I’ve never organised anything like this before, so I wonder if the body of knowledge that is PH PP would care to offer me any words of advice.
I’m quite interested in experiences, good and bad, that you may have gained from organising or participating on previous rides. For example, how much route instruction do you need?
Thanks in advance!
things we have considered:
time of year - weather will be a major factor, too hot and you will suffer, too cold and it will be rubbish
route - you want to be off the main roads or its no fun, you get harrassed by traffic and cant talk en route, how do you make sure the riders stick to the right route, trying to devise three interesting and quiet routes is quite an epic undertaking.
pace of riders - if you are riding at different speeds, there will be people spread out all over the road, how do you combat mechanical failures or slow people getting lost? will that still be in keeping with the event?
previous cycling experience - cycling 70 miles in a day is easy for most people, doing it again the next day, and then the day after that is really tough. what happens if people lie about their ability/training?
accomodation - you need enough for all the riders and support crew, it should be nice enough so people can relax and recover...5-10 riders from 3 offices is 15-30 people, you will need one support crew (with a car big enough for any accidents/retirements) for each route so thats anything up to 40 people, for three nights?! cant see my finance manager signing that one off?!?
the accomodation alone willl top £2.5K and thats using premier inns etc (and what do you do with the bikes at night?)
support crew - for mechanicals, accidents etc,
breaks during the day - some people could ride 70 miles in about 4 hours, others may take double that. how will you organise food stops etc?
I suggest using a professional company to organise it for you so you can concentrate on training, fundraising and so on.
I work occasionally as part of the support team on rides organised by these guys:
http://www.ride2raise.co.uk
They map routes for you, plan the best, most scenic and challenging routes between destinations, source and arrange accommodation, meals, tea and coffee stops, provide energy drinks and bars on the rides, provide ride managers and support team, plan training rides, offer advice on bike fit, kit, technique, fundraising etc... etc... etc...
There is a lot more to plan than you might think and a lot of potential to forget or miss some important stuff. First Aid, bike storage, what happens if someone can't make it, the cost of carrying enough spares which you might not use, calling ahead to confirm lunch arrangements, hotel bookings, liaising with friends and family...
I'm just back from a two day ride as part of the support team on a ride from Windsor Castle to Corfe Catsle for a major AV equipment company. They were so impressed with the organisation they have already committed to more rides.
I work occasionally as part of the support team on rides organised by these guys:
http://www.ride2raise.co.uk
They map routes for you, plan the best, most scenic and challenging routes between destinations, source and arrange accommodation, meals, tea and coffee stops, provide energy drinks and bars on the rides, provide ride managers and support team, plan training rides, offer advice on bike fit, kit, technique, fundraising etc... etc... etc...
There is a lot more to plan than you might think and a lot of potential to forget or miss some important stuff. First Aid, bike storage, what happens if someone can't make it, the cost of carrying enough spares which you might not use, calling ahead to confirm lunch arrangements, hotel bookings, liaising with friends and family...
I'm just back from a two day ride as part of the support team on a ride from Windsor Castle to Corfe Catsle for a major AV equipment company. They were so impressed with the organisation they have already committed to more rides.
In case you want to get more of a feel for a professionally organised event, here's my blog from the recent ride:
http://ride2raise.wordpress.com/
It gives something of an idea of the amount of stuff that needs to be organised and planned for.
http://ride2raise.wordpress.com/
It gives something of an idea of the amount of stuff that needs to be organised and planned for.
just out of interest, from the £99 registration fee and the minimum fundraising target of £700 for, as an example, the university challenge ride, what percentage makes its way to the charity? i dont dispute that the accomodation and your expenses need to be covered but i woudld genuinely be interested as a comparison against doing it yourself with volunteers in a van and making use of online map tools etc.
Well a charity will basically 'buy' the ride so it varies depending on the event. A charity usually pays around £100 per day per rider (companies will usually pay more as they make more demands for higher quality hotels and more elaboorate meals etc). Pretty reasonable considering this includes mapping and planning the route, hotel accommodation, all meals, tea and coffee stops, energy bars, a full support team, support vehicle, petrol, insurance, spares, first aiders, ride managers etc.
So, it's for the charity to decide how they are going to fund a ride. Any charity fundraising incurs a cost to generate the funds and an annual customised cycle ride is a very good way to both raise funds directly but also to raise general awareness of the charity. It is up to the charity to drive fundraising from its riders and do its own PR and marketing to publicise the event.
Imagine a 3-day ride for five riders who are raising money on behalf of the charity. The charity may be paying £500 per day (£100 per rider) so a total of £1,500. If each rider achieves the minimum of £700 fundraising that will bring in £3,500 so a decent result for the charity, even after the cost of the ride is deducted. It's fundraising they wouldn't have otherwise generated.
The rides aren’t just about raising money directly. The whole Ride2Raise organisation is backed by its own oinline media (an online magazine going to large groups with a history of fundraising), is supported by British Cycling and makes good use of the PR channnels of its partners, to maximise exposure and awareness for the charity. This is a key benefit that smaller charities, used to buying places on bigger events, have previously missed out on.
Feedback from every charity, and company, that rides have been organised for to date has been excellent. Smaller charities in particular see massive benefit in 'owning' their own event.
So, it's for the charity to decide how they are going to fund a ride. Any charity fundraising incurs a cost to generate the funds and an annual customised cycle ride is a very good way to both raise funds directly but also to raise general awareness of the charity. It is up to the charity to drive fundraising from its riders and do its own PR and marketing to publicise the event.
Imagine a 3-day ride for five riders who are raising money on behalf of the charity. The charity may be paying £500 per day (£100 per rider) so a total of £1,500. If each rider achieves the minimum of £700 fundraising that will bring in £3,500 so a decent result for the charity, even after the cost of the ride is deducted. It's fundraising they wouldn't have otherwise generated.
The rides aren’t just about raising money directly. The whole Ride2Raise organisation is backed by its own oinline media (an online magazine going to large groups with a history of fundraising), is supported by British Cycling and makes good use of the PR channnels of its partners, to maximise exposure and awareness for the charity. This is a key benefit that smaller charities, used to buying places on bigger events, have previously missed out on.
Feedback from every charity, and company, that rides have been organised for to date has been excellent. Smaller charities in particular see massive benefit in 'owning' their own event.
thats really interesting, many thanks.
so effectively the charity come to you and say, organise us a ride from a to b and we can only afford to pay you £x per person perday, you go away and do the maths to see if its a valid proposition or you have set rides already planned and they just buy the places and pay the costs that you have already identified given the accomodation etc is already sorted.
i think it helps that people know this sort of info so if they choose to do an event or choose to sponsor another persion, they can make an intelligent assumption as to the costs involved and what & of their money goes on the support. to be honest i am quite happy if I sponsor someone £10 and I know that £2 goes to the organisation like ride to raise, i know that this all costs money to organsie and as you say, its money the charity wouldnt otherwise get.
naturally the charity has to pay the organisation but I think that its interesting to know that the charity can set the costs and makes a decision how much they are prepared to stump up for the particpiants accomodation etc.
companies like ride to raise can get a bad press on occasions as they are seen as taking money away from the charity without ever disclosing costs (it is after all a company with other people doing a similar thing) but i think you did a good pr job here.
so effectively the charity come to you and say, organise us a ride from a to b and we can only afford to pay you £x per person perday, you go away and do the maths to see if its a valid proposition or you have set rides already planned and they just buy the places and pay the costs that you have already identified given the accomodation etc is already sorted.
i think it helps that people know this sort of info so if they choose to do an event or choose to sponsor another persion, they can make an intelligent assumption as to the costs involved and what & of their money goes on the support. to be honest i am quite happy if I sponsor someone £10 and I know that £2 goes to the organisation like ride to raise, i know that this all costs money to organsie and as you say, its money the charity wouldnt otherwise get.
naturally the charity has to pay the organisation but I think that its interesting to know that the charity can set the costs and makes a decision how much they are prepared to stump up for the particpiants accomodation etc.
companies like ride to raise can get a bad press on occasions as they are seen as taking money away from the charity without ever disclosing costs (it is after all a company with other people doing a similar thing) but i think you did a good pr job here.
pablo said:
so effectively the charity come to you and say, organise us a ride from a to b and we can only afford to pay you £x per person perday, you go away and do the maths to see if its a valid proposition or you have set rides already planned and they just buy the places and pay the costs that you have already identified given the accomodation etc is already sorted.
The bit about "we can only afford" is not quite correct (although if it was a really small charity that needed help, I guess it's possible) but you are correct about the possibility of filling places on rides which are already plannned. Generally the price is already as low as it can be to the charity. Ride2Raise will do what it can to advise on rider recruitment and fundraising. That's what will make it a viable proposition for a charity. If the charity is only going to expect riders to raise £200 each it will be very difficult to make it worthwhile. Part of the satisfaction for the riders is knowing that they have raised a substantial amount for their charity. It's a good thing for the charity to put them under some pressure to achieve that.In a very simple answer to your original question, ALL of the money raised goes to the charity directly. They will have paid up front for the ride so there are no hidden costs or deductions after the event. It is usually done by each rider using a Just Giving or Virgin Giving page. Ride2Raise receive none of the fundraising money.
Edited by HardWorkers on Thursday 22 September 18:19
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