Team in Training minimums?

[luvmyguys]

Can anyone give me a feel for what the Team in Training minimums are?

My family (both hubby's side and mine) are very committed to the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society, so I know I can raise a decent chunk, but I need to know if the minimum is just going to be a stretch or will it lead to a moment of hyperventilation?

Does it matter if the ride is close or far away?

Thanks!

[Blueberry]

I can't speak to what the minimums might be, but I can speak as a part donor to friends' rides. The society does great work, I'm sure. But they were, to put it mildly, obnoxious to those who had donated. They called repeatedly, hung up on our voicemail and were quite rude when we were finally home to answer and chose not to donate again. I feel like if I donate to anyone again, I will subject myself to another round of their fundraising - and I'm not in a hurry to do that.

[luvmyguys]

I didn't realize that.

We're on our fourth year for Light the Night, so I might just ask previous donors if this has happened to them. Of course, last year and this year have pretty much been my brother's Iron Chef party that he throws to raise money, so they don't have too many people to bug. The local LLS people have been pretty nice when they've called, and they're usually the ones calling. Hopefully it's a regional thing, not a nationwide thing?

(That said, I want to know. And I will say something to them if I find out they're pestering people.)

[indysteel]

I can't speak to what the minimums might be, but I can speak as a part donor to friends' rides. The society does great work, I'm sure. But they were, to put it mildly, obnoxious to those who had donated. They called repeatedly, hung up on our voicemail and were quite rude when we were finally home to answer and chose not to donate again. I feel like if I donate to anyone again, I will subject myself to another round of their fundraising - and I'm not in a hurry to do that.

Interesting. I wonder if that varies from chapter to chapter. I've given in the past to a handful of diffrent chapters and while I've gotten various emails and mailings from them, no one has ever called.

[Possegal]

I've never gotten calls either. But would not be happy with the treatment described if I had gotten them. That is something they (or their chapter) should know about.

More importantly, as I seem to always be fundraising (as is evident in my signature), I want to hear more about this Iron Chef party. :)

[ny biker]

Can anyone give me a feel for what the Team in Training minimums are?

My family (both hubby's side and mine) are very committed to the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society, so I know I can raise a decent chunk, but I need to know if the minimum is just going to be a stretch or will it lead to a moment of hyperventilation?

Does it matter if the ride is close or far away?

Thanks!

I think the minimums vary by event.

[jobob]

Fundraising minimums vary, depending on the event. For instance, if travel or hotel rooms are included, the minimum will be higher. Your best bet is to check with the TNT chapter.

[luvmyguys]

More importantly, as I seem to always be fundraising (as is evident in my signature), I want to hear more about this Iron Chef party. :)

The first year, it wasn't a fundraiser. It just seemed like a fun idea to get together. My brother (so not the cook) ended up being one of the chefs, and he competed against a friend of his. I think that was the same year that my dh was treated for Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and 3 weeks after he finished treatment (now at 3 years remission, if all the August scans are clear!), my mom was diagnosed with a nasty form of leukemia. She died 5 weeks later.

(I mentioned that LLS was personal, right?)

So the next year, he organized it again (refusing to be the chef this time!), but put a dollar amount on it that would go toward our Light the Night fundraising efforts. I can't remember what he raised that year, but I think it was in the realm of $500ish. The next year I want to say it was around $800.

This year, he had a wait list, charged $40 a head, and after food costs (plus some matching funds), he raised almost $1200 this year. He's the consummate salesman, so he's managed to find different places to use that have enough seating and kitchen space for free.

He picks out an ingredient (one year chocolate, one year coke, one year white wine), and gives the "chefs" a month to prepare their menu (so it's not a last minute discovery). They prepare an appetizer, entree, and dessert. The attendees vote on which of each course is best. The first year, when he was the reluctant chef, he was voted best entree but got beat on appetizer and dessert. It's just a big social night, and they always have fun.

I'm thinking about doing a kids' version. Not 100% sure what it would look like, but I think I'd ask for a donation from each cooking participant, as well as one the judges (which, according to my kids, should also be kids). Let all the kids compete, since with kids, they'd have more fun cooking than just eating. Granted, I'm still working out the kinks on that one.

Hope that helps! I'm also crocheting things that I can sell. I've got a friend who is looking for something to do with her "projects" as well, so I might also try some kind of silent auction. (Can you tell I'm trying to come up with ideas to make up for the huge minimum I'm expecting?)

[indysteel]

Your Iron Chef party sounds like great fun!

I am sorry to read about your mom. I'm glad though that your DH is doing well. Good luck with all of your efforts. It's clearly a worthy cause.

[Possegal]

That party idea is very cool. I may have to try this for next year (running out of time for this August). I bet I could get my family on board for something like this.

[lovelygamer]

I spoke with TIT in detail yesterday about a century here in my home town. Minimums are $1600 w/hotel and $1200. It seems like a huge commitment to me. The minimums are hard. You have to sign a commitment paper that says you will pay for what you don't raise.

I don't have a connection to LLS. I have never fund-raised more than $200... To ask people to give of their own money is really not me.

I really want to get a trainer and/or coach for my first century but I am not ready to commit to this so I probably won't have one.

[Crankin]

If you want to ride 100 miles, just do your own ride.
I abhor the thought of asking people for money. The only charity rides I've done are ones where you just pay a registration fee. Seriously, I wanted to do the Soldier Ride a second time, but they added in fund raising commitments. Sorry, I just can't do it. I won't ask work colleagues and I can't ask friends.
And I've heard that some of the TIT coaches around here are not so nice...

[spokewench]

I was a TIT coach long, long ago, when TIT was a pilot program. Back then, it was good; now I have no idea???

Of course, I was not a mean coach! There was even a nice article about me out of SF when I coached. So, I guess I couldn't have been all bad!

[maillotpois]

I've been a TNT coach on and off for over 10 years. I've had friends all around the country have lots of success and fun with the program. I can't speak to specific other chapters, but everyone at the national events seems generally well prepared and is having a lot of fun.

Yes, the fundraising can be daunting, but they generally have a "recommitment" period about 1/2 - 2/3 of the way through the training where you can assess how your fundraising is going and back out of it - with no further commitment to raise the rest of the money.

[luvmyguys]

I've been a TNT coach on and off for over 10 years. I've had friends all around the country have lots of success and fun with the program. I can't speak to specific other chapters, but everyone at the national events seems generally well prepared and is having a lot of fun.

Yes, the fundraising can be daunting, but they generally have a "recommitment" period about 1/2 - 2/3 of the way through the training where you can assess how your fundraising is going and back out of it - with no further commitment to raise the rest of the money.

That's what I was understanding (at least about the fundraising). I'll be going to a TNT info session Saturday, but I'm not looking to ride until next year (this year we're fundraising for Light the Night). I'm very committed to TNT being the first big ride, assuming I can do the fundraising. $2500 would be big but I'm pretty sure I could pull that off, $5K might be a little tougher (but I think I'd still try).

So it sounds like you could potentially refuse certain benefits (like hotel or maybe transportation) and that would affect the minimum?

Thanks for the advice!

[jobob]

So it sounds like you could potentially refuse certain benefits (like hotel or maybe transportation) and that would affect the minimum?



Once again, it entirely depends on the event. Find out the specific details about the event you're interested in.

[tangentgirl]

If you want to ride 100 miles, just do your own ride.
I abhor the thought of asking people for money. The only charity rides I've done are ones where you just pay a registration fee. Seriously, I wanted to do the Soldier Ride a second time, but they added in fund raising commitments. Sorry, I just can't do it. I won't ask work colleagues and I can't ask friends.


I have to jump in here. Fundraising is not for everyone, and I get that. I've done TNT a few times now, and it's definitely the most difficult part.

However, the fundraising model has enabled the LLS to raise more than $1 billion for cancer research and patient care. Event registration fees alone could never touch that. TNT money - from friends, families and colleagues - has funded important breakthroughs in cancer treatments. It's pretty cool being at the dinner before an event and have them talk about specific medicines and research, all possible because of TNT.

I also know people, family friends, who were directly supported by the LLS. The society does more than fund research - it matches patients with experimental treatments and new treatments. It helps them find other support services. The human aspect of this really sealed the deal for me.

If you think about it, your friends will probably give some money to a charity. You are simply making them aware of this particular charity. I look at it as a worthwhile PITA. :)

Finally, there are lots of ways to raise money, other than simply asking. My friend and I had a beer tasting party - we got some interesting craft brews and charged folks $20 each to come and try beers they might not have seen yet. Some businesses are also very happy to help - a local bar I know of will let you sell extended happy hour tickets at the door. Restaurants will sometimes donate a percentage of an evening's profits to the cause. TNT's pretty good at helping you find this stuff, too.

*Gingerly hopping down from my little soap box now.*

[luvmyguys]

I have to jump in here. Fundraising is not for everyone, and I get that. I've done TNT a few times now, and it's definitely the most difficult part.

However, the fundraising model has enabled the LLS to raise more than $1 billion for cancer research and patient care. Event registration fees alone could never touch that. TNT money - from friends, families and colleagues - has funded important breakthroughs in cancer treatments. It's pretty cool being at the dinner before an event and have them talk about specific medicines and research, all possible because of TNT.

I also know people, family friends, who were directly supported by the LLS. The society does more than fund research - it matches patients with experimental treatments and new treatments. It helps them find other support services. The human aspect of this really sealed the deal for me.

If you think about it, your friends will probably give some money to a charity. You are simply making them aware of this particular charity. I look at it as a worthwhile PITA. :)

Finally, there are lots of ways to raise money, other than simply asking. My friend and I had a beer tasting party - we got some interesting craft brews and charged folks $20 each to come and try beers they might not have seen yet. Some businesses are also very happy to help - a local bar I know of will let you sell extended happy hour tickets at the door. Restaurants will sometimes donate a percentage of an evening's profits to the cause. TNT's pretty good at helping you find this stuff, too.

*Gingerly hopping down from my little soap box now.*

Agreed!

One other thing that I didn't know about TNT before I went to the orientation last weekend was that because leukemia and lymphoma aren't the type of cancers for which you get "screened for early detection", they don't waste a lot of energy or money on awareness campaigns. The majority of the money goes directly to either research or support of patients with the disease.