Plus 3 Network raises funds when you ride and log

From the latest issue of RoadBikeRider:

Here's a way to make your miles worth money: The new Plus 3 Network lets you turn every ride into a fundraiser for the cause of your choice. After signing up, you log rides on the website or do it automatically via a GPS device. The Network credits your account as much as $0.02 per mile for road rides ($0.025 for mountain biking). Then every so often, the Network tells corporate sponsors how many Plus 3 members covered how many miles, and the sponsors write a check to your cause. Membership is free and allows you to count running, walking and swimming miles too. For details on this worthy new program, which was launched at Interbike in late September, click www.plus3network.com

I just clicked on the link and the front page has a lot of credible sponsors and causes. Each sponsor is linked to a specific cause such as Trek sponsoring The Brest Cancer Research Foundation and RockShox sponsoring IMBA.

The payout per mile is listed below with the first number representing a GPS logged activity and the 2nd for a hand entry of the activity. So GPS miles earn 10 times a hand entry.

Activity / GPS Upload / Hand Entry
Road Biking $0.02 $0.002
Mtn Biking $0.025 $0.0025
Running $0.035 $0.0035
Walking $0.05 $0.005
Swimming $0.2 $0.02
Other $0.01 $0.001

Ya beat me to it, I just read about that in the latest RoadBikeRider e-letter ;)

I love this idea. It almost makes me want to go out and buy a GPS so I can increase my charitable contributions. I would definitely suggest that anyone who's interested read the FAQ at the site, as the main screens don't fully explain the concept.

I'm loading activities now as the guinea pig. Wanna be my friend? ;)

Sure, we can be friends. I'm listed as T L Davis. Have you by any chance figured out how to change your cause/sponsor?

Hmm, I just briefly looked and couldn't figure it out.

However, unlike Pearl Izumi, Plus 3 Network has an excellent response time to customer questions. In the "make it better" section I found the email for this stuff and have already heard back.

Email: letitiadavis at plus3network.com

PS -- Just a note that Pedro's marketing manager also emailed me back within the hour when I sent a "bravo" note.

I'm signed up.

I guess I have to ride to get any credit... :rolleyes:

Oooh, a good excuse to start using my Edge 305. :)

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Originally Posted by maillotpois

I'm signed up.

I guess I have to ride to get any credit... :rolleyes:

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You could always go back and enter past rides to get a head start ;)

But you have to do those manually. :( MP, you can upload any history files that are still in your Garmin but you may need to download the Garmin Connector plug-in first.

I can't figure out how to upload history from GTC back to my Garmin, and I always wipe the history immediately cause I don't like to deal with it trying to download everything each time I connect.

I now have 2 friends on +3N. Kewl.

Edit: make that 3 friends. Wicked Kewl. :D

Editing again: Jobob made it 4. Double Wicked Kewl. :p

could?

Happy, soon to also be an OF?

Way soon.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SadieKate

I now have 2 friends on +3N. Kewl.

Edit: make that 3 friends. Wicked Kewl. :D

Editing again: Jobob made it 4. Double Wicked Kewl. :p

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Just hope they don't essplode ;)




Sorry, I'm bored and borderline giddy this evening. But I e-mailed Plus3 about changing sponsor & cause. I'll let y'all know if I get a reply.

Frends know gud humors when dey is hear it. :D

I noticed that the sponsors have upper limits on the amount the donate - either a per person amount ($20 or $25) or a total amount ($10,000).

I wonder, if you reach the maximum amount, if you'll be able to sign on with a new sponsor/charity.

I tried to bookmark Plus3 this morning and got an 'unspecified error'. Did anyone else have this problem?

No, but the coding is, I believe, done on the west coast which means at 3:47 am they could have been running updates.

I'm in. Don't know anyone's real names, so I can't be friends... :(

But, I'm training for a long-distance race in February, so I'll be logging tons of miles, with my Garmin, so if someone finds out how to switch sponsors once we max out, let me know!

I think there are only 3 Sarah's on there so at least two of us can't be that hard to find! :p

I'll be your friend. Don't know 'bout "That one."

I'm Joanne & I'm using the same avatar as I use here. :cool:

Mel's been uploading rides and raking in the bucks - she had her Garmin on our 200K last weekend so she raised about $2.50 on that ride, vs my 25 cents. :p

Should get at least 100 miles this weekend, and I'll start using my Garmin on my whopping 1.5 mile commute - I use my mtb, so hopefully, that will get a half-cent more per mile. This is great -- I think it will really motivate me heading into winter.

I use my mtb on the Breast Cancer walks, so I've also signed up for the Reward Challenge -- I should get 100 miles that weekend, so I get some Pedros Lube.

Hmm... I guess you have to use your real name with this site. Darn.

But isn't your real name dachshund? :cool:

Well isn't this a good reason to get that Garmin for my Birthday!?

Thanks for posting this. I'm going to go sign up -- but for a bit will have to be doing it by hand, so I guess I'll have to work out 10x as much?! Whoa... I better get busy!:eek:

I'll sign up as Jessica and use same avitar.

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Originally Posted by dachshund

Hmm... I guess you have to use your real name with this site. Darn.

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You could enter first name = Dachs, last name = Hund. I'm T L Davis at Plus3, but I've used Kali Durga as my name on other sites.

Ah, but if I hadn't used my real name I wouldn't be "Friends" with the marketing and communications manager at Pedros.:p

OK.. I'm in and sent friend requests to everyone who I recognized.
I also sent emails to everyone on my email list who may even log a mile a day! Hopefully this will raise some money for these great causes.

Now... to work on that Garmin.
Quick email to hubby!
Jes

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jesvetmed

Well isn't this a good reason to get that Garmin for my Birthday!?

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This is as good a reason as any to get the Garmin! :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dachshund

Hmm... I guess you have to use your real name with this site. Darn.

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Well, as others have suggested, I'm sure you can come up with an intriguing and witty alias!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jobob

Mel's been uploading rides and raking in the bucks - she had her Garmin on our 200K last weekend so she raised about $2.50 on that ride, vs my 25 cents. :p

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Yeah, well there appears to be a bug in the upload software. I have only been able to upload the 3 most recent activities on my Garmin. I really, really want to get the others uploaded; let's see, there's the AIDS/Lifecycle ride, Waves to Wine, Jo's 200k Permanent from H@ll (um, that's because of the weather, not the route or the company), and a bunch of training rides.

I've contacted Plus 3 Network's support, so we'll see if we can reach a solution.

On Plus 3, I'm Melissa (no intriguing alias for me), and my avatar looks like this:
http://www.plus3network.com/photos/0...jpg?1223615471

I noticed that avatar, it's great.

I have a feeling Plus3's gonna be getting a lot of e-mails about site issues. At this point, I've gotten no response to last night's e-mail, and I still need to contact them about the bookmark issue. Great cause/idea getting off the ground a little too quickly, perhaps?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jobob

But isn't your real name dachshund? :cool:

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Snort! Very funny.

Thanks for the suggestions, now that it's passed the Committee I feel confident I can think of something.

I was able to upload about a month's worth of runs and rides from my Garmin 305. It recognized events all the way back to the first on January 1 but it said there were no GPS tracks. I'm guessing the Garmin had to delete the older info.

I wrote to Plus 3 yesterday asking if there was a way to use nicknames instead of one's real name, and here's the response I received this morning:

Hi Joanne,

Welcome to Plus 3 Network!

Yes, you can use a nickname if you prefer to not have your full name on the site. When filling out the profile information page, just put something else in for First Name and Last Name. It might not be the most elegant solution right now, but that is the only way around the issue.

See you around the network!

I'm still OK with using my real name but for those of you who are hesitant, there you have it. :cool:

I was able to change my name! I'm officially Pedal Wench. Ms. Wench if you're nasty.

Yep, it shows up that way on my friends list!

Ms. Wench, now you need a (suitably nasty) pic for your Plus 3 profile!

OK, the Plus 3 site is starting to remind me a lot of my day job. I have tried every trick up my sleeve, but now I cannot get the stupid plugin to unlock. I cannot upload my epic ride from yesterday. But there it is on Jobob's page -- mocking me. :(

I'm gonna download the Garmin API and write my own site, dammit. Oh wait, I don't have the "ins" with all the charitably contributing folks...

I wondered what that giggling was.:D

Just received this email from Plus 3 HQ, which might be of interest to those thinking of signing up:

Hey There -

This is Rick and Joe, co-founders of Plus 3 Network, and we just want to welcome you as one of the very first people to join us as we make every workout count for a cause that matters to you. We would also like to thank Plus 3 Network corporate sponsors who join you in making the world a healthier and better place.

As with most new business ideas, we will be tweaking the network; 'dialing it in' with new features and better functionality. And we'll rely on you, our members, to help. Let us know what's working and what we need to improve.

A Tweak:
One thing we just tweaked yesterday is the mileage payouts. The GPS entered rates remain the same but the value of the Hand Entered Activities increased 3-fold. There is something about the number 3 we find alluring.


Webinar
Want to learn more about how to get the most from Plus 3 Network or ask a question? We will have two free 20 minute webinars next week where Joe will demo the product and be online for chat-style question and answers.

October 22
Noon PST – Register here https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/672576378
5:30 PM PST – Register here https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/404448222


Three things we want to emphasize to help you get more from Plus 3 Network:

* Tag activities with the actual sport – It’s important for max value that you tag your activities by Biking / Running / Walking / Swimming, as the payouts for each are different and all reward more than “Other”. If the workout is truly “Other”, you must enter a distance to create a charitable donation.

* Plus 3 will be expanding the list of sporting activities rewarded in the coming months. Winter sports, indoor sports and exercise activities will be added; allowing you to keep an accurate and complete fitness and fundraising journal.

* We have been getting requests for Profiles be set to Public by default to make it easier to find friends. In October we'll make that switch for new members signing up. You can change your profile to Public in the 'update my profile' link that sits next to your photo in the My Account zone.

As a sign off, people are starting to hit their Challenges – time to start sending people rewards – hope you will be one of the first there too!

Making It Count,

Joe Fabris & Rick Sutton
The “Ben & Jerry” of Plus 3 Network


Joe: www.plus3network.com/people/profile/1
Rick: www.plus3network.com/people/profile/10

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Originally Posted by SadieKate

Happy, soon to also be an OF?

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Hi Everyone!

I'm so excited to see all this great discussion about Plus 3 Network! I'm Letitia, the Member Care Manager at Plus 3 Network. Oh, I'm also another bike rider who wants to make all my miles count toward the good of this planet and others :D

Working with Rick and Joe (our CEO and CPO) is awesome because both guys are genuinely interested in making a difference in this world through the Fitness + Community + Advocacy idea of Plus 3. Rick is the guy who started the Sea Otter Classic and Joe has an amazing technical background, along with a love for fitness and a great sense of humor! Do I dare mention that we've been known to have business meetings while riding our bikes?

There have been some questions posted on this discussion forum about Plus 3 Network. I will be more than happy to answer all questions and want to hear about any technical difficulty that you might be having. The best way for me to do this is for you to email me at letitiadavis@plus3network.com or support@plus3network.com I always respond to each email personally within 24 hours.

Also, I would be thrilled if everyone who gets onto Plus 3 Network as a result of this discussion thread finds me (Letitia Davis) on the network and invites me to be their friend. Mention how you found me? Would love to get to know who is logging miles and where your favorite rides are!

A couple of hints:

1. Make sure you use the www.plus3network.com address. .org or .net will give you that "unlocked" error that someone mentioned.
2. Sign up for a challenge BEFORE you upload all of your activities. Only activities logged after you sign up for a challenge are counted towards the challenge.
3.Garmin data counts more towards your Cause than hand entered miles, so use your Garmin if you've got one. But a Garmin is not a necessity to use the site--hand entered routes are fine!
3. Have fun with it and make all your miles count!

Cool Site! I'm signed up!