General Questions about Charity Rides

[ny biker]

The Livestrong events do provide mentors for fundraising advice. I've never used them but they're there if you want them. Also their events exist because they are Livestrong events -- all the participants have raised money for the LAF. There is also training advice on their website but they don't have regularly scheduled training rides/runs like TNT teams do.

TNT events are general events that open to the public, so most of the other participants are not doing any fundraising for anything. And as mentioned previously, you don't have to pay extra for travel costs (except for meals, I think).

I've done a TNT event but am simply not able to raise that kind of money on a regular basis, so I do the Livestrong Challenge instead. Since I live near DC and I do the Philadelphia ride, I have to pay for the hotel out of pocket, but they do offer special group rates at several nearby hotels.

I've also done some Tour de Cure rides for the American Diabetes Assn, although I stopped doing them a few years back because I decided based on my family history to focus on cancer organizations. They were similar to the Livestrong rides in that every participant was a fundraiser and there was no organized training/fundraising assistance program. I guess probably most of the fundraisers outside of TNT are like that, too.

I will say that the Livestrong ride is hands-down the best organized ride I've ever done, in terms of details like route signage, police/volunteers at all key intersections, number of available medical volunteers, stuff like that. This year they even had portable sinks with soap, water and paper towels next to all the porta-potties at all the rest stops. They are also the only rides I've done that had people who lived along the route standing in front of their houses and cheering us on.

[Possegal]

I'll chime in with two thumbs up for the Livestrong rides. Like NY biker, I was at the Philly ride. Last year I had 2 others with me, this year we were a team of 16 (9 cyclists and 7 runners). All my new folks commented on how impressed they were with the organization and the comraderie. At packet pick-up my brother in law and his friend met one of the guys running the show and he knew our team, based on our entry into the jersey contest. He sat with them for over 30 minutes and knew everything about my team and my sister, who has cancer and is the reason we ride, by the end of it. He knew me by name and what I did for a living and the next day, called out to me by name again. I'm sure he met hundreds of people, I was impressed that he remembered my name.

All that is just to say that although there isn't a "team" with livestrong, the atmosphere is anything but in my opinion. I figured I'd have to give my team a few weeks before asking if they would ride again next year, but sitting around our little canopy after the ride, they were already making plans for next year and recruiting new team members. I attribute a lot of that to the atmosphere of the ride and how well organized it all is.

Hey NY biker, how about the little girl with her own water stop, I love her! My sister said to her "you were here last year" and she responded, I'm here every year!!! My family also loved the little girl sitting on the wall at her yard and clanging on a triangle. We also love the cops. After 9 of us rode through one intersection, each shouting out "thank you" to the cop, he said to my sister "you people are so belligerent", which cracked us all up.

All that said though - whatever charity you choose to ride for, good for you! You will feel such a sense of accomplishment and a good cause will benefit from it!