Wouldn't it be SOOOO cool if . . .

[kenyonchris]

Wouldn't this be cool if we actually raised some money for a worthy cause (mine is Livestrong, but whatever) while doing this? I am not sure exactly how, but I am sure great minds will figure out a way. If we do it for a cause, it will be easier to get local support if needed (even if it is just for a few riders in each area...like the torch relay).
We had a girl running for disabled veterans. She was running a relay type thing, and we gave her a police escort through town.

[crazycanuck]

K.do you want me to start the "it" off next week on the journey?

Another q. Can we send this thing to Susan @ TE HQ? It might be a nice thank you

[krisl6]

Count me in for the European leg of "IT's" world tour. Might be fun to get one of those silly looking trolls to use as IT (you know the ones with the crazy hair..do they still make them?). Just an idea. But whatever IT turns out to be I'd love to be involved.

[Trek420]

K.do you want me to start the "it" off next week on the journey?

Another q. Can we send this thing to Susan @ TE HQ? It might be a nice thank you

I think that's a great idea. Are you thinking after "IT" has completed a tour?

[Aggie_Ama]

What if you are in the area and pass the thing? Like if I were camping/riding in East Texas so I pass it to someone there. It is a long drive, I can't imagine riding. But I am in - Central Texas.

I also read about some guys who biked across America and planted a little tree at stops along the way. Good for the environment! I think we all have our causes, so finding one to unite us might be a little hard.

[skinimini]

What if you are in the area and pass the thing? Like if I were camping/riding in East Texas so I pass it to someone there. It is a long drive, I can't imagine riding.

I wouldn't have any problem with that. Also, I could see driving in any number of directions from Atlanta, stopping some set distance from the pass-off and then biking the rest of the way.

After early to mid-December, I could help coordinate its journey through the US (I'm just swamped with work and family obligations right now). Perhaps by then, it would have started its way around the Southern Hemisphere.

I like the idea of a charitible cause. I like the idea of "it" making its way back to the origination point.

[indigoiis]

We can do it as a "Pick your charity", and then when we report, we can say, "I did 65 miles from Rhode Island to Connecticut for Diabetes, and I met up with _________ (see picture...), we had a quick lunch, chatted, and then she took off with IT for a 45 mile jaunt for her charity...."

[indigoiis]

p.s. I started a thread in the Northeast section to help gather those of us in the Northeast. Add your name, location, miles willing to ride, best routes you can utilize, and whether or not you are willing to travel (drive) to get to a riding point.

[staceysue]

How 'bout we combine some ideas:

Somebody suggested we should have several 'things', somebody suggested 'flat stanley,' and somebody suggested a bandanna.

So - how 'bout we have a flat stanley (or a stuffed doll) and several pieces of clothes for it - a bandanna that everybody would sign, a backpack etc. etc. Each continent could have 1 part of the thing and maybe the US could have 2 parts. Then all the things would meet up somewhere and be assembled?

If a bunch of people did charitable causes they could be included in the thing - a breast cancer pin, AIDS pin, maybe it could be like Linus and have a little security blanket (an AIDS blanket).

Then it could go to Susan at TE headquarters and she could be a guest on Oprah.

Wait! All the parts could meet together and be presented to Susan on Oprah! Along with some great big checks for charities. I'm sure Oprah would match . . . .

[staceysue]

Wouldn't this be cool if we actually raised some money for a worthy cause (mine is Livestrong, but whatever) while doing this? I am not sure exactly how, but I am sure great minds will figure out a way. If we do it for a cause, it will be easier to get local support if needed (even if it is just for a few riders in each area...like the torch relay).
We had a girl running for disabled veterans. She was running a relay type thing, and we gave her a police escort through town.

Do we have any public relations or advertising people on this board? We could publicize the heck out of it - make a lot of money! We could all vote on our favorite causes/charities and pick a few to donate to.

[indigoiis]

Do we have any public relations or advertising people on this board? We could publicize the heck out of it - make a lot of money! We could all vote on our favorite causes/charities and pick a few to donate to.

I'm sure with our collective talent we could get this big really quickly.

I like the compiled bits onto the doll thing. Very cool.

[shootingstar]

Why don't someone just choose something light, small/foldable and begin the journey.

Charity idea sounds nice, but complex to administer across internationally. Worry about finalizing the charity stuff ....later. We can do finish planning in the middle of this mega international journey if needed.

We have our pet charities (no pun here) locally as well.

Make it simple ...to get the journey started, take pics as evidence, memories at each meeting/celebration point.

Treat it like a long-bike touring ride: Don't overplan, otherwise one gets weighed down with too much "baggage", indecisions, etc. I like indigios or some of us just informally organizing a few travel points within our region.

Please someone just start riding....with the 'thing'. I'm happy to organize within greater Vancouver..not sure who would cycle to or from the Canada-U.S. border when we are experiencing cold and rain at this time of year..

[shellkay1212]

INDIANA

Fort Wayne is where I am but I would LOVE this!!!

[chicagogal]

I'm in!!!!!

There are at least a few of us in Chicago. I would be up for making it a group ride where all of us Chicago girls meet up and go as a group to the next point.

[NbyNW]

Raising money for a cause is a great idea, and since the folks on this message board are all over the globe, perhaps it would make sense to choose something that might have an international focus. And maybe there would be a way to start a TE fund for that cause (or causes) that people could make contributions to.

I'm sure there are tons of options for this, like Doctors without Borders, Oxfam, etc. And every now and then I read about a group that fixes up bikes and sends them to a developing country -- don't know of any one specifically, but something like that would be consistent with the main theme of this community.