Brussels to London Bike Ride - REGISTER NOW!
Right To Play is happy to announce that registrations for the Brussels to London charity bike ride are now open.
4th - 7th July 2010
We are looking for 300 adventurous cyclists to join us on a fantastic summer tour from Brussels to London. We start in Brussels on July 4th to watch the finale of the second stage of the Tour De France, cheering on our partners Team HTC Colombia. On the 5th we start our journey toward London following some of the routes of the Tour De France. Expect the beautiful city of Bruges, picturesque countryside and stunning scenery before a grandstand finish in Greenwich Park, London on July 7th.
This ride is not just for students but for anyone with a sense of adventure. Whether you are experienced, a beginner, a student or simply someone wanting to have some fun, get fit and support our cause this will be a thoroughly enjoyable challenge. Use the links below to find out more about this fantastic event or get in touch with Will Bennett at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or 0207 812 0635.
- The Ride
- The Pledge
- The Cause
- Training Tips
- Fundraising
- Register
Have fun, get fit and improve the lives of thousands of children in developing areas through the medium of sport and play.
In 2009, 100 cyclists rode from Edinburgh to London. 2010's ride from Brussels promises to be even better. The route is beautiful, taking in some wonderful European cities and crossing the glorious stretch of water that is the English Channel. This is also your chance to get as close as you can to the Tour De France. Before we even start cycling we will watch the second stage of the Tour De France finish and the journey back to London follows some of the routes from the Tours. This cycle ride will give you the chance to have fun, get fit, meet new people and get a feel for the Tour De France while still being an achievable and enjoyable experience.
This will be a beautiful trip with two scenic days rolling through Belgium and northern France, and one more challenging but equally stunning day from Dover to the grand finish in Greenwich Park, London. Better still, watching the second stage of the Tour De France finish in Brussels promises to be an exhilarating experience - it's a flat stage, and Right To Play Ambassador Mark Cavendish should be in with a real chance of winning. Mark rode with us at the start of the 2009 ride and we will be announcing some exciting news involving Team HTC Colombia and this year's ride soon.
Day 1: We will meet in London and travel to Brussels by Eurostar to watch the second stage of the Tour De France finish. The evening will be yours to enjoy Brussels.
Day 2: Leaving from Brussels we will cycle towards Ghent riding through much of the Tour de Flanders on the way. From Ghent we make our way along the canals to Bruges, and spend the evening in this beautiful city.
Day 3: We will head west from Bruges across Flanders towards northern France, taking in UNESCO World Heritage sights and First World War battlefields before crossing the border near Dunkirk. We will spend the night near Calais.
Day 4: We will sail across the Channel to Dover and cycle the final 75 miles across the South Downs and on to London, finishing in Greenwich Park with the wonderful views over the city.
- The Ride - you are here
- The Pledge
- The Cause
- Training Tips
- Fundraising
- Register
Registration fee: £100 - without travel to Brussels .jpg)
Registration fee: £150 - including Eurostar travel to Brussels
Sponsorship pledge: £1000
£1000 will have an incredible impact on children’s lives around the world, and will be something you can be hugely proud of. It costs £20 to offer a child the benefits of attending Right To Play’s sport for development programmes for a whole year, and your efforts will extend this opportunity to 55 children and our dedicated fundraising team will support you at every step of the way. Your pledge will include:
+ Travel by Eurostar to Brussels (depending which option chosen)
+ Travel arrangements for your bike to get to Brussels
+ 3 nights accommodation
+ All food (3 large meals a day)
+ Full team support (on bicycles and in vehicles)
+ Luggage porter service (you will cycle with nothing)
+ Medical support
+ Mechanical support
+ Route marking, cycle guides and maps
+ 3rd party insurance
+ Dedicated fundraising support
+ An Endura cycle vest
- The Ride
- The Pledge - you are here
- The Cause
- Training Tips
- Fundraising
- Register
Your pledge will help children on Right To Play's programmes around the world. We use sport and play to provide basic education to 720,000 children in 23 countries each week; to raise awareness of health issues such as HIV and malaria prevention; to promote peace and tolerance; and to give children the life skills and confidence necessary to make the most of their lives.
Right To Play has been a pioneer in innovation for social change and has a track record for creating programmes that are both sustainable and replicable. Our programmes incorporate a unique methodology that uses sport and play as tools for learning in four development impact areas:
1. Basic Education and Child Development: Right To Play's sport and play programmes foster the phsical, cognitive and social development of children to teach important values and life skills.
2. Health Promotion and Disease Prevention: Right To Play's sport and play programmes are used to educate the mobilise communities around national health and disease prevention priorities, including HIV and AIDS, malaria and immunization.
3. Conflict Resolution and Peace Building: Our programmes are tools for tools for teaching conflict resolution and peace building skills. Participation in regular activities facilitates the healing of communities and reintegration of children affected by war.
4. Community Development and Participation: In order to create change and have a sustainable impact, we work in partnership with local organisations to build community infrastructure through the engagement of local staff and local and international volunteers.
Right To Play programmes are guided by the principles of Inclusion and Sustainability.
- Inclusion promotes the involvement of children and youth who may be marginalised for reasons of gender, disability, ethnicity, social background or religion. We believe that through well designed games and sports, attitudes contributing toward a child's exclusion from meaningful participation in society will change.
- Sustainability ensures our programmes have a lasting impact and centres on building the capacity of individuals, communities and partner organisations to independently deliver, on an ongoing basis, learning objectives through regular sport and play activities.
When Children Play The World Wins
- The Ride
- The Pledge
- The Cause - you are here
- Training Tips
- Fundraising
- Register
This ride has been designed to be challeging but achievable. We are always here to help and advise about the best methods of training you should take. We recommend getting as famiar with your bike as you can and introduce cycling into your routine. Cycling to work, and taking an hour or two each weekend to go on a bike ride will get beginners aclimatised to cycling and start to develop those all important leg muscles. As we get closer to the ride we will give more detailed and advance training routines that will get you prepared for this adventure but for now, here are some recommended routes:
London:.jpg)
Leeds:
Shadwell to Bramham and Harwood Circular
Ireland:
Blackrock to Al Bliac and back
Scotland:
South/ South West:
.jpg)
Gloucestershire:
Bristol to Bradford via Canal Path
Cambridgeshire:
South Wales :
Celtic Tri Sunday ride (could also been done on another day of the week!)
- The Ride
- The Pledge
- The Cause
- Training Tips - you are here
- Fundraising
- Register
F UN!
U se your contacts. If you don't have any, find some.
N ewspapers, radio, TV. Try.
D onation box. Use that one, make your own...
R affles, games, cake sale... Old school stuff works well.
A sk for Match funding at your Office or University
I nternet: use it as much as you can.
S kills. Yours (and other's). Use them.
I magination. Be creative. Think out of the box.
N O. Don't take it for an answer. Be bold!
G et rid of stuff you don't need for money.
Get a fundraising plan
You might be finding the time a little short but get yourself a plan and you will be infallible. Remember you have the first instalment of £600 to hand in at the end of June and the rest by the end of July. Make a list of people you need to talk to and a schedule of the places you will go and the events you want to organise. We have listed a few ideas below to trigger some inspiration but please do give us a ring on 0207 734 7946 or drop Will an email at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
for any more tips, help or advice - we are here to help you hit your target.
Who do you know?
Getting your friends and family to donate a few quid, let's face it, won't be that much of a challenge. But this won't be enough. You will need to push a little bit further, sit down and think about who you can get to help. A friend of a friend might be a local media journalist, or a pub landlord who might let you organise an event for free, or a shop owner who might donate an item you could use as a prize in a raffle... Use your connections, be fearless, and you'll often find that people are more willing than you might have thought.
What can YOU do?
Organise events that people will want to take part in, enjoy, and will pay a few pounds for the pleasure. You can be as creative as you want, but it is always fine to do a tried and tested event such as a pub quiz or a cake sale. Its always fun to organise something based on your interests and hobbies - karaoke night, sports tournaments, a dinner party for friends where you ask for a donation to attend ... the list is endless. The important thing is to not forget about communication and advertising: the whole world should be there!
The Internet is your friend
You should all have a JustGiving page. If not, what are you waiting for? It's a fast and safe means for people to donate, and it avoids you having to travel around to get money off people.
Facebook and Twitter are fantastic tools when it comes to getting a message across to a large number of people. You can set up a support group on Facebook, get your friends to change their status or send an email to their friends, and keep your status updated with your progress. Include your JustGiving page in your email signature, ipdate your blog, and get your friends to do the same. Your friend's friend's circle of friends needs to have heard about this - It's a big deal.
Freebies, Prizes & the Media
An old school raffle always works well. For prizes, talk to local shops and business to see what they can donate. Work on getting stuff for free or cool items from a charity shop and your total will climb sky high. Use local media as much you can. Local newspapers are often willing to advertise efforts for charity, so talk to them.
Offices and Universities
These are good places to advertise your fundraising challenge. Use your own professional or student circles as best you can, but also your family and friends'.
Is there a company website or intranet you could advertise this on? Or send a general email asking people to donate to your Justgivng page? Is there a notice board where you can put a poster up?
Keep in mind that some companies and universities offer what is called ‘matched funding' this means that whatever you fundraise, they offer to double it. Don't miss this opportunity, talk to your employer or your student's union. Some universities will also help you fundraise or at least advertise for your cause.
Get rid of old stuff
We all have things that we keep but don't really need. Maybe it's time to do some sorting, and put that money towards your fundraising pledge. Here are some websites to check out:
- All sorts: to sell everything you want, think Ebay. You might also find extra cheap things to buy as raffle prizes.
- Books, CDs etc: for those books that you bought but you're never going to read, or old academic handbooks that you don't need any more, use the used and new section of Amazon
- Recycle Old Phones: There are a few companies who will trade old cell phones for cash, so rummage around your house and ask your friends and family to do the same and see how many you can come up with. You can receive up to £100 for some old phones! Cell for cash or Envirofone
- Freecycle is a good way of getting free stuff, and swapping for your prizes or things to sell.
- The Ride
- The Pledge
- The Cause
- Training Tips
- Fundraising - you are here
- Register
