240 miles in 24 hours: an extraordinary challenge for charity
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‘240 miles in 24 hours: an extraordinary challenge for charity’
One fundraiser at make-a-donation.org is taking on an extraordinary challenge for charity: cycling 240 miles non-stop within 24 hours. As well as taking on gruelling training challenges, David will be putting his fundraising skills to the test with his goal of raising £7,000 for his chosen charity.
David Finch, MD at Purple Frog in Thame, took on this epic cycling challenge after his friend bet that a 50-something-year-old man, like David, would be too unfit to complete it. As someone who loves a challenge, David negotiated that his friend would give £1,000 to charity if he achieved it, and if not - David would be the one paying. Taking place on 31st July, David will be cycling 240 miles non-stop around Lake Vyrnwy within 24 hours. David has chosen to raise money for Dreamflight - a charity that takes children with a serious illness or disability on a holiday of a lifetime in Florida. Specifically, David wants to send at least 50 children to go swimming with dolphins whilst there. It costs £140 per child, so David has set his sights high to raise £7,000 in total.
Although the challenge may sound near-impossible, David has been training for it for two years, including taking up yoga and a 3-day challenge to cycle from Thame to Paris last summer. As well as countless 100 mile rides, David is taking on a 175 mile ride in June, which will take him through four different countries. In May, he’s teamed up with a couple of friends for a 12 hour endurance ride to test his fitness even further. When asked how he was feeling about the challenge, David replied, ‘On the one hand, I’m quietly confident. But on the other - I’m extremely nervous. It’s the sheer length of time on the bike that’s worrying me, as opposed to the actual distance.’ However, he knows it’s for a brilliant cause and he is determined to see it through. David is fundraising at make-a-donation.org, as it’s the only UK fundraising site where 100% of donations goes to the charity. Unlike all others, Make a Donation doesn’t charge charities any fees whatsoever, meaning that Dreamflight will get every last penny of what David raises. David, who is also CEO of Make a Donation, comments ‘Having used other sites in the past and seen up to 6.3% of my fundraising total going to those running the site, it’s great to know that this time, all the money and Gift Aid I raise will go directly to Dreamflight. With a fundraising total of £7,000, it would be saving around £440 in fees - which is another 3 children swimming with dolphins.’ As well as appealing to his friends and family to sponsor him, David wants to encourage groups to collectively donate £140 to enable a dolphin swim for a child - whether it’s work colleagues in an office or a group of friends at the pub.
This fundraising challenge is not just the act of one man, but of a community - as it’s their contributions that will really make the difference for the children at Dreamflight. David’s challenge echoes exactly what make-a-donation.org is all about - creating an effective community of businesses, charities and fundraisers and working together to change the future of giving in the UK.
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For further information, please contact: Rosa Hinton at rosa@make-a-donation.org
Visit David’s fundraising page: http://make-a-donation.org/fundraisers/david-finch
Or keep up with his progress on our blog: http://www.make-a-donation.org/articles/fundraiser-focus-cycling-challenge