Check out our new hi-vis vests!

Our vis vests are here! 

Just add a stylish First Touch T shirt for the full effect

The Funding Catch-22

So here's the problem: we need about four hundred pounds to pay for our minibus hire. we're using the bus to get us and our bikes out to the Island and then to transport people backwards and forwards to the beginning and end of each stage. it's just a bit too much money for us to pay ourselves. We've paid for our food and our ferry fares and a local company has generously covered the cost of the youth hostel - after the YHA had chopped a bit off the price to allow for the fact that we were doing a charity ride.

Obviously all the sponsorship money we are raising will go directly to First Touch, but we thought maybe a company with relevant interests might be persuaded to give us something towards the running costs. But all the big companies - Mothercare, Evans, Halfords - only give centrally, not locally. They all have specific charities or events which they support exclusively and they don't respond to individual requests. On the other hand the smaller businesses - our lovely local cycle shops - are sympathetic and supportive but have no money to spare. Catch 22!

Does anyone have any ideas?

First Touch T shirts have arrived!

We've just received a big package of T shirts from First Touch for us to wear on the ride! When it stops raining here we'll take a couple of photos so you can all see how glamorous we will look.

Support from our local bike shop

A big thank you to Mark at Stratton Cycles, East Hill, London SW18 2QB.
He's offering a free pre-ride service to all our participants' bikes and a discount on any equipment they might need for the ride.
Proof if it were needed of the benefits of making friends with your local bike shop!

Goal

We are a group of young teenagers who enjoy being outdoors and on bikes. In February 2011 we are going to cycle all the way round the Isle of Wight!

We are doing this to raise £4,000 for First Touch www.first-touch.org.uk, the charity which supports the work of the neonatal unit at St George's Hospital. We know at first hand what fantastic work the unit does because one of us has a beautiful baby sister who is now well and happy despite being born nearly three months early.

We found out that the unit is being refurbished and the hospital can't afford to fit automatic doors to the three new intensive care nurseries. The doors would really make a difference to the staff and the babies by making the nurseries safer, quieter (loud noise distresses the babies) and better for infection control.

So we decided to try to raise enough money to buy at least one set of doors. You can SPONSOR US RIGHT HERE!

As the event gets nearer you'll be able to follow our blog on these pages. We'll be putting up useful stuff, like diaries of our actions, video logs of our thoughts and feelings along the way, photos from the trip and some videos of cycling on the island itself.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe - JustGiving will never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to First Touch and make sure gift aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. It’s the most efficient way to donate: we raise more, while saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

Donating from Outside the UK

For anyone from outside the UK, the JustGiving website uses Paypal so can easily handle other currencies than just our GB Pound.

Remember you can SPONSOR US RIGHT HERE!