Sponsored Ride and Stride report, November 2007

November is that time of the year when we are able to tell how our fund-raising efforts for the past year have gone as we count the money we have received from those involved with the Ride and Stride.

With great delight we are in a position to report that the 2007 Ride and Stride at this stage has already exceeded the amount raised for the whole 2006 event. Every year we set ourselves a target to beat the total amount collected during the year before that and to be in the position to say that we have already achieved that is very satisfactory.

As reported in September earlier this year everything was in place for a successful 2007 event with the weather proving ideal cycling and walking conditions for those who took part and up-to-date a total amount of £15,614.15 has been received from Churches and Chapels (239 buildings were on the List of Participating Churches in 2007). This amount does not include Gift Aid which will bring an extra £2,000 (in 2006 the Gift Aid fetched an extra £2,140.37). For the whole of 2006 we received £15,427.36 exclusive of Gift Aid.

The overall amount for 2007 is likely to increase due to the fact that around 25% of churches and chapels are yet to return their paperwork and any money raised. The final figure for 2007 will be based on all sponsorship received up until March 31, 2008.

Work is well underway to return 50% of the sponsorship raised by each place of worship and that involves a great deal of administration work. The sponsorship we have received so far which is really worthy of a mention includes the ever present St Andrew’s Church, Caunton, with £768 raised on their behalf by 30 riders and walkers, St Giles, Balderton, who have achieved the amazing £712 collected by only six riders and walkers, All Saints, Beckingham, with £436, St Peter and St Paul, Mansfield, with £402, Rainworth Methodist Church with £560, St Mary’s, Staunton, with £473, All Saints, Cotgrave, with £517. A lot of other churches have raised amounts ranging from £10 to £400 and their contribution is very valuable.

We have received a number of entries for the Best Story competition and experienced journalist Tony Turner who works in the office at Keyworth will soon spend time to judge them.

We are also in the process of entering all the names of people who have signed the necessary forms to confirm they pay tax to allow us to produce a Gift Aid Claim (the list in 2006 consisted of 1200 names) and this will be submitted in 2008. 

Despite the fact that we are working on the 2007 event it will not be long before 2008 knocks on the door and preparations will be underway to get us in good shape for the event when entry forms and invitation letters will go out to around 550 churches and chapels in the county of Nottinghamshire. We are already thinking of what we should do to make the 2008 event different to the one in 2007 and there are ideas available from other county organisers. One of the proposals is to set up a web-site for the Nottinghamshire Ride and Stride and we are currently looking at possible information that it should include. Once set up we will be able to update it on day to day basis and it will include interesting information about the event.

Mike Elliott

Ride and Stride 2007 September report

2007 marked a first in our time as organisers of the newly named Ride and Stride. As well as the fact that it was the first year in which the fund-raiser was named in its new version, it was the first time ever that we got on the saddle and toured round churches and chapels in the county pedaling rather than choosing the easy option of driving round buildings of worship. However, some of us did go for the easy ride!

Boby and two friends decided that it would be very appropriate to put themselves to the test and map out a route of places to visit involving around 30 miles of cycling on roads in South Nottinghamshire. It was all the result of a convivial night out when a comment was made that as the organisers of a charity event we might like to be involved in a more direct way and a decision was taken there and then that a concentrated effort should be made to be involved in a different way compared to previous years. So Boby and two companions got on their cycles, whilst Mike ‘cheated’ somewhat and used his vehicle to go to a different part of Nottinghamshire.

Boby and his friends managed to pay a visit to 16 churches, starting at West Leake, where the planned route for the day was looking in doubt after a puncture was discovered on one of the bikes. However, a puncture repair kit was promptly purchased from a nearby shop in East Leake and after the repairs had taken place the trip was made possible.

Visits to Sutton Bonington, Normanton-on-Soar, Stanford on Soar, East Leake, Costock, Widmerpool and many more followed with the last church on the route being Ratcliffe-on-Soar after which an eagerly awaited visit to a hostelry was made.

According to Boby the ride was one of the best things he has done in a while and surely something that is going to become more of a tradition. The part of day he enjoyed most was devouring the lovely biscuits on offer in many of the churches!

The fact that the weather forecast was optimistic for the day also helped and although clouds hovered throughout the day it never looked as though it was going to rain and it was more than satisfying to know that all the necessary settings were in place for another successful Ride and Stride day.

The official figure raised in 2006 of £18,000 could be disputed as some sponsorship was received in April, May and June this year, meaning that those will go into the funds raised in 2007. Hopefully, this year the sponsorship will rise to at least £20,000 (The current highest amount ever to be collected in the county stands at the figure of £21,000).

Soon paperwork will start pouring in the office back from local organisers and – fingers crossed -- the paying in book will be heavily used, banking all the money raised by the generous people involved in the 2007 edition of the Sponsored Ride and Stride.