I'm riding to the Distance to from London to Kabul in aid of H4H

I am riding the distance from London England to Kabul Afghanistan, thats a bumb numbing 3600 miles, to support all our service personnel by raising as much as possible for the worthy Help 4 Heroes charity.

I am departing on Fri 28th May 2010 on my journey, I shall be riding my motorbike through 10 countries England, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, back through France to England with my finish point being The National Arboretum where I will pay my respects and lay a reef hopefully containing a poppy that has made the voyage with me.

This ride is still in it's infancy and I havn't left much time for raising funds for charity. I am paying for all aspects of this trip out of my own pocket to ensure all donations goes to H4H.

Please take time to look at my just giving page http://www.justgiving.com/Nick-Desforges-Poths It would be really great if you can donate, it would be even better if any tosser decides they want to meet me on my way back to the National Aboretum or just meet me there.

Cheers for taking time to read and if anyone wants to give me any advice about a trip of this magnitude please do so.

I need your help!

I know it's bad form to post a reply to your own thread but I thought I need a bit of a bump.

Since my last post didnt get much response I am hoping this will get more. I am departing on Fri 28 May to ride through France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy and Switzerland. Clocking up the same mileage as it is to fly to Kabul.

I have never attempted anything like this before and where the distance may be trivial to some of the more seasoned travellers its a big step for me, I am riding completely solo with no form of back up (I might get green flag in case I need to get the bike home).

I am doing this for Help for Heroes, I can understand how some people are fatigued by this charity, a lot of people are raising money for them. Help for Heroes supports numerous other charities, SSAFA and Combat Stress are just two additions. These charities are a fundamental requirement for all our service personnel (past, present and future) and having just left the Army I have witnessed the excellent and much needed help they afford our troops.

My ride is finishing at the National Arboretum where I shall be laying wreath (as a mark of respect for some friends) it would be fantastic if any one wants to meet me on the way there for a bit of a ride.

I am funding the whole of this trip out of my pocket and at present am using my own holiday entitlement, although I am trying to get work to get me some free holiday, which if they do I shall be donating the wage for the days I get back to H4H.

So please, please, please, take time to donate (it doesnt take long).

http://www.justgiving.com/Nick-Desforges-Poths

Thanks for your time.

Good luck with the trip, it should be an interesting adventure, dont worry about the solo bit too much you'll meet all sorts of interesting people on the way!

Have fun.

Mate, It's very hard getting sponsorship from some places. i'm having exactly the same issue on here.
Don't give up though, Get some flyers printed off and go to local businesses etc. ive also got some sponsor forms in local bike shops etc.
Be nice even to get good luck wishes wouldn't it, but these days even that seems a bit much.
Also have a word with your local radio station. we've got a couple of slots lined up locally and we're hoping for some help thereafter.

Have to admit though, the best response so far has been getting out with sponsor forms and doing a bit of leg work,

I've got my ride posted on about 5 forums I use. three of them have shown a decent response, but two of them have proved teh opposite... this being one of them

Best of luck

I'm not dissing what you're doing that's a major trip and raising money for your charity is no doubt a good and honourable thing to do.

I just have a problem with getting sponsorship for doing what many would consider a lifetime dream.

Personally, I love a big trip and, if I had the time, would do a trip like this tomorrow - I just don't quite get why somebody would sponsor you to do something you love.

Just my immaterial $0.02 worth

stolzy said:

I just don't quite get why somebody would sponsor you to do something you love.

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he's got a very good point

Personally it strickes me that you're going to get a much better response from people who know you than a bunch of strangers... and with only 30 odd postings here I'm guessing there arent too many that know you here...

Biker Nites will be starting soon, Wednesday night ride outs up in Gloucestershire. Print out some leflets, get some posters on your bike and get out to a few of these meetings, I'm sure you'll find that the cash will start to come in...

but be prepared to have the piss taken and have a good story about why you are doing it and why you think people should sponsor you.

It's only Europe, but it should be a great trip.





also... you've not said how long you are thinking of going for, are you expecting people to sponsor you to bum around Europe or is this a 10 countries in 10 days trip??? perfectly do able and sounds like more of a challenge, so you might get more interest...

Although your points may appear to be valid to a degree,
in, my case I'm sorry, but slogging motorway or whatever through crap routes on the 4 corners, plus 1000 mile day to finish it off from lands end to jon o groats and back below inverness, is hardly a dream ride or fun!

That's almost as poor as Mr Hughes of the Mirror dismissing the Wootton Bassett ride as something that people enjoyed and therefore it wasnt as valid??

I can assure you a cold 520 mile return trip, plus waiting ina queue for 4 1/2 hours wasnt particularly fun!

pbboxer said:

my case I'm sorry, but slogging motorway or whatever through crap routes on the 4 corners, plus 1000 mile day to finish it off from lands end to jon o groats and back below inverness, is hardly a dream ride or fun!

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It's not supposed to be is it? It sounds like a challenge and that's what people sponsored you for...

Exactly, so going on about why should you sponsor someone for doing what they love, is somewhat invalid isnt it?

The guy on this ride may well be seeing it as a really daunting trip. It's very easy for others to make what amount to negative comment on other peoples' efoorts.. without knowing or understanding the ther person's perspective.
Surely better to find out more from them before commenting in such a way, but some people seem to get pleasure from dissing others

mmm sorry mate, but I think you might be letting your past experiences cloud your judgement here.

I've curtainly not said that this trip is invalid and neither has Stolzy (exactly), you are the only one here using those terms.

Jebidiah has posted on this thread twice with nearly a month between each posting and no-one here gave a sh!t. My first posting was to wish him luck with the trip and my second to suggest how he might be able to raise more money by approaching people in person and I've suggested somewhere he might do that - as did you in your first posting.

Personally I'm trying to offer some constructive comment here to help the guy, I think Stolzy is doing the same, but at least there's some comment on the thread now...

Sorry, in retrospect I see that my comment may have been misconstrued. My point is that lots of people on here do big trips like because they love doing them. Yours is undoubtedly a bigun, but not exceptional in the terms of what people from this site (intrepid and heroic bikers to a man).

I'm just thinking that this is the wrong audience for soliciting sponsorships, lots of people here do what you're doing for fun.