Need feedback on a charity ride idea I have.

[GoGo Gadget]

I am proposing a charity ride to 3 BMW dealerships and want some feedback before I finalize it. Basically it is a SS1000/BB1500 with 3 dealers 500 miles apart as checkpoints. The dealerships are loacated in VA, GA, and OH. Kickoff time on a Sat morning finish time Sun evening. If the participants want to do a SS1000, then they ride to one dealer and back. If the want a BB1500, or BBG1500 then they ride to all 3 in 24 or 36 hours. The dealerships will have refreshments set up, do the witness forms needed for IBA and have t-shirts or some other promotional type item for the riders.

The event will meet all the IBA requirements, but it will be up to the individual riders to file the paperwork with the IBA and pay them the fees associated with the awards.

The charity is COPS, Concerns of Police Survivors. http://www.nationalcops.org/ They help the families of officers who have given their lives in the line of duty. 2007 was one of the deadliest years in decades, so I am trying to do something to help out.



My question is this. How much would you pay to participate in an event like this? Keep in mind that it is a charity event, so the money would be tax deductible, plus you could solicit donations from others to sponsor your ride. My initial thought was $100 minimum, with the dealership taking $25 to offset some of their costs, and $75 going to COPS, and encourage the riders to raise more money from friends, family and coworkers.

1) Would you be interested?
2) Do you think dealerships would be interested?
3) What should the monetary cutoff be?


Thanks in advance for your feedback.

[county]

$100 is too much.  IMO

[jschmidt]

Keep in mind that the portion that is tax deductible is the amount of the fee that actually goes to the charity. Any money that goes to the dealer or is spent on meals, prizes, tshirts etc is not deductible. Nonprofits have to spell this out in literature or on the ticket.

You'll probably fly under the radar, but it's important to know the rules.

[Doug Just Doug]

I think it's a great idea.  I've been involved with planning a couple of charity events (though never a m/c event) and pricing/costs is always a challenge, and I'm not a "money guy". However, I'd rather have 40 riders paying $25 than 10 paying $100, because each rider will tell a few others, which will build your base of participants for next time and raise general awareness of the charity, plus more riders may (but not necessarily) raise more $$ in "sponsorships".