Bike ms: historic ew ber ride Team captai guide Historic New Ber Ride 2014 bikemsewber.org 1
Celebrate Success at your Team Tet. You had a log day. You rode so may miles ad helped make icredible advaces toward a world free of. Now celebrate with your team. Joi them at your very ow tet at the Bike Team Village. Table of Cotets Welcome to Bike MS...2 We are people who wat to do somethig about MS ow...3 Where does the Moey go?...4 Movig Together: Three simple steps to startig a team...5 Raisig Moey has ever bee easier!...6 Olie Team Tools...7 Goal Settig: Who has the most Team Spirit?...8 Bike MS: 2014 Route Ifo... 9 Top Bike MS 2013 Teams... 10 Fudraisig Ideas Notepad... 11 2013 Team Awards...12 Safety starts with You!...13 For more iformatio ad team resources, please go to: bikemsewber.org bikemsewber.org 1
Welcome to Bike MS: 2014 Historic New Ber Ride You re up for the challege as a bike ms team captai You re up for the challege as a Bike MS Team Captai ad ready to take your team o the ride of your lives! This Team Captai Guide will help you get your team orgaized ad motivated, as well as provide some great tips for havig fu while fudraisig. Ride with us September 6-7, 2014 Preseted by: Bioge Idec For more iformatio, visit bikemsewber.org or call 1.800.344.4867. We are people who wat to do somethig about MS ow. About MS Multiple sclerosis iterrupts the flow of iformatio from the brai to the body ad stops people from movig. Every hour i the Uited States, someoe is ewly diagosed with MS, a upredictable, ofte disablig disease of the cetral ervous system. Symptoms rage from umbess ad tiglig to blidess ad paralysis. The progress, severity ad specific symptoms of MS i ay oe perso caot yet be predicted, but advaces i research ad treatmet are movig us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagosed betwee the ages of 20 ad 50, with more tha twice as may wome as me beig diagosed with the disease. MS affects more tha 2.5 millio people worldwide. about the atioal ms society The Natioal MS Society helps people affected by MS by fudig cuttig-edge research, drivig chage through advocacy, facilitatig professioal educatio, ad providig programs ad services desiged to help people with MS ad their families move their lives forward. Early ad ogoig treatmet with a FDA-approved therapy ca make a differece for people with multiple sclerosis. Lear about your optios by talkig to your health care professioal ad cotactig the Natioal MS Society at atioalmssociety.org or 800.344.4867. 2 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 3
Where does the moey go? Chapter program & Research highlights Fuds raised at the 2014 evet will support the programs ad services of the Greater Carolias Chapter that help improve the quality of life for those with MS. Livig with a chroic illess such as MS itroduces layers of challeges that the Natioal MS Society seeks to remove. We break dow the barriers so that those with MS have greater access to care, emergecy fiacial assistace, care maagemet programs ad more. I the curret ecoomic climate, the charitable geerosity of our doors is more appreciated ad more eeded tha ever. The demad for local programs ad services such as our Care Maagemet Program is higher i times like these, ad the Natioal MS Society relies o the support of people like you to help fud our vital efforts. The Greater Carolias Chapter is committed to providig the best programs ad services available to meet the growig eeds of people who deped o us - families ad idividuals livig with the upredictable ad challegig impacts of MS. I our Chapter area, this represets more tha 17,400 people livig with MS, alog with their families, caregivers, ad healthcare providers. We eed to do more i the areas of emergecy fiacial assistace, customized cliet care, ad ehaced family support to esure that local people livig with MS have as high a quality of life as possible. We hope that you will support our idividual ad collective efforts to improve the quality of life for those livig with MS ad their families. Thak you i advace for your support. Chapter fiacial iformatio Eighty-three percet of all fuds raised through the Greater Carolias Chapter are used to further our missio. Sixty percet of all the fuds raised go toward local programs, services, ad advocacy for the 17,400 people livig with MS right here i the Carolias. Forty percet of all fuds raised supports atioal research to fid the cause ad cure of MS! Movig together: Three simple steps to startig a team As part of the ms movemet, you ad your team are committed to a world free of ms. we re committed to you ad the success of your team. Recruitig Team members ca be aybody frieds, family, co-workers, or eighbors ad they ca all easily register to joi you olie at bikemsewber.org. Whether you re a corporate team or a team of family ad frieds, be sure to ask everyoe you kow. Raisig Moey Fudraisig comes more aturally whe you make it persoal. If your team is cyclig for someoe with MS, ask them if they would be willig to tell their story. Be sure to follow that with a statemet about how much progress we ve made i treatig the disease. Do t forget to ask everyoe who sposors you if their employer offers matchig gifts! Really havig fu Beig a team captai is a opportuity to share a great experiece with frieds, family members, or coworkers a commuity comig together for a commo goal ad the accomplishmet of a uique persoal challege! As a leader, it s up to you to remid your teammates of why they registered. Bike MS ca be more tha a fudraisig evet it ca be a joyous celebratio of how far we ve come together! 60% Programs/Services/Advocacy 40% Fudraisig/Admiistratio 4 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 5
Raisig Moey has ever bee easier! Simple steps to olie success Set up your team page Your team page is your ivitatio to become ivolved i the MS movemet. We re here to help you reach your goals. Please let us kow how we ca help! By settig up a team page, you are settig up your team for success. Here are a few hits to help make your page oe to remember: Make it persoal: Put i a picture of you or your team. Write the story of your team ad how you are traiig ad fudraisig. While there is sample text available, othig is more compellig tha your ow words. Chage it ofte: Keep your page curret to geerate iterest. Provide updates o how your traiig is goig or how close you are to your goal. Create your team page URL shortcut: By doig this you will be able to easily direct people directly to your team page. Put a lik to your fudraisig page i the sigature of your e-mail. Recruit members olie No eed to collect paper or sped hours o the phoe. Your team members ca quickly ad easily register themselves olie. Have people joi your team from your team page, or use the participat ceter tools to sed a team registratio lik via e-mail. You ca also dowload your Outlook cotact list ito the tool. (This tool also ca help you to track whe e-mails have bee opeed by a recipiet.) Fudraise olie Now for the fu part! After you sed your persoalized e-mail to all your frieds, family members ad colleagues, you ca watch your up-tothe-miute fudraisig tracker. Our olie tools make it simple for your supporters to doate olie to keep you movig toward your fudraisig goals ad a world free of MS. Ecourage team members to use their olie persoal pages Oce you see what the tools ca do for you, ecourage your team members to follow your lead. Make it fu by givig icetives to your team members to fudraise olie a pair of movie tickets to the team member that raises the most i a week, or a gift card to every team member who gets at least five gifts olie. Be creative ad esure that your team ot oly reaches their goals, but has fu alog the way. Social Networkig Create a Facebook fapage for your team. You ca also post tweets o Twitter for your group ad videos o YouTube. Follow the Natioal MS Society: te great thigs about our olie team tools 1. Post your team pictures olie 2. Iclude your compay s logo 3. Set up a simple URL for your Team page 4. Set a fudraisig goal that everyoe ca see ad support 5. Dowload your team roster 6. E-mail your etire team at oce 7. Track your team members fudraisig progress 8. See your real time team fudraisig total 9. track ad thak your team gifts 10. Easily update your page ad photo 6 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 7
Bike MS: 2014 Route Ifo Who has the most Team Spirit? Establishig a goal is a easy way to maitai motivatio as well as give you ad your team a bechmark for success. We ecourage team captais to set goals for themselves ad their teams, while keepig these tips i mid. Tips for team spirit Goals should be realistic, but sigificat: If it requires hard work to attai, it will be a source of more pride for your team. Do t arbitrarily set a goal without iput from the team: Havig them believe i the goal from the word go will make your job as team captai that much easier. Do t forget to set both persoal & team fudraisig goals: Lead by example. Share your fudraisig goal with your team. Set a goal for team size as well as collective fudraisig: Recruitig more team members ca mea more substatial fudraisig! Do t keep your goal a secret: Use e-mail, team pages, ad eve iteral compay itraets ad ewsletters to commuicate goals ad how close your team is to attaiig them. Large Corporate Teams: If you are part of a large corporate team, have departmets set their ow goals to create some fu iteral competitio. If you would like more suggestios ad guidelies for goal settig, or would like to request goal settig worksheets, please cotact Mady Wellos, Bike MS: Historic New Ber Ride Coordiator, at (919) 792-1019 or mady.wellos@mss.org.. The uique ad ivitig waterfrot locatio of Uio Poit Park provides the perfect start ad fiish lie for Bike MS. The coastal locatio, flat ladscape, ad miles of rural roads allow every level of cyclist to participate ad ejoy their choice of a 25, 50, 75, or 100 mile route. All routes are fully supported with rest stops every 10-15 miles, support ad gear vehicles (SAGS), medics, ad bike mechaics. All four routes start ad ed at Uio Poit Park o Saturday ad Suday. Staggered Start Cyclists will be lied up accordig to average speed ad released i groups of about 100 riders every few miutes to miimize route cogestio. Cue Sheets Prited cue sheets will be available i the Covetio Ceter Ballroom at check-i durig Bike MS weeked. These cue sheets will iclude a emergecy umber that you ca call aytime durig the ride to seek assistace. Mechaics If you fid your bike eeds some assistace durig the ride, our participatig bike shop mechaics will be at the start/fiish ad at each rest stop. Labor is free if you bike was ispected prior to the ride, but brig extra cash for parts. Please have your ispectio sticker visible or available upo request. Support ad Gear Vehicles (SAG) Special vehicles will be o the route to assist you. If you eed help, pull off the road ad give a thumbs dow to the SAG vehicle ad they will pick you up ad move you forward to the ext rest stop. The luch rest stop will have a support vehicle dedicated to brigig cyclists back to the start/fiish lie if eeded. 8 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 9
Top Bike MS: 2013 Teams Bike MS teams who make a differece together The Natioal Multiple Sclerosis Society would ot be able to fud cuttig-edge research, provide services, host programs, or educate health care professioals ad the public if it were ot for the extraordiary fudraisig efforts of those who support Bike MS: Historic New Ber Ride. Oce agai, we d like to show our appreciatio to the Bike MS 2013 teams who made a differece together. Bike MS 2013 Teams 1. Selma Cyclepaths $127,608.01 2. Team CBC $127,540.72 3. MISSING SPOKES $65,780.00 4. Bioge Idec Rollig Cloes $63,919.00 5. O Draft $61,247.50 6. Team MANA $51,016.66 7. Joae s Rollig R s $46,204.88 8. Vi $46,144.75 9. Team GSK $43,194.99 10. EZ Riders $38,103.36 # 1 Fudrasig Team Selma Cyclepaths $127,608.01 Thaks for joiig the Movemet Fudraisig Idea Notepad Listed below are some ideas from other team captais, but you should feel free to add your ow. Share them with other team captais. Fudraisig ideas Offer to do somethig uusual: (i.e., Shave your head, sig karaoke i a costume of the team s choice, etc.) if your team reaches or exceeds its fudraisig goal. Set up a drawig for the team: With each $50 raised ettig you aother chace to wi a prize (For frieds: A special home-cooked meal for the wier ad their family; For employees: A day off.) Luch with the presidet or reserved parkig spots: For compay teams, reward the top fudraiser with luch with the presidet or give the perso who recruits the most additioal team members a reserved parkig spot for a moth. Pi-up Sales: If you work somewhere with lots of foot traffic, ask about Bike MS pi-up sales a easy way to quickly raise moey for your team. Silet Auctio: Hold your ow silet auctio with food ad etertaimet. Garage Sale: Clea out the attic ad basemet with a garage sale doate the proceeds. Fudraise through Facebook: Fudraise through the boudless fudraisig tool available o your persoal page. Talk with us! We have more ideas! 10 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 11
Safety starts with You! Cyclists eed to possess basic bike-hadlig skills ad safety kowledge i order to keep themselves ad others aroud them safe, especially while participatig i group cyclig activities, like Bike MS. Our focus is to provide a high quality, safe ad fu cyclig experiece. 2013 Team Awards A little friedly competitio amog teams ca build camaraderie ad icrease results. I fact, teams are the fastest growig group of fudraisers i the MS movemet. The differece they are makig i the lives of people with MS is othig short of amazig. So who has the most team spirit? Who has the biggest team? Ad, most importatly, who will make the biggest impact to create a world free of MS? greater carolias Hoors & Prizes 1. Big Wheel --- Team CBC 2. Above & Beyod --- Joae s Rollig R s 3. Rookie Award --- Capital City Cyclig Club 4. Movemet Award --- Team Awesome 5. Do What You Love, Love What You Do --- Keep Smyeli Please remember to always carry Idetificatio Emergecy cotact iformatio Isurace Card Ay importat health iformatio * Headphoes (icludig ipods), cell phoes, radios ad similar devices are ot permitted while ridig. All cyclists are resposible for keepig their ridig equipmet i good workig order, so get ito the habit of checkig your equipmet before every ride. Small adjustmets ca make a sigificat differece i your experiece. The basics of ridig i a group Group ridig takes practice. Ridig with other cyclists all aroud you may cause you to feel trapped. Relax. It is most importat to create your ow safety zoe. This may vary depedig o the speed ad ability level of the people you are with, so be flexible. Let others kow of your axiety they may also be ew at this. Hydratio Kowig how to optimize your fluid itake is critical to successfully completig a Bike MS Ride. Oe bottle per hour: The rule of thumb is to cosume a bottle of liquid every hour, ad that every secod bottle is a sports drik. Also, remember to eat small sacks frequetly durig the ride. If you fid that you experiece extreme fatigue, the iability to recover your eergy, or frequet muscle cramps, seek assistace from first aid you may have the early sigs of dehydratio. Seekig medical assistace: If you fid that you experiece weight gai/bloatig with progressive symptoms such as swolle hads ad feet, cofusio, throbbig headache, dizziess or ausea, please seek assistace from first aid. 12 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 13
Helmet Smart Head ijuries are of special cocer for cyclists. Eve fallig at a slow rate of speed ca cause a serious head ijury. Helmets must be o your head ad strapped while ridig i Bike MS o exceptios. TEAM JERSEYS Aother great way to show your team spirit is to wear custom desiged team jerseys. We are proud to have Primal Wear as the official jersey of Bike MS. As a part of their commitmet to the Natioal MS Society, Primal will doate 15% of your custom apparel order back to your teams fudraisig accout! Visit http://www.primalwear.com/+-bikems.aspx. Helpful Tips O Bike MS Rides, our active route support team works to make the ride safe. Here are a few additioal suggestios to help keep everyoe safe o the ride: Thumbs dow for help: SAG vehicles ad motorcycle escorts will stop for you if you are off the road, off your bike, ad givig a thumbs dow sig or holdig your helmet i the air. Ride Marshal support: A special team of cyclists called Ride Marshals provide support o the rides. They offer mior mechaical help alog the route ad moitor cyclig safety ad etiquette. Rest-stop etiquette: All cyclists who eter a rest area must pull over, dismout ad move completely away from the road ad rest-stop etrace. Whe exitig, move beyod the rest area ad proceed with cautio o the right side of the road before mergig with faster cyclists. Passig: Passig others ad beig passed occurs cotiuously durig the ride. Call out passig o your left ad allow time for the cyclist beig overtake to move to the right the pass safely. Mechaical problems: Examie mechaical problems ad chage flats completely off the road. If you have a problem you caot fix yourself, flag dow a SAG va ad seek a mechaic at the ext rest-stop. Be courteous: Bike MS participats are fortuate to ride o may trails as well as public roads. Be courteous ad use o more tha half the trail so as ot to block the flow of other users. Notes: 14 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide bikemsewber.org 15
Notes: 16 Bike MS: 2014 Team Captai Guide