Wild Chama Races is a youth founded and ran organization which supports the Field Institute of Taos through every mountain bike race we put on. We want to encourage you to launch similar events to benefit an organization you're passionate about! This page provides guides, resources, and support for running your own race or event.
Organizing an event can take anywhere from a month to a year, depending on the size and scope. Getting ahead early is better, especially when it comes to securing sponsorships, ordering equipment, and getting signups.
This page covers general fundraiser event setup. It contains links to useful information and templates. Bike race specific information is also included, but left in italics.
The writers of this guide are not event professionals or lawyers. Take legal advise at your own risk.
Event venues can take many forms.Â
Public land often requires permitting and can be difficult. Reach out to the agency that manages the land (BLM, State Parks, National Parks)
Private land can be a great place to run an event. Reach out to the landowner to see if you can rent their land or if they'll donate time. Websites like acrevalue.com can be a great way to find private landowners.Â
Certain events use pre-constructed venues (climbing gyms, tracks, etc). Reach out to the venue itself.
Building trail for a mountain bike (or running race) is appropriate in specific scenarios. For Brazos Burnout, we used undeveloped land, meaning the entire loop was built from scratch. When building trail, tools like shovels, McLeods, and rakes are necessary. A saw is great to have too!
Take care to make sustainable trail. Think about where erosion will occur. Water should run across the trail, not down it.
Consider steepness and race experience. Going straight up and straight down isn't always the most fun.
Determine who you're fundraising for. Plan event dates, set out a clear timeline. Give at least 2 months to coordinate sponsorships, and make sure you're getting word out early.
Determine a bank to use for money handling. If you already have a personal account, stick with the same bank. Create an LLC. This means that assets associated with the event will not be directly tied to your personal holdings. Ensure that funds remain isolated. Pay for event related expenses through the LLC, and direct money into it. Zeroing the account through donation at the end simplifies tax handling. Calling or emailing your bank is a great way to get guidance on this process.
Build a website, create social media accounts, and create fliers.
Website building tools: Google Sites, Cloudflare (custom domains)
Flier tools: Canva
Advertise the nonprofit nature of the event. Put who you're fundraising for or what they represent in focus. This is super helpful in securing sponsorships and publicizing. You can also advertise for volunteers here.
Get the word out early and often. Use social media sites frequently, post to local Facebook groups, and put up fliers in event-adjacent locations (bike shops, sporting outlets, etc.)
Word of mouth is always helpful. Reach out to organizations with similar goals that may be able to reach a different or broader audience. If you know who you're fundraising for, reach out to them!
Reach out to sponsors early and reach out to a lot of them. More money brought in through sponsorships is less expenses and a more impactful donation. Sample Sponsorship Request
Determine what you need to run the event. Lots of rentals cost more closer to the event, so get ahead of things. Get keepsakes. Medals, trophies, participation awards, t-shirts. Get these ahead of time but close enough that you know how many you need. For a bike race, this includes timing hardware and software, race bibs, and marking tape. Make sure you have everything you need and more than you need. For a bike race, almost everything can be ordered here.
Event insurance is necessary to make sure that you and your participants and legally protected. We used Silent Sports Insurance.
Before finalizing the purchase, make sure you have:
Determine some sort of registration method. This can be on-site for some events, and beforehand for others, or a combination. RaceResult.com is a great software solution for registrations, that also handles timing software and includes on-site options. Make plans for how every participant will sign a waiver
Make sure every participant has the info they need. It can be publicly posted or sent to registered individuals. Where do they need to be, when, and with what?
Get volunteers. Email participants, reach out to friends and family. Figure out how many people you need and where you need them. Do you need specific people? Medical? Photographers?
Write and practice what you need to say. Is there a pre-event briefing? Post-event awards? What do you need to acknowledge for safety and continuity of the event? Make sure you mention sponsors and thank volunteers and participants. Talk about who you're fundraising for. People will come back if you host another event if they feel like they are making impact.
Prepare the venue. Figure out locations for awards and pre-race briefings. Make sure bathrooms and camping are available if needed.
Buy a banner to display sponsors and event info if you promised this. It also makes great photos. Office Depot is a good resource for this.
Now's the big day. Coordinate with your volunteers so everyone knows what they're doing. Run plenty of tests of critical equiptment beforehand. Implement safeguards incase things fail or last minute changes occur (constantly rolling video incase timing equipment fails isn't a bad idea). Thank people for being there. Have fun!
Photography of the event is a great way to ensure longevity. It's easier to get sponsors next year with professional photos!
Reach out to sponsors to thank them for their support. Include images and anecdotes if appropriate. This is a great way to encourage continued support if you run the event again.
Update web and media presence to reflect the impact of the event so participants can see. Upload event photography.
Route money where it needs to go. Make donation.
Write down notes. What went well? What can you improve if you run an event again?
Be proud of yourself!
Selling food and beverages can be a great way to up fundraising.
Take donations, don't just rely on race fees and concessions.
Get on things earlier than you think. The event comes up sooner than you think!