Steppes Travel cycled for 24 hours to raise money for the NHS

The team at Steppes Travel all saddled up recently to take part in a campaign to raise money for frontline workers. The team of 21 took to their bikes during individual slots for a 24-hour cycling relay challenge starting at midnight on Wednesday 22 April, as part of the agency’s ongoing effort to raise money for its Covid-19 Heroes & Heroines Holiday Fund.

The fund was set up as a way for clients to donate money online that will go towards holidays for frontline workers as and when the agency can fulfil them, explains Justin Wateridge, managing director at Steppes Travel.

“Clients can nominate workers who they think deserve a holiday through our website, and we will try to send as many people away as possible depending on how much we raise,” he says.

The target for the cycling challenge was to cover 500 kilometres in the 24-hour period, with participants of all levels using folding bikes, carbon-fibre racing machines and indoor trainers to work together.

“Some people chose to cycle at home and others used their daily outdoor exercise to ride their bike. We used water bottles as a baton that was then virtually passed to the next person by video.”

Within the first hour, the team had already hit its initial target of £1,000, with £2,678 raised and 580 kilometres cycled by the end of the 24-hour period. Donations are still coming in and have now exceeded £3,000.

More to come

The fundraising won’t stop here, however, with plans for ongoing events and initiatives to add more donations to the pot, confirms Wateridge.

“The cycling challenge was the first event we’ve held to raise money for our fund, but we also have a virtual quiz coming up on the 13 May. We are asking teams to donate £10 to enter and all the questions will be travel-themed.”

Steppes will continue to run fundraising activities based on suggestions from its team and clients.

The agency is planning to choose its lucky winners from among the nominations it receives by holding a prize draw towards the end of this month.

Although in the short term prizes will probably be domestic trips, Steppes will begin looking at trips further afield for early next year.

“We will contribute towards the cost of the holidays as much as possible and we will also try to pull in as many favours as we can from airlines and suppliers,” adds Wateridge.

For any other travel businesses who want to raise money for frontline staff during lockdown, Wateridge offers the following advice: “It’s a great idea to involve clients and suppliers too so that the entire travel community is included. If the global travel community takes part, you can get the message out even more.”