Cycle for Survival Partners with #GivingTuesday to Cap Off a $100,000 Fundraising Challenge

Cycle for Survival Partners with #GivingTuesday to Cap Off a $100,000 Fundraising Challenge

On the heels of the two major shopping “holidays,” Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday was inaugurated yesterday, launching a new national effort to celebrate philanthropy and provide the public with fresh incentive to give.

As part of the effort, Cycle for Survival, the indoor team cycling event that raises money to fight rare cancers for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, joined its founding partner, Equinox, to activate its social media networks and sign up the last 100 bikes to cap off a fundraising challenge and receive a pledged donation of $100,000 if 700 bikes were registered by November 30 for the Cycle 2013 events. The donation was promised by a group of Cycle supporters who attended Harvard Business School with the event’s founder.

Cycle for Survival works to fulfill an urgent need: Though half of all people with cancer suffer from a rare form of the disease, research is often underfunded, leaving patients with limited treatment options. Cycle for Survival funds much-needed research led by MSKCC into rare forms of cancer, including pancreatic, brain, ovarian and all pediatric cancers.

Within six months of each Cycle for Survival event, 100 percent of the funds raised go directly to research programs, so patients quickly see the benefits of donations as new clinical trials and investigational treatment options provide new hope for patients worldwide. Since 2007, the event has raised more than $18 million and funded 53 clinical trials and research studies. The $100,000 challenge donation would give the organization and MSKCC an important boost in funding critical research.

Said co-founder Dave Linn, “Cycle for Survival is more than just a fundraising event. It’s a source of hope for everyone affected by rare forms of cancer, and this pledge is a powerful incentive to join the battle in beating these diseases.”

To support the fundraising challenge, Cycle for Survival launched a social media campaign to spread the word via Facebook and Twitter, and by the end of #GivingTuesday had achieved its goal of registering 700 bikes.

The 2013 Cycle for Survival events will take place at Equinox Fitness Clubs in Boston; Chicago; Greenwich, Connecticut; Los Angeles; Long Island; Miami; Summit, New Jersey; New York City; San Francisco; and Washington, DC. Teams register to ride a four-hour shift, with a maximum of eight riders per bike. Teams may also register multiple bikes. The event features complimentary yoga classes, massage therapy, and children’s activities.

For more information about Cycle for Survival, join the battle at www.cycleforsurvival.org, or follow Cycle for Survival on Facebook or Twitter.