Make a Financial Contribution
It is a lot of work to gather bicycles and people. Volunteering is super helpful. There are lots of ways that folks can help even if they don’t have much experience:
If you are an experienced cyclist, volunteering to sweep or staying at the back of a group ride to ensure no one is left behind or in trouble is super helpful.
If you an experienced cyclist and have wilderness first aid experience or certifications, simply being on the ride with us and making it known is helpful.
If you have a desire to do more, show up to some events and let’s get to know each other and figure out where your experience can best fit in.
Sometimes the best way to show support is to be silently at the ready. Making sure that while your experience is known while providing enough space for existing event coordinators can do their work is also amazingly helpful.
Consider adding Pride Rides to your VMBA Membership
Each year thousands of folks purchase annual memberships to the Vermont Mountain Bike Association. If you’ve experienced the amazing mountain biking available in Vermont, then you’ve experienced a part of the good work Vermont Mountain Bike Association has done. Purchasing an annual membership to Vermont Mountain Bike Association directly supports the maintenance and addition to mountain biking in Vermont. And you can take it a step further by choosing Pride Rides as a Community Builder add-on. Why not just give Pride Rides $30 directly? By choosing Prides Rides as a part of your VMBA membership you are showing VMBA and a larger community that an organization like Pride Rides is important and should have a seat at the table. You are bringing representation to the masses and helping Pride Rides in the process. If you are planning to purchase a VMBA annual membership, we hope you will consider choosing the Prides Rides Community Builders option as well.
Equipment Donations
We accept monetary donations as well as donations of use-able equipment.
While we aren’t currently actively seeking equipment donations, we are still interested in hearing from you if you think you have something use-able for us.
Use-able equipment for us are:
Bicycle Helmets: Bicycle specific helmets that came from an independent bicycle retail store that are not expired. Helmets sold outside of independent bicycle retail stores are often subject to recalls or do not meet the safety standards that provide proper protection when bicycle riding. They also will often be close to, or at their expiration date and not be useful for very long. These helmets cost money to recycle, so double check those perimeters. If you aren’t sure, the folks at Vermont Bicycle Shop, who accept equipment donations for us can answer questions and inspect products for you.
Bicycles: Because the nature of some of our bicycle rides can be demanding bicycles should have come from an independent bicycle dealer within the past 5 years and should be in good working order. We don’t have the resources or time to part out a bicycle with some good parts on it. And we have a good sized fleet of working bikes that take up precious storage space. The bar for a “bicycle in good working order” is pump the tires up and take the bicycle for a ride for a couple of blocks. If things went well, then it might be helpful for us! If it things weren’t so smooth, or things are a little noise, it is possible the bicycle needs some work. Your local bicycle coop is probably interested in that bicycle. If you still aren’t sure if the bicycle will be useful to Pride Rides, you can bring it by Vermont Bicycle Shop for inspection. You can also email Darren at Vermont Bicycle Shop with photos and information.
Other Outdoors Equipment: We do other outdoorsy stuff too. If you have something that you think may be helpful to us, reach out! Let us know. Anything bicycle related you can email both Darren at Vermont Bicycle Shop or you can email us directly. Anything outside of the bicycle scope of things you can email us directly.
How Businesses and Organizations Can Help.
A message about support from Pride Rides ally and Vermont Bicycle Shop owner, Darren Ohl
As an individual every small bit is important and helpful to pride rides and the LGBTQIA++ movement. Putting a sticker on your car, donating a dollar. These are important and impactful actions and they are valuable. As a business, it is unacceptable to simply “put a rainbow on it”. This is called Rainbow Washing. When a business uses movement iconography without following up with real world actions or coordination with those movements they are taking from the community they are aiming to support. They are also occupying a space where a valuable non-profit may be trying to gain a foothold and garner attention.
Worse yet, they are advertising without providing a return value. They gain more than they give. And in a marginalized community this only serves to marginalize that community further. Why as a business is more expected of us? Because every business is a team of people and a team of people is always capable of more. Even my own business at the very beginning was a team. My wife worked every free minute she wasn’t working her full time job. Members of my community chipped in, customers became friends, friends helped more. No business is ever started alone, no business ever works alone, no business is successful without the help of a team. In fact, the smaller the business, the more you will get out of diving all the way into the deep end of ally-ship. You will learn so much about how to run a better business. More is expected of a business because so much more is rewarded, and when you handle that responsibility with proper respect, the reward is greater yet.
So many times I’ve seen organizations and businesses approach Rainbow Bridge Community Center or Pride Rides and say, ‘We’d love to have you join us for an event.’ That’s a nice thought, at the same time I’ve also seen that statement turn into putting all the work onto the organization it is supposed to benefit. That’s just lame ol’ tokenism.
If we create an event or a space to support organizations, those orgs should be treated like rock stars. You want a Pride Rides event? Great, put together a play book, organize your event and ensure you do your homework. Make sure it fits and fills the needs of Pride Rides first. Make sure that the Pride Rides crew can show up, feel like royalty, and have a good time. I like to make sure if I have a question I ask in a way that puts the work on me.
All that back end messy work is up to us as allies and supporters. If you have a rainbow sticker, if you put a rainbow on your shirt, if you create a Pride supporting logo, make sure that it directly supports a pride organization. Want a sticker? Great, sell it for a dollar, give the dollar to Rainbow Bridge. Want to make a pair of rainbow gloves? Great, all of the profit dollars should go to Pride Rides. Making a t-shirt? Human Rights Campaign has a great resource to ensure you are following the right standards of design, and make sure all profits go to support the cause. Putting a pride or rainbow logo on something and selling it isn’t representation, it’s theft. Those orgs have merchandise too. If you sell a pride related item where they might have sold one you’ve taken away their ability to raise funds with that item. I like to make sure I am centering that organization or cause and not taking from it.
When in doubt ask yourself:
Am I doing the work? The answer should be yes.
Am I taking any recognition? The answer should be no.
How can I do better? Always look for an answer.
So, as a business how can you help? It is pretty simple, change the question from how can I help to what work is there to do? When you approach an organization like Pride Rides, think of the work they might need doing. It can be simple things, for instance storage and transportation of equipment is tricky.
It can also be more complex: how do you know your business is a safe space? Learning about what a safe space is and how to turn your business into a safe space is a great way to start the journey of ally-ship.
Whatever you choose to do, I’d offer the advice I was given a long time ago: say what I mean, mean what I say, and do what I speak. It’s a valuable trifecta to being genuine and true to your mission and the greater mission of dignity and safety for all.
Make a Financial Contribution
