#RideForFreedom2020: A Guinness World Records record attempt that raises awareness to end modern slavery

The new year compels the setting of a new challenge. A new decade requires the setting of an ambitious one. So, I’m delighted to announce this year #RideForFreedom2020 will be a ~1,000 mile (~1,600km) cycle around England, from 16 September to 2 October, that will spell “End Modern Slavery”. 

The ride will set a verified Guinness World Records record: “the largest GPS drawing by bicycle (individual)”.

#RideForFreedom2020 builds on the success of RideForFreedom2019, the charity bike ride I organised and rode that visited 10 UK cities in 10 days from 7-18 October 2019 to support the survivors of modern slavery via the work of charities Unseen and Hope for Justice. 

RideForFreedom2019 impacts

>850km cycled; >5,000km during training

>￡2,000 raised for charities Hope for Justice and Unseen

>7 corporate engagements en route

>250,000 social media impressions

>media coverage including TV broadcast

Raising awareness

There are more than 40 million people worldwide enslaved and tens of thousands are exploited in the UK. #RideForFreedom2020 will feature on Guinness World Records' social media channels that have a global reach of 30 million people*, and will be the focus of a social media and PR campaign that will draw attention to modern slavery in the UK by highlighting my record-breaking ride around England.

#RideForFreedom2020 route

The Guinness World Records record ride route (see map), encompassing 16 individual stages (each one forms a letter that makes up the slogan 'End Modern Slavery'), will start in Manchester, traversing the counties of Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. It will then travel south, crisscrossing Shropshire, the West and East Midlands and East Anglia. The route will then navigate the southwest, before negotiating Somerset, Hampshire and the home counties to conclude in Central London. The ambition is for the formal Guinness World Records record certificate presentation to take place on 18 October, International Anti-Slavery Day, in Westminster, SW1P. National broadcast media and press will be invited to the presentation. 

Dates each stage (letter) will be cycled:

E - Wednesday, 16 September

N - Thursday, 17 September 

D - Friday, 18 September

M - Monday, 21 September

O - Tuesday, 22 September

D - Wednesday, 23 September 

E - Thursday, 24 September

R - Friday, 25 September*

N - Friday, 25 September*

S - Monday, 28 September*

L - Monday, 28 September*

A - Tuesday, 29 September 

V - Wednesday 30 September

E - Thursday, 1 October*

R - Thursday, 1 October*

Y - Friday, 2 October 

*2 ‘letters’ will be cycled on the same day. 

Be part of Guinness World Records record as a

o      Company – participate and sponsor #RideForFreedom2020

o      Public body e.g. council, local authority, mayor’s office – recognise #RideForFreedom2020

o      Bicycle/equipment manufacturer/supplier – partner with #RideForFreedom2020

o      Educational establishment e.g. school, college, university – teach    #RideForFreedom2020

o      Media – report on #RideForFreedom2020

o      Individual – support #RideForFreedom2020

o     Everyone – participate #RideForFreedom2020

Participate – be part of the Guinness World Records record attempt

Get involved as an individual or with several of your colleagues, friends, family, or club mates. It's really straightforward. Simply choose the stage(s) you'd like to ride – see the map above (each letter is one stage and will take between 3-6 hours [some are longer than others] to cycle at an average 20kmh/12mph pace) and email me to register: [email protected]

Who can participate?

Everyone – children, women and men – regardless of your age or ability level. All we ask is that you can ride a bike, know and appreciate road safety, and ideally can fix a puncture! (if you can't, don't worry, someone else will be able to help). If you'd like to discuss anything - the route, fitness levels, other requirements etc - get in touch via email: [email protected]

Why participate?

• Enhance your mental and physical wellbeing, personal development, and take the opportunity a group activity provides to unite your business, and/or social group
• Demonstrate your personal and corporate commitment to end modern slavery and all forms of labour exploitation
• Reference your participation in #RideForFreedom2020 in your corporate impact reporting, including your modern slavery statement
• Treat your participation as professional development/a corporate team building exercise
• Be invited to attend the Guinness World Records record certificate presentation on Anti-Slavery Day, 18 October 2020

Sponsorship

Corporate sponsorship will enable #RideForFreedom2020. It will underwrite the cost of the Guinness World Records record licensing and verification, the logistical, developmental, marketing and administrative expenses incurred throughout the duration of the entire 2020 campaign that includes the official Guinness World Records record ride, 16 September-2 October. 

Corporate sponsors will: 

o      Receive branding on all the Guinness World Records record ride’s promotional activities (including PR / social media, logo on the jerseys).

o      * Guinness World Records’ social media following is: 

>Facebook 17million

>TikTok 7.5million

>Youtube 6million

>Instagram 4.5million

>Twitter 270k

^Dependent on sponsorship level

To discuss sponsorship and partnership opportunities, contact me via email: [email protected] or here on LinkedIn, on twitter @GordonMiller81 @RideForFreedom2 at Instagram @gordomm8124

Bike Partner

Orbea are the #RideForFreedom2020 bike partner. A Spanish company, from Eibar in the Basque region, it has a 175 year history and is proudly run as a co-operative business. They have an impressive range of road, adventure and mountain bikes. I'll be riding a Terra M20-D 1X. To see the full range of bikes and kit head over to Orbea.com @Orbea

?Ambassadorships

I'm proud to be an Ambassador for Orbea.com and an Authentic Ambassador for KitBrix – No Fuss, Just Organised Kit. #Kitbrix is a high performance bag system, built by athletes, for active people, families and professional athletes.

Get involved

If you’d like to get involved as a sponsor, partner, participator or feel you might be able to help in any other capacity, please get in touch. You can follow my training updates and the actual Guinness World Records record attempt on twitter @GordonMiller81 @RideForFreedom2 Instagram @gordomm8124 and here on LinkedIn.

#ModernSlavery #ForcedLabour #LabourExploitation #SupplyChains #ResponsibleSourcing #EthicalSourcing #ESG #SDGs #RideForFreedom2020 #RideForFreedom2020GuinnessWorldRecord #GuinnessWorldRecords #2020Challenge #NewYearChallenge #EndModernSlavery