FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The Champions Ride is a fitness and fundraising challenge supporting Barnardos Australia. Through the month of October, we are challenging Australians to ride between 50 and 500kms to raise funds to give vulnerable Australian children a life full of opportunity and hope. 

Anyone, anywhere can take part in this challenge! 

You can get involved as an individual, a workplace, a team, a bunch of mates or a sports club. Registering is easy! Sign up here

If you are under 18 and would like to participate, please email championsride@barnardos.org.au and our team will explain how to get your guardian’s consent before your get started. 

Barnardos Australia is committed to ensuring that children and young people are safe and aren’t involved in any behaviour that could make them feel unsafe or put them at risk. If you are thinking of involving children and young people under the age of 18 years in your ride, please consider the following: 

• Consent from the child or young person’s parent or guardian must be given. 
• Ensure there is an adult 18 years or over supervising the activity. 
• Ensure your ride complies with the laws and regulations regarding engagement of children and young people. 
• Make sure your ride is safe and suitable for the ages and abilities of the children and young people who will be participating. 
• If you are planning to transport children whilst you take on this challenge, please ensure you have the appropriate child safety arrangements in place.
• Don't forget to wear a helmet and be aware of your surroundings to stay safe and keep cycling!

You’re allowed to participate using any style of transport that is not considered a motor vehicle. 

Here are some ways you can take part in in The Champions Ride: 

• Scooter, Trike or other Children's Bike
• Road Bike 
• Mountain Bike 
• Recumbent or Reclined Bike
• Tandem 
• BMX 
• Stationary or exercise bike 
• Spin
• Cyclo-cross
• E-bikes
• Roller Blading
• Walking or Wheel Chair 

Using vehicles that require registration, such as cars and motorbikes, is prohibited. 

You can ride anywhere, so long as you are doing so safely and legally. It doesn’t matter whether you are riding on road, off road or in the gym – all rides during October count towards your goal. 

All riding must be done in compliance with all laws of the jurisdiction(s) in which you are riding.

It’s FREE to register for The Champions Ride. Sign up here and be a champion for children!

You can create a team when you first register, alternatively you can go to your “Fundraising Dashboard” and select the “CREATE A TEAM” section and follow the prompts. 

If you need any further assistance feel free to reach out to our friendly team on 02 9218 2391 or email us championsride@barnardos.org.au 

You can join a team by clicking on the “Join Us” button on the team’s fundraising page. If the team is set to private, you will need to ask the team leader or captain to send you an invite. 

The funds you raise will help Barnardos Australia work together with children, young people and families to break the cycle of disadvantage and create safe nurturing and stable homes, connected to family and community. 

Barnardos is one of Australia’s leading children's charities. We offer a range of family support programs and services to ensure all children and young people have caring families in which they can grow safely and fulfill their potential. When this is not possible, we also provide safe homes for children through foster care, kinship care and open adoption. If you would like to know more about Barnardos and the work we do, click here. 

Anyone who donates $2 or more through your online fundraising page will automatically be emailed a tax-deductible receipt. 

Yes, the funds raised will go to Barnardos Australia, however, Facebook donations are handled and held by a third party, so we can’t sync these donations to your Champions Ride Fundraising Page. Given the limitations of Facebook, we advise you not to use the Facebook Donate button to raise funds.    

If you’d like your friends and family to donate to you, we encourage you to share the link to your fundraising page on your social media pages instead. 

It is best to use your online fundraising link to fundraise, but if cash or cheques are received, you can deposit the money into your bank account and then donate directly onto your page using your credit card. Your total fundraising amount will then be shown on your page.

Login to your The Champions Ride account and head to your dashboard. Click on ‘Edit my page’. Here you can update everything from your fitness goal to your profile picture. 

Your profile page includes your personal distance tally, so you can track your distance towards your target. This is a great way to keep your friends updated on your rides! 

On October 1 everyone’s distance tracking will return to 0km as this is the official start date of The Champions Ride. 

If you track your rides with Fitbit or Strava, your distances will automatically add to your tally. If you do not use one of these apps, you can also log your fitness activities manually.

Follow these steps to track your KMs automatically:

1. Download the Fitbit or Strava app and set up your account
2. Log into your Champions Ride Account and in your Dashboard go to the My Fitness Activity page.
3. Under the heading ‘Connect your preferred Fitness app’, click your chosen app.
4. Follow the prompts to connect your account
5. When you next work out, select ‘start your workout’ in the app on your phone. Once you end your workout, save your workout and your distance will be published to the tally on your page the following day.

If you have synced your app already but it is not working, please log in and re-connect it.

Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us! Once you click login, you’ll see a prompt if you’ve forgotten your details. We’ll send you an email with a reminder of your username and a link to reset your password.

If you need any help feel free to reach out to our friendly team on 02 9218 2391 or email us championsride@barnardos.org.au