VOTING NOW CLOSED! WINNER ANNOUNCED 08.02.24
ARMCHAIR ADVENTURERS CHOICE AWARD
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ARMCHAIR ADVENTURERS CHOICE AWARD
£3,000 is up for grabs for one winner in this year's #GetOutDoStuff Armchair Adventurer's Choice Award! More than 75 applications have been whittled down to 3 finalists by our judging panel and now it's your turn to pick the winner. Below you can see all the details on this years finalists and then cast your vote to pick a winner.
Voting opens at 9am on 1/2/24 and closes at 17:00 on 7/2/24. Only one vote allowed per person.
Claire Roberts
Cycling to Athens
As a compassionate world citizen, I try to make a positive impact on people’s lives, especially those displaced by war and famine.
I’m a 55 year old, vegan, lone female traveler and I've had a lifelong passion for travel. The bicycle has been my means of recent years - my last trip was 18,000 kilometres across 21 countries. For my next adventure I will cycle another 18,000 kms, this time to raise awareness about the plight of refugees in the UK and abroad, whilst raising funds for The Refugee Council and Choose Love's important work.
I plan to cycle along the coast from Penmaenmawr (North Wales) to Lesvos (Greece), where I previously volunteered with refugees in 2015. I will challenge myself further by living on a budget of £47.39 a week; the same weekly income a UK asylum-seeker receives.
I plan to do this by wild camping, and seeking kindness of the communities I travel through. I'd also like to stand up for our right to roam in the UK and raise awareness of this issue as I cycle.
I will embrace the personal challenge of this adventure. I’m certain there will be ups and downs (literally and metaphorically); and exciting times on this trip. I hope you can help me with my purpose. This trip will be an epic adventure! Thanks for reading - I'd appreciate your vote to help me achieve my goals and spur me on a few more thousand kms!
Sally Orange
Everest Marathon
Having ran 7 marathons on 7 continents in 7 consecutive days in a bid to change the conversation on mental ill health during 2023, now in my 50th year, I aim to continue to break the stigma by shouting about it quite literally from the top of the world.
I have campaigned tirelessly for mental health since battling severe depression and chronic anxiety that almost lead to suicide when I served in the British Army before I was medically discharged. As proud ambassador for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Army Cadet Force, I now aim to inspire people to speak openly about mental health and #getoutdostuff for better wellbeing.
In May 2024, I am determined to run the Everest Marathon, starting at Base Camp, the highest point of any marathon globally. Dressed as a fruit (see my surname!) to spark conversations about mental health, I'll be running the icy route down the mountain, to the Sherpa village Namche Bazaar, via Gorekshep and Pangboche.
With previous climbing experience at high altitudes, I have some idea of how testing this adventure will be; but I am confident that my commitment to the cause will get me through. I am absolutely passionate about changing the conversation around mental illness and preventing others from seeing suicide as the only option. In taking on this challenge I will be raising money and awareness for The Samaritans and The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
This challenge doesn't come cheap, so winning the Armchair Adventurers’ Choice Award would make this life-changing adventure possible. Voting for me will help fund this gruelling challenge and promote the mental health message on a wider scale.
Dan Walmsley
Running across Guinea
In January 2025, an extraordinary running adventure will unfold across the picturesque landscapes of Guinea, West Africa, as I embark on a transformative journey from Dieke to the Conakry Refugee School. Over the course of several awe-inspiring weeks, I will cover a staggering 560 miles, averaging 30-40 miles per day, as I traverse the wondrous environment of Guinea.
My mission is twofold: to celebrate the remarkable success of the Conakry Refugee School and to raise vital funds to support the education of its students. The school's impact on the lives of the children it serves is immeasurable, and I will be driven to ensure that they have the resources they need to receive a quality education. I firmly believe that education has the power to not only transform individual lives but also uplift entire families and communities.
As I journey through Guinea, every step I take echoed the resilience and determination of the students at the Conakry Refugee School. My running adventure will become a symbol of hope and solidarity, inspiring others to join me in supporting this noble cause. Through unwavering determination and the support of generous individuals around the world, we can successfully raise crucial funds to provide the students with the opportunity to thrive through education.
Arriving at the Conakry Refugee School, I will be greeted with open arms and jubilation, knowing that our collective efforts have made a tangible difference in the lives of these remarkable children. This running adventure is not just a personal feat, but a testament to the incredible impact that can be achieved when people come together to support a cause greater than themselves.
And this is testament to the friends of Conakry refugee school charity set up by my mother in law and sister in law back in 2007.
THE ARMCHAIR ADVENTURE FESTIVAL
New here and wondering what the heck the Armchair Adventure Festival is? We are the UK's best celebration of adventure travel. The festival was founded by Matt and Reece (AKA The Sidecar Guys) during the first covid lockdown as a way of connecting adventurers when we couldn't leave our living rooms. In the 3 years since the festival has been around we have held a number of virtual events, two in-person festivals and raised more than £15,000 for good causes.
Our purpose now is to celebrate adventure travel and inspire more people to embrace the positive impacts adventure can have on your life.
Our next festival will be held from 25th-28th July at Mount Edgcumbe Country Park, Cornwall and it will be a full on weekend of tales of adventure, activities to get involved with and live music. Find out more here.
HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE GRANT?
INDIVIDUALS
The best way to get involved is to #GetOutDoStuff!
Please #GetOutDoStuff and use the hashtag so we can reshare your posts. Talk about the grant in your posts so more people can hear Dave's story and #GetOutDoStuff. You can also share this webpage with anyone who might be interested in applying for or supporting the grant.
You can also donate to the grant here. All funds raised are ringfenced and 100% of the money raised goes to funding adventures. Some fundraising platforms take a small fee for their service but The Armchair Adventure Festival takes no fee and every penny that makes it into the grant goes to funding #GetOutDoStuff adventures.
BUSINESSES
Could your business become a sponsor of the grant? We are looking for sponsors to offer up matched funding for next years fundraising at Armchair Adventure Festival 2024. To do so we would like you to join our #GetOutDoStuff 100 club.
This means you pledge to match up to £100 of funding. So if AAF23 festival goers raise £100 your business will match that £100 and make it £200. You only have to match £100 though so we are looking for as many businesses as possible to join the club.
We will also ask all 100 club members to donate a prize of any size to our raffle. So for just a £100 donation and a raffle prize you can support this amazing grant and have your logo featured on this page!
If you want to go the extra mile you can take one of the 1000 club member spots and pledge £1,000. You'll get loads of extra exposure including a mention in our press release about the grant.
To become a sponsor please email contact@amrchairadventurefestival.com
Get your logo on our board and get a special thanks at #AAF23
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