So, if TRIARRII has the 'nuts' to take on this adventure trip maybe we should throw some sponsorship into the kitty. Well guys, what do you reckon?

Tell you what, I'll open with a few bucks to start it off and I'm jewish and ya know how tightfisted we are.

It should really have a sponsorship fund set up. How do you do that in the US?

Maybe also Landrover US or UK might just be interested and possibly even a US parts supplier or two, or even a sponsoring tire supplier, who knows. Well worth at least an e-mail to test the water.

 

not in on the sponsorship, but I am definitely in on a little odds setting and wager...

 

obviously, I am joking as this would not be legal

 

Thank you man so much mate. As always I appreciate your positive feedback and willingness to help spread the word. Im working long hours at work so Im sure I will make this trip work, even if I cannot raise the extra money for some of the stuff on my list. That said I would be happy just to have some people tag along with me! I still have not had any luck finding anybody interested in coming along. I have room for maybe one person so far and if someone brings their own vehicle all the better.

I do have a gofundme account made: Far North Overland: NH-Ak by Julian Bellorum - GoFundMe

Regarding sponsors I have contacted Rovers North and Lucky8 LLC. RN has been helping me alot with discounts and super fast shipping on all my big ordered. I have not heard back from Lucky8 so I dont think they are interested. I will give TreadWright a try seeing how Im using their tires right now and so far I love them. I considered contacting Land Rover but the thought of that is intimidating. Cant imagine they would give a dam about someone with a "notorious" D2 going on a cross country trek, but I will submit a form when I get around to it. Any advice on how I can increase my chances of getting sponsorships would be great.

Spare Parts: I have alot of new parts on my truck but theres always something that can potentially go wrong. As it is my front driver side window motor is beginning to show signs of age and will probably need to be replaced before the trek (I expect to be hitting many toll booths along the way). So if anybody has a spare part here or there that they dont need and they feel that it may come in use to me, then I would greatly appreciate it!

Thanks again offroadfrance! Wish you could tag along!

 

I'm going to sound off here and since its not Julian's thread I won't feel bad.

I don't understand the whole "I want to do something so gimme money" mentality. From what I gather Julian is moving to Alaska for a temporary job. I applaude him for his ambition and willingness to take on such a trip. That said, his motivation for such an endeavor is for himself. He isn't raising awareness for a cause or fundraising for charity. And that's OK. It's not a bad thing, but it certainly isn't some noble cause that I would have the stones to ask somebody to help pay for.

Julian isn't the only one. Let's take Sean Peyton Ross as another example. For those of you unaware he's a guy from Georgia that has at least 3 different "Gimme Money" pages. He solicited RN and many other companies for sponsorship of his Project Matilda. A project where he, a "100% disabled veteran"(whatever that means?) would drive his D1 across the country supposedly raising awareness for veterans. Well he never had any kind of plan on exactly HOW he would raise awareness and he never drove 1 mile on his trip. He has literally thousands of dollars of donated and sponsored product on his D1 and has never done squat. He has also tried to "save" some long abandoned school building and is currently tried to raise money to buy an airplane to teach kids to fly. Oh, and last week he was asking for , money to pay his mortgage.

I'm also reminded of a news story of a couple base jumping in a National Park, which is illegal. Well she died and he was left with a fine, hefty recovery bill, and funeral costs. And yes he set up a "Gimme Money" page to pay for it.

Whatever happened to being a man and saving for what you want to do? Whatever happened to not doing something if you didn't have the money to? Whatever happened to literally paying the consequences for your own actions?

I have a 2 week trip planned to Utah with my Rover. I'm completely overhauling the truck and I've had to push back the trip dates due to time and financial restrictions. I certainly don't have the ***** or audacity to ask for money, and I don't understand how some people do.

I also feel the "Gimme Money" people cheapen the efforts of those other people that actually are raising money for charity or doing something for a good cause.

Time to Man-Up and quit mooching, people!!!

 

I agree with Fisheh to an extent. I should have planned for this trip much more in advance but alas it was kinda a last minute radical decision, of which was inspired by the people on this forum who convinced me to scrap the shipping my truck idea and just drive up. So thats what Ive decided to do. Not long after I found that Expedition Overland series on youtube which seemed like it was ment for my viewing... now I have the inspiration and the motivation to embark on this trip. No sad stories here, Im not a vet and Im not about to loose my crappy studio apartment. Just some late planning and the budget is going to be extremely tight and I may have to may some sacrifices in terms of the parts and gear I was hoping to acquire for this trip. Im the type that likes to be over-prepared rather than under-prepared. Im sure I will figure this all out in time, just would make my trip alot easier with some help and support.

That said Fisheh is right about Mr. "Sean Peyton Ross". The guy added my on facebook and said he was very interested in tagging along with me in my truck during the overland trip to Alaska. He told me that he gets these huge discounts on LR parts and made all these promises. Then he asked me for money to fund an airplane thing.... I asked Zack (ZGPhoto) about him and he informed me that Sean screwed over Rovers North..... blocked him the other day and that was that. And yes it would seem that he has at least 3 fundme accounts up and running. One for an airplane and another to help save his house I guess. I dont know anything else about the guy but I believe what Zack and Fisheh said. So yes some people do lie, steal and fraud. Some people use their condition as a means to get sympathy and money from others. Id like to think Ive been apart of this forum for long enough that people know me better than that.

Fisheh I recommend you watch the series Ive been speaking about lately. I made a thread in the "Off Topic" section regarding a youtube series. Anyways its a team of 5 people dived between 2 vehicles (Land Crusier and Tacoma). They invest what money they can into these 2 vehicles and get them all geared up for a 6 week long overland trek across the Yukon and Alaska. On first though you can assume they are "rich" looking at all the gear and accessories they have on board but on closer examination you can see all the sponsors names listed all over the vehicles and in the "special thanks" section of the credits after each episode. Clearly this team did not fund their entire trip. Im willing to bet that some of those companies (ARB, General Grabber, Land Rover, Toyota) contributed some donations or parts to the team for their trek. unfortunately the trip was not for any special cause or anything, just a team of people with a dream to do something wild that most people opte never to do. They made a series out of it and now the team and their vehicles were showcased at the "SEMA" event.

Nobody has to donate anything, again Im sure I will figure everything out somehow. Just thought Id ask cause it would not hurt. As for my trip to Alaska and my "temp" job as you put it. I went up there in 2013 and worked for 6 months? Came back and promised myself I would return.... with my truck. Took 2014 off and thought about what I want to do with my life and decided that I want to permanently move to Alaska and go back to work at the processor. It is a seasonal job yes but not quite a "temp" job where you lose your job. As long as you stay for the entire season then you are promised a bed when you return next year for the next season. Im on that list and I have every intention of making a career out of it. But I also want to push my vehicle to its limits, take it across the country perhaps as they were intended (expedition vehicles?). I want to live the dream and do something crazy and scary at the same time. I want to witness the natural beauty of this world and I hope to capture most of it on camera. I want to challenge the notion that these vehicles are "unreliable POS's" by bringing it 4,700 miles (roughly) and make a point. I want to live this one life like theres no tomorrow.

Im not a fraud or a crazy vet looking for sympathy (no offense to the men and women who served and were injured in the line of duty). If I had a choice between donations of cash or a couple people to join me on my trip, Id chose the companions! Any help, any support of any kind would be appreciated. That said Im working my but off, working as many hours as I can to pull this off. Its hard though when employers dont like to pay you overtime or when they dont want you working more than 48 hours per week.

I will manage with or without help for sure, because Im determined. Ill do whatever I have to do. I mean no offense to anyone on this forum. Peace.

 

I hear what you say but sometimes people need a leg up to get started. I raced bikes and cars and was sponsored on both and received start money on bikes. I also had a good kick off in life from my family dosh so I feel sometimes someone else might need a leg up to realise their ambitions. As far as sponsorships go, everything from F1 down to the Camel Trophy relies on sponsorship otherwise it wouldn't happen. Very few in sports of any kind fund their big projects themselves be it Olympians, tennis, golf, motorsport, kart racing, offroading or whatever so why not wheeling and trekking? If the guy pulls it off and starts rolling I'll put my money where my mouth is as I'm offering and haven't been canvassed. I like ambitious 'doers' and even those with outrageous schemes as it means they are alive and kicking with ambitions and ideas. I'd rather give to anyone like this rather than a crackhead or drunk in the street begging for dosh as generally they are losers. Everyone makes their own luck and destiny in this world so the 'doer' is my priority not the bum in the Walmart parking lot begging for freebies. Just my four pennyworth.

 

Hi TRIARRII, de rien, I would love to tag along, I've probably got the driving skills, auto knowledge and tenacity, BUT, my age is well and truly against me as pushing 70 with 'beaucoup de projets' in progress already. A few years ago I would have jumped at the opportunity I'm always up for 'anything for an adventure and a laugh' but now I'm forced to take things slightly more sedate, I did say 'slightly' as I do work physically nearly every day and ride 160mph motorbike sometimes on the limit. If I were 60 or even 65 I would be right there. All being well we will be in the southern US next year circa May time and hopefully buy Dusty a cool beer and burger and do some wheelin together.

 

Julian I get what you're saying and by no means am I comparing you to SPR. I'll probably check out that series after I finish catching up on "Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia".
Again I applaud your ambition and boldness to make such a change. A lot of people talk about doing things like that and not a lot follow through.
If you want to ask for financial help through donations or sponsorships then that's your prerogative. I just wanted/needed to vent a bit. Keep in mind that the second you take money from individuals or a company you've opened yourself up to a TON of scrutiny. Every dollar you spend starts to get analyzed because now you have other parties "invested" in you. Questions like "why is he wrapping his trucks or buying flags when he needs gas money?" start to get asked. You may find the money you receive isn't worth the microscope it puts you under. Just a thought.....

That said, I'd be happy to meet up with you for a beer as you pass through. I have a stupid small house but if you need a place to camp for a night or two my yard is open. I also have a good amount of tools so if you need a place to do some work, whether its and oil change or something bigger, my place is open. If you need assistance within a few hours of my place I'd be willing to come help out *** well. There's nothing that sucks more than being broken down on a trip.

Cheers!

 

Thank you man! I may take you up on that and I will keep you posted. I completely understand everything your saying though. Also sucks when bad apples ruin it for everyone else. If I end up getting any sponsors or donations then I will have to come up with a way to record my spending and provide receipts. Also I plan on making many video journals along the trip and posting them on youtube. So it will be a good way for people to keep up with how im doing and i will be able to promote any potential sponsors. Like I said before its not all about the money. Even just having people to come with me would mean alot to me. If I could put together a caravan though... that would be A DREAM COME TRUE! But no matter what I will find a way to make this work no matter what, this is my passion and Im obsessed. Finally after 2 years I have a valid justification for all the money and parts and labor I have invested into this truck and now I have a destination.... a goal.

I just contacted TreadWright about a sponsorship and the director of marketing responded right off and said he would talk about it with the leadership board and get back to me tomorrow! All I asked for was an extra spare Crawler 235/85R16 MT tires. I figured it would be a wise idea to have 2 spares for this trip and if I get it i will mount it on the SD rack.

Thanks for the constructive criticism. I foiund one person so far who does custom vinyls and Im gonna see about getting one in honor of this forum for my truck. Would anybody else be interested in a forum vinyl? If so I may be able to convince the guy to cut us all a deal on them. The guy ges by "Down Range Decals".