MAO-A-THON! Help On a 900km Quest to Raise Money for Maovember

We take a brief respite from our regular content for this personal appeal from Mike Wester, the founder of the Beijinger.

Help me raise as much as I can for Maovember and its charity partners Bread of Life and Library Project by seeking sponsors for my quest to walk over 900km during the month of November!

I plan to walk an average of 30 km per day for the entire month of November, while attempting to maintain a normal business and family life. I walk regularly through the CBD, Sanlitun, Gongti, Chaoyang Park and Shuangjing areas but can also walk to other areas chosen by sponsors. 100% of the money raised will be donated to Maovember charities.

Want to help? Sponsor Me!

• There are two options for personal sponsorships: 1 mao per km (RMB 90) or if you are feeling particularly generous,5 mao (in honor of Maovember's fifth anniversary!) per km (RMB 450). You get social media shout-outs and link of your choice plus extensive social media image, text and hotlink branding.
  

• Corporate sponsorships begin at RMB 500. You get visible on-body branding during the walk and extensive social media image, text and hotlink branding.

Who would benefit as sponsors?

• Sports apparel companies
  

• Fitness centers
  

• Health products / supplements
  

• Healthcare providers
  

• Pollution masks / portable pollution monitors
  

• Bars / restaurants for branding or event promotion

  
  

What kind of exposure is available?

• Full costume (mascot, etc)
  

• Jacket / shirt / sash / chest bib
  

• Full torso branding
  

• Backpack/ bag
  

• Baseball hat / ski hat
  

• Lapel button
  

• Pollution mask (when AQI > 200)
  

Coverage:

• Maovember (www.maovember.com) web page and social media accounts
  

• Weekly posts to thebeijinger.com blog (plus social media accounts)
  

• Daily post update on my personal Wechat featuring front-facing selfie

Add me on WeChat to donate:

Costs of corporate sponsorship:

Non-exclusive branding

• One day (30km): RMB 500
  

• One week (7 days): RMB 3k
  

• Half month (15 days): RMB 6k
  

• Full month (600km): RMB 12k
  

Exclusive branding:

• One week (7 days): RMB 12k
  

• Half month (15 days): RMB 20k
  

• Full month: RMB 30k
  

Contact me on WeChat at mwinchina or via email at gm@thebeijinger.com if interested!

FAQs:

How will the money be collected?
Sponsors and individual donors pay at the time of pledge via WeChat. No official invoices can be offered.

How will mileage be tracked?
I will track my kms walked via my iPhone Health app, with daily totals reported publicly on WeChat.

Why is this a challenge?
I have averaged 9.5km daily over the past year, and never averaged more than 22.5km a day for any one month. Accomplishing this goal will be a challenge, and I will attempt to do this in Beijing while still maintaining a relatively normal family life and a job.

Why walking instead of running or biking?
Personal choice. I am an inveterate pedestrian and love walking in this city.

What happens if I don't reach the goal?

You may ask for a refund of the equivalent amount in RMB via WeChat.