About contributions
Of course, without this funding it would be far more difficult to finish the film, so thank you in advance for your generous support.
Your contribution can be just $1 (you can see how by clicking on "Contribute now"). Every little helps. Whether you are able to contribute $1, $80, $1000 or somewhere in between, we have created a range of rewards to recognise your support. We have tried to keep it fun and give you as much as we can in return for your support. We hope that the biggest reward will be knowing you helped bring this story to the big screen.
The Story
Hi, I'm Graham. This is the story of when my friend Pauline and I cycled across North America.
Over the years we had often hiked the Scottish mountains, cycled its roads and camped in its glens, but we had never done anything like this before. We know Scotland like the back of our hands, but knew very little about the United States. So one day we decided to do something different.
We set out from Boston, heading west toward Seattle, with preconceptions of what America was going to be like. What we found and experienced blew those preconceptions right out of the water.
Picture the scene: we were in a small town in New York State, struggling to find a place to camp for the night. Right then a complete stranger approached us and gave us the keys to his house for the weekend whilst he was out of town!
On the 4th July weekend, hit by mechanical failure, I phoned ahead to arrange repair after the holiday. We enjoyed a wonderful 4th July parade and came back to discover that the bike mechanic, Terry, had come to where we were staying and fixed the bike. No charge. Just a simple note: "have a great trip".
This became typical of the level of generosity that the American people showed us. It made us realise how easy it is to be kind.
We saw a staggeringly beautiful country, encountered scary wildlife, battled through strong winds and extreme weather and witnessed human tragedy first hand. But the real story is the people we met. Strangers that became friends everywhere we went. Witnessing the can-do spirit in action as they helped each other in times of need. And we tried to capture it all on film.
From our website you can follow a link to the video diary archive where you'll be able to watch several of our diaries, made as we made our way across.
Interest and growing impact
As time rolled by, people started to hear of our effort and would welcome us as we rode into town. Everywhere we went people welcomed these 2 Scottish cyclists that had made the effort to come over and cycle across their country. Just outside of Minneapolis a TV crew picked us up and made a 10-minute feature for one of their Life To The Max programmes. CBS News affiliates also followed us across the midwest.
People along the way told us they were inspired by our journey; that it reminded them of the can-do pioneer spirit. In these tough times we live in that was just the boost they needed. Ironically it was us that ended up being inspired by them.
It left us feeling that this film's time is now, when good news and inspiration is in short supply.
If the film can inspire you and others in the same way the journey did us, then it will have been a great success.
How you can help & how we can thank you
So what are we going to spend the money on?
After our return, on starting to edit the film, we discovered that it was going to be almost impossible to obtain the copyright licenses for the music we wanted to use. After a lot of unsuccessful negotiating it was obvious there was only one option left open to us: we would have to commission our own music. Because of this campaign we now hope to have this performed and recorded for us by a bluegrass band in Port Townsend, Washington.
We also need to have a number of 3D maps made and animated to show geographical context throughout the film.
Then there are the legal costs for clearances and releases; the final mix in a studio; entry fees to festivals, and so on.
To raise additional funds outside this appeal, I am putting together a talk on the adventure, which will also help to publicise the movie.
Any shortfall will, of course, have to be met out of my own pocket, but I am hopeful we will be able to raise the funds needed. Whatever it takes I am passionate and determined enough that this film will be finished and will reach a wide audience.
The rewards/perks for your contributions will be delivered as they become available, some of which may be in the latter part of the year.
Other ways you can help
The key to success of any crowd funding approach is publicity and we are seeking to draw on the limited number of contacts we have. However, if you would like to help further please pass on this link. There are share tools on the site for you to use if you wish.
In fact, tell all your friends! Tell everyone. Get the word out there for us and guide them here.
We are also on Facebook and Twitter so please use those links and help us get this going.
Thank you
