Frequently asked questions.
General.
ESR Long Island is taking place on Saturday, July 22, 2023, in Downtown Oyster Bay.
You can register to ride one of three routes starting and ending in Downtown Oyster Bay.
The three routes being offered at ESR Long Island include 10, 25, and 62 miles.
Start times vary based on route. The start times are:
- 7:30 a.m. – 62-mile route
- 9 a.m. – 25-mile route
- 10 a.m. – 10-mile route
There is no fundraising requirement. However, there is a suggested fundraising minimum of $200 for adults and $75 for youth (under 18). Your $25 registration fee will be included in your fundraising. All funds raised support our mission to end cancer. Check out this year’s fundraising rewards here.
The funds raised by our riders support clinical research and trials at Catholic Health’s Cancer Institutes on Long Island and America’s first cancer center, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York.
Registration.
Click the “register” button above. You will fill out a short registration form and receive a confirmation email upon completion.
There is a $25 registration fee to participate in Empire State Ride Long Island that will be credited toward your suggested fundraising minimum. Since the ride benefits cancer research and patient care, fundraising is critical to support our mission. We offer tools to help, and you can even earn rewards for your fundraising efforts.
Yes, children ages 1+ can participate in the Ride with parental supervision.
For security reasons, our registration and fundraising system requires a unique email address for each participant. Therefore, if you’re registering kids or other riders without email accounts, you may need to create an email account, use your personal email, your work email or a spouse or relative’s email address.
You can bike as few as 10 miles. ESR Long Island has route recommendations for everyone from beginners to advanced riders. For suggested route options, click here .
If you would like your fundraising dashboard and donation page to display a different mileage badge, contact the Ride and your request will be handled as soon as possible. 833-465-1730
Fundraising.
The fundraising minimum is $75 for youth (under 18 years old on Ride Day) and $200 for adults. Your $25 registration fee will be included in your fundraising. Check out this year’s fundraising rewards here.
Check donations may be mailed to:
Roswell Park Alliance Foundation
PO Box 644
Buffalo, NY 14240-0644
Make sure the check is made out to “Empire State Ride Long Island” or “ESR Long Island” and the rider’s name is listed in the memo field. If you are sending in multiple checks for a rider or multiple riders on a team, please include this form .
Do not mail cash. Cash gifts can be brought to the event on July 22.
Please call our office at 833-465-1730 with questions.
Making a donation by credit card will immediately post on the rider’s fundraising page. The donor will receive a receipt within their confirmation email and the rider will receive a donation notification. Donations are also accepted in the form of cash or check.
Please allow 10 business days after receipt for mailed donations to be processed and posted to your fundraising page. Donations made online will be processed and posted immediately. Matching gifts may take longer than 10 days to appear on your fundraising page.
Whether you work for a company that matches the money you raise, or if one of your donors works for a company that does, you can double your donations by doing the following:
Review our Matching Gifts page to see if your company participates in a matching gift program
- Pick up a Matching Gift form from your Human Resources Department (or ask your donor to request one at their place of work)
- Fill out the form completely
- Send it to the following address:
ESR Long Island – Matching Gifts
Elm & Carlton Streets
Buffalo, NY 14263
If after contacting your Human Resources Department you still have a Matching Gift question, simply contact us and we will be happy to assist you.
Facebook fundraising.
Unlike a basic link share, Facebook Fundraiser posts are rich and dynamic posts that motivate more friends to donate quickly. Posts through a Facebook Fundraiser include an image, story, thermometer, donate button and more. You can easily invite all of your friends, and they will see updates from the fundraiser as well as from other friends who donate. Your friends are also encouraged to invite and share with their friends, which means you may receive gifts from people you don’t even know who were moved by your story! Facebook also provides you with a quick and easy way to check your progress – including donations that come in through your ESR Long Island page or your Facebook Fundraiser. On average participants who use Facebook fundraising raise $300 more than those who do not.
When you create a Facebook Fundraiser, your personal story and fundraising goal will be populated in Facebook. A cover photo and fundraiser name are also provided. Following creation of your Facebook Fundraiser, all donations will sync, meaning all donations received either on Facebook or through your personal page will be included in thermometers in both places.
When connecting your personal fundraising page to a Facebook Fundraiser, Facebook receives information on the campaign you are fundraising for and your personal story from your personal page at the time of the connection. On an ongoing basis, Facebook also receives updates on the amount of funds you have raised in order to keep the thermometer on your Facebook Fundraiser synced to the thermometer on your personal page. Facebook does not receive information about donors who donate through your personal page.
Yes, when you update your fundraising goal on your personal page, your goal will also be updated on your Facebook Fundraiser. However, if you update your goal in Facebook, it will not update the goal on your personal page. For consistency, we recommend that you do not update your goal on Facebook.
No, following the creation of your Facebook Fundraiser, updates to your story or photograph on your personal page will not be reflected on your Facebook Fundraiser. This allows you to tailor content appropriately in either location.
From your Facebook Fundraiser, click “…More” under the invite button, then click “Edit Fundraiser.” Changes that you make to your cover photo or description on Facebook will not be reflected on your personal page. This allows you to tailor content appropriately in either location.
This means Facebook Fundraising has completed. All Facebook Fundraisers are scheduled to end 30 days after Ride Day.
Yes, fundraisers are public, so anyone can see them. Only people with Facebook accounts can make a donation.
From your Facebook Fundraiser, click “…More” under the invite button, then “Delete Fundraiser.”
You must first be registered for ESR Long Island. To connect with a Facebook Fundraiser, log in to your Fundraising Dashboard and click to connect with Facebook. Accept Facebook’s permissions and your new Facebook Fundraiser is created!
Existing Facebook Fundraisers cannot be linked to an ESR Long Island page. You must visit your Fundraising Dashboard to create a new Facebook Fundraiser. Facebook Fundraisers not created through the Fundraising Dashboard will not sync to your thermometer and Roswell Park. We recommend you delete any existing Facebook Fundraisers that you were previously using to collect donations for ESR Long Island then visit your Fundraising Dashboard to create a new Facebook Fundraiser.
The personal page does not allow for public display rules the donor could set on Facebook (i.e., friends only or friends of friends). All donors display on the personal page as “Facebook Fundraiser.” Please have your donor contact us at 833-465-1730 or esrlongisland@roswellpark.org if they would like to update the public display name on the honor roll.
Yes, all donations will go toward your personal ESR Long Island campaign. Then, Catholic Health Cancer Institutes and Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center will split the funds raised.
When someone makes a donation through a Facebook Fundraiser, a payment receipt is sent to the primary email listed on the donor’s Facebook account. This payment receipt includes the organization’s tax ID number and confirms that the person has made a donation as a charitable contribution and that they’re not receiving any goods or services in return.
All Facebook Fundraiser donors receive an email from Facebook on behalf of the organization. If you also elected to receive email from Roswell Park Alliance Foundation at the time of your donation, you will receive an email receipt directly from the organization as well.
The personal page does not allow for public display rules the donor could set on Facebook (ie., friends only, friends of friends, only me). All donors display on the personal page as “Facebook Fundraiser.” Please contact us at 833-465-1730 or esrlongisland@roswellpark.org if you would like to update the name on the honor roll to your name.
You can print a receipt for your donation directly through Facebook by going to your settings, selecting “payments” and clicking on the donation for which you would like a receipt. While we are not able to print receipts for Facebook donations, please contact us at 833-465-1730 or esrlongisland@roswellpark.org if you are having trouble locating your receipt through Facebook.
Yes, you may contact Facebook by visiting https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/162031714239823.
Teams.
You only need two people to form a team. So, grab a friend and you’ve got your team! There is no limit to the size of your team either.
Designate someone (or yourself) as the team captain. During the registration process, you’ll come to a step asking if you’d like to be an individual rider, create a new team or join an existing team. Just follow the directions to “Create a team.” Then, let your teammates know the name of your team and how to spell your name, since they may have to search the system for your name to join.
When joining a team, be sure that your team captain is registered first and that you know the team name and/or the team captain’s name (and how to spell it). When registering select “Join a team.” Find your team’s name and follow the prompts to complete registration.
Yes, you can change your team membership from your Fundraising Dashboard. Click on the “Profile” button and then the “Event Options” button. From there, you can “Change Team Membership,” enter the team name or captain’s first or last name and search. When the correct team name appears, click on the “Join Team” button.
No! You can each ride however you like. Your team can even include volunteers.
Yes! Although we cannot currently accept general team donations online, your donors can make a check payable to ESR Long Island and include a list of team members and their pledge amounts, so they may be properly credited. They can mail their check to the ESR Long Island office. Please note: If a donation is made to the team and not a rider, it will not count toward the fundraising minimum of any rider.