It isn't real. In one of the finishers video's the guy was getting filmed say "touch the gold medal for luck, it is straight from the olympics" then as camera pulls back just a little he looks at it and says "well, as far as they know anyway"

Imagine the germs on that thing after 16 hours?

Ewwwwww...

The woman was selling it like a champ! It gave me something to ponder for at least a few minutes out on the run. I'll be watching for that trick next year.

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"I really wish you would post more often. You always have some good stuff to say. I copied it below just in case someone missed it." BarryP to Chainpin on 10/21/06

My understanding was last year they had one out on the course from a skiing or nordic event from one of the Lake Placid Olympics. Maybe the first one? I assume it was the same medal this year. I touched it last year and I briefly asked about it, or there was a sign behind the guy holding it. I find it pretty cool, instead of locking it away in a display box, they share it with people competing. Pretty generous of them.

I still think Olympic medals are rather magic. I knew a gold and silver medalist in swimming. I found it interesting how humble he was about his accomplishment, but how excited everybody else could be about it.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

So you say it is real, ATX thinks its not, and I'm still unsure. Someone has got to know definitively.

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"I really wish you would post more often. You always have some good stuff to say. I copied it below just in case someone missed it." BarryP to Chainpin on 10/21/06

A few years ago there was a guy on the run course at the first aid station on Riverside Rd who was holding his gold medal out for people to touch for good luck. I wasn't have a good day and stopped for a minute or so to recover and while I was there asked him what he won it for and he said it was for rowing in either 1960 or 1964 (I forget the exact year).

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"You can never win or lose if you don't run the race." - Richard Butler

I am sure the one I touched was real. However, every Olympics the design changes, so it would be hard to tell. I have held gold and silver from swimming, and I know those were real.

I doubt anybody would stand out there on the run holding a fake medal. It didn't seem like he was trying to pick up girls or anything.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

That rings familiar for some reason, so I may be wrong about the skiing. I do think I remember that it was his son, or grandson, holding it at the time. The actual winner was taking a break.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

If the medal was for rowing from 1964, it was real. I remember that guy on the course in 2001. I have a background in the sport, so when I asked him what the medal was from and he responded "rowing," I stopped for a few minutes to chat with him.

The race that won that medal was rowed in Tokyo, at _night_ because the winds were to severe for rowing during the day. The course was lit with signal flares and although the US 8+ crossed the line significantly ahead of their competition, they didn't know for sure that they had won until a brighter flare illuminated the scene around the line.

That's pretty damn cool.

mm

Bill Stowe, 1964 Tokyo Olympics for Men's 8 (rowing). Apparently he used to coach at Cornell and now lives in Lake Placid. Here are some pictures from the race course. Looks like his wife(?) was out there at this point. Very cool of them to come out and support like that.

http://www.tntironteam.org/PhotoGallery/album/ironman-usa/page/3/photo/img_2402jpg

http://www.tntironteam.org/PhotoGallery/album/ironman-usa/page/3/photo/img_2403jpg

Looks like I could be mistaken.

Proabably the coolest thing I have seen in 10 IM's (4 of them at LP) and I touch it every lap....it gives me chills just to think about it.

Thanks to the family for doing that every year, it is a special highlight for me.

Awesome, I saw the first sign but totally missed the second one! (I guess that happens when you go blazing by at a 11 min/mile pace). Thanks for the pics nomi!

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"I really wish you would post more often. You always have some good stuff to say. I copied it below just in case someone missed it." BarryP to Chainpin on 10/21/06

She should hold on tight, someone might run by and rip it out of her hands.

It's real. It's been there during each of my 3 IMLPs, just before mile 3. I've always touched it on the first loop. However, I know what I do during and before a race, (portapoties, gu, gatorade, snot rockets, peeing, sweat, sticky powerbars etc) and I assume that most people do the same things, so since I doubt he's detoxing the medal every 5 minutes, I keep well clear on the 2nd loop.

But wouldn't it be cooler if it was the gold medal of Kurt Angle's that had been down Eddie Guerreo's wrestling tights? Kidding.

Kurt Angle said that he used to use his real gold medal as a prop for WWE, but it started getting beat up, and now he uses fake medals.

Cool this guy brings out his real one every year.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

I touched it too - and stopped to chat for a few seconds. Very cool - from the year I was born - I felt like it would give me good karma.

Cool, it looks like he wrote a book about it too. I love reading about this kind of stuff!

All Together: The Formidable Journey to the Gold with the 1964 Olympic Crew
Stowe, William A.


"In this book on the spectacular races at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, Bill Stowe writes with the same deadly accuracy and drive that he showed as the stroke of that crew. He writes not as his own remembrances would be so long after the fact, but rather in the tightly woven factual web of interviews of rowers from around the world. This is a compelling book because it develops the diverse backgrounds and experiences that a small group of men brought for the sole purpose of winning a gold medal in the Olympics. It was so momentous that this feat has not been repeated for the United States for 40 years, and then only with the force of a truly national effort and all of the weight and backing that that brings. Vesper is a storied club and it is in this romantic context that this group of lightly regarded mature men won for their club, their city and their country. Each man brings a special facet of himself to build the mosaic that created the perfect mix. This is a compelling story, intricately researched and crisply written that makes it a must for people who dream and who want to succeed." Allen P. Rosenberg
Coach of the 1964 Olympic Crew ""ALL TOGETHER is an inspirational story about one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history. A must read for any American who has ever picked up an oar" Mike Teti
Coach of the 2004 Olympic Crew

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"I really wish you would post more often. You always have some good stuff to say. I copied it below just in case someone missed it." BarryP to Chainpin on 10/21/06

I touched it! She also had a sign next to her with the medal's details- all I remember is that it was from 1964. What a neat thing for her to do for the race!

Maybe Bill will be on the course next year, I'd give him a high-five...only after I got my grubby hands on that olympic gold again!!

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"I really wish you would post more often. You always have some good stuff to say. I copied it below just in case someone missed it." BarryP to Chainpin on 10/21/06

I touched it and ran a PR by 30 minutes on the marathon.
Rock on!

Of course I touched it, both times! You mean you guys were actually thinking about how "germy" the thing could be? You need to run harder :)

But hey, how about that cool Ford display with the water mist under the huge blow-up arch and cool digital sign that pumped out your race number, name and little saying each time you passed it! I was impressed! The Hawaiian looking DJ there was awesome as well. I hope they keep that thing from now on as that looked really neat. Placed perfectly on the out-and-back so you got to go under it 4 times.

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Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD

That medal was won by a man for Archery if I recall properly...I have touched it many a time. Every lap...I look forward to it next year.

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?