It is a fundraiser for Organs R Us, a very important charity.

BUT WHAT ABOUT HIS PRIZE MONEY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[quote Trieatalot
And besides, how do I know your team actually took 3rd place? How do I know you didn't take shortcuts somewhere along the 195 mile course or one of your runners didn't hop into the van for a breather. There are no timing chips or other tracking of runners other than a cursory check-in at transitions. I'll go on record right now and say Twinracers team just drove the entire route, parked at each transition, drank beer and farted alot, watched a little porn on the van's DVD player, waited what they felt was an appropriate amount of time and sent a runner in to check-in with the volunteer. They cheated and on top of that want prize money for their deception. Man, that's as low as cheating at Sunday bingo at the local senior center.[/quote]


this right here is what i'm starting to really hate about slowtwitch.

"hey, person i've never met, how do i know you didn't cheat?"

-mike

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https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

Dear race directors:

Please contact every participant in your race to pre-determine what type of awards each of us would like. Then make sure you, in your spare time leading up to the race, go out and buy an individual gift for each potential winner. This would save all of us self-centered athletes the trouble of receiving awards that we don't like. You know we live a rough life and getting on the podium during the race is not enough. Most of us race to get the $5-20 awards that we couldn't otherwise afford since we spent $5000 on our bike.

I mean, it is the least you can do since you make tons of money on each race. And after all I DID pay to enter you event.

Sincerely

Trispoke

Where is the sarcasm font again?

Dear Triathlete:

I't been my pleasure charging you $100 for the privilege of using my mostly volunteer-staffed race course for 1.5 hours. As a measure of appreciation, I decided to serve you a nice 75-cent hamburger at the finish line, and give you the chance to buy a fairly chilled soft drink at a 200% markup at the post-race "party." (Note that actual partying will be strongly discouraged at the post-race party.) The "winner's certificate" that I ran through my inkjet printer last night and now hand to you is hopefully indicative of my respect for your efforts in training and on the racecourse, and, of course, for your contributions to my bottom line.


If you'd like to give me some more money, you can always buy a nice race t-shirt. After all, I DID do all that work to put on your event.

Sincerely,
dick assman

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____________________________________
https://lshtm.academia.edu/MikeCallaghan

http://howtobeswiss.blogspot.ch/

iron_mike: thanks for your support.

Jollyrogers: if races would post this readily that would make things a little easier

Khai: the first place team ALSO got the SAME necklace as our team.......... and the same necklace as the 3rd place all female team that finished 4+hrs later.

Trieatalot: i get your humor......NOBODY ELSE does. (it's ok)

Bmcmaster: i got other things in life lined up to complain about if this awards complaining gig falls through.

Tri-Banter: thanks for your support

LazyEp: i agree, second is the first looser! but when the 1st place team gets the same shaft, that pisses me off. i would have been happier if the first place team got $500 and we got NOTHING.

G-man: i pay damn good money to attend the races that are put on. i am starting to attend less as a result of my dis-satisfaction. i will be setting up my own 'grass-roots' type races (cliche` i know)

FJB: you keep studying for the test you never take and i'll keep training for the race i never do. and dude, enough with the username crappy attempts at defining me in this faceless internet world. i'm not hiding, you can googlebash me all you want.

Trispoke: i'm not asking for individual 'Gifts'. go back and re-read the OP. i am asking for AWARDS for the TOP finishers. You know the people you see standing on that funny box in front of the crowd at the end of the race?


can't you guys do this banter during working hours? i was too busy training for my next charitable donation to check my emails last night.





i'm NOT a twin..... my kids are.

i do 'events' that are labeled as 'races'. i don't do charity rides nor would i expect to receive an 'award' if i did.

i pay for a RACE i always complete and compete in the RACE i shouldn't have to put one on (but i will) myself in order to have it done right. there has to be some race directors that get it out there?

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Tim

Food seems to be a popular award in New Hampshire and Vermont and I prefer it over a trophy/medal. I've won big hunks of cheese, apple pie, spice breads and maple syrup. Those are the prizes my kids still talk about.

my kids loved the syrup from Mooseman. the medal..... not so much.

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Tim

So doesn't that mean they are the winner of all the losers? There should be 2 golds then.... ;)

Or do what Plushenko did after winning silver at the Olympics in figure skating last year... make your own "platinum" medal and declare yourself its winner.

Can't say I have ever entered a race as a means of supplementing my income or to win a prize above the knoweledge that I won, however I have had great experiences over the last year at races where I was the OA winner. Here's the best stuff I have won:
2010 Las Palomas Olympic Triathlon- I won a 2 foot tall super magnum bottle of tequila. It's awesome and still mostly full.
2010 DeuceMan Half Iron- I won a $350 gift card to TriSports, bought a Kurt Kinectic trainer.
2010 McDowell Mountain Frenzy 15K trail run- I won a plastic trophy handed to me as I crossed the line.
2011 Sonoran Challenge 15K trail race- I won a gift card to a local runing store worth $75.
2011 Mountain to Fountain 15K- This was the great. I was part of a Masters Team of 8 guys. Everyone runs the race, top 4 times count. Winner get's their heaviest team members weight in beer. Went home with 2 cases of Kiltlifter Ale. :)

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-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
Team ZOOT
ZOOT, QR, Garmin, HED Wheels, Zealios, FormSwim, Precision Hydration, Rudy Project

i'm not kidding myself into thinking there is even a chance in hell to supplementing my income.

but those awards you won all sound pretty cool to me!

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Tim

Hey we all race for different reasons so if swag is your M.O. then there is nothing wrong with that, just make sure you inspect what kinds of toys you might be in for b/f plunking down your entry fee maybe?

If there were any zero swag races I'm certain it would be equal to me doing a solo training ride.....camaraderie and stocked aid stations are enough to get me to the starting line:/

I always wished they would drop the entry fees by 50%. If it aint money, I don't need more sh!t in my house.

I am working on a open tri and cat 4/5 TT series in southern delaware and our number one goal is having an affordable race. 3 triathlons $100 and 3 TT's $50. tris would be sprint-oly-olyplus, TT's would be 10k, 20k and a 30k. 150 entrant cap off (reserve 50 womans slots). application only to get in. top times are in first. no prizes. no crap bags. no t-sh!ts. BYOB and BYOF and BYO webber grill.

My advice, is to check the prizes before you enter.

noted.

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Tim

Just curious...how many folks in this pity party are race directors?

As someone that wins races and directs them, I have my own thoughts...but I am holding back just now...

You (particular winner of said event) are ultimately unimportant to the RD. The winner is merely the one that crosses the line first. Regardless of whether you show up or not, there will always be a winner - as long as there are enough participants to cover the costs of the race.

The participants are the important ones.

The volunteers are even more important.

You (said whining winner) make up a total of one person - you do not make up a race.

RD's go through far more effort than you can comprehend to organize events.

If your RD looks after the mass of participants, and the mass of volunteers, perhaps - if you are lucky - they will chose to do all that work again next year so that once more you have the opportunity to enter that race next year too.

Still whining?

Then go start your own race and find out just how much work it is. Better yet, volunteer to help out with this one. I'm sure the RD would welcome the assistance.

Perhaps all the money you raise can go towards prizes for the winners of this race next year - happy now?

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http://www.whydoesgodhateamputees.com/

99+% of the people don't give a rats ass if you get a prize or not and I'm one of them. I'd much rather see a charity get a few more dollars or reduced entry fee for everyone else. If the 5 or so people who have a chance to actually win don't show then *shrug*. Guess you just need to look at what motivates you and why or running/racing in the first place.

FTR, I direct 2-4 running races a year and ALWAYS make sure the awards are something of value. Overall awards are typically a pair of shoes, AG are a $20 gift certificate to my running store. Doesn't matter if there are 50 or 500 people, there is no excuse for crappy awards.

For other races, the one thing that drives me nuts is having to pay money to have your award shipped after the fact. Race this paced weekend and got an AG award. Yippie. I paid $100 to enter and now have to pay a couple bucks more to get the award? No, $5 isn't a big deal, but damn.

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speedySTATES

I've won age groups dozens of times and got OA podium several times and the only thing approaching something of value was a couple trophies at the larger races and a block of cheese at a 1/2 marathon in vermont. I don't expect 25$+ value awards at anything short of major races. I'm not racing for an award or money, I'm racing to beat people and to see how fast I go. If I needed amazing awards to feel justified racing, I'd just run by myself like some bitter hermit.

with out that "said whining winner" it is not a RACE it is a charity event!

if it is a charity event i wouldn't have gone to it in the first place.

i train to race against people that want to win. i don't train for charity events.



why do you feel the need to get a 'race' from your charitable donation? why not just make the donation and watch the 'event'?

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Tim

2009 Black Fly Tri: three races over the weekend, got three bottles of custom-engraved maple syrup for 1st in AG
2010 ClamMan Triathlon: 1st in AG got me a clam on a ribbon, with a sticker on the clam indicating placing
2008 Riverwinds Tri: 1st overall got me a $50 gift certificate to a shop that wasn't local to me, and a plaque
2009 Riverwinds Tri: 1st overall got me a $30 gift certificate to the same shop, and a plaque
2010 Riverwinds Tri: didn't go :-)

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"Go yell at an M&M"

You should be embarrassed. That thing should be gone by now..

that was a classice response!!!!

Attention ALL RACE Directors: I race for BEER!

1st-20th place in all triathlons should be a 1 gallon groller of beer from a local brewer. I bet you will see a cat fight then...

The Relay is a fundraiser for Organs R Us, a charity that raises funds to promote organ donation. I'm sorry if my prior response was a bit harsh, but claiming the Relay is a "race" is a little weak. I highly doubt Team Google, Team Facebook, or even Team Nike go into it thinking about winning prize money. They are there to raise money and earn bragging rights. ORU puts on a relay run similar to Hodd 2 Coast albeit with far fewer teams, but still has to plan and pay for the logistics of a 195 mile event with 36 transition areas with support, porta potties, medical, and police services. That ain't cheap. They do a great job to see that 200 teams of 12 people each driving 400 vans across the Bay Area for 18-34 hours arrive safely in Santa Cruz. All that and they raise thousands of dollars towards a very worthy cause. Now you want them to give you some trophy to stick on your mantle or some cash you can go spend on booze and hookers? OK, next year, let's ask them for cash prizes and then we will just tell little Sally, forget about that kidney sister, Twinracer needs his prize money.