Participant: insulated mug(for beer), Tyr volley shorts with logo, socks with logo, Saeco sleeveless bike tri jersey(IM Austria)
Finishers: Insulated mug(for beer), glass mug(for beer), large coffe mug(for beer)
For placing:Tyr transition bag, Tyr team bag, sweatshirt, QR sleevless bike jersey for 2nd 1st was a aquaman full wetsuit to every age group winner
this is the ones I can remember as the best
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In grade school I races BMX … you ever see the size of those trophies?
Being in 3rd grade and having a trophy that was over half as tall as you were was pretty cool.
As weird as it sounds I’d rather have medals than cash.
I won that at a crosscountry race. Except I ran a mile to the race as a warm up and had to carry that big sucker home. Sure was good though.
Other nice things were a new shoes coupon. Gift cards from bike shops, ten pounds of sausage, case of beer, cash.
A Diamond ring, and the tournament (this is martial arts) ended up taking the name “Diamond Nationals” and became a “must have.” If you were any good, you were there to compete for the ring.
When in South Africa, I did what was then the South Africa Ironman. Not a WTC race. The race bag was a duffel bag that I still have and use.
The finisher’s shirts were polo style shirts. Different than the regular t-shirt that you usually get and wearable to more than swim practice.
South Bay Triathlon in California that’s put on by J&A always gives sweatshirts for the top finishers. Those sweatshirts are like gold to anyone who has one.
Craig
Easy on the t shirts!!!I use t shirts to work out in at the gym during the winters months.by the time spring rolls around I have worn out my shirt collection and am ready for a new season of shirts.Back to the question :any athletic product (gel ,e-bars, hats ,belts,gear bags)Shirts, medals, and trophies are fine oncein a while.
South Bay Triathlon in California that’s put on by J&A always gives sweatshirts for the top finishers. Those sweatshirts are like gold to anyone who has one.<<
The one I have from SJIT in 2002 is a black, long-sleeved SportHill polyester top, with “Interwoven S.J.I.T. Age Group Division Winner 2002” embrodiered on it. Yes, like gold.
August 14, 1994 Wilkes_Barre ITU triathlon (last of the non- drafting ones) they gave shorts instead of shirts and at the finish line we got really nice navy blue coffee mugs with gold race emblems. Tres cool.
I still drink out of it every day at the office. Takes my alleged mind off work for a few minutes each day.
TriDork
As for trophies? Never won one for tri, but in my skiing days, I always like big mother trophies like I won a Kung Fu event! (I didn’t win often so I liked 'em big!)
Tom, the best race award that I have ever got, is my health after crossing the finish line, and a hug from my wife and son. You can’t beat that. Trinkets come and go, memories last a lifetime. For me, the awards are highly intrinsic. I have tons of medals and plaques piled in some closet in the basement, but over 20 years, I can remember what each finish line looked like in over 200 tris, marathons and ski races !
I’m with you on that paul. Unfortunately, we can’t find a place to buy that for everyone!
I have a few favorites:
Mark Allen placing the finishers’ medal around me neck at last year’s Ironman Austria. The placement was so cool…the medal wasn’t bad either.
Early Escape from Alcatraz awards: First one was this hand made wooden stepd (two chunks of wood)representing the Double Dipsea (the old 14+ mile cross country run segment); with a sea shell screwed onto it (representing the Alcatraz beach from where we actually stood and waited for those early races to start) and a medal bar (a round piece of aluminum) representing the GG Bridge towers.
Ironman Canada 2002 finisher’s medal - my P.R. race. Still love it!
Alan
The 1987 Long Beach Marathon gave me a keychain with the logo and “First Marathon” on it. It’s still in my pocket, 17 years later.
I got one of the 2001 Columbus Marathon bags too. I passed it on to my wife when I got a different bag. She was quite disappointed when they didn’t have them in 2002 so I bought myself an IMFL bag a month later and made her happy.
I much prefer the races that have door prizes available to everyone than just placing prizes. My wife got a Softride Qualifier TT frame last year and I have received a Fuel Belt, bike light, and gels.
As far as giveaways I have nothing against shirts as long as there has been some thought put into the design. If it is something I could never wear except to the same race a couple years down the road I’d prefer you just skip it. However, long sleeved ugly shirts and ugly sweatshirts have more use for me than ugly t-shirts.
I won a Yakima roof rack in a drawing for series participants in the Mile-High duathlon series. Pretty appropriate considering all the driving I had to do.
Very fond of the mounted alligator head received for placing in a race here in Louisiana. Certainly stands out from those medals and certificates.
The chairs that Steelcase gave out at the Steelcase Grand Duathlon were pretty cool.
Personally, the only thing I’ve won/earned was a mechanical pencil.
But talking with several high school students (including my daughter), this is a sore subject. It is not unusual for a high schooler to place overall in a local road race, but then have to turn down any prize or money. It has to do with NCAA eligibility. I have even seen races where the age group winners get money, including the 14-18 age group. These kids can’t take those prizes. So all you Race Directors out there, keep giving the medals and trophies (especially to the kids) in addition to the prizes. The trophies and medals are only items that the kids can win.
3 Disciplines gives out free lifetime entry to the overall winner of every event, and free lifetime entry to all of the series events to the overall, male and female, series winner. I figure that will save me a little chunk of change this year.
I’ve always felt that the best finisher’s medal refelcts the uniqueness of the race, be it the geograpy or the community, or the race itself.(For example the winner of Paris-Roubaix gets a mounted cobbestone)
For me the most memorable madallions were the ones they used to give out at the Lake Macatawa Tri in Holland MI. One year they gave everyone little wooden shoes. Another year they gave us a bell shaped like a windmill (My mom thought that was the cat’s meow and made it into an xmas ornament).
Like I said, it should be something that refelcts something unique about the race itself. Something so that you can look at it from a distance and clearly recollect that race.
My $0.035 (CAN)
Not sure if this is answer to your query, but the $1,000 cheque that I received for finishing 10th at IMC one year was pretty nice!
I received a couple of bottles of wine in customized wine boxs when I finished fourth at the Vineman in addition to some cash. I thought that the wine and the nice looking wooden boxs were a nice touch - perfect for THAT race. I also have a few custom hand made coffee mugs from a race that I regularly did well at.
For me that’s what I look for and appreciate - a small amount of cash or merchandize is nice, something that is custom and unique to the race or the area is even better.