"Bling"

menoscemo

What is it about grown adults who seem to have an obsession with accumulating finishers medals and displaying them? I am seeing an ever increasing number of posts on social media like this (and it is doing my head in):



I remember as a child being delighted with medals I got, but they were generally for winning something and not just finishing.

While I can understand that keeping a medal for a first marathon or because you want to give them to your kids, I just can't get my head around the increasing number of adults who demand a medal for just finishing a race of any distance in order to display it in a 'wall of achievement'.

I'd hate to think that race entry fees are being upped in order to appease the needs of these kinds of people. I generally just give my finishers medals to the nearest child who looks like they might like it.

Does anyone else agree or am I just a grumpy old bollox?

Hemerodrome

Sure what harm? I don't keep mine, they go to people who helped me, but more power to anyone who keeps theirs for whatever reason they like. The medal is as pointless or meaningful as their race was and it's their medal to do what they like with. If you don't like the photos, just keep scrolling.

RacoonQueen

You're a grumpy old bollox.

You did ask!

Bob_the_dog

Grumpy sod

KielyUnusual

They do hand out some awful tacky looking yokes for some races. Jaysus.

None worse than the one I got for the Edinburgh Marathon in 2012



Personally, I've got my medal from the U12 North Tipperary 'A' Football final in me little box of memories and the bronze team medal from the National Intermediate XC hanging on my lamp. Unfortunately I do not have a facebook account in order to rub this in other people's faces:)

Ruu

Eh, whatever keeps you happy, healthy and still running then go for it.

Wild Garlic

menoscemo wrote: »

What is it about grown adults who seem to have an obsession with accumulating finishers medals and displaying them? I am seeing an ever increasing number of posts on social media like this (and it is doing my head in):



I remember as a child being delighted with medals I got, but they were generally for winning something and not just finishing.

While I can understand that keeping a medal for a first marathon or because you want to give them to your kids, I just can't get my head around the increasing number of adults who demand a medal for just finishing a race of any distance in order to display it in a 'wall of achievement'.

I'd hate to think that race entry fees are being upped in order to appease the needs of these kinds of people. I generally just give my finishers medals to the nearest child who looks like they might like it.

Does anyone else agree or am I just a grumpy old bollox?

That's a lot of Disney races

kit3

Just in case you missed the other replies, you are a grumpy bollix I agree with you about the bling though - I have loads of medals I won for dancing as a kid but only a handful of them mean something to me (provincial/national ones). As an adult I'm almost embarrassed to be given a medal for simply completing a race - the kids like them though

menoscemo

Ruu wrote: »

Eh, whatever keeps you happy, healthy and still running then go for it.

That's fair enough but I know of people who would rather pay €50 for a race with 'nice bling' over a much better race which has no medal and only costs €20. (rock and roll I am looking at you!!)

Seriously this can't be normal adult behaviour can it?

ThisRegard

menoscemo wrote: »

just a grumpy old bollox?

This bit. And you're also getting annoyed by pictures you see in Facebook, presumably from "friends" of yours.

menoscemo

ThisRegard wrote: »

This bit. And you're also getting annoyed by pictures you see in Facebook, presumably from "friends" of yours.

Nah, I'm in a few 'running groups' for the laugh and this kind of post is pretty much all I see. Pretty depressing to think that this is how grown adults think tbh.
Dublin Marathon FB page posted a picture of the finishing medal about a week before the race and one guy complained that he didn't like to see the race 'bling' until it was put around his neck. I'd understand if he was 18 but by his profile pic he looked to be over 50. Sometimes I despair

ThisRegard

It's not my thing but I wouldn't be bothered by others doing it. The only finishers prizes that I know where they are are the mugs from the Wicklow Way races, and perhaps 1 Gaelforce medal.

RacoonQueen

Medals aren't my thing, I'm not bothered by them. Mine are all shoved in a box somewhere, don't even know where my Ironman one is. There are three medals I have that I care about, my basketball league runners up (:() medal from when I was 13 and my Dublin champs team gold and my Leinster champs team bronze ones. Though they're all stuffed in the same box as the rest.

If I could pay less for races to not receive a medal, I'd choose that option. But they're fairly cheap to make in large numbers.

chinguetti

If you don't like the running groups that you follow on FB that show these photos, unfollow them as you sound like someone who's just on those sites waiting to get offended and then complain about it.

This is how Liveline callers start their careers so watch yourself!

pconn062

The only medals worth keeping (IMO) are ones from County/National championships ie, races where not everyone who shows up gets a medal. Those medals are earned, unlike races where every finisher gets a medal. I have no real issues with finisher medals, they are nice momentos for marathons I'm sure but just my thing. I prefer practical things like bananas and mars bars!

menoscemo

RacoonQueen wrote: »

If I could pay less for races to not receive a medal, I'd choose that option. But they're fairly cheap to make in large numbers.

True, but it seems to me that some races can charge double the normal rate and still fill up if they have a nice medal!!

tipping

Not one for medals.
Ballycotton 10 mugs I like though, they make a nice cup of tea and they don't imply winning anything

tunguska

chinguetti wrote: »

If you don't like the running groups that you follow on FB that show these photos, unfollow them as you sound like someone who's just on those sites waiting to get offended and then complain about it.

This is how Liveline callers start their careers so watch yourself!

That's a lazy answer though, to say just don't look. It's everywhere on social media, to say just don't look is avoiding the issue. And the issue is pretty depressing with adults seeking validation on social media from people they mostly don't even know. Sonny Bill Williams did something pretty amazing last week when he gave his winners medal to that kid. It's like he understood what's important and what's not. Playing in the world cup final was important, the material thing he was given after, was not, so he gave it away. Mourinho did the same thing several times. If you run a race, enjoy it while you're doing so, but then it's over. To accumulate medals so you can seek validation on social media.........that's not a healthy thing.

pconn062

KielyUnusual wrote: »

They do hand out some awful tacky looking yokes for some races. Jaysus.

None worse than the one I got for the Edinburgh Marathon in 2012

Your lady friend might appreciate that one!

menoscemo

chinguetti wrote: »

If you don't like the running groups that you follow on FB that show these photos, unfollow them as you sound like someone who's just on those sites waiting to get offended and then complain about it.

This is how Liveline callers start their careers so watch yourself!

There was a certain poster on here a few years ago who spoke of 'medal collectors' and 'water cooler boasters'. I always used to challenge him saying these people were a figment of his imagination and if they existed were very much in a minority.
I honestly never realised until recently that he was in fact right that the majority of 'runners' are like this, preferring to boast about everything they do rather than just getting on with it.
It's not about unfollowing groups or friends rather than despairing about the mentality of adults seeking praise for nothing.
I'd rather follow some groups because occasionally someone is asking a genuine training question and I can help.

sideswipe

pconn062 wrote: »

Your lady friend might appreciate that one!

Alls pure to a pure mind...I see a key shape. Wash your mind out with soap:P

chinguetti

tunguska wrote: »

That's a lazy answer though, to say just don't look. It's everywhere on social media, to say just don't look is avoiding the issue. /QUOTE]

Fair point, it maybe a lazy answer but I'm on social media in a number of forms and I don't follow any of those sites by choice. Do I know it goes on? Yes but I've decided to ignore it and yes, some of it is overkill.

If people want to display their medals, fine by me. I've kept all the medals, trophies or mugs I've ever won or got for participation in any sport throughout my life. At present they're in a box but if I displayed them, it would be for me and not the world of social media.

I doesn't matters to me if I got a medal or not for doing an event but I think those medals hangers look like a nice thing to me though.

martyboy48

Bling... I'm not to bothered about them either way but wouldn't like the fact you get one be an excuse to charge over the odds for a race.
I'd prefer if they were smaller though, and a bit more thought put into them, not just a big metal plate with whatever event punched into it ect....

Preference would be choice when entering, maybe an add-on if you want one. Or even choice of medal or donation to charity ect...

Couple of months ago a girl in work who recently started running befriended me and we chatted generally about running... I gave her encouragement and small bits of advice, that kind of thing... One day at the water cooler, the subject of medals came up. She proceeded to tell me how much she loves medals(fair enough) but whem I said how I'm not to pushed about them, wait for it, she asked me for my medals :eek::eek: It was one of those moments where I was genuinely speechless.... I actually just walked off, and thankfully, the subject never came up again

rom

martyboy48 wrote: »

Bling... I'm not to bothered about them either way but wouldn't like the fact you get one be an excuse to charge over the odds for a race.
I'd prefer if they were smaller though, and a bit more thought put into them, not just a big metal plate with whatever event punched into it ect....

Preference would be choice when entering, maybe an add-on if you want one. Or even choice of medal or donation to charity ect...

Couple of months ago a girl in work who recently started running befriended me and we chatted generally about running... I gave her encouragement and small bits of advice, that kind of thing... One day at the water cooler, the subject of medals came up. She proceeded to tell me how much she loves medals(fair enough) but whem I said how I'm not to pushed about them, wait for it, she asked me for my medals :eek::eek: It was one of those moments where I was genuinely speechless.... I actually just walked off, and thankfully, the subject never came up again

So let me get this straight you were at the water cooler telling someone that you had so many medals you didn't care about them.

menoscemo

martyboy48 wrote: »

She proceeded to tell me how much she loves medals(fair enough) but whem I said how I'm not to pushed about them, wait for it, she asked me for my medals :eek::eek: It was one of those moments where I was genuinely speechless.... I actually just walked off, and thankfully, the subject never came up again

There's a market in it apparently. I Have one of these, wanna buy it for $250?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Boston-Marathon-2014-Finishers-Medal-w-Ribbon-Make-An-Offer-/262054963588?hash=item3d03b16984%3Ag%3Av3MAAOSwiLdV~GJx

martyboy48

rom wrote: »

So let me get this straight you were at the water cooler telling someone that you had so many medals you didn't care about them.

You make it sound so "look at me" :D

More like...... casual talk about running again>subject of medals>She loves them>I'm not to pushed about them>give me your medals>brief awkward silence>I leave, stunned :D

I'd have fook all medals compared to the rest of ye, and the only use they get is the nieces/nephews hanging them off the dogs neck :D

martyboy48

menoscemo wrote: »

There's a market in it apparently. I Have one of these, wanna buy it for $250?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Boston-Marathon-2014-Finishers-Medal-w-Ribbon-Make-An-Offer-/262054963588?hash=item3d03b16984%3Ag%3Av3MAAOSwiLdV~GJx

"Items come from a smoke free home"..... deal maker

Wonder how much I'd get for the local GAA 5k medal I "won" a while back.... Hmmmm, I'm off to adverts

Clearlier

I know someone who runs London every year and sells his finishers medal straight afterwards on ebay. He gets about £70 for it which more or less covers his entry fee and train journey.

davedanon

The Great Ireland run medal comes wrapped in plastic, so I don't even unwrap it, just fire it straight into a drawer. Four 'proper' medals hanging on mug hooks on the dresser plus the one from the latest marathon.

rom

Now this is a nice one.

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Athens-1896-Olympic-participation-medal-excellent-condition-with-original-Box-/151871964983?hash=item235c464737:g:NhEAAOSwAYtWJ-~o

RacoonQueen

I've tried to give medals away to my nephews. They didn't want them...

6781

I always keep my race numbers/bibs bit nerdy I know...

sideswipe

I prefer to keep bib numbers to be honest. They have been on the journey with me and often contain blood, sweat and tears.

We are only in the haypenny place in Ireland when it comes to Bling- I did two races in Florida earlier this year and the medals were unreal, they weighed half a Kg each and contained no small amount of engineering.
There was as much chatter on Facebook about the medals as there was about the actual race!

As least we haven't quite gone down the road of "virtual running", yet

http://www.willrunforbling.com/

ThisRegard

tipping wrote: »

Not one for medals.
Ballycotton 10 mugs I like though, they make a nice cup of tea and they don't imply winning anything

Not my pic, but I'm missing last years from my collection due to a clash with something else at the time. Something like mugs are practical and a nice reminder of the day.

lway

Spotted here in Cork someone who ran DCM in over 5 hours and was photographed registering at a 4mile run at the beginning of November wearing his DCM T-shirt and medal

hillsiderunner

ThisRegard wrote: »

It's not my thing but I wouldn't be bothered by others doing it. The only finishers prizes that I know where they are are the mugs from the Wicklow Way races, and perhaps 1 Gaelforce medal.

tipping wrote: »

Not one for medals.
Ballycotton 10 mugs I like though, they make a nice cup of tea and they don't imply winning anything

Very nice. But I bet you wish you had a mug with two strawberries running a half-marathon on the front :rolleyes:...

I temporarily mislaid it at the office a couple of weeks ago and was poised to send out a blanket email to the whole building (after years of rolling my eyes at people hunting down their lost mugs ...)

Murph_D

I don't mind the medals as a memento although it's ridiculous to give them out for 5k fun runs. Waterford HM had a medal last year which I wasn't expecting - totally unnecessary too (although I'm sure your man who didn't get his blaa appreciated it). :pac:

Mine are on a nail in a corner that no one ever goes into. A clubmate used his as Christmas tree ornaments last year which looked pretty cool (a bit ostentatious maybe, but different).

The Mrs refused to even look at hers after DCM last year but was prouder of this year's. The only medals I've ever really treasured are my Home Farm mini league champions medal when I was about 10 and a bronze I won in a sprint race in the P Park when I was 14 or 15 (no idea what the competition was as they didn't bother with any kind of inscription).

Duanington

I think a lot of newer runners tend to be taken by the novelty of getting medals for running, which is understandable I think. Maybe its some small form of proof that they can indeed finish races, or perhaps its validation in some form ( as others have mentioned) - I'd say for lots of people, the novelty wears off pretty quickly though.

Each to their own I suppose, if someone wants to display medals - fair play to them.

What I do come across quite a bit is people refusing to sign up to certain races because there is no bling - that I just do not get

sideswipe

I remember getting a medal for the Moone Kilomarathon and giving it to a random kid after the finishing chute..... and this was way before some All Black made it cool and trendy.
Mind you the kids mother had a bit of a face on her- not sure if it was for breaking the 'Don't take things from strangers rule' or because the kids old fella would be pissed to rock up with a new medal only to find his young lad already had one!

menoscemo

Duanington wrote: »

What I do come across quite a bit is people refusing to sign up to certain races because there is no bling - that I just do not get

I saw someone comment that they refuse to do their local parkrun because there is no bling :eek:

rom

You get people in lots of places going to work the next day wearing their medal. This does really annoy me.

Murph_D

sideswipe wrote: »

I remember getting a medal for the Moone Kilomarathon and giving it to a random kid after the finishing chute..... and this was way before some All Black made it cool and trendy.

I believe meno was giving his to barmen in McGrattans before it was cool too!

My mother recently gave me my dad's London and Paris medals from the 80s. I find them nice to have, to connect my running back to his, as we never ran together, so I'm glad he kept them. (Doubt if my kids will ever want mine though.)

menoscemo

lway wrote: »

Spotted here in Cork someone who ran DCM in over 5 hours and was photographed registering at a 4mile run at the beginning of November wearing his DCM T-shirt and medal

That's kind of like a runners version of a full kit wanker :pac:

Enduro

I never won any medals as a kid and I reckon as a result of that I kinda like getting them as an adult. But that's more about prizewinning medals/trophies rather than finisher medals. I'd rather have a trophy than cash/gear as a prize. Plenty of others have exactly the opposite view. You definitely can't please everyone

There are a few finisher medals I do like to have, but that tends to be for races that are huge in scale and have a massive drop-out rate, where finishing the race is an achievement in itself (The spine or the TDG being good running race examples).

It's all relative in the end. Some people put in a huge effort to transform their lifestyle and get themselves to the point where they can participate in and finish a particular race (the marathon etc). If their finisher medal is a calidation or reward for this for them then that's all good!

I can't believe there is a market for finisher medals though... What the hell is the mindset that buys a medals that you didn't earn. Very walter mitty.

RacoonQueen

Deleted User wrote: »

As least we haven't quite gone down the road of "virtual running", yet

http://www.willrunforbling.com/

https://www.facebook.com/runrewardsireland/

ThisRegard

RacoonQueen wrote: »

https://www.facebook.com/runrewardsireland/

What is that? You sign up and commit to run some distance and they send you a medal? How does the charity element come into it?

edit: €14 to enter, they say they make a contribution to a charity a month.

menoscemo

RacoonQueen wrote: »

https://www.facebook.com/runrewardsireland/

:eek::eek::eek:

rovers_runner

Deleted User wrote: »

As least we haven't quite gone down the road of "virtual running", yet

http://www.willrunforbling.com/

It gets better once you hit the FAQs:

http://www.willrunforbling.com/faq/

Do I have to complete the distance all at one time or can I break it up into different days?

No you are not required to run your distance all at one time. Feel free to break it up into several runs if you need to.

What is Round 1 and Round 2? What is the difference? How can I tell which Round I am registered for?

Our medals are custom made high quality medals and often take 6 – 8 weeks to produce. We typically order the medals in advance so that they arrive to us close to the race date and we can ship them out to you. On limited occasions, a race is more popular than we expected and it will sell out. Based on popular demand we may open up another Round of registrations typically called Round 2. The Round 2 runners will participate in the event during the same dates, but will agree to receive their medal during a later time frame due to the popular demand of the race. We do not always open a Round 2 for every race, so it is best to register early to ensure that you will get your bling in a timely manner. (Also known as the snail mail from our factories in China effect)


Can I Have a Tax Receipt?
Unfortunately, no. Funds from the races are submitted as one lump sum instead of separate individual donations. The amount donated each month will vary depending on how many have registered. (No, since we don't pay tax in the US and our main dealings are with slave labour factories)

RacoonQueen

ThisRegard wrote: »

What is that? You sign up and commit to run some distance and they send you a medal? How does the charity element come into it?

edit: €14 to enter, they say they make a contribution to a charity a month.

I was looking at the facebook page a few weeks ago and someone asked how much they gave to charity and they refused to specify pretty much.

edit: here is their response

"Hi Aine, a % of entries will be donated to our chosen charity - Headstrong.ie . The actual % will depend on the number of entries received when race closes."

They've ignored the follow up comment.

aquinn

For me it's about the t shirt and not the medal, yet up until recently I still felt like a pleb wearing a new race top so would wait months until I wore it. I much prefer keeping the bibs and writing down a few notes about the race. The weather is always mentioned as I only seem to race in the heat. These I prefer over a medal. I was horrified last year at one of the races wanted the bib back if you wanted soup at the end, obviously I didn't enter.