Race medals - what do you do with them?

Personally, I put more value on the race numbers, as having been along with you for the journey, they evoke more memories. They also make handy bookmarks for marking specific sections in my running books. The medals are all stuffed away at the back of the wardrobe, hopefully to be unearthed at some stage in the future, when they might actually mean something. I have a small collection of podium, county and team medals, but I don't feel any of them were won in particularly competitive situations (lets face it, if I'm winning medals, all the fast guys stayed home!), so they're stuffed in the back of the wardrobe too.

I do have a fridge magnet (that I got from NY marathon) that gets updated with my marathon time. Serves as a constant reminder of the work to be done to get where I want to be. It taunts me, every time I reach for a beer.

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

It taunts me, every time I reach for a beer.

Perfect justification for a beer fridge, with no magnets!

Oisin11178 wrote: »

Wasn't aimed at you :-)

s' ok, you can be honest

I've actually change my mind in the intervening years anyway. If someone sees a 10k or a half-marathon as the pinnacle of their achievement and want a medal for it to remember it, who am I to say that those races shouldn't give out medals.

Me, I don't even treasure my marathon or ultra medals any more. Once you have a certain number of them they all just become "yet one more".

The same happened with race t-shirts. Initially I loved getting them but my drawer started to overflow soon enough; these days I usually say no thank you. The medals I still keep, but they just keep piling up in a by now much-too-small shelf, and I never ever look at them.

The kids still like them, though.

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

s' ok, you can be honest

I've actually change my mind in the intervening years anyway. If someone sees a 10k or a half-marathon as the pinnacle of their achievement and want a medal for it to remember it, who am I to say that those races shouldn't give out medals.

Me, I don't even treasure my marathon or ultra medals any more. Once you have a certain number of them they all just become "yet one more".

The same happened with race t-shirts. Initially I loved getting them but my drawer started to overflow soon enough; these days I usually say no thank you. The medals I still keep, but they just keep piling up in a by now much-too-small shelf, and I never ever look at them.

The kids still like them, though.

It really wasn't aimed at you mainly because your post was years old. When I look back at my posts from a few years ago I cringe. I used to love medals, tech tops etc.. Now what I remember is the experience of the event. That's why I branched into the long off road ultras as you are guaranteed excellent experiences. To each their own weather it be 5k or 100 miles.

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Back when I did the longer stuff I used to love getting the medals if I'm being honest. Medals really should be for 1st , 2nd and 3rd only but as they were giving them out for finishing I was only too happy to have one. I was delighted to wear my medal out to the pub in Rotterdam, on top of the world after my blistering 4:07.

With what I'm doing now I don't see myself with any medals anymore, unless I hang on until I am 30 and enter the M30 masters competitions. 30 year olds being allowed to run masters is a joke. There are no weaker medals around than those. Any half decent 30+ runner is still running senior level. But again, targeting weak medals doesn't sit well with me.

Jaysus your using a big stick to stir it up, LOL

Yes M30 is to young to be masters, so thats why i suppose they made it +M35:D,

Best of luck picking up them soft medals as well,

Bearing in mind i dont know what your best distance is. Of the top of my head, you might need to run around the following,

800m sub 2,00 to 2,05
1500m sub 4,15
3k, sub 9,00
5k sub 15,30
10k sub 33,00
HM sub 70,00
MAR sub 2,30 (this is if bazman does not turn up):D,

Of course it is different every year so you never know your look.

Ps all times are roughly done of the top of my head, but im sure someone will be on to correct me soon:D

They hang from my bed post. Omagh Half, Belfast Marathon, and London-Brighton Cycle.

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Check out these results and try argue they are not soft:

http://www.vicmastersaths.org.au/results_vma_champs/2012_VMA_Championships_Results.htm

Simply by showing up (assuming I was 3 years older) I would be State 400m Champion M30-34 as there wasn't a single person in that age group who ran the 400. By simply showing up I would have been a silver medallist in the 100 and 800. Now do you agree these medals are super soft? Lets be honest why would somebody run M30-34 when they can be competitive at Open level. Sure Michael Johnson won Olympic gold at 30, Kelly Holmes at 34.

Sorry for going off topic.

Sorry didnt know you were on the other side of the world.
Yes i would agree they are soft,
I suppose its hard to know what to do if you organize these events, be it over there or here,
They promote these championships every year and its up to the athletes to compete or not, its hard to say to the ones that turn up.
1 Sorry the standard is not high enough,
2 Sorry there is not enough in the race.

I was at a Championship race underage, think it was u/17, only one athlete turned up, and ended up running think 5k on his own, but what is the right thing to do ?.

On other occasions only 5/6 turned up but was a good standard just small numbers,

Personally its more the way i preformed than the medal. if i have finished a races in 4th place with no medal but knowing i could give no more i would be happier than as you said picking up an easy medal

Pisco Sour wrote: »

100% agreed. It's the performances and memories which stay with you. Not soft medals. If the medal comes with the great performance then all the better, but at my level that will never be happening.

Never give up hope dude, I didn't start running until I was 25/26, and didn't have much talent either but I did work hard, and was lucky, which always helps,
I gone past getting pbs now I'm afraid but i still have hope.