2014 Medal Recap!

   Unfortunately, this is going to be a pretty short post compared to past year's medal recaps. Due to training for IMCHOO, I didn't race that much this season and I especially didn't race longer distances (which are the ones that generally give out medals). However, I did sneak a few races in, so let's get to it.
   My first medal of the year was for the Little Rock Half Marathon in March.

   I know you can't tell from the photo, but this medal is huge. It's probably 4 inches in diameter - about the size of a saucer. Giant medals are what the Little Rock race is known for, and they don't disappoint. The full marathon's medal was about the size of a dinner plate. Seriously. It was ridiculous, but totally what I'd want after running a marathon.

   I liked this medal. Good quality, pretty heavy, and you can see (from the small bit that I have shown) that the ribbon carries the color scheme throughout. If I were going to choose a race strictly on the quality of the medal - this would be the race. (Race recap here.)

Cherry Blossom 10-Miler:

   This medal was unique in that it was optional.You had to pay more at registration if you wanted a medal. Since I'm from DC and this race has been on my bucket list for a while, I splurged the extra $$ and got the medal. I guess a lot of people don't read their registrations very well because I had about 10 people come up to me after the race and asked where I got my medal. Their loss because it's pretty nice. I could do without the outlines of the runners on the right hand side, but I like it otherwise. (Race recap here:)

REV3 Olympic Triathlon:

   

   This was my first, and sadly only, REV3 race as the company was purchased last year by Challenge Triathlon. Top notch race experience in all respects, including the medal. Big, colorful, matching ribbon - what else could you want in a medal, right? But wait - there's more!

   I also happened to place 2nd in my age group. So, along with some really cool prizes, I got the above medal. You can't really see it, but it's engraved with "2nd Place."   

   If you put them together, you get this crazy, super medal!  It's awesome. Nice job REV3. (Race recap here.)

Hatfield McCoy Half Marathon:

   This race was amazing. If you haven't done it, you really need to. It's a quirky little race on the border of Kentucky and West Virginia. The medal fits with the theme, but I didn't really like how the ribbon was kind of camo colors, and everything else was red, white and blue. No big deal, but I would have liked them to match.

   Everyone at Hatfield McCoy also got a mason jar. If you placed, you got a sticker on top of your jar. 

   Unfortunately, the label maker wasn't really working that day, so my sticker is a little rough, but it's the only time I've placed in a half-marathon so I love it. (Race recap here.)

Chattanooga Waterfont Olympic Triathlon:

   

   I loved this medal for its simplicity.  Sure, it's fun to have really colorful medals, but I thought the shiny silver was nice. I loved the purple ribbon, too. (Race recap here.)

Ironman Chattanooga:

  

    Here it is. The Big One. The quest for this medal took an entire year of planning and six months of training. I love it and don't care that there is a Little Debbie logo on it. Don't. Care. The only thing I would change is that is says that we did a 112 mile ride instead of a 116 mile ride. (Race recap here.)

Mt. Juliet Holiday Half Marathon:

   It's Hipster Santa! Very cute. I love how runners make up Santa's beard. I do wish there weren't quite so many logos, but I get that. Sponsors want to see their logo everywhere. I also wish the 5k had a separate medal. Again - I get it. One medal is a big cost savings, but there is a huge difference between a 5k and a half marathon. I think the medal should reflect that. But it's still cute.  (Race recap here.)

   So that's it for 2014. It's been a lot of fun and look forward to a great 2015!  

2013 Medal Recap

   This might be my favorite post of the year - the medal recap. I know some people don't think that participant medals don't mean anything, but I don't care. I love them. They're fun and they're nice mementos of an athletic achievement, no matter what your race time happened to be. So let's get right in to it, shall we?

New Orleans Half Marathon 
February 24, 2013

 
   The New Orleans Half was my first "big" race of the season. A huge group of East Nasties converged on New Orleans and pretty much took over. It was awesome and my current PR is from this race. Love the medal - from the Mardi Gras beads to the second line and mask, it's totally New Orleans.  Nice job, Rock n' Roll.

Alpha Delta Pi-athon
March 24, 2013

Front

Back

   The Alpha Delta Pi-athlon is a local sprint race that serves as the kick-off to triathlon season in Nashville. It's a really fun race, but do I need a medal for a sprint race? Nope. And in my opinion, if a race is going to have a medal, at least have the name of the race on the front of it. Honestly, I wish the race organizers would have just used the money spent on medals and donated that to the Ronald McDonald House, which was the designated charity.

   

Oak Barrel Half Marathon

April 6, 2013

   

   Ok - this is possibly one of the coolest medals ever. It's made from, what else, an oak barrel. Totally fits the Jack Daniel's theme of the race, and it's one of my favorites. If you ever have the chance to do this race, do it. You'll thank me.

Nike Women's Half Marathon
April 28, 2013

   More people probably run this race strictly for the medal that any other race. That's because it's you don't get a medal - you get a necklace. A Tiffany necklace, to be exact. And it's presented to you by handsome young men in tuxedos. Nice touch, Nike. The necklace is very cool, but I don't really wear it very much. But since I guess you don't really wear race medals in general, it's not much different from a regular medal in that sense. It's just smaller...and from Tiffany.

Harpeth River Ride
June 1, 2013

   Unfortunately, the Tiffany necklace wasn't the only thing I brought back from the Nike Half Marathon. I also came home with a sprained ankle. So, I was pretty much limited to cycling for a few weeks, which is why I signed up for the Harpeth River Ride metric century. I've done this ride several times, but not for the past few years. I don't know if the medal is a totally new thing, but I had never received one previously.  I like it. It's a really nice, high-quality medal and was a nice touch since the ride was really hard!

Music City July 4th 5k
July 4, 2013

   The July 4 5k was the first post-sprained ankle race for me. I was so happy to be out there, I didn't care that it was raining the entire time. And just check out that medal. Again, I don't think medals are really necessary for 5k / 10k, but I'll take it when they're this cool. I found out later that my friend, and fellow East Nasty, Meg designed it. Great job, Meg.

Buckhead Border Challenge
July 21, 2013

Finisher's Medal

1st Place Age Group

   I actually got TWO medals from this race. The first one is the regular finisher's medal, which actually had to be mailed to me because someone STOLE all of the medals right before the race.  Who does that? Anyway, the second medal is my 1st place AG for the Duathlon. I like both of these.  They had nice ribbons and were both unique, but still similar enough that you could tell they were from the same race.

Blueberry Cove 13.1
August 25, 2013

   Unfortunately, I didn't actually earn one of these beauties, but I was signed up and was there for the race, so I'm including them. This was a race I had to pull out of due to a re-spraining of my ankle. But look how cool these are! A local artisan donated them.  SO freakin' cool.

Riverbluff Olympic Triathlon
September 7, 2013

 

   I really liked this medal. Distinct design, quality ribbon (I should probably start including those in my photo, huh?) and it was heavy. One of those medals that makes you feel like you accomplished something.   

Heroes in Recovery 6k
September 13, 2013

 

   This is another medal that falls into the "not necessary, but a nice touch" category. The race is 6k, which is a unique distance, so it's nice to have something to remember it by. But this race also supports people who are recovering from addiction, some of who probably never thought they would be able to run a mile, forget about a 6k. This was a nice way to congratulate those "heroes" on their accomplishments on and off the race course. The ribbon had the date and place of the race (again- I really need to take a photo of the ribbons!).

Goosepond Half Iron Distance Triathlon

October 13, 2013

   Another unique medal. I like the engraved goose. Would have been nice to have a date on it, but that's Ok. Ribbon was pretty, too.  You can see a little bit of it on the top left corner. I was a little worried that since this was a local race, that the medal would be cheap - but it wasn't.  Nice job, Goosepond.

Healdsburg Half Marathon

October 20, 2013

   This is probably the most multifunctional medal I've ever received. It's a medal AND A wine-stopper! Pretty cool, eh? It was also really colorful with the grapes and the wine-colored ribbon. It was also the largest medal I received this year.  Love it.

Christmas Story 5k Virtual Race

December 15, 2013

   This was a virtual race that I signed up for strictly for the medal. I mean, come on - it's amazing. If you have ever seen "A Christmas Story," you'll think this is hysterical. 

   So that's it - all of my finisher's medals from 2013. I hope you enjoyed my little trip down memory lane!  Here's to a great 2014!