To Snobby Race Directors - Why Do You Only Give Awards to Runners Who Stay for the Awards Ceremony?

Dear Age Grouper,

You should have the courtesy to stick around. If you can't be bothered to stay around to clap for the others who won their awards, you do not deserve yours. If you feel $28 is too much to pay, then don't pay it next time. Suck it up or shut up.

Boy aren't you a grumpy gus. To an extent you have a point, but when I've bailed before the awards to find out I won something, I certainly don't feel that the race owes it to me to mail me my prize. That being said, several races have mailed me plaques or other awards that had some weight and weren't cheap to send.

Have you told the race director that you had to leave, and that you'd like to pick up your prize if possible? Some races will accomodate this approach.

Race Director who doesn't care wrote:

Dear Age Grouper,

You should have the courtesy to stick around. If you can't be bothered to stay around to clap for the others who won their awards, you do not deserve yours. If you feel $28 is too much to pay, then don't pay it next time. Suck it up or shut up.

You suck it up. I'll stick around if you start giving out the awards about twenty minutes after the winner of a 5K comes in. If you want to wait until every last runner is off the course and then dick around for another 45 minutes with a lottery, I just can't wait that long. No disrespect to the other winners, but people have families. I'm not going to tell my wife and kids that I'll be gone from 7-12 on a Sunday so i can hang around with a bunch of freakin strangers. The criteria for getting the award should be winning the age group, period.

Maybe they wouldn't be strangers if you stuck around longer.

Age Grouper in Protest wrote:

I'm not going to tell my wife and kids that I'll be gone from 7-12 on a Sunday so i can hang around with a bunch of freakin strangers.

I'll bet if you told the race directors very nicely that your child was in the hospital and you couldn't stick around for more than a few minutes after the race...they'd get the award to you.

You might want to soft-pedal the comparison between the time commitment for a race vs that of a round of golf, however. Not exactly a cry for sympathy!

You suck it up. I'll stick around if you start giving out the awards about twenty minutes after the winner of a 5K comes in. If you want to wait until every last runner is off the course and then dick around for another 45 minutes with a lottery, I just can't wait that long.

They need to wait until everyone finishes so they can have complete results to determine who gets the age group awards you bitter dumbass.

If you feel $28 is too much to pay, then don't pay it next time

Is that permission to bandit?

Age Grouper in Protest wrote:

You suck it up. I'll stick around if you start giving out the awards about twenty minutes after the winner of a 5K comes in. If you want to wait until every last runner is off the course and then dick around for another 45 minutes with a lottery, I just can't wait that long. No disrespect to the other winners, but people have families. I'm not going to tell my wife and kids that I'll be gone from 7-12 on a Sunday so i can hang around with a bunch of freakin strangers. The criteria for getting the award should be winning the age group, period.

I think WE will decide the criteria for winning the award, thanks. Bottom Line: You don't stick around, you don't get one. Tough. Cry me a river.

??????? wrote:

If you feel $28 is too much to pay, then don't pay it next time

Is that permission to bandit?

It's permission to not run the "offending" race.

Hmmm, sounded more like permission to bandit. Whatever. What does the race flier state? If it doesn't say you must be present to collect your award, it seems like it should be your award. Some races just take the unclaimed awards to a local running store and let the winners who weren't present for the ceremony pick the awards up there. Easy enough. But also as stated before, just ask the race director for the award and they'll generally give it to you.

I've had checks, plaques, certificates mailed to me, always w/o my asking. I had one RD drive to my house from 2 towns away to drop off a trophy that had been engraved wrong. The world doesn't revolve around you. Don't like it, don't race. you sound like a flame.

i'm not gonna lie, i'm with you on this one man. i did a race in chicago last year and had to rush home to shower so i could catch my airplane back home. i won my age group but i didnt get shit cause they wouldnt mail it to me. in all honesty, i dont see why they wont spend 30-60 minutes to find the addresses of the runners who didnt get their awards and just send them to them. then again, i think if you would politely ask them if you could receive your award earlier because you had to leave early, i'm sure they would be happy to give them to you.

I thought you competed for the fun of it. If $28 is too much find a different race. You want your award then stick around like everyone else. It is noone else fault you have a family. 2 people? if you don't like it don't go to races he directs.

oh, it was cold, boo freakin hoo. I guess they let everyone else warmpup inside a buidling in front of a heater while they left you outside with the raincloud over your head.

Decent age group runners? They don't really care about the competitivness of these races. They want people to show up and I am willing to bet that you are one they could do without.

If it is policy to make runners stay around for the awards then so be it. Your a selfish dumba$$

Idiot post of the month goes to you.

Can't wait to see you dead.

duecemac wrote:

I've had checks, plaques, certificates mailed to me, always w/o my asking. I had one RD drive to my house from 2 towns away to drop off a trophy that had been engraved wrong. The world doesn't revolve around you. Don't like it, don't race. you sound like a flame.

I'll drive to the RD's house or the running store to pick it up. It just bugs me when they get on their high horse about their precious awards ceremony. It's a local 10K, not the freakin Olympics! Get over yourself!

Some of these RD's are the ones who are only thinking about themselves. They are washed up local runners who work in running stores or coach, and directing the local race is their chance to be king of the hill for a day. They'll talk about how much a sacrifice it is to organize and run a race, but in reality many of them love it because of the attention it brings them. It is the highlight of their year.

Now, i know many great RD's and many are friends. And I and my daughters volunteer to help at a few races every year. So I'm really directing my venom at a few folks who are full of themselves. I know I can not run their races, but I was running those races long before they took over and I don't feel i should have to quit those races because they are such asses.

????????????????? wrote:

Hmmm, sounded more like permission to bandit. Whatever. What does the race flier state? If it doesn't say you must be present to collect your award, it seems like it should be your award. Some races just take the unclaimed awards to a local running store and let the winners who weren't present for the ceremony pick the awards up there. Easy enough. But also as stated before, just ask the race director for the award and they'll generally give it to you.

The race flier doesn't shit about awards. It does say something about being present to claim a door prize. That makes sense to me because you don't have to do anything to win a door prize. You have to run well (relatively) to win your age group.

I agree that if the director takes forever and a day to get the awards done you have a gripe. BUT- the awards ceremony is a chance for everone to recieve some recognition, most importantly the sponsors. The business are NOT obligated to kick in $100 every time some shmo shows up with their hat in hand wanting to put on a road race.

If for any other reason it's a chance to thank them and say their names a few times, and politly clap for your fellow runners.

Please don't come and run in any of my races. I'm old, over the hill,a coach, race director and it's a sacrifice to organize and run a race, I also have family that I'm away from when I'm putting on the race, so don't tell me you have to leave and get all jacked up about it. If you want a $4 award I'll mail you a box full and you can get on your way.

Race Director,

Evansville, IN

Age Grouper in Protest wrote:

I know I can not run their races, but I was running those races long before they took over and I don't feel i should have to quit those races because they are such asses.

You just contradicted yourself. First you say you know you can not run their races and then you turn around and say you don't feel you should "have to quit those races".

You don't "have to quit". Who the hell said that? You just won't get your lousy award. How tough is that to understand?

You are the ass for whining about a stupid award you aren't willing to wait for. Get over yourself.