Boston Bib on EBay: Either its an April Fools Joke or this guy is not that smart!!!

I say we bid on the number and have a 300 lb woman smoking a cigarette in the pictures at the front of the Boston Marathon. Can we use your mom?

Mike Aldrink: Foolish and a Tool. He runs a 2:30 so he must know many other runners of his caliber who would buy the bib from him. He could have done it quietly, covered his entrance fee, nobody would have noticed or probably cared. No harm ,no foul. Instead, because he wants to profit he sells it on e-bay so any shmuck with the $ can get into a race (or starting coral) they do not belong in. You would expect more from a runner of this caliber. And it looks like he is unlikely to now get away with it.

Narcs: Losers. As much as JJ dislikes the actions of Mike A. to go so far as notifying the BAA is kind of childish. Does 1 out of place runner really effect you? Are you running Boston this year? Will running around 1 more slower person effect you? Maybe BAA was already on to him? You are like the kid at school that tells the teacher of some misconduct that she already knows about. Accomplishes nothing and the teacher now knows you are a snotty little tattletale. She does not respect you, but she will use you as her snitch bitch.

Carry on with the bashing of Mike A.

Where are the links to wife when she was hot?

Bid is up to $405 and Mikey's questions have been flying in. He ought to thank the OP for promoting his auction.

Q: There's nothing wrong with what your doing. Some people should mind there own business. Good luck and may your spot go to someone that'll have a good race. Apr-02-08

A: Thanks for your response.

Q: I will buy this and meet you with cash! F*** who trys to interfere in this sale!! I want that number!!Call my cell 857-654-7128 J.P. Apr-02-08

A: Hope you get it...

Q: Hi, Is this for real, I'm running as a bandit and would love to have a number. What is your reserve? Are you trying to get your entry fee back? What are you actually looking for as far as money. thanks, Bobby! Apr-02-08

A: Hope you get it Bobby.

Q: If your post is removed, I am still willing to pay or raise money for charity. please contact me:

ercolic@gmail.com

thanks, Chris Apr-02-08

A: Thanks...

Q: Dear news-reporter, I have been training for the Boston Marathon for 5 months now and the number I was confident in receiving is no longer available. I am a 24 year old male who runs a 7:00 pace marathon. I have kept a detailed spread of my training and would be willing to forward it to you. As you can attest I am sure, the most disheartening thing is preparing for something, only to find out you can't participate. I would be willing to hold a fundraiser, and donate to a charity of your choice. I'll do just about anything to make it happen. Believe me...I know how to throw a charity event. I can then cut a check and hand it to you during the expo. Please let me know if this is an option. Apr-02-08

A: That's very kind and I will donate this to my at-risk school...we'll just see who gets to run in my place.

Q: What you are doing is highly illegal, and has been reported to the BAA and Ebay. Apr-01-08

A: Thanks.

Q: Have you run Boston before? How picky are they about bib numbers and corrals? Though I did run a qualifying time, I am a (non-elite) female and starting near the front would be laughable. (I unfortunately procrastinated too long before registering for the marathon which is now closed, although I do a have a flight out there. Now I'm left scrambling to find a way to run.) Mar-30-08

A: Thanks for the questions... Yes, I've run Boston 6 times before. If you have a number, you can get in. This is a low number at the front of the line, but you can get into any corral that you'd like. It will be no problem.

Q: What time at the expo 4/19? I am qualified, but might grab a better number to get farther up. I would toss your number (and run with mine) after the gun, so the photo people send the right photos to the right person. However, I would also get an extra shirt at the Expo, and a second medal when I turn in your chip. Mar-30-08

A: Hi John...good thinking. Put it this way, whoever wins, I will make it as convenient as possible. I get in early Saturday morning into Boston, so we can plan a time to meet at the expo, or I can sign my number pick-up card and mail it to you free so that you don't need me around...your choice.

Joseph McVeigh wrote:

What "??" and some others are arguing is that they support someone's right to enter into a contract and then unilaterally violate the terms of that contract as they see fit. Good luck holding a society together under those circumstances.

yeah, good point. you got me with this one. baa has every right to look out for this and call the guy on it. but, why rat on him to baa? i mean, it's a worthy letsrun discussion, but those who are notifying baa, come on. right back at you with the whole, "good luck holding a society together under those conditions," you know what i mean?

Here's the problem for you who don't see what the big deal is.

People sign releases when they enter Boston just like any other race. Mike signed his release, but the guy who gets his bib hasn't and can't because Mike put in the entry form.

Now, the guy who gets the bib gets injured on the course. Say he slips on a cup and tears up his knee. He can't work again. He can't run again. He has life long pain. That's a pretty good law suit.

Boston says, "Not so fast, my friend. You signed this Release."

He says, "Oh yeah? What Release? That's not me. I never released you from anything."

Now, the BAA is in the middle of a law suit, first trying to throw this guy out of court for running a race he wasn't supposed to be in and then, if that fails, defend themselves on the injury claim. Either way, they are going to rack up tons of legal bills and higher insurance bills, all because some moron didn't follow the rules.

Mike should be kicked in the ass for trying to pull this off. I hope the BAA has someone at the front and yanks the person who wears it off the course.

Looks like everybody "involved" is a jerk. The seller is a jerk. The Internet vigilantes are jerks.

I just hope that the 400 pound jerk from last year's Boston buys this guy's bib.

That would be brilliant.

I'd even pay to put him in Spiras as the icing on the cake.

The problem I have with what he is doing is that he is making money off of the auction. Whether he donates that money (now that he knows people are watching) or keeps it for himself is not right. If he is allowed to do this why wouldn't people run a marathon, qualify, and then sell their's for a profit?It is a form of scalping I think. Had he put a buy it now price being what he paid for the entry then I wouldn't have a problem with it. You can say that he is recouping the price of his trip, but he is still going on the trip to watch.I wouldn't rat him out, but I think it is pretty pathetic that he is making money off of it.

Runningart2004 wrote:

I'm pretty certain every marathon has this "non-transferable" rule. I'm also pretty certain the rule is broken in each and every one of those marathons.

Someone has payed to run a race. Someone else can't get in because they missed the registration deadline. I really don't see a problem with that someone else running the race in the first person's place.

Alan

if bibs were transferable, wouldn't this solve this type of problem? the problem with this "contract" is that it's so far out from the actual event and injuries/fitness issues are inevitable for many who commit with good intentions. if the race would work with their participants a little bit, i'd be fine with cracking down on the selling of bibs.

Here's the problem with america...people thinking like you.

Whales a coming wrote:

Looks like everybody "involved" is a jerk. The seller is a jerk. The Internet vigilantes are jerks.

I just hope that the 400 pound jerk from last year's Boston buys this guy's bib.

That would be brilliant.

I'd even pay to put him in Spiras as the icing on the cake.

POD!

ignorant poster wrote:

Here's the problem with america...people thinking like you.

What part of the post do you have a problem with? The fact that the BAA would want to try to protect themselves from a lawsuit? If someone is unscrupulous enough to buy a race number off of Ebay, they would probably be the type of person who’d sue because they got injured while running the race. Even if the suit is unfounded, it still costs bucks to have an attorney go to court and show that the case doesn’t have merit. If I were good enough to qualify for the 1st coral and I saw the “Ebay buying” puke getting yanked, I’d cheer!

Agreed, as much as I diapprove of what this guy is doing, I am not in favor of of ratting.

While it's hard to imagine that even the photo ID checks at the expo stop all unofficial transactions, I also imagine that our friends at the BAA would occasionally glance at eBay and pick up on such public violations.

Let the buyer beware.

Narc? O.K., maybe if Mike was giving the bib to his friend who also runs 2:30 marathons, and you overheard the two talking about the "bib transfer" at work, and you tip off the BAA via a phone call (not saying I agree with the bib transfer). This guy invited the public into this by selling his number on ebay - some secret. For Pete's sake, he has a picture on his ebay profile. Real private transaction. He's thumbing his nose at the whole "non-transferable" clause in a very public way, but everybody who runs across his ebay listing is supposed to keep it a secret. Right.

Besides, I'm sure the BAA would have found out anyway if some of the people on this thread hadn't alerted them. I would think the BAA's been waiting for this to happen for several years. People put everything from their kidneys to kids on ebay. I bet the BAA put two and two together several years ago and figured a bib number would show up in an ebay listing at some point. You know, this guy risked a potential buyer innocently contacting the BAA to ask if bibs could be transferred to make sure they weren't getting swindled, and the jig would have been up that way. He was going to be found out one way or another.

Assuming this whole auction isn't some hoax, this guy has absolutely no idea who he might be selling this bib to, and for what purpose they plan on using it. If this is a legit auction, and they get the bib (I doubt they will), let's hope they just plan on using it to run, rather than doing something that would disrupt the race.

And why someone would pay 4X the regular registration fee for a low bib number is beyond me. Starting up front isn't going to make you run any faster.

Just some random thoughts on this subject:

Bandits are a Boston tradition, and no they don't always start at the back of the pack. The hop fences, the jump in at different places along the route. This is really no different. Not the right thing to do, but it's not like it's never happened before.

This is no more "illegal" than wearing headphones or running with a baby jogger. All are wrong from a safety standpoint, but people do these things at races EVERY weekend, and there's really no way to stop it. Trying to do so is really just a waste of time.

If the substitute runner were to get injured and sue the BAA, he/she would never win. By "assuming" the original runner's identity, he/she would also assume the original runner's waiver of liability. (PS, I'm not an attorney, I just deal with them in business every day. But any sane court would rule this way.) Most likely, the BAA would spend very little money having this frivilous suit tossed. UNLESS the BAA actually DID do something that was grossly negligent. That could be a problem.

I would never sell a number, I would never say it's ok to sell a number, but (as Chris Rock says), "I can understand" why someone might. The race DID sell out early, and giving someone else the chance to run isn't a bad thing. Sucks to be injured, but recouping some of your investment makes it more bearable. Probably not grounds for banishment to Siberia.

I'm sure Mike never reads LetsRun, but this would be my advice for him if he did. I know this is going to sound like OJ's "If I Did It", but:

Don't pass this off as an entry into the race. Simply state that this is a bib number for sale, and all the free items you get WITH entry into the race. What the buyer does with the bib number is their own responsibility. You sold "souvenirs" from the race.

Don't hand over the chip to the buyer as one of the "free items". The chip is not free, and it's not something you keep. It belongs to the timing company, and must be returned to the timing company. If the buyer failed to return it, you (the original entrant) would be responsible for the $30 non-return fee. You should turn it back in when you pick up your stuff. Simply tell them you don't care to be timed (due to injury, whatever) and hand it back to them. The chip is used only for timing purposes. It doesn't gain you access to anything, it doesn't get you a medal. If the runner is questioned in the finish chute, they can say they turned it back in since they didn't care to be timed (again, injury, whatever) but they did want to get their medal by completing the course, (just not for time).

Lastly, well, don't sell your bib number. (But I understand)

Good post! I've watched this "debate" for the last few days. I've also participated in the same type of thread a few months ago (i.e. is it okay to run Boston with another's number?). I have never seen such a hot-button issue on Let'sRun as this. It seems the camps are pretty evenly divided, but now the issue of "ratting out" has developed into a side issue. I ran Boston 4 times (legally), and I feel it is an extreme honor to be able to run it....something that is EARNED.

I tend to fault the seller ("Mike A.") more than any potential buyer. As a serious, talented runner he should know better. A buyer would probably be a "week-end" warrior type who gets sucked in to Mike's hyperbole: starting in the front corral with world class runners as well as Mike Huckabee and Lance!! Wow. If the buyer was an elite runner there would probably be no fanfare. He/she would blend in. The reality is that a 200 lb jogger could wind up there and it wouldn't be as idyllic as Mike portrays. I've been on the front lines at Boston, and believe me, elite runners police themselves to some degree. (In the seventies a 200 lb. jogger lined up in the front row and Jock Semple yanked him after elites started protesting) The starting line is much more strucutured now, and this bib-buyer would probably feel VERY uncomfortable by the folks who deserve to be there.

The scenarios I would like to see: 1) Mike attempts to get his number and BAA busts him and the buyer demands his money back; 2) As another poster said, a 300-400 lb. jogger gets on the front line and wipes out 5-6 Kenyans when gun goes off; 3) the number gets bid up to $1,000 and a zero-feedback bidder stiffs Mike.

To those who say, it's a free country, free market or it's like "jaywalking or taking a piece of bulk-candy at a supermarket": WRONG. No harm/no foul? WRONG; there is harm and there should be a foul. This is our sport and our most visible, significant race. Let's honor it. The "ratting out" issue is secondary, at best. To those who say "the ratters aren't real men", I would just say real men don't try to weasel out of a contract (their word) and profit from a race like Boston. "Man up" and eat the entry fee,Mike. Legal issues notwithstanding, the BAA has the right to enforce it's policies. I don't particularly like "ratting people out", but I hope that this fraud does not occur.

Man... if I can get $400 for my boston number, maybe i'll ebay it and just sit and drink a bunch of beer at the finish line. I could probably pay for my entire trip!

But I'd hate to have the letsrun police on my ass.

Someone could always post a "question" informing this guy that the BAA has been notified. Those questions appear on the auction, right? Meaning anyone who was going to bid on it would see it, right?

idea for the marathon police wrote:

Someone could always post a "question" informing this guy that the BAA has been notified. Those questions appear on the auction, right? Meaning anyone who was going to bid on it would see it, right?

The seller (Mike) has the option of allowing a question to be posted on the auction page or not. I am sure that he has gotten some rude remarks that he has deleted.

idea for the marathon police wrote:

Someone could always post a "question" informing this guy that the BAA has been notified. Those questions appear on the auction, right? Meaning anyone who was going to bid on it would see it, right?

Look at the listing or simply look at a post near the top of THIS page, jerk-wad! IT HAS BEEN DONE!