Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 49 total)
  • ‘Bike Stuff’ as prizes for bike races. Doesn’t compute.
  • pictonroad
    Full Member

    This has baffled me for a while. I’ve attended a number of races and seen the (generously donated of course!) prizes given to winners. Generally, pumps, helmets and frequently, large size clothing.

    Thing is, to get to the point where you can podium I betting you’ll have a decent shed of bike bits. These prizes are frequently passed on or sold. I’ve done well on the 2nd hand market with track pumps and a unnamed friend who’s damn fast keeps all our partners in helmets.

    What would people at the sharp end prefer? Do you like the bike bits lottery? Would you prefer a Waitrose voucher? Bottle of bubbly? Custom T-shirt?

    cb200
    Free Member

    A bottle of scotch of my choice and a commemorative engraved tumbler. That’d do nicely, not that I’m in that winning echelon in the real world.

    Rorschach
    Free Member

    Depends why you race.
    I had a good run one cx season.Never could be arsed waiting round for the presentations,I just assumed it went back in the kitty.Eventually was accosted by one of the series organisers in the car park with an envelope stuffed with cash.Was a bit embarrassing tbh.

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    PeterPoddy
    Free Member

    The thing is that most prizes are provided by the trade as ‘sponsorship’ ….. So you get bike bits.

    paul78
    Free Member

    I would of thought bike bits as prizes would of come from the sponsors of the event … generally bike brands or shops. Anything else the event organiser wanted to offer would be a cost to the event and ultimately reflected in the cost of entry.

    So I guess the question is if all these things are of no value to the winners then do they want them at all or can we dispense with wasted goods and those on the podium just go home happy with the result 🙂

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    If you do win stuff, whatever you do, even if you don’t need, want, or have any use for it, don’t try and sell it on, you monster.
    😉

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    More events should be sponsored by GSK.

    Rorschach
    Free Member

    😀

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    More events should be sponsored by GSK

    Woo! Free out of date Lucozade!

    deadkenny
    Free Member

    Some seem to have loads of sponsors and loads of spot prizes given out to half the people that attended regardless of podium.

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Please can I have a moan about kids and youth prizes?

    Last event we entered the youth lot paid the same as adults.
    Adults win helmet, jacket etc.
    Youth got a mug and buff thing.

    Previous race to be fair kids and youth were half adult price.

    Adults win nice helmets, nice jacket, spot prizes of similar.
    My son won youth and got a water bottle that’s so cheap it leaks.

    LeeW
    Full Member

    Blatant profiteering going on here.

    bigblackshed
    Full Member

    tomhoward – Member
    More events should be sponsored by GSK
    Woo! Free out of date Lucozade!

    Not any more. Owned by the Japanese company Suntory.

    It’s now got half the sugar it use to. Doesn’t get white van man quite so sugar rushed angry.

    big_n_daft
    Free Member

    I suggest you organise a race and decide the prize pot, that way you will understand why the prizes are what they are

    Women’s/girls prizes should be the same as male prizes regardless

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Women’s/girls prizes should be the same as male prizes regardless

    Agreed.

    My eldest placed first youth, and would have been third in men’s. Still got a water bottle when third men’s got a helmet.

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    Not any more. Owned by the Japanese company Suntory.

    Hence ‘out of date’… 😉

    boriselbrus
    Free Member

    My mate won a bike race in Kent. His prize was a free hair cut.

    At a hairdressers in Lancashire.

    pictonroad
    Full Member

    I suggest you organise a race and decide the prize pot, that way you will understand why the prizes are what they are

    You realise that it’s possible to discuss an issue without immediately having a defensive huff?

    I know how hard it is to organise races, quite frankly I don’t have the passion that is needed to do it. It’s a reasonable question to ask, nothing is free, sponsors want the best publicity and the most entrants. Prizes that people desire and covet need not be expensive.

    I’ve put my money into plenty of races and I always make damn sure I thank everyone involved and take someone else’s litter home.

    threerock44
    Free Member

    In 1987 I won the 17 and under boys Northern Ireland Orienteering Championships in Derry. Had travelled 200 miles from Dublin. Prize was a small crudely hand-painted ashtray.

    IdleJon
    Full Member

    Women’s/girls prizes should be the same as male prizes regardless

    Should this be in relation to male v female entry numbers or exactly the same regardless of how many women enter? So, if only one woman enters compared to 100 men and she comes 70th, should she get exactly the same prize as the 1st place man?

    mick_r
    Full Member

    Mrs did a little duathlon in Whinlatter today. Prize was some chocolate and a free parking permit for another visit. This was great and much more appreciated than a medal. £15 entry, free parking today and now free parking for another visit (usually £6 a pop) makes it a very cheap day out biking for the family (I took the boys out whilst she was racing). Very happy customer!

    Local cx league is very generous with prize money so with four of us racing we sometimes come out cost neutral. However I appreciate cx is generally cheaper and easier to organise than mtb.

    For local mtb races we’d rather cheap entry and minimal prizes. Expensive entry and big prizes generally results in fewer racers and organisers struggling to break even.

    rene59
    Free Member

    So, if only one woman enters compared to 100 men and she comes 70th, should she get exactly the same prize as the 1st place man?

    Some folk on here would argue she should get the 2nd and 3rd place prizes as well, you know for equality and to poke the patriarchy in the eye.

    IdleJon
    Full Member

    Some folk on here would argue she should get the 2nd and 3rd place prizes as well, you know for equality and to poke the patriarchy in the eye.

    Only 20% of my household is male – me! – so I had to check the boss’s opinion before asking that question. 😆

    My club was criticised in print by a very famous ex-pro for only giving jelly babies as prizes to all the kids taking part in U12. The ex-pro in question seemed to think that when she won each week we should have given her a proper prize despite the fact that entry was free for U12s.

    Hob-Nob
    Free Member

    I’d rather have some non specific vouchers.

    I’ve won mostly useless junk over the years for various podiums and wins, only 2 prizes stick out from memory – a bunch of Hope vouchers for winning a series & a couple of hundred quids worth of shop vouchers ( which I forgot about and the shop subsequently shut down) 🙄

    crazy-legs
    Full Member

    I’ve won mostly useless junk over the years for various podiums and wins, only 2 prizes stick out from memory – a bunch of Hope vouchers for winning a series & a couple of hundred quids worth of shop vouchers ( which I forgot about and the shop subsequently shut down)

    I had a load of vouchers like that! From the Welsh XC Series.
    Won some tyres once at a Mountain Mayhem, they eventually got sold on here as I was obliged to be on another brand due to a part-sponsorship deal that the club had.

    nealglover
    Free Member

    and a unnamed friend

    Seems odd. What do you write on his Christmas card ?

    chunkychew
    Free Member

    I certainly don’t have a shed full of bike bits, and stuff I’ve won is usually appreciated. An exposure rear light won at a day night Enduro is the pick of the bunch. A park tools track pump gets lots of use too. Various L or XL tops and t-shirts when I’m a M at best isn’t useful though. Various and random pairs of grips and stuff that doesn’t fit me or my bike get donated to my nephew or his mates.

    padkinson
    Free Member

    I once won a £6 voucher for winning a junior race, second place got £4, and third £2. The annoying thing was that the year before we got these lovely little medals, and that year I got lots of 2nd and 3rd places, but never 1st, so no gold medal. Once I started winning we got rubbish prizes instead, and I’ve still never had a gold medal for anything 😥

    big_n_daft
    Free Member

    Should this be in relation to male v female entry numbers or exactly the same regardless of how many women enter? So, if only one woman enters compared to 100 men and she comes 70th, should she get exactly the same prize as the 1st place man?

    Male and female Categories are separate so the “where did she come in relation to the blokes” question is mute

    Yes she would get the prize, and a podium picture, and asked to tell her mates and wherever she is on social media about the great time she had and the great prizes, and a nice email to the sponsor would be great to

    She would not get second or third

    For the naysayers, just ask yourself why the Hope women’s enduro sells out yet most races struggle to get a decent female entry.

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    Woo! Free out of date Lucozade!
    [/quote]

    Lucozade? I was thinking Ventolin

    muppetWrangler
    Free Member

    More events should be sponsored by GSK

    if it was sponsored by GBK i might actually put in a bit of training.

    ghostlymachine
    Free Member

    A completely out of fashion (and out of date) pair of DH tyres for winning an XC event in Norfolk was a particular high point.
    Retail was about £80. Couldn’t even sell them for £20.
    Ended up giving them to a neighbour’s kid to destroy on his BSO.

    The strange thing is the prizes on the other side of the channel are quite strange, but easy to exchange for cash. i.e. a side of bacon. Or a 20 kilo block of cheese. You just sell them back to the supplier of the prize at ~50% of cost. Gets you another 50-100€ on top of whatever your prize money is.

    DrP
    Full Member

    I suggest you organise a race and decide the prize pot, that way you will understand why the prizes are what they are

    He knows the score..
    Last year he organised a crazy charity “£50 max bike” race event thing locally..
    Yeah, it was amongst friends (some unnamed..) but I imagine organising that was like herding drunk..very drunk..and annoying..cats…

    And I think that had prizes 😕
    Beer and beef I think??

    I managed to crash in complete style going over a speed bump in a pink Apollo. The full face helmet (!) Was much appreciated!!

    Give the poor cherub a break 😆

    DrP

    rOcKeTdOg
    Full Member

    We gave out free bike services for podium winners & service and pro bike fit for winners.

    Stupid triathlon event though

    alwillis
    Full Member

    The only time I’ve won anything bike related I loved the prize! I still use it almost daly, as its not something I would have stumped up the cash for myself, but is super useful.

    There was the usual irony though of giving out lights to 24hr race winners- everyone on the podium has just spent 17hrs staring at the back of a set of lights in some form or other!

    molgrips
    Free Member

    I once won a small stash of Torq gels and powder etc. Useful, but I was riding for Torq (not in elite!) and consequently had had my fill for free 🙂

    big_n_daft
    Free Member

    I once won a small stash of Torq gels and powder etc. Useful, but I was riding for Torq (not in elite!) and consequently had had my fill for free

    Were you the obnoxious rider who upset everyone one year at Mountain Mayhem? Still won’t touch the brand because of him

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Please can I have a moan about kids and youth prizes?

    Last event we entered the youth lot paid the same as adults.
    Adults win helmet, jacket etc.
    Youth got a mug and buff thing.

    Previous race to be fair kids and youth were half adult price.

    Adults win nice helmets, nice jacket, spot prizes of similar.
    My son won youth and got a water bottle that’s so cheap it leaks.

    Presumably the entry fee covered the venue, insurance, infrastructure, organisers wages, marshals tea and cake etc. The prizes then get donated by sponsors. Who themselves want maximum exposure and return on the investment, which means trying to get the top men’s* field in their helmet or on their tyres so that the kids (or their parents) buy the same. Unfortunately I doubt the elite XC field is influenced much by the kit choices in the u5 balance bike slalom, so they win jelly babies and leaky water bottles.

    On a related note, my SIS bottle wasn’t cheap and still leaks because there aren’t enough threads in the lid.

    *sexist but often true

    steve_b77
    Free Member

    I think a lot of kids, as in under 12’s, like the novelty prizes on offer, they certainly seem to enjoy the ginger bread medals and the like they get in our ‘cross league.

    Most I’ve won in a bike race is a bottle stuffed with torq sachets, fibrax bits and some other oddities, and that was for 3rd Masters at the Emergency Services Nationals not a lot but appreciated nonetheless.

    When I was fishing, especially as a junior I was at the sharp end of things (pardon the pun) and due to the fact I was competing on both junior and senior levels up to National standard I had rather a lot of quality gear (helped by sponsorship & generous discounts at the local shop). So in matches and series when tackle prizes were on offer as a winner or at least top 3, you got to pick what you wanted and more often than not I just went for something small and left the larger prizes to be distributed to the lower placed and more often than not, not so well equipped guys.

    njee20
    Free Member

    I’d rather have a nice trophy than some ‘stuff’ I don’t want or need.

    In my formative years when I was doing alright in the NPS in Sport I got some XS gloves, an XL DH jersey (from an XC series), some chocolate energy gels which had a month until expiry, a £5 pump, a cheap multi-tool, some cheap LED lights… it goes on. It does feel like sponsors clearing out their sale bin.

    It all went on eBay/to friends/in the bin, would sooner have a nice bit of silverware for the shelf in the garage or the box in the loft (as they’re now resigned to). A voucher if you must provide a physical prize, but preferably not to one shop in the Scottish Borders given people travel to events.

    Or socks. They’re always useful.

    That said I have also won some carbon bars, a nice stem, some decent lights, that sort of thing. I’d sooner have one £50 prize than a big bag of tat.

    And prizes should be equal for young’uns and teh wiminz.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 49 total)

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