For many, the medal awarded at the end of a marathon is enough. They’ll either hang it somewhere with pride, or tuck it away for safekeeping, to be remembered at a future date (or not). For many others, however, collecting additional marathon memorabilia is almost as important as the race itself. Having items to remind themselves of their achievements, and to notify others that they have RUN A MARATHON!
I think I sit in the middle of these camps. When I finished the London marathon, my first 26.2, in 2012, my Mum presented me with a cute bracelet engraved with the words ‘So proud of you’, the date (although she forgot to get London Marathon etched in, and the bracelet is currently being amended). Since then, after NYCM and Paris she has given me similar bracelets with meaningful inscriptions. ‘So inspired by your determination and drive.’ ‘So worth it.’ I love wearing these as a daily reminder that if I set my mind to something, I can achieve it. You can get similar bracelets to mine from Posh Betty.
I love the idea of jewellery memorabilia, which is especially easy for the big city marathons, such as London, New York and Paris where jewellers already make a selection of souvenir accessories. This EiffelTower charm would make a great addition to my Links necklace!
At the NYC and Paris marathon expos I also picked up some race ‘stash’. New York in particularly has an incredible array of marathon merchandise, from headbands and waterbottles to Nike tops and trainers. I admit to going a little overboard in NYCM, but was far more restrained in Paris, purchasing a single marathon t-shirt.
Additionally, the Paris marathon are offering a special Asics t-shirt complete with printed bib and your official finishing time. I think this is a lovely idea for those that want them, and not one I’ve seen at other races but am sure they exist.
Some of my running friends have come up with some incredible marathon souvenirs including tattoos of the Eiffel Tower to commemorate their first marathon. This photo is of Lissy’s brand new tattoo, and I think a few of the other girls are following suit in a few days/weeks time.
I have to admit, I am planning on getting my marathon bibs framed to hang in our bathroom or bedroom. I thought Tom would hate this, but he actually wants to get his first half marathon bib framed as well. I figure it’s more incentive for him to sign up to a full marathon too! I know that there are quite a few companies out there, such as frameyourrace, that will frame your bib and medal together, however I think that could turn pricey. I love my medal holder with the mishmash of 5ks, halfs and fulls crammed together.
What marathon or race memorabilia have you seen/bought/lusted after? Here’s a great blog post of other ideas of what to do with your race bibs and medals.
What a lovely gift from your Mum! So thoughtful of her. I keep all my medals on a trail running medal holder I got for Christmas which I love. All my bibs are stored away in scrapbooks as well. Each race means so much to where I got today, I just don’t want to forget a thing!
Love the idea of getting a race tattoo as well, and know several people that have the VLM logo on their legs. Until I come up with the perfect tattoo though, I shall remain running tattoo free but with running being such a big part of my life, there’s a possibility a leg may become branded at some point in the future!
I’m thinking about getting a tiny little 26.2 tattoo by my ankle… just as a reminder of what i can do when i set my mind to it! x
I saw your medal holder photo on Instagram the other day, been thinking about doing something similar. I like the idea of having them out in the house for people to see even if it is to stroke my ego a little 🙂
Having a search on Etsy throws up some good alternatives to this also.
Love this post Charlie! There were some nice t-shirts at the Brighton expo but I felt it would be tempting fate to buy one before I’d run the race, so I didn’t but as everything went to plan I now regret that! I’ve treated myself to a 26.2 hand-stamped necklace from an Etsy seller – hopefully it will be a nice reminder of how brilliant I felt to have finished 🙂
I have a necklace which says 26.2, been there, run that. 🙂
I love your medal holder! I’m going to get a 26.2 tattoo I think, only small and somewhere discreet but as a lovely reminder that I did it! 🙂