Was it an Mdot or an 'unbranded' 70.3? and did his tat have the 70.3 on it? I've seen a few of those at various events.
It was an MDot logo. Like a big black M with a dot over it. I guess if you just like it or admire it or aspire to it, then get what you want done. I'd rather not be a billboard for something that I haven't even done. Then it comes back to it, does it really matter at all? Of every 140.6 mile race I've ever heard of, the only one without a single negative comment has got to be Challenge Roth. Every IM gets some complainers, excessive drafting, bad community support, location.
I am probably wrong but I suspect the name was coined for the race and was later adopted as a brand? If this was the case then surely you are an Ironman if you complete the distance!
To me Ironman is a recognised event, and is the entrance fee going to be the big expence? For me it was the equipment, swimming lessons, trips to Reading to sort out my fear of the open water. So if you really want to save £100 maybe take a look at all the lycra and carbon you have stashed around your house.
As for the Ironman tat, mine may say "I'm a c$"%" to some people. To me it means I worked bloody hard to complete a great personal challenge. That took me a a great deal of planning, preperation and training. I may have a IM tattoo on my leg, but when see all the chavs with a dodgy band around their arm I kow what tattoo I'd prefer.
I've always thought that if I did ever do an IM, I would get the ink (easy to say when you only compete in sprints, haha!) but reading the above comments about the brand etc, sets me thinking that it's a hell of an achievement as a brand to persuade people that they want to get it permanently added to their body! I might just get three stripes put on me somewhere since I race in Adidas racing flats... There's a US sprinter, think it might be Leroy Burrell, who has a Nike tattoo - that seems a bit daft to me; is an M-Dot any better?
I wonder if any one has gone 'Walter Mitty',got the ink but didn't do the race.Gone for pose value,and has just read the race report,and come up with a time???? Something you can never find out,so having a tattoo could be useless,as the only person who knows you did it is you.Everyone else thinks you are lying,I mean who in their right mind would want to swim 2.4 miles ,bike 112 miles and run a marathon,really.
Cost of M dot race plus training time plus travel,would be slot more than paying forty notes down some backstreet for abit of ink and Hep c.
The brand debate is a tough one, part of me feels that the dogged way that people hang on to the the 'ironman' logo, in that they feel that anyone not doing a branded event is not an 'ironman' . Is largely due to the fact they have paid a lot of money for the privilege and feel cheated by someone stealing their brand entering a cheaper race. This is entirely fair and in someways I would feel the same, unfortunately the 'ironman' name/brand is in common parlance and that cannot be rectified or changed. I'm sure Mr Dyson doesn't like his vacuum cleaners being called a hoover, but life's tough like that. I'll be completing an 'iron distance' race this year but to myself/friends/club mates/relatives/work mates I will be an IRONMAN. To say that I am not would be futile.
Comments
Which came first, the Ironman Race or the brand?
I am probably wrong but I suspect the name was coined for the race and was later adopted as a brand? If this was the case then surely you are an Ironman if you complete the distance!
As for the Ironman tat, mine may say "I'm a c$"%" to some people. To me it means I worked bloody hard to complete a great personal challenge. That took me a a great deal of planning, preperation and training. I may have a IM tattoo on my leg, but when see all the chavs with a dodgy band around their arm I kow what tattoo I'd prefer.
I might just get three stripes put on me somewhere since I race in Adidas racing flats...
There's a US sprinter, think it might be Leroy Burrell, who has a Nike tattoo - that seems a bit daft to me; is an M-Dot any better?
Something you can never find out,so having a tattoo could be useless,as the only person who knows you did it is you.Everyone else thinks you are lying,I mean who in their right mind would want to swim 2.4 miles ,bike 112 miles and run a marathon,really.
Cost of M dot race plus training time plus travel,would be slot more than paying forty notes down some backstreet for abit of ink and Hep c.
I'll be completing an 'iron distance' race this year but to myself/friends/club mates/relatives/work mates I will be an IRONMAN. To say that I am not would be futile.