Medals or pins--A poll
 

In response to this thread, what would you prefer? You do not have to give a reason here, especially if you have already posted there.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

The "pins" Bill is referring to (at least the FTC ones) look nothing like buttons; they more resemble the Chairman's, Safety, and Gracious Professionalism pins.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I'd go with medals as so many other pins are obtained throughout the competition that another pin probably wouldn't mean as much as a bronze medal.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I went with medals,

because, you can"feel" them....they have a weight to them and it feels like they mean something....more than a pin atleast....

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I don't like participation medals, i never take one from my team because i never understood the point of them. I only want a medal that says i won something. The bronze medal, is supposed to symbolize 3rd place, you don't get third place so why would you take it if you didn't get third place? I would much rather have a pin, it shows you participated and it doesn't give people false imprecations of how you did at the competition.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Medals for awards winners only... pins for everyone (in addition to the medals)

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Pins for participation...I've never taken a medal for participation

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Pin for participation, the everyone is a winner philosophy cheapens winning. Bronze medal implies 3rd place and a team that went 0-8 shouldn't get a medal implying 3rd place.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I like pins. They are smaller, brighter, and more versatile. Pin 'em to your hat, collar, sleeve, lanyard, badge, scarf, necktie, etc.

And a supply of pins sufficient for one regional event is fairly easy to manage, from the freight handlers' perspective^*. As a volunteer who has been responsible for FRC event shipments, I support making those shipments lighter whenever we can do so, while maintaining high standards for the FRC experience.

^* Anyone who has handled one of the Medallion Cases at an FRC event knows what I mean. Those things are VERY heavy, and have been known to cause problems if they get loose on a truck, or crash into something at the event venue.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Chris, I know. I realized that after I'd put the poll up. I was thinking like the current RCA/CA pins.

As for medals, of course you'd keep the gold/silver ones in place.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I think pins similar to the mentor or volunteer pins would be fine. They are certainly more "wearable" and safer than medals dangling from a ribbon.

Having the year and FRC game title on the pin would be a nice touch.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Everyone's a winner is poor word choice, really. I think the idea is that a medal is a better physical representation of what you've accomplished as a team.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Pin, cheaper, more unique and more interesting. I would collect pins from past seasons which you can't really do with medals. Also, you could wear pins to a comp which you can't do with medals (at least not comfortably) .

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

I vote pins.

Medals were cool in FLL, but they didn't exactly mean anything significant to me and they seem cheaply built. I prefer pins as they are small, I can put them on anything, wear them at competitions and not feel as though a medal will get in the way, and they have an overall professional look over medals.

But the gold, silver, and chairmans medals are still cool with me.

Re: Medals or pins--A poll
 

Giving someone an "I was there" trinket is not cheapening anything. Is winning and losing so important that we forget why this program exists in the first place? Hint: it has nothing to do with building robots or entering them in competition. A participation trinket is a recognition that you got off the couch, dropped the video game controller, and CHOSE to do something amazing -- even if your robot didn't win a trophy. I don't think it has anything to do with "everyone's a winner."

In my own program, I feel the awarding of participation recognition does nothing to lessen the feeling of achievement that the kids in Exothermic Robotics have in successfully building robots and winning 25+ trophies in the last three years. I haven't polled all of them, but I'd bet a nickel that the kids in our program wouldn't even care about the question, let alone the answer.