An engraved pocket knife! What a great prize!
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Our GMO has done engraved brushes in the past that were nice.
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I actually confirmed with the office staff because it was SO weird. And they said ‘nope that’s the prize.’ Because I had the same thought. Surely these were supposed to be handed out to each competitor?
I ended up throwing them away I think. I was in Florida and the humidity doesn’t really allow bumper stickers to stay on…. And what was I going to do with 300 anyways 
Other competitors got similarly weird prizes. Lead ropes that were clearly not new. A water bottle, but one of those ones that’s branded with insurance info they give out for free at the fair. It was weird.
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I guess that makes sense. I guess, maybe for more context as to why I thought it sucked, I was probably 11 or 12 at the time.
Totally makes sense. Home decor and drinking paraphernalia are among the list of “not for pony kids” prizes.
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That’s pretty bizarre. Lol.
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I will stand by my comment on the other thread that through all the coolers, silver, trinkets, etc that I’ve won, my favorite prize is still a credit off my bill for classes lol. I do love the beautiful engraved trays (I bring them out for silver service on holidays) and frames too.
Now this was at a local show series, but it’s nice to have your classes covered unexpectedly for champion at a local show with no prize money!
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Best prize: Sofa size Horseware Newmarket blanket. It lived in our truck, keeping our sleeping daughter cozy on our way home from shows.
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Oh dear, this has to be up there on the list of Worst Ever.
Some of these prizes seem like they came from an episode of Storage Wars.
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[quote=“StormyDay, post:103, topic:785607, full:true”]
Perhaps they were trying to send a message? But what message?
Something like…
Don’t come back next year!
Don’t enter this class, you won’t want the “prize!”
Some college kid thought up the stupidest experiment ever to record the reactions of the winners of these items, and we decided to let him guinea pig our competitors.
We want your money, but we really don’t want competitors to show up at our show, so…this is what you get if you do.
We hate you, and to prove it, plus make sure you never come back, here’s your rotten “trophy.”
The trophy chair is bonkers and no one else wants to be responsible for organizing trophies this year. (This one gets my vote.)
…and finally…
Smile, you’re on Candid Camera!
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Watching my friend show in Paso Robles CA. The prizes for the adults were wine from local wineries and IPA beer with a cute beer koozie from local breweries.
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I somehow ended up being in charge of the prizes for an in-barn show. No ribbons, but I was allotted $5 for first place, $2 for second, and $1 for third. I did Starbucks gift certificates for first, carrots from the dollar store for third, and (I think) little bags of horse treats or maybe peppermints for second. There may have also been a prize table.
I once won a large box of horse-themed chocolates for winning my division at a horse trial.
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Sadly, my thought was that it is a sign of mental illness.
Places like this are usually done with meetings. It shows that no one should be given free rein without it being put to the members in the Committee.
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14 year old me always honed in on the champagne flutes lol. Mom eventually asked for the wine glasses 
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Just remembered a year end award that was a very large duffel/gym style tote on a frame with wheels and a pull up handle, it was heavy duty and decent quality. But…
When you stood it up and pulled it along? The club logo, year and “Champion” were upside down. 
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GAAAAAHHHH, so frustrating!
or the awards manager dropped off the stuff and ran with the money
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I tried to be a bit more gentle and used the word “bonkers” instead, but…you get the drift. 
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Without a doubt, the best prizes I ever received were from the AQHA Regional Shows. First place was an enormous Montana Silversmiths belt buckle. Second place was a 3 pack of Weatherbeta blankets that had a fleece cooler, a light-ish weight stable blanket, and a medium weight turnout blanket. All excellent quality with a nice plaque embroidered on them. For second place!! My coach, who was putting miles on a greenie, kept trying to win 2nd because she wanted those blankets That was probably 15-20 years ago now. I still have one of the turnout blankets! I must have come home with 2 or 3 sets of blankets and several belt buckles. Your chances are pretty good when there’s 3-4 people in each class 
AQHA wins again for best year-end awards. My state would assign a certain dollar amount for each year end placing, and you could pick your prize. If you won more than one year end award, you could pool your awards together to get one more expensive item. It look the element of surprise out of it, but it was a worthy trade-off to know you were getting something you would actually use. One year I won a pair of Oster body clippers!
A couple years ago, I won some lovely Roeckl winter gloves at a 3 day event. They had a table for each placing and you could pick whatever you wanted. The prizes were all donations from the eventing community. I still use them in the winter, they’re fantastic gloves. Sadly, that event is no more.
I’ve had my/my horse’s name engraved on several perpetual trophies, which I love. There’s something about seeing your name on there, right next to the local greats, that makes it really special.
As for the worst prizes, one time I won a pewter candlestick at a H/J show. I joked that I won a blue ribbon and a chance for an honest life (Les Mis reference anyone?). All in all, not a terrible prize (especially compared to others in this thread!), but that’s not really my thing.
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