2009 Weiner Dog Races at Emerald Downs (be a wiener!)

You haven’t lived until you have seen the wiener dog races at Emerald Downs in Auburn, Washington. This year, they will on Friday, August 14th, 2009. The first horse race is at 6:00pm. Even though my brain is sometimes mush, I recall the first wiener dog race occurring around 7:00pm.

This year, Trophies2go is proudly sponsoring the awards. For me, this tugs on my quirky sense of humor as well as ever-so-slightly touching my need to provide ‘meaningful recognition’. Heck, Dachshunds and their owners need some recognition, too – especially after the anxiety of being in front of thousands of people and facing the real possibility that something could ‘go wrong’. In the middle of the race, the wiener dog can get distracted after all – he/she might need to go potty or even fall in love with the dog in the next lane over!

The hosts for the event are STAR 101.5’s Kent & Alan along with our family friend, “Super Jen“. Make sure you allow for a bit of time during the first few horse races to swing by and say ‘Hi’ to the STAR 101.5 crew at the north end of the grandstand. Who knows, Jen might even be there with her baby!  There are typically a few other sponsors in the vicinity that have awesome give-aways or promotions.  If we are there this year, make sure to come on by!

Without being my normal wordy self, here are some picture from previous years

The pre-race show down

They are off!

The multi-year champion, King Louis IV

Curious as to who else is sponsoring the event? Here is a complete list: seattle center, kimpton hotels, wellness pet food, hotel monaco, sazerac restaurant, hotel vintage park, tulio ristorante, alexis hotel, king county animal care and control, bit-o-luv dog treats, and olympus spa.

I may have a few extra FREE tickets for general admission entry – first come, first served to my Blog readers!

To end, I feel the urge to plug a couple of our most popular sections of our site, award plaques, acrylic awards & trophies, and crystal awards & trophies.  Check them out!  See you at the races!

Awards Ceremony Sites and Tips

Deciding Where to Hold Your Occasion for Awards

So you want to present awards to your employees, team members, supporters, volunteers, or any group of people who, well…deserve an award! Ok, so you have the awards, of course provided by Trophies2Go; but do you want to just hand them out in the office (anti-climactic, lack-luster, and just plain boring)? Or do you hold a nice awards ceremony event somewhere?

Holding an awards ceremony doesn’t necessarily mean extravaganza, but it will be nice to make the occasion memorable as you hand out that special award from Trophies2Go. There are ways to hold an awards ceremony and venues for awards parties, that can garner praises from your group without breaking the bank. Here are some ideas and tips for award presentations and events:

• A low-key awards event: Park pavilions make great venues. They are cheap to rent or sometimes free. People can hang streamers and balloons, plus rent or buy an $80 Karaoke machine to make announcements on. Have 6-foot subs or barbecue buffet delivered and let everyone chow down. This is good food that isn’t expensive. Give prizes and be creative with awards from our joke and gag trophies section.  Be creative with your engraving like; ‘the person who has the oldest coin in their pocket’ or ‘the person with the brightest colored socks’. Have each recipient of an award or Trophies 2 Go trophy say any one thing they’d like to say to the group. Courtyards in office buildings or attached to restaurants work well, too. Adding Tiki torches or candles in vases is a nice touch to keep it classy, yet affordable. The nice thing about pavilions is that rain won’t deter your event.

• A mid-range awards party: A step up from the park idea is to rent a trolley or limo to transport people. Better yet, if you surprise the award party guests / award recipients by having them meet somewhere. Many fine restaurants offer function rooms / meeting rooms to rent that are large enough for your entire party – from 30 to 300. Depending on the size of the crowd, you may be able to speak without a microphone. Pass the trophies and awards around, and do some networking. Not to mention, pop the champagne that goes with the award celebration!

Bonus: To jazz it up, pull up to a jazz club or lounge, and have a surprise cake or dessert feast delivered to the group. Everyone loves dessert and an award ceremony is a great way to expose that “sweet side”.

• An upscale ceremony: Choose a really hotel for an award presentation party. Here’s a tip. Don’t call and say, “How much per person for a group of 25 to come in and eat dinner?” Instead, say “I’m inquiring with a few local restaurants and hotels to get recommendations for a large group of people (give estimate of how many people). What do you have to offer for a group like this? What specials can you offer?”

Let the restaurant or hotel earn your business with a discounted price or by throwing in a couple of freebies, like the first drink free or free dessert. If you speak like you have already chosen and want their venue, the site will charge you the max. Also, don’t hesitate to ask that they decorate for your event by putting out some candles and/or fresh flowers. If they won’t, they should be willing to let you come by and do some light decorating yourself. If not – make another choice.

No matter how large or how small your awards ceremony may be, the main goal is for it to feel celebrational and special. And remember, Trophies2go.com has the right award item for your needs!