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The Victory Medal
I remember the intensity. The transition between the casual game
and tournament play
was like night and day. Even after
16 years that thrill has never left.
- Scott Jones, 2000 Armistice Day Fits Tournament champion
The Indy Squadron Victory Medal After 19 Years, There's Still Only One Way to Get It
The Victory
Medal is awarded annually to the Indy Squadron champion. The squadron has only ever given out two prizes - one for
Red Baron Fight and the other for the Armistice Day championship tournament - and this is the only award to remain absolutely
consistent since it's inception.
At the original Armistice Day Fits Tournament in November of 1989, we really
didn't know what sort of award to give our winner. A trophy was our initial thought, but with only four of us playing
we wouldn't have enough in donations to pay for a nice one. And it really didn't have to be a big deal anyway... we
simply wanted something tangible to hand to our winner. So the week prior to the tournament, Stephen was told how much to
spend and sent to a local trophy shop with instructions from Clark, Scott and Dory to "find something cool."
He snooped around the trophy shop and, finding nothing in the right price range, spoke with a clerk who recommended a small
medal.
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| The original Victory Medal, 1989 |
A medal... for
an aviation game? Why hadn't we thought of that? The clerk brought out a catalog and began showing what was available
for less than ten bucks. Stephen selected a gold colored medal (what else could you give to a winner?) and a full-length neck
ribbon. The neck ribbon, he was told, was out of their price range. Reconsidering, Stephen then picked out a bright, multi-colored
short military ribbon. The smaller military-style ribbons were affordable. The clerk went back into the stock area and brought
out a beautiful gold medallion, then informed his customer that they had no more of the striking multi-colored ribbons.
In fact, due to their popularity with local high school marching bands, they were completely out of stock on all styles
except one... a solid red ribbon.
Since no other options were available Stephen bought it and showed up at the
championship game the next weekend in the sincere hope that everybody would approve of the selection. Everyone anxiously fondled
the new medal and admitted that yes, it was "something cool," but no one knew what to call it. We didn't
really want to give the winner "that red medal thingie," but at the same time, a small medal for such a small group
didn't seem worthy of a long, grandiose military title. In frustration someone finally asked, "Well, what do you
give to a victor?" A victory medal? Okay, "the victory medal" it is! The name was capitalized in the Dispatch's
later issues and it stuck.
Finances were the driving force behind the Victory Medal's selection
over the next two or three years. We didn't have enough money for a bigger award and no one could think of anything else
anyway. From a pragmatic standpoint the Victory Medal was small, unobtrusive and inexpensive, yet it was still "something
cool" to hand out to the winner. A medal didn't get faded or lost like a certificate. It didn't sit on a shelf
and get broken or in the way like a trophy. It was small enough to carry around easily. Unlike a plaque, you could even
wear it occasionally to taunt your opponents. And it was cheap. Various ideas were offered over the next two years, but nothing
was as fun or practical as this little medallion.
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| The current version, 2007-2009 |
By the early '90's the Victory Medal had become the talk of
the squadron and no one referred to it as "you know... that red medal thing" any more. We all knew exactly
what it was and we all knew that there was only one way to get it. It was enshrined as the champion's prize and cherished
as the squadron's highest honor. Almost twenty years later, those who have one still wear them on special occasions and
jab mercilessly at the "have-nots."
Only
four players committed to compete in the inaugural Armistice Day Fits Tournament so it made no sense to give out awards for
second and third place. So we decided that only the Victory Medal would be awarded, and only to the winner. The little red
medal wasn't that much to begin with and we didn't want to cheapen it. Besides, we had no money for second and third
place prizes. After a few years the tradition took root and we stopped considering anything else. The Armistice Day Fits Tournament
would offer the spotlight only to its champion. In some rare cases a second player may receive an award (see
"Eligibility") but to this day the tourney remains a winner-take-all event.
For better or worse, in every Armistice Day Fits Tournament ever held
the award has been the same... the Victory Medal, a gold medallion hung from a pure red ribbon with the date inscribed
on the back. The winner's community is small... only ten players in the game have earned the right to wear it. We bought the first one because it was the only thing available and we didn't have the funds to buy something
better. Now, nearly two decades later, we wouldn't have anything else.
Some past versions of the Victory Medal are shown below:
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