Ducks, baby shoes, puppies, and buckets. All are coveted within the speech community.  While it can be a little stressful and disappointing to those who don’t receive a prize, many strive for very specific honors with these awards. But that’s not all because these prizes have great stories that are begging to be told.

We will start with the Cambridge-Isanti tournament. Each year, Rubber ducks are offered at the concessions stand for three dollars a piece. These ducks are named and drawn for prizes during awards. I would never have thought that it would be a good idea to aim for a lower place than the top three until I heard about the coveted pirate duck rewarded to the speaker in fourth place. This was taken a step further this year due to the head coach retiring. The small, medium, and large schools who placed third at the tournament got their choice of a plush duck. However, this isn’t the only tournament with wacky prizes.

For example, at the Rochester John Marshall tournament, competitors get a mix of Spider-Man hearts ( because the tournament is around Valentine’s day)and coveted buckets for first place that are painted with the place of the receiver. But that is not all. In previous years the category champions have gotten blow horns and mugs. Teams who are skilled enough to receive first place get some variety of sparkly blue shoes. This tradition started my first year when a mishap with the trophy supplier left the head coach of John Marshall without awards a day before the tournament. So, with the help of multiple captains and a Walmart, they created a prototype award… with a shoe. Notoriety is the root of fame, and it shows. Last year former captain Iris French was so excited that we won; she wore the blue stilettos all the way home.