Dan Dan Marathon Man, General Blog, Review
REVIEW: Notch – The Mark of Achievement
Aug
Who doesn’t love a bit of bling at the end of a running event? That satisfaction you get being handed your medal (sometimes whilst almost being sick…), confirmation you’ve achieved the completion of a tough run. Most of them then get chucked in a cupboard, box, drawer, hung up somewhere – to be admired now and again or forgotten about. What if you could have a mini-medal, a memento to your achievement, on your wrist as part of a unique and trendy wristband/bracelet?
I came across the ‘Notch’ concept after the 2019 Chester Marathon, where the founders had a small stall near the finishing line on Chester Racecourse. Being a sucker for wristbands and bracelets, I was immediately interested – so what are they?
Well in a nutshell their bracelets with little…well notches on.
The bracelets
Come in a variety of colours, sizes, styles and are either leather or cord material with a stainless steel magnetic clasp. The bracelets are comfortable and durable, they also don’t create sweat rashes or need cleaning like some other bracelets and wristbands I’ve worn. I’ve had issues with the standard clasp. As most folk won’t typically take off their bracelets and will wear them in the shower, the clasps, over a long period of time – as in several months, started to rust and gradually lost their magneticity – which meant they eventually fell off. I’m happy to report that the team at Notch recently upgraded their clasps to stop this from happening. They also offer an upgraded brass clasp. Top Notch!
The Notches
Are as shown in the above image. They’re an equivalent/substitute to a medal made of either brass, stainless steel or coloured aluminium – with engraved wording, in different colours and an icon. What’s an icon? See an example below
Are the Notches durable?
Oh yes, they take a good battering….with both the Notch and engraving remaining in good condition. When you order your initial ‘starter bracelet’, it comes with a single Notch of your choosing/design. There are also some small rubber separators to prevent the Notches from rubbing and keeping them in good nick.
Is getting the Notches on your bracelet easy?
As you build up your Notch collection and fill your bracelet, it is a bit fiddly getting the rubber separators over the clasp, especially for those with shovels for hands! Although not exactly difficult – just ask my wife!
How many Notches will fit on a bracelet?
Notch mention on their site that ‘You’ll be able to fit at least 20 Notches onto any NOTCH® Bracelet‘. Whilst this is true I’d recommend no more than ten notches per bracelet. More than that and your bracelet will end up being too tight and tend to ‘pop’ off when pressure is applied or your skin expands when hot etc. Alternatively, you could purchase a bracelet in a larger size – which might move up and down your arm until it’s become full of notches.
Cost?
With prices starting from just £9.50, there’s a range of options to customise and personalise your Notch collection. TRB are happy to announce a 10% discount with the guys at Notch if you purchase through us at TheRunBible, just use code TRBNOTCH10 at checkout.
TRB have backdated the collection to include events from South By Five 2019 onward. Fancy purchasing a bracelet and adding some TRB notches? Check out our collection page here
Thanks for reading the review,
Team TRB