I just got a massively intimidating letter from the Ironman corporation's attorneys (all 37 of them listed on the top of the letter) ordering me to cease and desist from selling Ironmom shirts (though I will point out to them that I only created the shirt for me and have made exactly $0 selling shirts.) Apparently, though Ironmom is not trademarked, (nor is Ironskillet, Wrought Iron Railings, my Iron Tablets that I take for anemia or many other uses of the word Iron, I would point out), it is "confusingly similar" to the word Ironman and therefore I cannot have my Ironmom shirt for Christmas.
Bah Humbug.
7 comments:
woah... how unfair is that!?!? very uncool for them to bully you - no way that their contention would hold H20 if battled, but they know the little guy won't fight the big bad 37 lawyer behemoth...
booo! I think it's silly unless they plan to fill that need themselves. I mean, really, it's just free advertising. A cute fit girl wearing a name someone might mistake for theirs? Their mistake!
I saw other stuff on another blog I believe... about being told to remove all Ironman logos from her blog about training! WTF? It's again just free advertising.
It's sad to me that they feel the need to stop people from sharing love for triathlon through what happens to be the logo of one company. Hahaha... if the 101 series came up with a better logo and allowed that it would be one more time they are listening to athletes where IM isn't ;)
I agree. I mean, it's not like Joe Ironman dude is going to accidentally mistake my Ironmom shirt for a bona fide Ironman shirt and buy it, thus depriving the Ironman corp. of their rightful massive profits (no wait, I'd have to sell my shirts for $45 apiece, or no one would mistake them for Ironman shirts, bwa ha ha). I'd start on a rant about the good old days of triathlon, but that would just make me sound like an old fogey...
geez. don't they have better things to do.
i think you should register the Ironmom trademark. if it's anything like copyrighting a song, it doesn't cost much.
then you could tell them to go boink themselves.
Don't worry about it: it is usual for corporations to send 'fire and brimstone' letters like this. Send them one back saying their claims are "without merit or foundation" and asking them if they think the media will be interested in an "iron" coproration bullying a Mother.
Robin...try having a father that was one of the Original Ironman in 1978 (Henry Forrest Jr) and knowing that Valerie Silk illegally sold IM back in the 80's stating she was the originator of IM. Everybody knows John and Judy Collins thought it up and planned it. Back then Hawaiian law stated if you have a voting stake in a company, you are part owner of that company. Which means all of the 15 men that voted on rules and regulations that first year had a financial stake in the company. Just think of the money all of those men and there families are out of because of Valerie Silk.
Several years ago some of the Original Ironman placed a law suit on WTC and IM for ownership rights. It didn't last long after they responded basically saying they were going to take our house and everything in it. My father trying to protect his family backed out of the suit and giving up on the idea. He recently passed of Pancreatic Cancer and was able to attend the 30th anniversary of the IM just 2 1/2 weeks before he passed.
The year he was diagnosed I wrote Ben Fertic (President of WTC) and asked permission to run Kona to attempt to complete the race before my father passed. He said he would give it "serious consideration". I never got a call or email back from email even though I left message after message for him.
Knowing I could have raced and my dad be there just 2 1/2 weeks before he passed and was not able to killed me. I never even got the common decency of a "Hell No". Horrible if you ask me!
I know more about the inner deamons of IM and WTC then most people and still one day I would like to race there.
But since I can't even get a return phone call from them, I just went and did "Hawaii Revisisted" this month. It's the Original Ironman course on Oahu. Same rules apply as they did back in 1978 and the money raised is for Challenged Athletes Foundation. I treasured becoming an Ironman on the same course as my father did back in 1978 much more than I think I would have under the watchfull eye of WTC in Kona!
Thxs for listening!
Henry III
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