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The Annual Design Contest

 

Hi. Please give this a read, then scroll all the way down for the submission form. There are 3 different design categories: patch, shirt and poster. Each with their own set of basic requirements. There are also some general design guidelines and info on our selection criteria.

The 2013 contest is now closed. We will re-open for 2014 sometime in the summer. Thanks to all artists for submitting your designs!

Chiditarod Patch Design

Limited-edition ultra-rare 1-run embroidered patch, unique every year. White on Black patches are available for purchase in advance and on race day. Colored thread patches are not available for purchase; they are gifted by Coreganizers to volunteers and chiditarodders who go above and beyond the call of epic.

To download a PSD template click here.
To create your own template:

  • The actual patch has a 4 inch diameter so set your work area to 4 inches x 4 inches and a minimum DPI of 300.
  • Use the elliptical tool to create a circle that fits in this work space, this is the size of the actual patch.
  • The patch has a 1/4 inch stitch border, we recommend that you observe at least 1/4 inch beyond this border so your actual design space is a circle with a 3.5 inch diameter.

Patch designs must include:

  1. The word “Chiditarod”
  2. The year “YYYY”
  3. A shopping cart

Design Advice

  • Make your designs in high contrast black and white.
  • Remember this is a stitched patch. Patch has single color thread on a black fabric background.
  • Only so much detail will translate to thread, keep your lines thick.
  • No shading or half tones, its either black or its white.

Patch Samples
Template, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Chiditarod 2006 patch designChiditarod 2007 patch designChiditarod 2008 patch designChiditarod 2009 patch designChiditarod 2010 patch designChiditarod 2011 patch designChiditarod 2012 patch design

clipart-t-shirt

Chiditarod Shirt Design

Unique, hand-made silkscreened apparel in various stylish cuts and colors. T-Shirts, hats, onesies, panties, etc.

To download a PSD template click here.
To create your own template:

  • Set your work area to 8.5 inches x 11 inches and a minimum DPI of 300.

Shirt designs must include:

  1. The word “Chiditarod”
  2. The year “YYYY”
  3. A shopping cart

Design advice

  • Your design should look unbelievably hot on a t-shirt (or panties, or a sleeve, or a onesie, etc)
  • Shirts are silkscreened, so shading and half tones are not ok.  Keep it black and white.
  • Too much detail on a silkscreen is lost after multiple prints so keep it to a minimum.

Shirt Samples
Template, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Chiditarod Poster Design

Posters find their way into all sorts of shops, onto light posts, and displayed in windows. They provide the critical details – who, what, when, where, how, and why. Freed by the lack of constraints associated with the patch and t-shirt designs, go nuts!

To download a PSD template click here.
To create your own template:

  • Set your work area to 11 inches x 17 inches and a minimum DPI of 300.

Poster designs must include:

  1. The word “Chiditarod”
  2. The year “YYYY”
  3. The tagline “Probably the world’s largest mobile food drive” AND “to register, volunteer or get more information visit www.chiditarod.org”
  4. The date of the race “MM/DD/YYYY”
  5. A shopping cart

Design Advice

  • You may include additional wording to enhance your design and drum up interest.
  • Be creative with your copy writing and word smithing, but keep it to a minimum, less is more.
  • Use custom fonts for headlines ONLY, use a basic font for everything else.
  • Color is OK but much more expensive for us to print, make sure your design looks good in black and white too.
  • Shading and halftones are OK.

Bonus!
If you feel so inclined, a poster design with an aspect ratio of 8.5 x 11 inches would save us time and let us print smaller if we decide to go that route. If you provide it we almost certainly will!

Poster Samples
Template, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Chiditarod 2006 posterChiditarod 2007 posterChiditarod 2008 posterChiditarod 2009 posterChiditarod 2010 poster Chiditarod 2011 posterChiditarod 2012 poster

Design Guidelines

When you upload, please title your files appropriately starting with the current year and include nice tags, like:

  • 2011-chiditarod-patch-your_name.pdf
  • 2012-chiditarod-shirt-your_name.pdf
  • 2013-chiditarod-poster-your_name.pdf

Please upload high resolution PDFs for your design submissions. If we choose your design we will contact you for your final design files. Acceptable final design files include layered Photoshop PSD and Illustrator AI files.  Please make sure you keep any custom fonts you use and provide them with your final design package if you are chosen.  Visit dafont.com for free custom fonts and enter your text in the preview to see how it looks. Choose your font based on legibility. Show it to others to make sure they can easily read what it says.

Selection Criteria

Design winners will be evaluated and selected based on the following criteria:

  • Aesthetic: Is it rad? Is it sweet? Will people WANT to have it?  Does it embody the spirit of the Chiditarod?   You know… Chicago, winning, explosions, shenanigans, charity, covert ops, carts, mayhem, epic victory, glory, etc.
  • Originality: How much does it stand out from previous years?  Has it been done before?  Does it ride the edge of carting art?
  • Functionality: Does it work as a patch? Can we screen print it? Does it convey the message?


Questions
If you have a questions that is not addressed in these guidelines please email us at: design@chiditarod.org.