Michael Cyger wins Lonnie Borck memorial award at NamesCon 2021

lonnie-borck-memorial-award

You have all heard me say it over and over again, but it needs to be said again, what makes the domain investing world so special really is the people. One of those people, Lonnie Borck, we lost far too soon but his kind spirit lives on and is celebrated in many ways still, one of those being an award given out by the ICA in his honor given out each year.

Last year Ron Jackson won the award and it might just be the last time I teared up in public, it was a very touching moment – if you missed it you can watch the video here.

This year Michael Cyger won the award and I think it goes without saying that he really deserves it. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Michael since he started in the domain investing world. Michael is someone who truly cares about helping other people and making the world a better place.

The way that Michael received the award was pretty interesting since, well, we’re in the middle of a pandemic and Michael lives on an island off the coast of Washington – Bainbridge Island. Well, as luck would have it, another domain industry veteran and fellow blogger Andrew Allemann also lives on the same island which I feel like we should probably just rename Domainer Island at this point 😜

Ron Jackson did a great job breaking down how Andrew surprised Michael with the award:

Now, with personal meetings severely limited, it was hard to figure out a way to surprise the winner (always a big part of the fun in Lonnie Borck Award ceremony). As it happens, two of the nominees, Michael Cyger (at left) and Andrew Allemann live near each other on Bainbridge Island in Washington State. So, the ICA was able to enlist Allemann to successfully pull off their plot. Andrew called Michael and told he would like to tape a pre-NamesCon interview with him. Using that ruse, Andrew had the camera already set up when Michael arrived. But once he started recording Allemann confessed to Cyger that he had fudged a bit on truth. Andrew then handed him a black box. Inside it Michael was stunned to find the Lonnie Borck Memorial Award with his name on it! Well played Andrew and the ICA!(Source – DNJournal)
Michael Cyger wins Lonnie Borck Award

Huge congrats to Michael Cyger, you make the domain industry and the world a better place and I was so excited to see you get this award!

Morgan Linton

Morgan Linton