Saint John — Roll Up the Rim to Win is back at Tim Hortons, and thousands are flocking to the chain for their chance to win a free coffee or donut. Some, it turns out, are more prepared than others for the grand event.
It was last June when Reggie Peterson, 43, discovered an unused “win coffee” rim in the cup holder of his truck. After a quick search online, he discovered that the rims were no longer valid past May.
“I was devastated,” said Peterson, before reconsidering. “Well, no, I guess I wasn’t devastated — but it was really shitty. I mean, that was a perfectly good coffee, y’know?”
Then, a devilish idea occurred to him.
“I thought to m’self: the cups are always red, right? Well, then they probably wouldn’t know the difference if I just saved this one here and used it next year. I thought it was a pretty sly idea, if I do say so.”
So that’s what he did. After placing the rim in his wallet for safe keeping, Peterson simply went on with the rest of his year. According to Peterson, the rim’s residency in his wallet saw it through two credit card changes, four Home Hardware gift cards and a suspended licence.
Peterson even lost his wallet on two separate occasions: once at Sobey’s and once at the Saint John Exhibition. He claims that the rim was the first thing he thought of on both occasions.
After a while, it seemed like the time we would finally be able to redeem it would never come — that is, until this morning.
“I have been waiting so long for this moment,” he excitedly told The Manatee, pulling up to the Tims drive-thru.
“Welcome to Tim Hortons, how can I help you,” the speaker asked.
“Yeah, can I get a large coffee with one milk — I have a rim for it,” he said, turning and winking to the reporter.
After pulling up and receiving his long-awaited free coffee, Peterson had clearly become a little emotional.
“To me, this is more than just a free coffee,” he said. “This is vindication. This is for everyone who doubted me. My wife, who wanted to throw it away, my boss, who doesn’t drink Tim Hortons, my kid, who tried to steal my wallet — everybody.”
Still driving, he proudly pulled back the tab and brought the coffee to his lips.
“Ugh! Double-double,” he said, spitting and pouring it out the window.