I'm 42 as well but at least I remember that 2nd and 3rd grade did NOT take place in the 70's. Unless you were a five year old 3rd grader which WOULD be deserving of a trophy.
I played organized sports from 1st grade to my freshman year in college. First grade was T-Ball and I might have some little trophy tucked away for that but I certainly didn't get any trophies from 4th grade on (Boys Club league) unless we ranked in a final tournament. But come on now, are you really going to argue against the notion of there existing an entire generation of coddled wusses like never before? Not speaking for everyone of a certain age obviously but geez just turn on the news at literally any given millisecond (or just read through the responses in this thread) if you doubt what I'm saying.