TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 10K Fills Again in Record Time

Registration for popular road race closes 1 hour and 45 minutes after online registration opened at noon Sunday

CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine – Registration for the 12th edition of the TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 10K closed in yet another record time – just 1 hour and 45 minutes after it began on Sunday afternoon.

Online registration closed at 1:45 p.m. on March 15 after reaching the expanded 6,000-runner capacity for the August 1 road race in coastal Cape Elizabeth, Maine. The field size was increased by 500 runners this year, yet registration for the 2009 race easily shattered last year’s record of 26 hours.

Due to the high volume of traffic to the site, some trying to register were not able to complete their application before the race closed. Race organizers are reviewing the calls and emails coming in regarding those issues and will be working on a plan to address each one of them. To find out if your registration went through, runners can go to the site, www.beach2beacon.org, and click on the entrants tab to check for your name.

“It’s a great race that has been strengthened by our community, sponsors and volunteers,” Joan Benoit Samuelson, founder of the race and 1984 Olympic gold medalist, said Sunday afternoon. “Runners this year were ready to register at noon and many were able to register with no issues. I wish we could accommodate everyone. We cap the field size at 6,000 to provide the runners with a memorable experience and safe passage.”

Race organizers have doubled the field size since the 3,000-runner limit for the first year of the race in 1998. In 1999, they expanded to 4,000, in 2002 to 5,000, and in 2006 to 5,500. In the early years, registration opened in March and the race did not fill until June. By 2007, registration closed in 10 days. Last year – the first year of online-only registration – it filled in a mere 26 hours.

Printed applications were discontinued last year, so online registration is the only way for runners to enter the popular international road race.

The TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon is one of Maine’s premiere sporting events and one of the most popular events on the U.S. road race circuit. The race draws runners from throughout the region and the world to the small coastal community of Cape Elizabeth. Thousands of spectators cheer on the runners along the picturesque course and at the finish, and more than 800 volunteers help ensure a smooth operation.

The race begins near the Crescent Beach entrance on Route 77 in Cape Elizabeth, winds past breathtaking ocean vistas, and ends in Fort Williams Park at the historic and stunning Portland Head Light, the most photographed lighthouse in the world.

More than $60,000 in prize money is awarded to the top finishers and place winners in the various categories for men and women. For more information, visit www.beach2beacon.org.

TD Banknorth is the title sponsor of the race founded by Joan Benoit Samuelson, the Olympic gold medalist from Cape Elizabeth who also serves as a spokesperson for the bank during the year to promote the race and the bank’s giving programs, which benefit Maine youth with sponsorship programs and charitable donations.

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