We are compelled to correct what we consider to be mischaracterizations of the Beach to Beacon 10K road race in both an Aug. 7 Maine Sunday Telegram article and an Aug. 17 Press Herald editorial.

People are drawn to Maine to experience this challenging road race that inspires them to achieve their best. As correctly stated in the article, nonprofits are not required to give to charity but many nonprofit road races do. Many don’t. We do. And we do much more. We fulfill our primary mission of staging a world-class road race in Maine that draws the best runners in the world alongside 6,500 recreational runners from almost every state. Our 2016 online registration filled in under four minutes – faster than any other race in the country.

We carefully align expenses with income from entry fees and sponsors’ contributions to close each race year with a balanced budget. Our focus is not on profit.

Each year the cost of putting on the event grows, from tents to sustainability initiatives to medical innovations that save lives. Our race revenue goes to bringing forth a safe, world-class event. Above all this, we also give back to the community. The race’s Beneficiary Bib Program has generated more than $1.5 million over 19 years for our race charities, in addition to the $570,000 generously donated by the TD Charitable Foundation. We integrate sponsorship partners who give back proceeds to support our charities, we have volunteers who collect every recyclable bottle and give proceeds to the beneficiary, and we allocate PR resources to maximize awareness and support for the race beneficiary. And these are just a few of the things we do.

We are proud of our commitment to both the running community and how we give back to the charities we work with. The paper’s view of what our goals should be will not deter us from continuing our mission to produce a professionally run, world-class road race that has truly become a part of the fabric of people’s lives.