CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine (March 15, 2012) – The online portion of the TD Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race registration filled 4,000 slots in a record-breaking five minutes on Thursday morning, race organizers said, and those still looking for a spot at the start line began registering for the lottery.

This year marks the special 15th year for the popular international road race founded by Olympic gold medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson and set for Saturday, Aug. 4 in coastal Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
Runners now have until midnight on March 22 to register for one of the 1,850 remaining bibs available through the lottery, which will be drawn on March 23.  Runners can sign up for the lottery at the race website, b2bdevelopment.wpengine.com.

“We’re pleased with how the registration process worked this year,” said volunteer race president David Weatherbie. “We increased the lottery by 100 slots and further expanded our system load capacity to increase the number of registrations we process in a minute. Basically it’s the same improved system we put in place a few years ago and we feel positive about the results.”

This year’s record time – 5:06 – shaved three minutes off the 8-minute mark from 2011.

Cape Elizabeth residents, given a 24-hour window to fill 600 online slots on Wednesday, reached the cap within eight minutes, also a new record.

Those who got into the race received an e-mail confirmation from race organizers. Those who did not were re-directed to the bib lottery registration process. Just before noon on Thursday, 1512 runners had entered the lottery.
Each lottery entrant is charged $5. Runners who get into the race via the lottery will be notified by e-mail and their names will be posted on the race website on March 23.

Race beneficiaries, sponsors, elite athletes and runners who have taken part in all 14 past races can begin registering online on March 30.

The race will allow registered-runner transfers from May 1 through June 30. The race will charge a $5 transfer fee. Cape Elizabeth residents registered in the 600 entries allocated to Cape Elizabeth residents can only transfer to another Cape Elizabeth resident.

Race organizers are again targeting a race day field of 6,000. A record 5,876 runners finished the 2011 race. The race has more than doubled in size since it debuted 15 years ago in 1998 when 2,408 runners crossing the finish line.

Online registration for the Kids Fun Run will begin March 16 and continue through June 30, however, parents can also register their children at the Expo or on Race Day.

The TD 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 picturesque coastal community of Cape Elizabeth. Thousands of spectators cheer on the runners along the scenic 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 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 and a $30,000 donation is provided to a youth beneficiary each year by the TD Charitable Foundation. This year, the Center for Grieving Children ( www.cgcmaine.org ) has been chosen as the race beneficiary.

TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank®, is the title sponsor of the race founded by running icon Joan Benoit Samuelson, the 1984 Olympic marathon gold medalist from Cape Elizabeth and Maine’s most admired athlete. The race is directed by Dave McGillivray of DMSE Sports, who also directs the B.A.A. Boston Marathon and is regarded as one of the top road race managers in the world.

For additional information about the race, visit b2bdevelopment.wpengine.com, and find the TD Beach to Beacon on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.