If I have to choose on a weekend between a race that is run for profit and a race that is run for a charity with the proceeds going to a local school, you can guess which one I choose (every year). :)

Have you ever asked how much actually goes to charity?

And a run is a whole other ball game than a Tri...the costs involved with a run are tiny compared to a Tri. I am meaning Tri specific .

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Primarily no but I did just sign up for a swim event that is for Easter Seals in Ontario. This charity means a lot to me so when I saw the funds went there I signed up. I would never sign up for a swim event otherwise.

Last year we put on an event for M.A.D.D. to remember a club member who was killed by a drunk driver. The run was free with M.A.D.D. accepting donations. We got 5x the number of runners we expected and 10x the expected amount of money donated. I think the key is the run is free. No frills, hand timing - medals for top 3 in each event and a few door prizes. Oh yeah, a chili lunch for 600!

You reviewed their finances?

Seriously, YES, people do care. I am a race director and all my races benefit different charities. They are small races so there isn't a lot of money to donate but any charity is happy with whatever you can give. Also, the charities get the same ,if not better, exposure as all the sponsors. There is a significant value to that exposure. I started the Hoosierman triathlon last year with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as our beneficiary and in two years we will have donated around $2500. Compare that to the amount I personally made ,$0, and you'll see that the charities actually do quite well.

Nope I just want to race

Yes. It is listed in every 503c as to who gave what and when...public record.

One example that I know of first hand is a race where a "charity" after the cost of the event (all volunteer staff) left about $150.00 for the charity after insurance/shirts/medals/prizes/police and on and on (this is in a $25k ish budget).

So, you it seems if picking between a race to benefit the YMCA as opposed to a race that is ran by a sports mgt. company like WTC, NAS or what not would pick the YMCA race...right?

I currently am assisting an RD's who main marketing focus is "To Benifit X". The fact of the matter is that after all of this marketing - unless there is some crazy influx of participants and sponsors the race is going to take a huge net loss. A "business" does it's damndest to be certain that this never happens. Not to mention that I am sure that more money is also spent on tax's from WTC to state and federal tax than many hundreds of the smaller "Charity" events combined. We add to that the fact that when RaceX goes to find sponsors and makes claims to give to "Benifit X" the sponsors who are desired to be more than "Sponsors in Kind" will state in plain english that they would prefer to give directly to the chairity and get the tax benifits.

I am not trying to be argumentitive - but the fact is that most people when they sign up for a race - more so a race they will travel more than an hour to care more about the event and what it has to offer, not who it is going to benifit...or I am wrong. If I for instance lived in Detroit why would I sign up for a small "not for profit" half that is in Wi as opposed to Spirit of Racine that is on the following weekend (let there be no question SoR is for profit and will raise far more money for chairity at the end of the day).

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Assuming you have some interest in the charity it's a nice "win/win". I get a race and they get some funding.

That my friend is KEY. I think however the mentality of folks in the Tri world is that they want a tech tee, fully marshaled course with police at every corner, aid stations ever mile and on and on...and if they dont get it it was a terrible event....Or if they do get the shirt, medal, buffet and on and on there is nothing left for the charity.

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Aw shit - I can't believe you had to go and diss scoliosis babies like that...

In the past 2 seasons I know there are some races I've done that benefited charities.

I couldn't tell you which races or charity though.

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Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

I think there are two kinds of charity races: those where the purpose of the race is to raise $$ for the charity, and those that give some minor portion of the profit to charity to benefit from the association.

People seem to care a lot about the former and not so much about the latter.

People can make any race "for charity" on their own by joining TnT and other such orgs.

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ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Amen. I however prefer CAF and the Blazeman

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Well I can't speak to what tri races do. I've run literally hundreds of running races that were for one charity or another and never reviewed how much they gave. The 5k race I co-direct had just under 1,000 runners last year and gave away roughly $13,000 to a local charity and to a high school track team.

"That my friend is KEY. I think however the mentality of folks in the Tri world is that they want a tech tee, fully marshaled course with police at every corner, aid stations ever mile and on and on...and if they dont get it it was a terrible event....Or if they do get the shirt, medal, buffet and on and on there is nothing left for the charity. "

I think that once people experience a good grassroots event, they tend to prefer them, or at least appreciate them for what they are and are not. I think a race that happens to give proceeds to charity has a lot less appeal than a charity event that happens to be centered around a race. I like the idea of a free (or minimal fee) race with charity donations encouraged. People's expectations are dramatically different when they think of themselves as a contributor rather than a customer. Customers have high expectations and want their tech tee, damn it! A good charity event, unlike a typical race, is a place where spectators will actually enjoy themselves.

For the most part no, but that might be because so many of the races i do are the same every year and most of the charity races are 5Ks and I don't like 5ks.

But there are handful of times I have signed up for a race because I thought it was a good cause. Usually I end up not racing them though.

When I lived on the mainland I would register my dogs for charity races and they'd run with me (if they were allowed). If it wasn't a charity race I'd register myself but still run with my dogs (if allowed)

Don't care how much goes, but I know in the case of the race i go to, all of it goes and it is well into the 1000's.
It is a tri.

I don't really care. I pick events based on location and calendar. If it happens to benefit a charity, that's a bonus. If the charity doesn't get much money, they at least get some publicity, which for many is probably just as important.

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But there are handful of times I have signed up for a race because I thought it was a good cause. Usually I end up not racing them though.

In that case - just send money and dont sign up for the race. When you sign up you can count on your entry being divided as $7 (shirt), $5 (timer) and on and on and on - so, if it is a good cause just send money to the cause and not have it deducted for race materials that you will never pick up :-)

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

I agree with you that the most important thing to consider in signing up for a race is that it is run well. I don't need tech tees and fancy medals and a buffet at the finish but the course needs to be well laid out and most important.....safe!

Once that is met, I prefer local races where the people putting on the race care about the sport and the community. But I think that one of the best parts of this sport is that it gives back to charities and local communities.

The Janus Charity challenge is a great way for people to give back to what they think is important and the donations are separate from the entry fee and the race organizers. Athletes can donate what they can. It would be nice if this concept could be expanded to other races, United Way is an umbrella charity that you can donate to and specify where the money goes. Maybe there should be a Tri United Way that would allow you to race for a charity and collect money independently from the race organizes. This would allow race directors to focus on running good races, make the finances more transparent and allow people flexibility to raise as much money as they want for who they want.