Stetching a dollar
If you were hosting a banquet fund-raiser, would you skip the main course because it was too expensive? If you were holding a theater benefit would you make everybody stand so you wouldn't have to pay for seating?
Not likely.
Yet, organizations often feel they can omit essential elements of running events to save money. Race organizers consider eliminating split times, water, timing systems, and awards, among other things, to save money.
But without split times and timing systems, there is no race - just a bunch of people running. Water is a health and safety necessity, not a perk. It should never be eliminated or cut back. Awards recognize winners. If there aren't any winners, there really isn't a race.
Few runners will pay an entry fee just for a fun run. They can run for fun on their own. Even slow runners, who have no chance of winning anything, want to know their pace during the race and their results afterward. They are running to compete, not to contribute to a cause.
Charity races can be successful if they follow advice about event production and recognize that runners are usually neither contributors nor fund-raisers.
So, if you don't think you can afford to produce a quality race, then don't. Do something else instead.