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Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Effective date: June 6, 2026 Last updated: June 6, 2026

Trail Monster Running (“TMR,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you use trailmonsterrunning.org, subscribe to our weekly email, buy something from our shop, sign up to volunteer, or otherwise interact with us, and what we do with that information.

If you have questions about this policy, contact us at [email protected].

1. Who we are

Trail Monster Running is a community group of trail runners based in Southern Maine. We host group runs, organize a small number of races each year, maintain trails at Bradbury Mountain, and sell branded merchandise to help fund those activities.

This policy applies to our website and the services we offer through it. It does not apply to third-party websites we link to (such as race registration platforms or social media), which have their own privacy policies.

2. Information we collect

2.1 Information you give us directly

We collect the following information when you choose to provide it:

  • Newsletter signups — your email address, and optionally your first name.
  • Online store purchases — your name, billing address, shipping address, email address, phone number (if provided), and the products you ordered. Payment card details are handled directly by our payment processor (see Section 4); we do not see or store full card numbers.
  • Contact and volunteer forms — your name, email address, and the contents of any message you send.
  • Race registrations — handled by third-party registration platforms (see Section 5). TMR may receive a roster export containing names, emails, and emergency contact information for race-day operations.
  • Account information — if our shop offers account creation, your username, password (stored hashed), and order history.

2.2 Information collected automatically

When you visit our website, we (and our service providers) automatically collect:

  • IP address
  • Browser type and version
  • Operating system and device type
  • Pages visited and time spent on each
  • Referring website
  • Date and time of visit
  • Cookies and similar tracking data (see Section 6)

This data is used for analytics, security, and to keep the site working properly.

3. How we use your information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Send you our weekly newsletter (only if you’ve subscribed)
  • Process and fulfill orders from our online shop
  • Communicate with you about purchases, group runs, races, or volunteer activities
  • Operate, maintain, and improve the website
  • Respond to your questions and contact form submissions
  • Coordinate race-day logistics, including safety contacts
  • Comply with legal obligations and enforce our terms

We do not sell your personal information. We do not rent or trade email lists.

4. Sharing your information

Most of what you give us — newsletter subscriptions, contact form submissions, shop orders, and account information — is stored on our own servers and is not shared with a third-party service. Where we do rely on third parties, we share only what’s necessary for them to do their job:

What Service provider What they receive
Payment processing Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, and WooCommerce Payments Payment details, billing address, order total
Analytics Google Analytics Anonymized usage data
Race registration UltraSignup and RunSignUp Whatever you submit during registration

Each of these providers has its own privacy policy governing how it handles your information.

We may also share information when required by law, in response to a valid legal process, or to protect the safety of our community, our races, or the public.

If TMR is ever dissolved, merged, or transfers its operations, member and customer information may be transferred as part of that change. We’ll notify you before that happens.

5. Race registration

Race registration is handled by third-party platforms such as UltraSignup and RunSignUp. When you register for one of our races, you provide your information directly to that platform, and their privacy policy applies to that data.

For race operations, TMR receives a roster from the registration platform that includes your name, email address, emergency contact, and any waivers you signed. We use that information solely to run the race and contact you with race-specific updates. We delete registration rosters within 12 months of the event, except where required to keep records of waivers signed.

6. Cookies and tracking

A cookie is a small data file stored on your device when you visit a website. We use cookies and similar technologies to:

  • Keep you signed in to your shop account (if applicable)
  • Remember items in your shopping cart
  • Understand how visitors use the site (analytics)
  • Prevent fraud and improve security

You can disable cookies through your browser settings. Doing so may prevent some parts of the site (especially the shop) from working correctly.

We currently do not respond to “Do Not Track” browser signals, because there is no industry standard for how to interpret them. We do, however, honor opt-out requests as described in Section 9.

7. Email communications

If you sign up for our weekly email, we’ll send you weekly updates about group runs, upcoming races, volunteer opportunities, and occasional notes from members. Our newsletter is sent directly from our own website — we do not use a third-party email marketing service, which means your email address and subscription information stay on our servers and are not shared with an outside platform like Mailchimp or Substack.

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link at the bottom of every email, or by emailing us at [email protected].

We may also send transactional emails (order confirmations, shipping updates, race-day logistics) that are not subject to the marketing opt-out, because they’re necessary to fulfill a specific request you’ve made.

8. Online store

When you buy something from the TMR shop, your order is processed using WooCommerce running on our own website. Order details — your name, shipping and billing address, email, and the products ordered — are stored on our servers. Payment is processed by Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, and WooCommerce Payments; TMR does not receive or store your full payment card number, only an order summary and the information needed to fulfill and ship the order.

We retain order records for seven years for tax and accounting purposes, even after an account is closed.

9. Your choices and rights

You have the following choices regarding your information:

  • Unsubscribe from our newsletter at any time using the link in any email, or by emailing us
  • Request access to the personal information we hold about you
  • Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
  • Request deletion of your personal information, subject to legal record-keeping requirements (e.g., tax records for past purchases)
  • Opt out of analytics by using your browser’s privacy settings or extensions like Google Analytics Opt-out

To exercise any of these rights, email us at [email protected]. We’ll respond within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity before acting on certain requests.

California residents have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including the right to know what categories of personal information we collect and the right to request that we delete personal information about you. We do not sell personal information as that term is defined in the CCPA.

EU and UK residents have rights under the GDPR, including the rights described above, plus the right to data portability and the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority. Our legal basis for processing your information is either your consent (e.g., newsletter signups), the performance of a contract (e.g., shop orders), or our legitimate interests in running the organization.

10. Photos and media

TMR group runs, races, and trail work days are community events, and photographs are sometimes taken and shared on our website, newsletter, or social media accounts. By participating, you acknowledge that you may appear in such photographs. If you’d prefer not to appear in photos shared by TMR, please let the event leader know on the day, or contact us at [email protected] to have a specific image removed.

11. Children’s privacy

Our website and services are not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it.

Children may participate in TMR group runs and certain race events when accompanied by a parent or guardian. Any personal information about a minor is collected from and shared with the parent or guardian, not the child directly.

12. Data security

We take reasonable steps to protect the information we collect, including using HTTPS across the site, requiring strong passwords for administrative access, and keeping our self-hosted infrastructure patched and up to date. Where we do work with outside services (payment processing, analytics, race registration), we use providers that maintain industry-standard security practices.

No system is perfectly secure. If we become aware of a security incident affecting your personal information, we will notify you as required by law.

13. Data retention

We keep personal information only as long as we need it for the purposes described in this policy, or as required by law:

  • Newsletter subscribers — until you unsubscribe, plus a short period to honor your opt-out
  • Shop customers — order records for seven years for tax purposes
  • Contact form submissions — typically up to two years
  • Race rosters — up to 12 months after the event, plus longer where required for waivers
  • Analytics — aggregated or anonymized after 26 months

14. International users

TMR is based in Maine, USA. If you access the website from outside the United States, your information will be transferred to, processed in, and stored in the United States. By using the website, you consent to that transfer.

15. Links to other sites

Our website contains links to other websites — race partners, sponsors, registration platforms, and social media accounts. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites. Review their privacy policies before providing any information.

16. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we’ll change the “Last updated” date at the top, and for material changes, we’ll post a notice on the homepage or send an email to subscribers. Continued use of the site after a change indicates your acceptance of the updated policy.

17. Contact

Questions, requests, or concerns about this policy or your personal information:

Trail Monster Running Email: [email protected]

This privacy policy was last updated on June 6, 2026.