For most Americans, the Thanksgiving holiday is spent with loved ones, giving thanks, and feasting on foods like turkey, stuffing, and apple pie. However, some Americans decide to celebrate Turkey Day a little differently. Every year on Thanksgiving day, thousands of people participate in running races around the country called “Turkey Trots.” These races can range from short “fun runs” to full marathons, but most races range from 5-10k in length. As the name suggests, the Turkey Trot gets its name from the staple Thanksgiving dinner food, the Turkey. This tradition started in 1896 in Buffalo, New York when the local YMCA hosted an 8k run on Thanksgiving day. Only 6 participants ran the race that year, but the race soon became more popular as the Turkey Trot idea spread around the country.
Photo: JBLM MWR Flickr
Not only are these races a great way to burn some extra calories before the traditional Thanksgiving feast, but these races are also a great excuse to exercise in a fun costume! Many races around the country, like the Buffalo Turkey Trot, encourage runners to wear a festive costume to make the run more enjoyable for the runners and spectators. Most costumes are Thanksgiving-related, and feature runners dressed as turkeys and pilgrims. However, this tradition has expanded, and now many runners wear various types of costumes including Christmas-themed costumes, Halloween costumes, and other fun accessories that make the race more unique.
Photos: Ian Petchenik, YMCA Metro Dallas, Trinity Church Princeton, LInda Vering Flickr
One of the core values of the Thanksgiving holiday is giving thanks and showing your appreciation and gratitude for the people around you. To help do this, many of these races have a cause that they are fundraising money for. Some of the causes can be as small as helping the local food-bank or as large as raising money to donate to cancer research. One of the largest and most well-known Turkey Trot races, located in Austin, Texas called the ThunderCloud Subs Turkey Trot, donates the money it raises to a local organization committed to ending homelessness.
Some of the historically largest Turkey Trots are the Buffalo Turkey Trot, Silicone Valley Turkey Trot, Dallas Turkey Trot, and the famous Manchester Road Race. To keep the tradition alive during the COVID-19 pandemic this year, most of the Turkey Trots around the country are going virtual. Each participant can sign up to run the race in their own neighborhood and follow along through apps and other virtual platforms to feel a part of the running community. Although this is not the ideal way to run in the Turkey Trot, these races are going to continue to raise money that will be donated to a good cause. If you want to get involved in a Turkey Trot happening in the U.S. and run the race in your own neighborhood, here are a few of the races happening on or before Thanksgiving day!
Vocabulary list:
Feasting (v): to eat and drink in large quantities
Staple (n): the main or important element of something
YMCA (n): a community-based organization
Spread (v): Extend over a large area
Festive (adj): celebrating a holiday
Spectators (n): a person who is watching an event
Feature (v): to highlight or show off
Gratitude (n): showing appreciation and kindness
Hailey Womer is a third-year student at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York pursuing a dual major in Public Relations and Political Science. With interests in communications, public diplomacy, and politics & government, she hopes to use communication to grow the passions of the public and advocate for others. In her free time, you can find her editing social media content, engrossed in the fashion trends of the season, catching up on the latest political buzz, or on a philanthropic mission to make the world just a little bit brighter!