When it comes to Thanksgiving traditions, we’ve all got the eating part down to a science; but what if you decided to add something new to your day this year — like a Turkey Trot St George?
Sure. You have plans to sit around smelling the turkey cooking in the over while watching hours of football, interspersed with highlights from the Macy’s Day Parade. And we’re not judging you. Family traditions are what make holidays amazing, so if couch time is the tradition, it should definitely still be part of the day. But adding a new tradition, like a Turkey Trot St George, can really add something to your proverbial plate, making you even more grateful for all the food on your real plate.
Turkey Trot St George = The Gobbler
Turkey Trots and other races like them are popular races throughout the running community. Kicking off Thanksgiving Day with a Turkey Trot St George, or anywhere, gets you up and moving to work up your appetite for later.
The Turkey Trot St George is actually called The Gobbler. A clever name, with an equally clever tag line: “Hobble now, gobble later.”
There are three events from which to choose, each with their own registration fee:
* 10K for $34
* 5K for $32
* 1K for $15
With all these different race lengths, the Turkey Trot St George — the Gobbler — is truly for the whole family.
Information on the Turkey Trot St George web site points out that this is a “compact event” that opens at 7 a.m., with races starting at 8 a.m. Prizes are awarded shortly after the races end.
Family friendly fun
Keeping in line with the family nature of the event, strollers are allowed on the race course. However, those running with strollers are asked to start at the back of the race pack to allow faster runners to start first.
A little race history
Not only is this Turkey Trot St George a great way to begin a family tradition, the Gobbler itself was actually born of a family tradition.
Back before it was an official race, two brothers just enjoyed getting out into the early morning Thanksgiving hours and going for a run. Burn a few calories before getting their eating on. It was simple enough. And plenty enjoyable. Soon more of their families wanted to join the fun; then friends caught wind of it and came for the morning run. Eventually, they decided it wasn’t fair to keep it to themselves any longer. More people wanted to be involved in The Gobbler Turkey Trot St George and the event was born.
Now its celebrating its 5th year as an official race.
Gobbling and giving
Thankfully, the idea of being thankful at Thanksgiving leads to even more desire to give. That’s where the charitable element to this race comes in. Each year a charity is selected to receive a donation as a result of the race. According to the Gobbler web site, this year the charitable recipient is The Dove Center.
The Gobbler team is matching $1 for every runner who donates at least $1. And you can definitely donate more. 100 percent of the donated funds will go directly to The Dove Center — which is a shelter, advocacy and counseling facility for women and children fleeing domestic abuse.
Hobble and Gobble
What more could you ask for from a Turkey Trot St George? First you hobble, then you gobble, and then you also help people in need. It’s a great way to kick off the holiday season. And burn a few calories before you hurry to the dinner table to reclaim them.
Other events
Although already passed, it is definitely worth noting that the Seegmiller Farm Harvest Festival and Turkey Trot took place last week — kicking off the holiday season and giving back to the community.
According to an article in St. George News, there were hundreds of participants, each donating several cans of food for the Switchpoint Community Resource Center.
This race included a 5K and 1 mile fun run. Last year the donation total came to 1,100 points of food. This year the event had and even greater turnout, so the final donation tally is likely to be even larger.
There are many wonderful home listings available that allow you to take advantage of great events like The Gobbler Turkey Trot St George. Check out the listings here.