How to Host a Thanksgiving Turkey Trot

Growing up, the unofficial start to my holiday season was the Manchester Road Race in Manchester, CT. On Thanksgiving morning, my whole family woke at the crack of dawn (or what felt like the crack of dawn as a teenager) and laced up our running shoes. In order to get turkey that day, we had to finish our 4.75 mile run. I grew to love this family tradition and try to get back to CT for this race as often as possible. If there are no local turkey trots for you this year, I encourage your to read on and make plans to start your own turkey trot tradition!

1. TIME & DISTANCE

I recommend morning but not TOO early as the night before Thanksgiving tends to be an infamous bar night. For distance, think about your crowd... are they an athletic bunch or more of a leisurely stroll crew? There's no shame in your trot being one mile.

2. PROMOTION

Let your friends and family know the details of your race. I like this customizable invite from ETSY that you can email out (also well played with the name "Huffin for the Stuffin".

3. COSTUMES

Costumes are encouraged. Consider handing out prizes for the best costumes. Here is some inspiration:

4. MUSIC

You'll want a good mix of the Rocky theme for pump up and Christmas music to get you in the holiday spirit.

5. HYDRATION

Have water bottles ready for all participants. My ETSY shop sells these personalized labels which are waterproof (as always, blog readers get 10% off with code BLOGREADER2017)

5. POST RACE FUEL

Reward race participants for the efforts with a table of snacks. You can go the traditional post-race route of bananas or you could jump right into the main event of the day with pumpkin pie.

And there you go, you're all set to start your own Thanksgiving tradition! Enjoy and gobble-gobble!