The 15th annual Turkey Trot race took place Saturday morning, attracting over 200 runners from Mississippi State University and the Starkville area.
Trey Harrison, outdoor adventures coordinator for the Department of Recreational Sports and race director, said the primary purpose of the Turkey Trot is a canned food drive for which each race participant is asked to bring three canned goods.
“The reason the Turkey Trot was started is the canned food drive that provides canned goods to Starkville Pantry,” Harrison said.
Harrison said this year, the Turkey Trot is also donating cans to the Day One Leadership Community.
“This year, we are giving half our cans to Starkville Pantry and half to Day One, which we haven’t done in the past,” he said.
Chap Fenwick, graduate assistant with the Department of Recreational Sports, said the donated cans will not all remain in Starkville.
“Because we’re partnering with Day One, we are going to have canned goods spread across the Golden Triangle,” Fenwick said.
Harrison said the registration fee covers the cost of T-shirts, as well as snacks and drinks for the runners, and any surplus in the race budget is used to send graduate assistants to professional conferences.
“Any money left over is given to the graduate assistants to help them go to nationally-recognized conferences,” he said.
Fenwick said the healthy lifestyle promoted by race preparation is a significant aspect of the Turkey Trot.
“The race experience promotes healthy living, which is also important,” he said.
Fenwick said the “Couch to 5k” program, run by the Department of Recreational Sports, culminates in the Turkey Trot.
“The ‘Couch to 5k’ program takes people who have never run a 5k before, trains them and leads up to the Turkey Trot,” Fenwick said.
Fenwick said the organizers of the Turkey Trot are comprised of three groups, each with their own responsibilities.
“There is a marketing and advertising group, a group that seeks sponsorships and donations for prizes, and a group that designs the course route and gets volunteers,” he said.
Fenwick also said many of the volunteers are student workers with the Department of Recreational Sports.
“A lot of our student staff volunteer,” he said.
Harrison said Day One provided volunteers for race day as part of the organization’s agreement with the Turkey Trot.
“Day One gave us volunteers in exchange for our partnering with them this year,” he said.
Harrison said this year was the first in which the Turkey Trot implemented a chip timing system which electronically tracks and stores runners’ race times.
“Each runner gets a chip they can tie on their shoes, and the electronic timing system records their time when they cross the finish line,” Harrison said.
Fenwick said he expected positive feedback from runners regarding the chip technology.
“I’m sure runners will appreciate the chip timing,” he said. “It’s a lot more convenient.”
Ian Prester, junior mechanical engineering major, said he enjoyed running the Turkey Trot and was glad the race supported charity.
“It was a good race. It’s certainly good to have 5k’s around campus, and it’s for a charitable cause, so it’s a win-win,” he said.
Harrison said 233 runners showed up on race day, making 2012 a record year for the Turkey Trot.
“This is our biggest year yet,” Harrison said.
Editor’s note:Ian Prestor is a staff photographer for The Reflector.