Thanksgiving Day races

Can you believe it's Thanksgiving already? Where has the year gone? Before we know it, Christmas will be here...it seems to sneak up on us every year... :)

There are some fantastic local races coming up which I wanted to blog about. Many towns and cities around the country have annual "Turkey Trots" on Thanksgiving morning - we're lucky to have a few around here. The first is the Webster Turkey Trot, featuring both a 2.5 and a 4.4 mile run. Last I heard, there were nearly 3,000 runners signed up to brave the 32* temps predicted for tomorrow morning. That's a huge race. If you're looking for something smaller - but definitely more challenging - check out my hometown's Newark Turkey Day 5-miler. It's got two wicked hills - on Rte. 88 and again on Church Street - and plenty of long stretches throughout Newark. There won't be 3,000 runners, but they do promise to hand out turkeys as door prizes!

As we get into December, I feel like it will be the hardest time to keep motivated to get up early and on the treadmill, which is why I signed up for two local races next month. The first is the 2nd Annual "It's a Wonderful Run" 5K in beautiful Seneca Falls, NY, long rumored to be the inspiration for the Jimmy Stewart classic "It's a Wonderful Life." There is a weekend of activities planned (including an opportunity to meet Karolyn Grimes, aka "Zuzu"), with the race going off at 4:40 on Saturday, December 11th.

The second race is the Canandaigua Braves Cross-Country and Track team's annual "Post-Christmas Blues 5K", scheduled for Friday, December 31st at 8:45 am (which is news to me because when I filled out the entry form, it said the race was on December 24th. Perhaps it became too difficult to have the run on Christmas Eve morning?) Anyways, it's a fundraiser for the track and XC teams, and although I don't know the course yet, it's bound to be something through downtown Canandaigua, perhaps similar to either the Riesling 5K or the St. Mary's 5K.

So...if you're running tomorrow, GOOD LUCK!! Just think of the extra slice of pumpkin pie you'll be able to eat with all those calories you've burned!! Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!

Update: The Webster 2.5 and 4.4 mile races had 3,500 runners this year!! That's unbelievable! The Newark Turkey Day 5-Miler had slightly fewer runners...around 150 or so. The day was absolutely perfect for a 5 mile run - cold, but without rain, snow, sleet or any other type of winter precipitation us hearty upstate New Yorkers are used to from, oh, late October through early May. Anyways, it was a great way to start Thanksgiving...I took home a legitimately earned 2nd place medal for my age group (see my previous post "E"thical Quandaries about my various awards, both earned and unearned) and finished 98th in an unofficial 45:02. My goals were: have fun, finish the race and try and hit consistent 9:00 miles. So in the words of George Bush - and not the crew of the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CVN-72) - "Mission Accomplished"!