Students participate in annual Turkey Trot

PHOTO: The 32nd annual Davis Turkey Trot took place on Saturday, Nov. 23. 

By Renee Xiang,

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, runners took to the streets of downtown Davis for the 32nd annual Turkey Trot on Saturday. 

Hosted by A Change of Pace Foundation, the event included a 2-mile run, 5K marathon, 10K marathon and kid’s run. 

Senior Kylie Seward participated in Turkey Trot the past two years, and this year is no different for her.

“My cross country season just ended, so […] it’s a nice way to just finish up the season,” she said.

Seward ran the 10K marathon alongside several of her friends on the Davis High cross country team, and ended the race with a final time of 48 minutes and 31 seconds.

“I had a lot of fun running […] and the time passed really quickly,” Seward said. “I was definitely exhausted after, though.”

Some DHS students, like sophomore Serena Wang, are participating in the event in a different way. While Wang’s older brother and younger sister both ran a race, she helped supply refreshments.

Although this event has been a long-standing tradition within Davis, organizers have not failed to bring new ideas to the table. This year, Turkey Trot partnered up with the Yolo County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) to help them with fundraising.

According to A Change of Pace Foundation’s website, “[organizers] have always supported participating in the Davis Turkey Trot with [a dog], but […] have often suggested to start in the back for safety reasons.” 

This year, however, the name of the 2-mile run has been changed to “Dog Jog” to encourage dog owners to come out with their furry friends and raise awareness for the SPCA’s cause. 

Runners this year were also relieved that everything panned out as scheduled after last year’s unexpected postponement due to unhealthy air conditions. 

“Last year around this time, it was super smoky, so they cancelled it and then we just didn’t really hear anything about it. Then, a couple weeks later the smoke cleared […] and so we did it in mid-December. Not quite turkey season anymore,” Seward said.

Fortunately this year, runners are able to gather and celebrate the spirit of community just in time for Thanksgiving.