Above: Lynn Smythe, AKA Run Diva, at the 2011 Delray Beach Turkey Trot
Race a Turkey Trot
I participate in 15-20+ races per year. Although I mostly race in triathlons, I also participate in a few running only events every year. With Thanksgiving taking place towards the end of November, it means it's time to run a turkey trot or two. I like turkey trots for a number of reasons; they take place in almost every town, so I am able to race locally, and they are only 5k (3.1 mile) in length.
Turkey trots are usually very casual events. You will see many people running with strollers and wearing their MP3 players/iPods. Most running events prohibit participants from using strollers and music devices during the race, but the turkey trots I've participated in don't seem to enforce those rules.
Delray Beach Turkey Trot
- 25th Annual Delray Beach Turkey Trot
- Saturday, November 19, 2011
- Anchor Park
- 340 South Ocean Blvd.
- Delray Beach, Florida
Official race results and link to photos can be viewed on the Wild Side Online website: http://www.wildsideonline.net/results/2011/delrayturkrun5k.php. My official results; I placed 7th out of 23 women 45-49 years old, 44 out of 199 women and 116 out of 363 overall in a time of 27:24. My 5k PR is 27:01, so I was a bit off my desired time, but did okay considering this was my 15th race of the year. My complete race schedule can be viewed on my Bike Diva and Run Diva blogs: http://www.bikediva.net/bike-divas-races.html.
The Delray Beach turkey trot is one of the few events that takes place the weekend before Thanksgiving. This year I participated in the Delray turkey trot on Saturday, November 19, which just happened to be my 48th birthday. This was the 3rd year in a row that I ran the Delray turkey trot. My husband would normally be interested in doing a local 5k with me, but he was out of town coaching the Palm Beach Team in Training cycle team at El Tour de Tucson. El Tour de Tucson is a 109 mile road bike ride which takes place in Tucson, Arizona.
Boca Raton Turkey Trot
- 3rd Annual Adolph & Rose Levis Turkey Trot
- Thursday, November 24, 2011
- Adolph & Rose Levis Jewish Community Center
- 9801 Donna Klein Blvd.
- Boca Raton, FL
The Boca turkey trot took place on Thanksgiving morning, Thursday November 24. My husband was back in town so we did the race together. We also saw a couple of our friends that weren't able to get into the Palm Beach turkey trot, since it was sold out, so they travelled down south to do the Boca turkey trot.
Official results from Boca turkey trot can be found on the Accuchip Timing website: http://www.accuchiptiming.com/images/race_results/2011/Levis%20JCC%20Turkey%20Trot%202011%20-%20Age%20Group%20Results.htm. Rob finished 21 out of 55 in the men's 50-59 age group and 195 out of 730 overall in a time of 27:21. I finished 21 out of 103 in the women's 40-49 age group and 203 out of 730 overall in a time of 27:29.
Above: Left to right - Essie Faria, George McCuen, Lynn Smythe at the Delray Beach Turkey Trot.
Never too Old to Race
At 48 years old, I am still pretty young, compared to a lot of the people I encounter participating in races. At the Delray Turkey Trot I saw my friend George McCuen and his friend Essie Faria. George is a local legend and competes in many running and duathlon events throughout south Florida. George was telling me that most weekends he races, he likes to find a race on both Saturday and Sunday. This weekend was special in that he was doing 3 races. He was running the turkey trot in the morning, the holiday light 5k run that night at Tradewinds Park, and on Sunday he would be racing in another 5k in Boca. Not bad for a 77 year old.
George finished the turkey trot in a time of 26:42 and took 2nd out of 8th place in the mens 75-99 age group. And yes, he beat my time by 42 seconds! Essie is 76 years young, and finished the turkey trot in a time of 32:39 and placed first in the women 75-99 age group. Never mind that she was the only one competing in this age group, she is 76 years old and still racing, that is amazing!
Run Diva's Remaining Races
I only have 3 races left for the 2011 race season. On Saturday, December 3, I will be participating in the south Florida Warrior Dash. Warrior Dash is a 5k trail run which includes approximately 11 obstacles including mud/water pits, fire pits, cargo net crossings, barbed wire and more. My husband, 16 year old daughter and I, along with many of our Team in Training friends, will be running in the 1 PM wave. The south Florida Warrior Dash takes place at Quiet Waters Park in Deerfield Beach.
On Sunday, December 7 I will be doing the 10k run at the Palm Beach Marathon. I've run the half marathon at the Palm Beach Marathon for the past three years, and in fact it was the first ever running event I competed in back in 2008. I've done a lot of racing this year, and am a bit tired right now so I didn't feel like I had a half marathon in me this year. The Palm Beach Marathon event organizers added a 10k and 5k to this years race so I decided to sign up for the 10k, which is 6.2 miles.
On Wednesday, December 7 I signed my husband and I up for the Boca mile. The race takes place on Federal Highway in Boca Raton at 7 PM at night, immediately before the Boca holiday parade. I think it will be fun to do an evening race and it will be interesting to see how fast we can run a mile. The Boca mile benefits the Police Athletic League.
Take care,
Lynn Smythe, AKA the Run Diva
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