My family has always gotten together to celebrate Thanksgiving. With 7 aunts and their husbands and children and some random extended family present we always have a huge turnout and a lot of food. Despite being of Colombian decent we have learned to embrace this tradition. In 2012 I also learned to embrace another Thanksgiving tradition...the Turkey Trot!! Sadly for me my numerous family members have not jumped on board with this one but that doesn't stop me from taking part.
In 2012 my first Turkey Trot was the Alexandria Turkey Trot...per usual I had injured myself from getting overzealous and running too much too soon...I had just started running outdoors that September. This was my first bout with piriformis syndrome. After not having run for a month I was eager to run again so I thought a Turkey Trot would be a great way to hop back on board even though I wasn't fully recovered. I chose the Alexandria Turkey Trot because it was near my parent's house, it was on Thanksgiving, and it was relatively inexpensive for a 5-Miler. I had a wonderful time running this race despite being injured and having to stop and walk some and not having my family there which from what I saw is a huge part of the Turkey Trot...running with your loved ones.
In 2013 I was living in Fairfax and driving back to Alexandria didn't seem as appealing so I decided to find a new Turkey Trot and chose to do the Fairfax Turkey Trot seeing as it was 4 milers and also decently priced. I should've known that being in it's first year it may not have been the best choice. The race did not use its own bibs but instead old Pacers race bibs and at packet pickup I was informed they no longer had shirts. The course was ok but overall this race was pretty disappointing.
Now in 2014 I am living in DC but went to visit my parents in Alexandria so I once again decided to do the Alexandria Turkey Trot. The weather was chilly...about 34 degrees with some drizzle. I had opted to wear three layers...a T-shirt, a pullover, and a jacket. While I waited in my car for the race to start I kept debating on whether or not I should leave my jacket in the car or wear it...I was so cold I decided to wear it. As I lined up at the start I noticed there were a lot more people than in 2012 and it was much harder to make my way to the front. Once the race started I knew there were definitely more people than the year before...for about the first mile I had to considerably slowdown as it was too difficult to get past all the runners who should not have lined up in the front. Once I finally weaved my way through the slow pokes I was able to settle into a more comfortable pace and enjoy my run through the Del Ray area neighborhoods where the locals had come out of their homes to cheer us on as we ran by. Overall I had a good race experience but hope to convince my family to join me next year and will get to the start much earlier.
Oh, one more thing...if the weather is warmer than 32 only two layers are needed...I was definitely overheating.
