BOONE, N.C. – For the first time since 2019 the High Country Turkey Trot 5K Race and Fun Run / Walk will take place in-person Thanksgiving morning, Thursday November 24, on the Boone Greenway Trail at the Clawson-Burnley Park entrance. The annual Thanksgiving Day event, benefitting Hospitality House of Northwest N.C., has been taking place on the Boone Greenway Trail since 2011, until the coronavirus pandemic necessitated a virtual event for the past two years.
The race will kick off at 9:00 a.m. with the Fun Run / Walk, for casual runners, joggers and walkers following fifteen minutes later. Named a Top Ten Holiday 5K race by Our State magazine back in 2016, this destination race regularly attracts over 1,000 participants from twenty-five different states and over fifty North Carolina cities and towns last year.
“We are beyond excited to be back on the Greenway this year,” stated Hospitality House chief development director Todd Carter. “Boone is such a beautiful place to run a 5K on Thanksgiving Day and after two years of ‘run the race at your place’ it is our privilege to welcome people back for some fun to kick off the Holiday season.”
Since 2011, the High Country Turkey Trot has raised over $275,000 and close to 10,000 pounds of food to support the mission of Hospitality House of Northwest North Carolina, a regional homeless services agency providing housing, hunger relief and homeless prevention in seven counties.
Presented by Mast General Store and Stallings & Co. Interior Design, the event also features the Leigh Cooper Wallace winner’s chute, dedicated in 2013, a costume contest, hot apple cider, hot chocolate, healthy snacks, outdoor fire pits and gas heaters. Additional sponsors include, Molecular Toxicology Inc., Wren’s Nest Garden Center, Pet Prairie Dog Retreat, Mount Vernon Baptist Church, Skyline/Skybest, The Spice and Tea Exchange, Bridgeman Dental, High Country Radio, and David Patrick Moses, Architect.
For the 5K race, professional, automatic chip-timing will be provided by Big Kahuna Timing. Race results will be provided in overall and age division formats with first-place finishers in each age division receiving a certificate. Stick Boy Bakery pumpkin pies will be awarded to the first, second and third place overall finishes for men and women.
With the exception of the 5K race, the course is wheelchair accessible, and everyone is welcome to participate, including families with children, strollers, and pets on a leash. All participants are asked to bring non-perishable food items – canned goods, boxed goods, dry goods – for donation to the Hospitality House Bread of Life Hunger Relief programs which served over 150,000 meals last year in the Community Kitchen and Food Pantry.
Registration, available online at HCTurkeyTrot.org, is $40 and includes a commemorative long-sleeve t-shirt in both adult and youth sizes. Those wishing to participate but not wanting a t-shirt may register for $20.
Back by popular demand is the Sleep-In Option. Perfect for someone who’s not a morning person, is stuck at home cooking the Turkey or just loves to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Registration is $40.
Packet pickup will be available November 22 and 23 from 10 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Hospitality House Housing & Outreach Center, located at 160 Den Mac Drive beside Hatchet Coffee. Packet pickup will also be available the morning of the event beginning at 7:30 a.m.
To learn more about Hospitality House, visit them online at HospHouse.org, follow them on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat or Venmo at @HospHouse; or on Twitter @HospHouseNWNC.
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