Annual Turkey Trot tradition comes again
Students and family members gather around the prize table at the annual Turkey Trot at A.K. Bissell Park.
Children in different age categories, pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, lined up and dashed around the gravel paths and fields of Oak Ridge’s A.K. Bissell Park Tuesday Nov. 14. The race included 265 total runners from elementary schools, middle schools and Oak Ridge Schools Preschool.
T. Ed Wright, Oak Ridge High School cross country head coach, helped with the event this year. He reflected on it while rolling up the flags marking the course after the event.
“Just seeing the kids getting to the finish line, sprinting, laughing,” Wright said when asked about his favorite part of the event. “Some of them would be walking and then they’d start running when they would see somebody that they knew or their parent and then they’d start sprinting.”
“We are thankful for the turkey trot,” said Khouan Oakgrove, mother of Oak Ridge kindergartner Johan Oakgrove. “We had no idea my son was a runner until he got second place this year and fifth place last year. We knew he always had a ton of energy, but it never occurred to us to put it towards running.”
“I’m thrilled with the turnout this year,” said Marcia Wade, school health coordinator.
Pre-K and kindergartners ran a one-third mile race. Robyn Burge won first place for girls and Thomas Dongarra for boys.
A total of 105 kids ran a half-mile in the first- and second-grade race. Kyleigh Johnson won first place for girls and Vernon Jones among boys.
The third- and fourth-grade mile race brought in 68 participants. Avery Stevens won first among girls and Trevor Chapshaw first among boys.
The fifth-grade race had 25 participants. Reese Tiller won first among girls. Haldon Menaffey won first among boys.