12th Annual Turkey Trot Kicks Off In Downtown Tulsa

The 12th Annual Tulsa Turkey Trot is kicking off downtown Friday morning. The Fleet Feet sponsored race is expected to draw in close to 800 participants for the post-Thanksgiving run.

In previous years the Turkey Trot begins at the BOK Center as part of Winterfest, but this year the race will begin near Fleet Feet’s downtown store near 2nd and Elgin.

In order to practice physical distancing as much as possible, the runners will begin the 5K race in waves of about 150 people beginning at 8:30a.m. and then each wave will kick off every three minutes after that. Runners and spectators are asked to wear a mask unless their wave is currently running.

The annual event typically brings out people dressed in turkey and pilgrim costumes along with some families who have been participating for more than ten years. Fleet Feet Tulsa’s co-owner Tim Dreiling said they couldn’t imagine cancelling something that is a part of so many people’s Thanksgiving traditions.

“They all sign up as a family, we’ve had families that have done this race for ten years in a row and it’s like their traditional family reunion at Thanksgiving so that’s really neat,” Dreiling said.

Several Blue Dome District roads will be closed for the duration of the race, which is expected to finish around 10a.m., so make sure to leave time to navigate any closures if you are in the area during that time.