Event Description

Seven years ago, Tim Holmes' son challenged him to run a marathon with him.

Holmes, who owns Holmes Chiropractic, accepted the challenge and started looking for training opportunities.

"I wanted to do something new, so I invited some of my friends and my patients to join me on Thanksgiving morning for a run. I thought it would be a good way to work up an appetite," Holmes said.

That first year, about 15 people showed up, he said, and the Turkey Trot was born.

Now, he says, it has become something of a family tradition for a lot of people.

"We had 20 the second year, and it's just kept growing ever since," he said.

Last year 1,600 runners and walkers showed up, and it turned out that at least half of them weren't from Gig Harbor.

"There were people from Ohio, Virginia and even from India," Holmes said. "I think most of them were here visiting family for the holiday. People saw it on the Internet and I guess they figured it was a great way to start their Thanksgiving Day."

This year's Turkey Trot takes place on Thanksgiving day, starting at 8 a.m.

As usual, there will be a 5K and a 10K, and people can either run or walk.

The event raises money and collects food for Peninsula FISH food bank.

"We ask all the participants to bring two cans of food to the race," Holmes said.

"Last year, we collected more than 3,000 cans of food and FISH had to bring a special truck to collect it all."

This year, he anticipates that there may be as many as 2,000 participants.

"It's really become a family tradition for a lot of people," he said.