535 runners hit the pavement
La Conner Turkey Trotters were huffin’ and puffin’ for the stuffin.’
The popular early Thanksgiving Day event, whose motto is “Earn Your Dinner,” drew more than 500 entrants — both runners and walkers, not counting four-legged participants of all sizes — to its 2025 edition.
Runners covered a five-kilometer (3.1 miles) course starting from and finishing at the La Conner Schools campus, including the steep South Fourth Street hill leading up to Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Walkers took a three-kilometer (1.8 miles) route that featured a hill climb up the west side of Washington Street.
Hosted by the La Conner Booster Club and sponsored by Pioneer Potatoes, Swinomish Casino & Lodge, and Gudmunson Septic, the local Turkey Trot is a fundraiser for the La Conner Schools track-and-field program. Entry fees this year ranged between $20-$25 depending on which entry categories were selected.
In addition, commemorative tee shirts were available for purchase, priced at $20 each.
Melissa Kramer of Shelter Bay was the first to arrive at the La Conner Middle School gym for pre-dawn Turkey Trot registration Thanksgiving morning. Within an hour, the gym floor was filled with entrants, many from outside the La Conner area, and some among them elementary school age children signed up for the free kids’ 40-meter dash that preceded the Trot.
When the runners and walkers set off just after 8 a.m., more than a few had their dogs — some of whom were costumed — in tow. Anticipating the canine presence, La Conner Pets maintained a water station on the course for pooches.
Still other Turkey Trotters pushed strollers. La Conner teacher Crista Landworth carried a kiddo on her back much of the way.
Meanwhile, La Conner distance runner Toby Walls and his son Sylas, a La Conner Middle School student, ran the 3.1 miles side-by-side at what for them was a fairly leisurely pace, finishing in 21 minutes. Kelsey Stevens of La Conner likewise ran the Turkey Trot course but altered her strategy from a year ago regarding the South Fourth Street Hill.
“Last year, I ran up the hill,” she said. “This year, I walked it and actually improved my time.”
In 2024, Stevens explained, dashing uphill robbed her of the finishing kick she enjoyed this time around.
But while the event employed a race clock at the finish line, it was not automatically chip-timed, which allows for a more accurate personal record of each participant’s performance regardless of starting position.
Thus, the Turkey Trot’s primary focus was to put the fun into fundraising.
“The Turkey Trot is fun for the entire family and a great way to support kids and earn some guilt-free eating later in the day,” La Conner High head track coach Peter Voorhees said.
When asked afterward on Thursday if the 2025 Turkey Trot was the largest in its nearly two-decade history, Voorhees wasn’t immediately certain. But the numbers were certainly impressive.
“By the looks of it,” he said, “we had 538 (participants) registered.”
Members of La Conner Hook & Ladder along with La Conner students and other volunteers directed runners and walkers along their respective routes, often offering encouragement along the way.
“The Turkey Trot is made possible by volunteers from our community and support from our sponsors,” Voorhees said.
And at the finish line, each entrant was treated to a truly Thanksgiving-style prize — a free bag of spuds courtesy of Pioneer Potatoes to complement the holiday turkey dinners that awaited.
Bill Reynolds is a general assignment reporter for La Conner Community News.
