Photos Courtesy of DRBA (unless noted otherwise)
Alexandria, VA – The Annual Alexandria Turkey Trot—a beloved tradition on the morning of Thanksgiving Day that attracts local and international runners of all ages—is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Organizers are anticipating an even larger turnout with the run’s popularity on the rise.
The event grew to some 6,000 runners in 2024, even though it’s held simultaneously with Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. To a majority of the participants—runners, walkers, Del Ray course residents, family, and friends—the Alexandria Turkey Trot holds an outsized place in their hearts.
The start of the Turkey Trot
Back in its start-up year of 1975, then-Mayor and future U.S. Congressman Jim Moran and Alexandria Circuit Court Judge James Clark led a group of some 200 runners who inaugurated the 5-mile legacy event around the city streets.
Included in the small number of inaugural runners of the first Turkey Trot, recently retired Clark—who accepted the invitation to serve as the 2025 Alexandria Turkey Trot’s 50th Anniversary Grand Marshal—said the idea of running a race on Thanksgiving Day morning and bringing a canned good as an entry fee still generates excitement.
Recalling his early days of racing on the varsity team at Alexandria City High School (formerly known as T.C. Williams High School; Clark was in the Class of 1968) and at Bridgewater College, Clark said he couldn’t imagine Thanksgiving without starting the holiday at the Turkey Trot.
Clark has never missed a single race since its inception. He laughingly recalled running the course on the only Thanksgiving in race history that it was canceled due to a driving snowstorm. “It snowed like crazy! I remember the wind more than anything.”
“It is kind of an interesting evolution the way the race has grown. I’m walking it now, I’ll tell you that,” said Clark with a hearty laugh. “It may be a false memory but I am almost sure it started on Russell Road and Mt. Vernon Avenue there at St. Rita’s. I don’t think there was an entry fee—you just had to bring a couple of cans of food. There was no preregistration or shirts or anything like that. There were a couple hundred people there. It was a completely different route back then.”
Clark said he enjoyed competing in the race with running and coaching friends such as Martin Smith, Jimmy Hill, Mike Manzy, David O’Brien, Mike Tomacello, and Bruce Coldsmith. The runners are always energized by the Del Ray neighbors who are “into it with decorations and music playing.” Many of those boys’ families have continued competing in the Turkey Trot, including Bridget O’Brien who is now a competitive runner with the Alexandria City High School cross-country and track team.
“It was just show up and do it,” Clark added. “I was counting on winning it—let’s say I finished in the top 10, maybe the top 5,” he added with a wistful smile. Noting that his own parents and grandparents lived in Alexandria, he said the race remains a family event, continuing with his children Allie and Trav, and now grandchildren, who also are all residents of Alexandria.
Clark recalled that the Turkey Trot organizers at the time gave race patches to participants, wondering aloud whether he still possessed a patch somewhere in his home. “It was a 10 a.m. race then which was kind of nice,” but he understood the need for the current 9 a.m. starting time with the volume of participants. “There are some fast runners now. Even some world-class-level runners.”
In recognition of the very special anniversary event, a race committee spokesperson said the group is considering having an additional grand marshal.
Details and to-dos
For full race details and to register, visit https://www.alexandriaturkeytrot.com/.
The 5-mile run/walk begins at 9 a.m. and wanders through the heart of Del Ray, starting and ending at George Washington Middle School. The event is Metro accessible via the Braddock Road Metro Station. Dogs and strollers are welcome, and have their own starting area.
In the spirit of the holiday, runners and spectators are encouraged to bring nonperishable food items to support ALIVE!, the oldest and largest private safety net dedicated to fighting poverty and hunger in the City of Alexandria. In addition to the donation of approximately 2,000 pounds of canned goods by the runners, the Turkey Trot donated $10,000 to ALIVE! in 2024, according to Executive Director Jenn Ayers. She said the money goes directly to buying food, supporting vehicles, and distributing groceries to more than 20,000 individuals a month.
From local run to world-class race
Alexandria Turkey Trot volunteers and Del Ray Business Association (DRBA) Board Members Gayle Reuter and Pat Miller credited Brian Danza of the DC Road Runners with a lot of the professionalism, the growth in participants, and the popularity of the run.
As a major running enthusiast himself, Danza orchestrated early pick-up of racing packets (bibs and t-shirts) about three years ago and has recruited thousands of running enthusiasts from the DMV, along with elite runners from all over the world.
Danza is also credited with boosting Turkey Trot registrations through runner outreach and creating another crowd pleaser: the stroller and dog runner competitions. “Brian has brought so much over the past 15 years of his involvement,” Reuter and Miller added. “When our numbers started increasing, we felt a calling to also contribute monetarily to ALIVE!,” noting that canned goods are still collected at the event.
The Turkey Trot also provides critical funding to DRBA projects including the “Del Ray All Day” community banners hanging along Mt. Vernon Avenue, buying or renting equipment for events, holiday decorations, decorative planters, and more. Reuter credited the hundreds of area volunteers, including Alexandria City High School students, who make the Turkey Trot a continuing success.
Growing up with the Turkey Trot
Avid runner and former Mayor Justin Wilson reached his 21st year in a row with the 2024 race, and said he is looking forward to notching his 22nd in a few weeks. “At the Turkey Trot, we used to have my kids race in the stroller, and now they are running on their own,” he said. “They both run track; my son in college at Christopher Newport and my daughter at Alexandria City High School. We have a running family. My uncle, my aunt, and cousins. It is fun to get everyone out there.”
“It’s tradition. I have to (run). I don’t have a choice!” laughed Wilson, adding the race is always a chance to see everyone in Del Ray and celebrate the neighborhood,” also crediting DRBA and the many volunteers helping with the race.
For the 2025 Grand Marshal Clark, who called the title “an unexpected privilege,” the upcoming hometown race feels “very Alexandria. Just having grown up here, it is a special thing—it is uniquely Alexandria. Very cool. Very cool.”
Turkey Trot Grand Marshals
1975-1976 – No Grand Marshals
1977-1979 – Unknown
1980 – James P. Moran, Alexandria City Councilman
1991-2006 – Various, including Lynn Hampton, Chair of Chamber of Commerce, and Nora Partlow, Founder and Owner of St. Elmo’s
2007 – Patty Moran, Longtime Volunteer
2008 – Jim Fowler, Longtime Organizer and Volunteer with Potomac West Business Association (DRBA)
2009 – Del Pepper, Alexandria Vice Mayor
2010 – Mike and Linda Oliver, Longtime ALIVE! Volunteers
2011 – Jay Johnson, Alexandria Volunteer Fireman
2012 – Unknown
2013 – Julie Carey, NBC Channel 4 Reporter
2014 – Charles Esten, Actor/Musician, T.C. Williams High School Class of 1983
2015 – U.S. Congressman Jim Moran, Longtime Runner and Supporter of Turkey Trot
2016 – Bill Euille, Former Alexandria City Mayor
2017 – First Responders (after Simpson Field shooting at Republican Congressional baseball practice)
2018 – Virginia Tech (in honor of new campus approved for Potomac Yard)
2019 – Jack Taylor, Longtime Sponsor and Supporter of Turkey Trot
2020 – Virtual
2021 – Del Pepper (in honor of retired longest-serving city councilperson – 36 years)
2022 – Family of former Mayor Kerry Donley (in memory of the longtime runner)
2023 – John Porter, Much-loved Former Principal of Alexandria City High School, and Dana Lawhorne, Retired Alexandria Sheriff and Longtime Supporter of Turkey Trot
2024 – Susanna Sullivan, “America’s Fastest Teacher” and Longtime Runner in Turkey Trot (has set course record multiple times)
