By Khalida Sarwari
The finish line at last year’s Silicon Valley Turkey Trot was a testament to how much San Jose’s annual walk and run has been gaining in popularity every year. An unprecedented number of competitors descended on the finish line in droves to complete the race.
The exact count was 22,124—nearly twice as many as the previous year when 14,000 signed up for the race.
“We had anticipated 17,000 and it ended up being 22,000,” said Steve Wright, a spokesman for the Silicon Valley Leadership Group Foundation. “That’s an amazing jump. We were a little overwhelmed.”
To ensure that the program runs more smoothly this year, Wright said organizers are capping registration at 25,000 but expanding the start and finish lines and offering additional parking to accommodate the large volume of participants. As of the last week of October, nearly 10,000 people had registered for the race, said Wright.
The eighth annual Turkey Trot will take place on Thanksgiving Day, as it does every year. Sponsored by Applied Materials and produced by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group Foundation, the program has raised more than $2.2 million for local charities since it was started in 2004 by Silicon Valley Leadership Group’s CEO and president Carl Guardino and his wife Leslee. All proceeds beyond those needed to cover organizational expenses go to those charities, which include the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, the Housing Trust of Santa Clara County, and the Children’s Health Initiative of the Santa Clara Family Health Foundation.
Last year the Turkey Trot raised $650,000 and organizers have a goal of raising $700,000 this year.
“It’s really an amazing family event,” Wright said. “There are so many extended families who participate. Think about last year with 22,000 people descending on San Jose to do a 5K or 10K—it’s just an amazing sea of humanity.”
The events will begin at 6:30 a.m. on Nov. 22 in downtown San Jose, near the HP Pavilion.
There are six events and each has an entrance fee, ranging from $10 for the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Kids Fun Run to $1,000 for the CEO/Celebrity 5K Challenge, one of three timed categories that are being offered as alternatives to the 5K walk and run and 10K run.
For more information about this year’s Turkey Trot,visit svturkeytrot.com.
