Work Up Your Appetite For The Big Meal ... Annual Turkey Trot To Be Held On Thanksgiving Morning

The second Annual Newtown Turkey Trot 5K race will be held at 7:45 am on Thanksgiving Day, November 24.

“We had close to 1,000 runners and walkers in 2010, which is phenomenal for a first-year event,” said John Godin, one of the race directors. “We had a lot of community support last year and we’re seeing the same level of interest and involvement this year.”

The event kicks off at the Hawley School parking lot on Churchill Road at 7:45, but race day registration and preregistration package pickup will remain at the Newtown Middle School on Queen Street. 

Race day registration will open at 6:30 am and it is encouraged that runners and walkers allow adequate time to park, register, and reach the start at the Hawley School.

Preregistered runners may pick up their race packets at the Cyrenius H. Booth Library on Tuesday, November 22, between 4 and 8 pm, and Wednesday, November 23, from noon to 5 pm. Participation in this year’s race will be capped at 1,000 runners and 250 walkers. Participants are urged to register in advance at www.newtownturkeytrot.com to ensure a place in the field. No payments for preregistration will be accepted at the library during early package pickup on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Course Changes And Notice Of Road Closures

This year’s 5K event begins in the parking lot of the Hawley School instead of on Churchill Road. The race ends with a sharp right into the middle school parking lot after the three-mile mark and into the finish line chute. The race will not end in the semicircle of the middle school as it did last year. Other than these modifications the course will follow the same route: From Hawley School, left on Churchill Road, left on the Boulevard, left on Schoolhouse Road, left on Main Street, left on Glover Avenue, right on Meadow Road, left on Elizabeth Street, left on Queen Street, right on Grand Place (loop through the neighborhood counterclockwise), right back on Queen Street, immediate right into the middle school parking lot and on to the finish.  

The walking route follows the loop of the running event until Wendover Road ,where walkers will take a left on Wendover, a left on Churchill Road, and a right on Queen Street before finishing at the middle school.

All residents of the borough should understand that travel restrictions may occur in that part of the borough from 7:30 to 9 am. A temporary No Parking area will exist along both sides of Main Street from Glover Avenue to Hanover Road, beginning on the evening of November 23, and will be lifted upon completion of the event. Residents are asked to make appropriate plans and allow for additional time if they need to travel in the borough during these times.